Coronial Household of Kouralia

Coronial Household
Flag of the Crown Union
Agency Overview:
Agency of:	Kouralia
Formation:	2002 CE
Annual Budget:
Jurisdiction:	Kouralian Royal House
General Nature:	Royal household
Operational Structure:
Responsible Justiciar:	Justiciary of Public Safety
Lord Steward:
Master of the Household:
Private Secretary:
Headquarters:
Personnel:
Total Staff:	108,000

The Sovereign of the Crown Union of Kouralia is the hereditary head of state of the nation, occupying the office of "Crown-bearer" and having responsibility for acting as the Constitution's guardian and as the nation's foremost representative, at home and abroad. They act as a fourth branch of Government that is separate to the Executive, Legislature, and Judiciary. Because of this, they are served by a staff organisation entirely separate from the Adjutant Clerks known as the Coronial Household.

History

The Coronial Household had its origins in the ancient and medieval Kouralian monarchy which had a much less strict separation of powers from the Sovereign. In those times the Sovereign usually concurrently held offices which exercised different constitutional functions, Officers of the Royal Household held those roles - or particular separations did not exist. In that time it acted as the core of the Royal Court that was largely responsible for governing the country. Most senior offices within the Royal Households were held by nobles who aquired their position through sycophancy and would usually then endeavour to embezzle as much wealth and temporal power from the Crown while they held office, as well as acting predominantly in the best interests of the Sovereign rather than the nation.

With the 1963 Republican Revolution the Royal Household was abolished and its functions were taken on by the Presidential Staff, which had a subordinate Personal Staff that maintained an equivalent level of service for the incumbent. Meanwhile the Kouralian Monarchy-in-exile maintained its own, considerably smaller Household to assist them as a private staff and also in acting as a contender for the role of Head of State of Kouralia.

When the Republic was brought to an end in 2001, the Presidential Staff was dissolved and the monarchy reinstated. The terms of the Coronial Referendum of 2001 firmly established a strict constitutional separation of powers, and acted as a hard-reset button for the Kouralian state. In the following months, a succession of Statutes were written and passed by the Senate to disband various Republican institutions and re-establish necessary replacement offices and agencies. In February 2002 the structure and role of the Coronial Household was established as part of the 2002 Statute of Coronial Affairs.

Household Branches

The Coronial Household is divided into three principal branches: The Personal Household, the State Household, and the Temporal Household. The latter two also support other members of the Royal House, but primarily answer to the Sovereign. There are also smaller, subordinate Personal Households that serve the other close members of the Royal Family. Overall, the Coronial Household is headed by the Crown Steward, who also directly heads the State Household Branch. The role of Crown Steward is appointed by the Sovereign on the advice of the Government, unlike the heads of the other branches who are appointed solely at the discretion of the Sovereign. They also chair the Coronial Household Board and are responsible for acting as the Sovereign's representative in planning state events.

Personal Household

The Personal Household is responsible for supporting the person of the Sovereign - including in medical and spiritual matters as well as those that are clerical. The Personal Household is headed by the First and Principal Private Secretary to the Sovereign, who ranks foremost amongst the Private Secretaries of other members of the Royal House. The Private Secretary is the principal channel of communication between the monarch and the government and also has responsibility for the official programme and correspondence of the Sovereign, as well as being a key advisor. As Senior Operational Member of the Personal Household they rank before any other secretaries, and are assisted by the Senior and Junior Assistant Private Secretaries to the Sovereign.

The First and Principal Private Secretary to the Sovereign heads the Private Secretary's Office. It is responsible for liaising with Government to ensure that the Sovereign is consulted and updated by the Justiciaries, and to provide advice on political, constitutional, or governmental questions. It is also responsible for maintaining the Sovereign's programme, which includes liaising with various households and public bodies to secure the provision of hospitality and transport, as well as ensuring a full schedule for the Sovereign to best carry out their duties. Finally, in managing all correspondence of the Sovereign the Private Secretary's office is responsible for drafting speeches and writing congratulatory notes to citizens, as well as press releases, private papers, the Crown Archive and the website of the monarchy. Subordinate to the Private Secretary's Office is the Press Secretary's Office, the Military Secretary's Office and the Political Secretary's Office. Finally, the First and Principal Private Secretary to the Sovereign has responsibility for overseeing and approving the security policy for the Sovereign - though all tactical and operational matters are undertaken by career soldiers or Watchmen.

