Administrative divisions of Themiclesia

The administrative divisions of Themiclesia are geographical areas administered by a regional authority responsible for implementing the decisions of the central government. Themiclesia is a unitary state, though local authorities have a range of specified powers in order to encourage regional diversity and development. The current administrative system developed directly as a continuation of the ancient one, and compared to the central government, local government has evolved comparatively little; Themiclesia for most of its history was highly centralized, necessitating a highly-developed local bureaucracy to ensure social control from above. Most of the types of regional divisions are cognate with those in Menghe, though the meanings of some terms have shifted in one country or the other.

Terminology

The term "national territory" is generally translated as kjang-kriais (疆界) in Shinasthana, though this is not a perfect translation. The latter conveys the meaning of "border" more accurately, especially a defensive, fortified one. Another term, pran'-do (版圖) is also seen occasionally, though this term literally means "household records [and] land surveys", referring to the area in which the government exercises administrative control. The term gwians-kwal (縣官) refers to the area in which agricultural revenues are paid into the Great Exchequer (大內令); as Themiclesia was primarily an agrarian state in the remote past, agricultural revenues were taken as the basis of statehood and used to judge the extent of the state's power.

First-level divisions

Themiclesia is divided into 41 first-level divisions. With the exceptions of the region containing the capital city and the several that cover the sparsely-populated eastern half of the country, there are 35 prefectures (郡, kljuls).

Prefectures

Each prefecture is jointly governed by the governor (守, stju’), the marshal (尉, ’wjeis), and the tribune-comptroller (監御史, kram-ngjah-srje’).

The governor, responsible for general administration, is appointed by the central government; it is a political office. His term lasts as long as the government that appointed him remains in power. It is rare for a governor to be dismissed, as they are unlikely to be caught in political controversies. It is also a position where discredited Cabinet ministers find themselves, expecting that their popularity or reputation would be rehabilitated by a period of lesser activity or exposure; on the other hand, a junior minister appointed as a governor would often be seen as promoted. Governors have comparatively little autonomy and few subordinates, and they mostly serve a supervisory purpose in the local (county-level) implementation of government policy. The governor's principle assistant is the secretary (丞, gljing).

The marshal is responsible for the recruitment, maintenance, equipment, and training of the prefecture's militia. As this duty has largely been subsumed by the Ministry of Defence, the office is ceremonial. Prior to the modern period, each prefecture controlled of a group of reservists, whose offspring remained reservists. Males aged 23 would be called up for a three-year rotation, with two years at the border and one at the capital city, as a palace guard. Thereafter, he alternated between three-year furloughs and two-year rotations in defensive positions locally or on the border. The prefectural marshal was responsible for his provisions if he was locally-positioned. When bandit groups appeared within the prefecture, he also directed the militia to suppress them. When a larger force was assembled, the marshal ensured that the order was authentic before releasing his militia. While not suggested by the title, the marshal was invariably a civilian official, and he led several departments that trained specialists, e.g. cavalry, crossbowmen, and chariot troops.

The tribune-comptroller is an ombudsman for the prefecture. He accepts allegations of official misbehaviour and investigates them, proceeding to recommend charges if required.

Inner Region

The quasi-prefectural region around the capital city is called the Inner Region, named for its governor, the Inner Administrator (內史). Historically, the Inner Region was not considered a prefecture, because counties there answered directly to the central government, being the heartland of the Tsjinh state that unified Themiclesia, and regions coming under the control of Tsjinh were placed under prefectures. For this reason, the Inner Region is also called "county" (邦, state) in some texts, though this use is suppressed in view of its derogatory connotation. The Inner Administrator, who was also the central government's finance minister, exercised supervision in financial matters over these counties; however, his portfolio gradually grew to become analogous to other prefectural governors, and today the Inner Region is a prefecture in all but name. The analogue of prefectural marshals is the Capital Marshal (中尉, trjung-′wjedh), though his duties contrasted slightly with theirs. He led the Capital Defence Force (中軍, trjung-kwljel), a standing formation of the Inner Region's militia. Whereas only a small fraction of militiamen from other prefectures would be on duty at given time, the CDF were kept at a state of readiness. As with the prefectural marshals, the integration of the CDF into the Themiclesian Army has left this a purely ceremonial position. There is no analogue of the tribune-comptroller, as the Inner Region is thought to be within the direct purview of the Colleges of Tribunes.

Eastern Territories

The eastern part of the country is governed as the Eastern Territories (東域長史部).

