Royal Signals Corps (Themiclesia)
The Royal Signals Corps or Demesne Signals Corps (中都兵, trjung-ta-prjang) is the signal corps of the Consolidated Army.
History
A communications department (都兵曹, ta-prjang-dzaw) was founded under the traditional Ministry of War during the 4th century, centrally managing conveyances throughout the Tsjinh State. The department organized a network of stage stations (驛, ljek) where couriers (郵, gwrje) could rest or change horses, which galloped day and night to deliver urgent military messages to the central government and other bodies. While the department had few duties concerning warfare directly, it has since become a fixture in Themiclesian military. The department's purview was extended to border outposts and scouting in the 5th century. Outposts were ordered to make smoke, which conveyed emergencies across long distances relatively quickly; where secrecy was necessary, signalmen on horseback conveyed messages from outpost to outpost, which behaved like stage stations in the interior. Military bands also fell under its jurisdiction. This was probably because Themiclesians utilized musical instruments to co-ordinate large armies from a distance.
In the 6th century, the department began to take private messages for delivery, and stage stations along important routes also functioned as inns. Accredited individuals found horses and accommodation at public expense, and others could use their facilities for a fee. Travellers received entitlements according to rank, the most important exchanging eight quadriga (八乘傳, prêt-djeng-drjon; 32 horses in total) at every station; ordinary civil servants normally used two. The signalmen (傳卒, drjon-tsut) at the station were required to escort travellers if entitled to; the image of aristocrats travelling and exchanging horses and escorts became one of the most prolific in literature and art. The same occurred when important items were transferred along these routes. When foreign diplomats arrived in Themiclesia, signalmen provided fanfares and escorts to the capital city.
Signalmen adopted muskets in the 17th century in addition to their melée weapons to defend themselves in the remote or hostile landscape; those stationed in the interior followed. In 1857, the department was ordered to set up a long-distance telegraph system for both military and civilian use, much as the postal service. These lines connected less profitable but strategically-valuable locations that commercial lines did not reach. Transmission was at a considerable cost, so it existed in parallel to the ordinary postal service. Horseback courier service persisted into the 20th century and was not abolished until telephone lines reached the most remote of communities. While the RSC was increasingly integrated into ordinary units towards the end of the century, it retained primacy in military intelligence, especially in border regions where defences were distributed amongst isolated garrisons and ethnic forces. It maintained its own foot and mounted units that defended its installations and performed scouting missions. The RSC's units were some of Themiclesia's more effective, since recruitment was voluntary and training rigourous.