Kingdom of Kolhar
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Kingdom of Kolhar | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1813–1836 | |||||||||
 Flag | |||||||||
| Capital | Vakor | ||||||||
| Official languages | Kolhari | ||||||||
| Common languages | Kolhari | ||||||||
| Demonym(s) | Kolhari | ||||||||
| Government | Absolute monarchy | ||||||||
| King | |||||||||
• 1813-1830 (first) | Kublan Orus | ||||||||
• 1830-1836 (last) | Murek Orus | ||||||||
| Grand Councillor | |||||||||
| History | |||||||||
• Established | 1813 | ||||||||
• Disestablished | 1836 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
The Kingdom of Kolhar was a short-lived state established in 1813 by then-King of Kolhar Kublan Orus. It was established as part of the Kublan Reforms intended to bring Kolhar, then lagging behind many other nations in development, up to par with many of its regional peers, particularly Mito. Though short lived, it established the first unified Kolhari state where power was not explicitly divided along clan lines, marking a large shift in Kolhari governance at the time.
History
Government
King
Jinsan
The Kublan Reforms established the office of the Jinsan (Kolhari: ꡆꡞꡋꡛꡦꡋ, Katsazi: 丞相, roughly translating as "Grand Councillor"), which would roughly serve the role of a Prime Minister or Chancellor. The name was derived from that of the highest ranking executive office of the ancient Sheng dynasty. As well as being the chief advisor to the King, the Jinsan would draft edicts and had the power to make some decisions on their own without consulting the King, though the King retained a veto power over all of the Jinsan's decisions. The Jinsan under law would serve "at the King's discretion", meaning the King could dismiss the Jinsan at any time for any reason. Furthermore, while every Jinsan was a member of the National Council, the King officially could appoint whoever they wanted as the Jinsan without restriction.
Despite this, the Jinsan would hold significant political power and sway, able to influence decisions at the highest level. Almost all official documents were signed by the Jinsan, and many cabinet decisions were made by the Jinsan. The office would continue to hold this power until the Kingdom was made a protectorate under Mito following the Treaty of Paksir. The office would survive even after the treaty, continuing to officially exist as part of the local government of the Independent Territory of Kolhar albeit with significantly reduced powers.
National Council
Though legally an absolute monarchy where the King's powers were largely unchecked, the Kublan Reforms did establish a sort of semi-parliament in the form of the National Council. The National Council could make laws and decisions, though every decision it made could be vetoed by the King, with the National Council having no power to override the veto. Many laws passed through the National Council and eventually made its way to the King.
The National Council was made up of two houses; the Senate and the General Assembly. The Senate served as the upper house, made up of Kolhari nobility given lifetime appointments by the King. Much of the previous aristocracy with political positions were automatically given membership in the Senate. The General Assembly was officially made up of representatives voted by the public. However, voting rights were only extended to heads of households aged 24 and older who owned land and paid more than a certain amount of tax. This limited voting rights to roughly 1.3% of the population.
Attempts would be made by the General Assembly to expand suffrage, but none were successful as all laws needed to be agreed upon by both houses of the National Council before they could proceed to the Jinsan for approval. There were nearly 20 proposed laws to expand suffrage, all of which were blocked by the Senate.