List of first-level divisions

Name		Alternate name		Postal Code	Counties	Capital
Inner Region	内史	Tsjins Inner Region	晉内史	10	32	Kien-k'ang	建康
Srian-lang	山陽			11	18	Ra	魯
Gar-nup	河內			12	12	Gwrei	懷
Gar-nem	河南			13	22	Lap	葉
Klju-ngjuan	九原			14	13	Ngla'	輿
Srian-'rjem	山陰			15	14	'rjeng	凌
Gar-ngwais	河外			16	11	'an-'jep	安邑
Pek	北			17	9	De'	代
Gwin	弦			18	10	Trjang-tsje	長子
Rjem-hme	臨海			19	24	Blim-tsi	臨淄
Tsjins-brjiang	晉平			20	11	Gaw	顥
Nem-t'uar	南陲			21	15	'ju-rjem	幽林
Nem-diars	南地			22	17	Liang'	郢
Prjin	濱			23	24	La-law	餘姚
Rak	洛			24	29	Rak-lang	洛陽
Rjem-law	臨洮			25	16	Gra-'jep	下邑
Pjang-nup	房內			26	15	K'jok-lang	曲陽
Gwrjiang-lang	潁陽			27	13	Sdjuh-t'jun	壽春
Duh-nem	道南			28	10	Nem-brjiang	南平
Dzjuan-trjung	泉中	'rjeng Inner Region	應内史	29	12	Sjang	湘
Pjang-ngwais	房外			30	5	Nglja-lang	漁陽
'rjengs	應			31	15	Ngrakw-djing	樂成
'jong	雍	Dem Inner Region	滕内史	32	18	Drjang-'an	長安
Sngja	許	Djang	上	33	14	Kjung'	鞏
Gat	葛	Gra-tong	下東	34	12	Brjiang-djing	平城
Duar	隨	Gra-ser	下西	35	10	Pjan-lang	繁陽
Brjiang-niang	平寧	Kem Inner Region	干内史	36	18	Sjei	喜
'wen-lang	溫陽	De'	戴	37	15	Sjing-la'	新野
'wen-'rjem	溫陰	Sjing	莘	38	13	Lan-brjiang	延平
Gwrjiang-'an	永安	Gwjat	滑	39	19	Ngljakw-lang	櫟陽
Dzuar-ding	左庭			40	11	Kaw-'rjeng	高陵
Gwrje-ding	右庭			41	8	Rju'	柳
Sem-t'jun	三川			42	22	Trjung-lang	中陽
Gwjiang-tong	瀅東			43	13	Gwjen-trjung	雲中
Gwjiang-ser	瀅西			44	18	Stjang	商
Sjeh	汜			45	15	Ngja-'rjem	浯陰
Sngrak-pjang	朔方			46	3	Trjung-'ang	中安

Second-level divisions

Counties

Counties (縣, gwians) compose of prefectures. There are 540 counties in total, each covering an area with around 20,000 to 40,000 people during the early 19th century, before Themiclesia urbanized due to industrialization. Currently, counties often fall between 30,000 and 60,000 people, as a result of rural depopulation, which remains an ongoing, albeit more sedate, process. The administrator of a country is elected. There are two titles for this position, 縣令 (gwians-mlings) or 縣長 (gwians-drjang’), but both are rendered in Tyrannian as "Magistrate". Nominally, counties with over 10,000 households had the former, while those with less, the latter, there being a difference in rank between the two; since these positions are now elected, rank ceases to be relevant.

Counties are considered the fundamental units of Themiclesian administration. Most counties known today were established before or during the Meng Dynasty (543–752) and have remained remarkably stable in their borders and internal structures. Having a sedentary, agicultural culture, the arable areas of established county are unlikely to be changed except by irrigation works, which were largely handled by local labour and initiative. While county leaders were appointed centrally through most of history, assemblies, led by local gentry, possessed considerable influence over the implementation of central policies. Most civilian policies also occurred on the county level, and the prefectural militia also heavily relied on county-level administration. Civic activities, such as the spring and autumn harvest festivities, were also organized by the county independently. Themiclesians are thus much more likely to have an affinity towards counties than prefectures.

Market counties

While rural counties steadily lost population, a handful of counties are much more populous than average because they contain urban areas. The capital city, Kien-k'ang County, has a population over 4 million; there are 34 other counties that have populations over 250,000. Such counties most often correspond to the site of the prefectural government or regional centres of commerce. In the local government reforms of 1901, they became designated as market counties (會縣, gops-gwians), which are given some additional allowances in staff and budget to administer their larger population and to maintain urban conveniences. Urban environments became unsanitary and had inadequate social services during the period of rapid industrialization between 1860 and 1880; the reforms addressed these problems by establishing local clinics and subsidized pharmacies, which were administered by the county. In Tyrannian, such market counties are often labelled as "cities" for economy of words.

Third-level divisions

There are two types of third-level administrative divisions, the village (鄉) and the commune (里).

Village

Villages are found in rural areas. The administrator of a village is called a village alderman (鄉良人).

Commune

Communes cover more densely settled locales, such as the local market or, in the case of an urban county, residential areas. The elected administrator of a commune is a commune administrator (里正). While the nominal commune has around 2,000 to 5,000 invidiauls living in its jurisdiction, Kien-k'ang's communes may have as many as 250,000, which is as many as several counties or an entire urban county; this exceptional situation is provided for by specific legislation.

Historical changes

Themiclesian prefectures, c. 1700

See also

• Themiclesia
• Administrative divisions of Menghe