Kho-hitn
| Kho-hitn 'Soul Tree' | |
|---|---|
| Native name | Template:Native name checker |
| Species | Yellow Cedar (Callitropsis nootkatensis) |
| Height | 83.8 m (275 ft) |
| Diameter | 11 m (36 ft) |
| Volume of trunk | 1,487 m3 (52,500 cu ft) |
| Date seeded | 369 CE |
Meiana Weillo, more well known as the current kho-hitn is a yellow cedar (Callitropsis nootkatensis) tree located at an elevation of 2,109 m (6,919 ft) above sea level in The Imperial Palace complex of Rhodevus in Kingstown, in the Rhodeve Province of Yztal. By volume, it is one of the oldest living trees on Earth. It is estimated to be around 1,600 years old.
While Meiana Weillo is the official name for the tree, as the current Kho-hitn (English: Soul Tree) of Rhodevus, it is the Rhodevus Sovereign. As the true head of state for the country, all perpetual rulings, ownership of the country (i.e., "right to rule"), and ownership of the crown jewels belong to the Kho-hitn in perpetuity and are only granted to the reigning government during their establishment.
History of Kho-hitn
Pre-History
First mentions of a 'Wise Tree' date back to nearly 3,000 BCE with the Lirban people who were among the first inhabitants of the region, sailing north and making landfall in the Mentoshi Island Chain before venturing onto the mainland in the modern province of Tundos. These trees, unlike the 'Soul Tree' are likely ones which appeared to hold faces within their park; whether they be chiselled or formed naturally. The Lirban Tribe placed some significance in finding such faces in nature, regarding them to be spirits locked within the objects.
Circa 2,300 BCE the first carvings which can be dated back to the Laaban Retwa Tribe, which consist of mentions to Buula, a tall cedar tree which grew on a hill and possessed a face within its bark. This is the first named instance for a 'Wise Tree' and some scholars believe this to be the first recorded instance of the Soul Tree. The Laaban Retwa were a proto-tribe and precursor to the Laaban Tribe, which gives some backing to the theory that Buula was the first Soul Tree.
About 600 years later, a hill in modern Kingstown was planted with a single yellow cedar plant, taken from a seed and sapling belonging to Buula or a seed from Buula's descendants. The tree which given the name Kho'hitn and is the de facto originator for the Soul Tree. While modern and pre-modern scholars considered the word Kho-hitn to mean 'Soul Tree' in English, the root Kho'h is better defined as "long travelled" and itn as "to rest" or "resting". There is some debate as to why the modern translation became what it is, but both Laaban and Tanduk researchers consider it to be true in spirit, if not linguistically accurate.
Kho'hitn would burn down sometime around 1000 BCE, approximately around the same time that the Laaban Empire collapses, and the Laaban tribe splits into multiple native groups, and the core of Laaban society falls back to the modern day Imperial City of Rhode. As tradition dictated, a sapling from Kho'hitn was placed where its mother stood, and named Qebalsa Tulki.
Qebalsa Tulki would live until 369 CE, where it was replaced by Meiana Weillo due to unknown causes. This Soul Tree is the current Kho-hitn and still alive to this day.
Pre-Colonization
Colonization
The settlement of Kingstown was first established in 1458 by Irish Catholics fleeing West from the predominantly protestant English colonists of the time. Though not knowing the cultural and historical significance of the site, the settlement as Kingstown would soon include two sets of wood and stone walls, as well as a formidable militia, due to constant raiding by native peoples. It would not be until the early 16th century and during the Rhodevan-Colonial Wars that the true nature of Kho-hitn was revealed, and thus Kingstown became a focal point for colonial expansion and conquest within the island mainland.
The Republic of Rhodevus
With the establishment of the First Grande Rhodeve Republic, more commonly known as the Republic of Rhodevus, The Triarchy Pact was put into law, finalizing the Triumvirate Alliance of 1705 and solidifying the agreements made between the English and French colonists, and the native peoples represented by the Laaban tribe in the Triarchy Pact Meetings between 1705 and independence in 1715.
One of the first clauses discussed in the written agreement was that of the role of Kho-hitn within the republic system of government. With the role of president and state governors established within the original Rhodeve constitution, The Triarchy Pact included the first reference to the "Rhodevus Sovereign". While there was no mention to the word Kho-hitn, rather, no mention of any words in native languages aside from English, the rights and responsibilities of the Rhodevus Sovereign were settled on. Such responsibilities included that of being the primary symbol of the Triarchy Pact itself, that following the Laaban tradition, those that control the tree control the island, and that no one leader could claim to control more wealth than the Rhodevus Sovereign. This final responsibility was used by the Laaban peoples on behalf of all native grounds in the country to ensure that colonists couldn't strip the country of its worth [1][2]
The Kingdom of Rhodevus
Cultural Significance
While the monarch of Rhodevus is the head of state of the country, Kho-hitn, or the 'Soul Tree' in English is known as the Rhodevus Sovereign. According to the constitution itself, the true royalty of Rhodevus is Kho'hitn, which is a Yellow Cedar Tree. Holding extreme significance to multiple native tribes as well as spiritual significance to the Laaban Tribe, the Soul Tree is considered the de facto leader of the country and the monarch; or president before them, are just the human representative of the Soul Tree.
The crown worn by each reigning monarch is made from the bark of the tree. When the monarch dies, their crown is burned, meaning that no two crowns are alike and no original versions of any past crowns survive to this day. The Soul Tree is located in Kingstown, and the Imperial Palace is built around it, so that the monarch sits with their back to the tree and the House of Commons faces both the tree and monarch.
The royal collection, jewels and residences are all held by the monarch, but owned in perpetuity by Kho-hitn
Dimensions
| Height above base | 274.9 ft | 83.8 m |
|---|---|---|
| Circumference at ground | 102.6 ft | 31.3 m |
| Maximum diameter at base | 36.5 ft | 11.1 m |
| Diameter 4.50 ft (1.37 m) above height point on ground | 25.1 ft | 7.7 m |
| Girth Diameter 60 ft (18 m) above base | 17.5 ft | 5.3 m |
| Diameter 180 ft (55 m) above base | 14.0 ft | 4.3 m |
| Diameter of largest branch | 6.8 ft | 2.1 m |
| Height of first large branch above the base | 130.0 ft | 39.6 m |
| Average crown spread | 106.5 ft | 32.5 m |
| Estimated bole volume | 52,508 cu ft | 1,487 m3 |
See also
References
External links
- ↑ The "Third Responsibility" has been referenced in multpiple court cases, including John Brown Company v State 1771 in which the John Brown Company lobbied the senate into removing restrictions to lumber harvesting and fire-based clear cutting of forests in order to retrieve the iron veins discovered beneath it. The Vertson State court ruled in favour of the state and against the removal of restrictions under the basis that the removal of the metal and lumber sources for purpose in selling oversees constituted a reduction of wealth from the Rhodevus Sovereign.
- ↑ Lefoux Royale v State 1783 ruled that the prominent diamond mine company could extract and sell the resource abroad, confirming that the inherent removal of natural resources was not the issue in the earlier 1771 ruling, but of the clear natural destruction of one resoce in favour of another. This was decided within the Cappilan State court and confirmed within the federal appeals court, citing the "Third Responsibility" as a matter of ensuring the continued use of all natural resources in a matter to improve the stability and strength of Rhodevus under the Rhodevus Sovereign.