Emerstarian allotment system

Karl IV Lorens created the old allotment system in 1691

The allotment system (Emerstarian: Indelningsystemett) is a system used in Emerstari for keeping a trained military at all times. Two different allotment systems have been used in Emerstari; the first came into use in 1691, by order of Karl IV Lorens, and was replaced by the new allotment system in 1925.

Background

Up until 1691, the Royal Emerstarian Army consisted of a small contingent of professionally trained troops supplemented by both conscripted soldiers and enlisted mercenaries which were disbanded in peacetime to reduce costs. This made it nearly impossible to quickly mobilize a trained army. Karl IV Lorens, in 1691, issued the Skeppsby Decree, creating the old allotment system.

Old system

Foot

Contracts were written with duchies, stating that each county would have to raise and supply a regiment of 500 to 1,200 men in both wartime and peacetime. Usually, four farms would provide a croft, farmland and animals, and equipment for each soldier within a rotte (department); in return, the rotte would work for the farm. These farms would receive tax exemptions as well. A rotte consisted of ten men, and it was their duty to attend military drills. In times of war, one member of the rotte would be selected to report for duty. Those that were betrothed or deemed unfit for service by officers, however, would not be included in the selection. Most members of a rotte were men from ages 18 to 40. When a soldier of the rotte died or retired, the croft would be given to the new recruit even if it made the widow and children of that soldier homeless. The new recruit potentially would marry the widow, though, as it was viewed as some viewed it rotte's job to provide for the fallen serviceman's family. Royal manors, farms owned by nobility, and farms used as salary to government officials did not need to provide for a rotte.

Horse

While cavalry was placed into a different grouping, hasttrupp (Horse troop), the organization remained much the same as with foot soldiers. One hasttrup typically consisted of one estate, sometimes with a supporting farmer, with five horsemen; although, in some cases, it could consist of as many as seven horsemen.

Enlisted Regiments

Guards regiments, garrison regiments, and artillery were not part of the rotte and hasttrupp systems, and they recruited their soldiers through volunteer enlistment by the regiment itself.

Naval system

The Royal Emerstarian Navy recruited their seamen using the same system as the army, but from coastal counties. These recruits had only duties aboard the ships, such as artillerymen or sailors, and were not used for other combat duties such as boardings and landings, which were executed by army units transported on the ships. This practice was changed in 1734, though, when Erik VIII Olaf established the Royal Emerstarian Marine Corps.

Soldiers

Emerstarian rotte soldiers at a general muster in 1879 by Gustaf Karl Sedergren

Recruits in the late 17th century had to be physically and mentally fit, between 18 and 32 years old (18–36 from 1792, 18–30 from 1871), and at least 67 inches tall (lowered to 63 inches from 1792 to 1801 due to a shortage of recruits during the Wars of the Coalitions). Many soldiers served for more than 30 years as there was no service time stated in the contract; instead, they were discharged for a specific reason such as old age, injury, sickness, or commission of a crime. Discharges were generally only given at general musters, held once a year, when the whole regiment met.

Due to patronymic surnames being prevalent in Emerstari (Anderssen, Erikssen, or Olafssen), giving specific orders could be difficult. For this reason, when some soldiers appeared before the regimental military scribe, he was given a temporary service name, giving rise to Emerstarian soldier names. The name was short and was commonly related to the rotte: a soldier from the Nordby Rotte might be called Nordin. Soldier names from traits or military terms emerged as well such as Stolt ("Proud"), Djårf ("Brave"), or Svård ("Sword"). These nicknames were typically assumed by the soldier's replacement and stayed within the rotte. In the 18th century, it was common practice for a soldier to reassume their original name, but in the 19th century, it became fairly common to adopt their soldier names, passing it onto their children. In addition to soldier names, each member of the regiment was given a unique number between 1 and 1,000 (1,200 for regiments of that size).

Officers

Officers of a regiment were provided with a farm directly from the regiment's county, not from a rotte. They were, however, not paid a salary from the state, instead, receiving a portion of rotte members' tax payments. the officers' homes were loans rather than gifts, however, and their size and quality were proportionate to the occupants' rank. Officers' homesteads would be located in the same part of the duchy as the soldiers whom he would command in battle were. The officer thus would know the man he would lead.

New system

Kristoffer Gormund Nikolassen, Earl of Fylke, Chief of the Home Guard from 1934 to 1958

In 1903, President Frederik Sundstrom proposed that the allotment system required revision. Gaining the endorsement of Queen Elsa III Marie, the Special Congressional Committee to Reform the Emerstarian Allotment System was created. On 7 February 1904, the Special Committee submitted to the Foderellkongress plans for a new allotment system. After discussion and debate in Emerstari's legislature, an edited version was approved by Elsa III Marie. Originally, it was supposed to take effect in 1910, but it was postponed due to the outbreak of the 10 Years' War. In actuality, the new system took effect on 1 January 1925.

Reserve military

In the new allotment system, each duchy is required to provide at least ten companies. While the soldiers within are part of a rotte, they are not allotted crofts and farmland. Instead, they are a reserve force that can be summoned by the Emerstarian monarch with congressional approval. They can, though, be exempted if they are betrothed, have just built a house, built a farm, or are deemed unfit for service. Similarly to the old system, members of a rotte are required to attend military drills. Officers are not allotted farms either and are often promoted members of rottes. This force is not part of the Royal Emerstarian Army anymore either and is called the Emerstarian Home Guard, which can be in times of war, merged into the Royal Emerstarian Army, Air Force, and Navy. Since 1925, there are 470,000 Home Guard soldiers.