Standing, grade, and vestments (Themiclesia)

The civil service of Themiclesia, as the primary administrative organization in the nation's history, observes a complex set of rules that govern absolute and relative seniority between its members, eligibility, and compensation.

Rural Class

The Rural Class (鄉品, hjang-p′rjem′) is obtained through the now-archaic process of rural deliberation that, according to a geographically distributive scheme, assessed the standing of candidates through popular opinion; the same process would give rise to a limited degree of representative government before the modern period. During the Tsjinh, Sungh, and Rjang dynasties, every five years, the central government sent Impartials (中正官, trjung-tjengh-kwal) to rural communities, where (mostly aristocratic) candidates who wished to enter government would submit themselves to the rural deliberation of the region's gentry. Each candidate was ranked on a scale of nine classes, with First Class being the highest, and Ninth Class, the lowest. In reality, First Class was unobtainable, and Second Class was limited to one candidate per prefecture per season. As this category was generally reserved for the most prominent aristocratic families, it was also called the "Noble Class". Third Class and Fourth Class candidates were restricted to two and eight per season, respectively, and were called the "Base Class". Candidates rated at Fifth Class through Seventh Class were denied the service proper, but could hold minor offices in the locality; Eighth Class and Ninth Class were rejected completely.

While the precise process in which the ratings were granted is secret, the local public is known to have played a significant role in its operation. A highly aristocratic candidate, though enormously advantaged compared to one without family background, could fail to receive a high rating if the local public were strongly against him for poor conduct or reputation. As a rule, Rural Class determines where the candidate started his official career and the highest position he could achieve. Typically, but not universally, the "initial appointment" (起家官, kje′-kra-kwal) was four ranks lower than the Rural Rank. A Second Class candidate was, by custom, nominated as either a Protonotary-Gentleman or Librarian-Gentleman, both of which were Sixth Class positions; a Third Class or Fourth Class candidate might become a county magistrate or secretary, Seventh and Eighth Class positions respectively. The initial appointment was valued as it had a great impact on a bureaucrat's career path; an initial appointment in the central government is more conducive to a political career, while one to the local magistracies was perceived as limiting. The Rural Class also represented the highest Official Class a civil servant could achieve; a Second Class in Rural Class meant that the highest Official Class obtainable was Second Class, though this was not guaranteed. A Third Class candidate was, theoreically, eligible to become head of government (a Third Class position), but never happened once has it occurred.