The First and Principal Aide-de-Camp to the Sovereign is a senior personal assistant to the Sovereign of the rank of Captain (OF-5). They may be of any service branch. They also oversee a more junior Aide-de-Camp from each service. The Aides-de-Camp have a role as personal assistants to their charge as well as advising them on matters of military protocol. Temporary Aides-de-Camp may also br drawn from the three services, such as to assist guests at state events. When not required by these duties, such Aides-de-Camp have other military staff roles.

The First Assistant Treasurer to the Crown is the chief financial officer of the Personal Household of the Sovereign, and is responsible for their personal finances as well as organisational budgetary management including pay-roll. They answer both to the First and Principal Private Secretary, but also the Treasurer to the Crown of the State Household.

The First Assistant Diplomatic Marshal to the Crown is the Sovereign's personal link with foreign Diplomats in Kouralia as well as being responsible for assisting the Private Secretary in organising events abroad by liaising with the Kouralian embassy in that country. When abroad, the First Assistant Diplomatic Marshal is responsible for day-to-day liaision between the host nation and the Sovereign's party.

The Sovereign Temple is the office of those priests who are responsible for personally attending to the Sovereign, as well as acting as resident priests at particular palaces or establishments.

There is a Physician-General to the Crown who is responsible for administratively managing all medical matters relating to the Sovereign and their family, as well as any number of assistants. Theirs is the only full-time role in the Medical Household, as other appointments are carried out in addition to their medical practices. Any doctor or medical professional may be appointed as a Crown Physician, Crown Surgeon, or Crown Apothecary - and once so appointed they retain that title until it is removed from them or either they or the bequeathing monarch dies. The Sovereign may also be accompanied by a Medical Officer to the Sovereign from one of the three armed services when travelling abroad, who may be assisted by a full medical staff if necessary.

Each other member of the Royal Family has their own Personal Household. Though they may be independent in every practical sense, they do answer to the First and Principal Private Secretary to the Sovereign and through them to the Crown Steward. This ensures that there is no clash in scheduling, and that junior members of the royal household act in accordance with custom and required professional standards.

Ancillary Appointments

Within the Personal Household of the Sovereign there are a number of additional honorific appointments which are within the personal gift of the monarch. These hold no power or financial benefit, but are bestowed on artists whose work is deemed to capture the mood and sensitivities of the nation. This includes the Master of Music to the Sovereign, the Crown Poet, and

State Household

Notionally the Captain of the Coronial Flight and the Captain of the Crown Yacht are also members of the Temporal Household, however as serving military officers they answer to their commanders just as much as they do to the Steward.

Temporal Household

The Temporal Household is responsible for the day-to-day running and staffing of Crown Palaces throughout Kouralia, including Domestic Staff, groundskeepers and gardeners, the Crown Kitchens, and the Crown Mews. The Temporal Household is headed by the Master of the Household, and is made up of various departments. Certain establishments run permanently, while other sections travel itinerantly with the Sovereign. For example, when in Kurton there is a permanent full kitchen, but if travelling to Chieti then a smaller kitchen staff will often travel with the Sovereign to provide. Every Palace has a permanent staff, even if it is not in current use.

The Temporal Staff also includes the Crown Mews, which is responsible both for maintaining and running the State Limousines and carriages, and also caring for the horses that pull the latter. This includes their general upkeep, that they are in good mechanical condition, and for conducting annual roadworthiness tests on them. The Crown Mews is also responsible for maintaining any personal cars of the Sovereign or Royal Family - including maintenance, cleaning, taxing and insuring. The Crown Mews does not provide drivers for any of the vehicles as these are all trained Watchmen, though it does provide coachmen for the Carriages.