Caledon titles

(Edit 14 July: There is now a Caledon titles page on the slhistory wiki, where you can make corrections, additions, and deletions.)

At one of the recent dances in Caledon, there was a brief conversation about titles and forms of address in Caledon. There was some jesting about Burke’s Peerage or Begonia’s Peepage. Baron Bardhaven stated that there aren’t that many titled personalities in Caledon, so I went ætherically hunting. And he’s right, or at least, I couldn’t find many.

While it’s all just fun and games, with a little role-playing here, a little prentension there, and a good dash of healthy fantasy life, the use of titles does do one thing, which I believe we must have a care about: Titles, especially for those who are new or who do not know the titles being bandied about, create a sense of an in-group. Now I believe that all groups have boundaries (some permeable, some semi-permeable, some closed), and that individuals can be closer or farther from the center. But I also believe that the common hope of all Caledonians is that our society will be free, open, and inviting.

In the spirit of making Caledonian society more open and inviting as regards formal address, having consulted the fine, though brief, histories available at the Caledon Forums and the slhistory wiki (which appears to be down at this writing), done some cursory searches of the æthernet, and paid attention at a couple of recent parties, I venture this very rough draft of the residents and friends of the Independent State of Caledon who affect titles. I encourage all those who read this to offer correction, addition, and commentary. When I am a bit more confident of the list, I shall add it to the slhistory wiki and submit it to the editor of the Caledon Forums for appropriate placement.

(Forms of address, where I know a preference or general practice, are noted in parentheses. Sir Edward Pearse has begun a series of notes on forms of address.)

Proprietor

  • Guvnah Desmond Shang (Guvnah, Des)

Stewards

  • Khashai Steinbeck, First Steward of Caledon
  • Sir Gerami Fizz
  • Princesa Yuiko Muromachi
  • Vicereine Kamilah Hauptmann, Last Steward of Caledon

Duchies

  • Her Grace, Gabrielle Riel, Duchess of Carntaigh (Your Grace)
  • Her Grace, Eva Bellambi, Duchess Loch Avie (Your Grace)
  • Her Grace, CoyoteAngel Dimsum, Duchess of Primverness, Baroness Lovelace, Defender of the Faith(less), Keeper of the Light (Beer), Speaker to Machines
  • Her Grace, Kamilah Hauptmann, Duchess of Lionsgate
  • ?? Shenlei Flasheart (former Duchess of Loch Avie)

Knights

  • Ordinal Malaprop, Knight of Caledon
  • Leosanni Somme, Knight of Caledon

Titled Caledonians

  • Baron of Bauerhoff Gottfried Eusebio
  • Amber Palowakski, 15th Baroness of Bauerhoff de Caledon (Lady Amber, My Lady)
  • Zealot Benmergui, Baron Bardhaven (Lord Bardhaven, Baron Bardhaven)
  • Kirawill Collingwood, Baroness Bardhaven (Lady Bardhaven, Baroness Bardhaven)
  • Hermione Fussbudget, Baroness Wyre (Miss Fussbudget, Baroness Wyre, Lady Wyre)
  • Lady Pym Sartre
  • Lady Lavendar Beaumont
  • Sir Edward Pearse (Sir Edward)
  • Christine McAllister, Lady Pearse (Lady Pearse)
  • Sir ZenMondo Wormser, Order of the Red Rose (Sir ZenMondo, Sir Zen)
  • Sir Telemachus Dean, Order of the Red Rose (Sir Telemachus, Sir Tele)
  • Sir Adso Krogstad, Order of the Red Rose (Sir Adso)
  • Sir Amplebeak Tinlegs (Sir Amplebeak)

Foreign titles

  • Her Majesty Kendra Bancroft, Kaiserin von Neualtenburg
  • His Serenity Otenth Paderborn, Jarl of Orcadia (Otenth; Your Serenity if you absolutely must on formal occasions: it’s an old germanic influence)

Military rank

(I confess to confusion and inability to keep up. The following is so woefully incomplete I hesitate to even reveal it. Won’t someone else, I beg of you, take up this gauntlet?)

  • Major Erasmus Margulis
  • Captain Lapin Paris
  • Admiral Carricre Wind
  • Colonel/Post-Captain Hotspur O’Toole
  • Colonel Exrex Somme

8 Replies to “Caledon titles”

  1. My dear Miss Fussbudget,

    A worthy effort indeed. I believe that there will be some greater order to these matters as I know that the courts of both Loch Avie and Carntaigh will be reorganizing and expanding in days to come.

    In the mean time, may I make the following amendments to your excellent work.

    For the purposes of unified Caledonian Heraldry, their are four Ducal Courts currently in Caledon (though that may soon be expanded as more void Sims are added).

    They are as follows:
    # Her Grace, Gabrielle Riel, Duchess of Carntaigh (Your Grace)
    # Her Grace, Eva Bellambi, Duchess Loch Avie (Your Grace)
    # Her Grace, CoyoteAngel Dimsum, Duchess of Primverness, Baroness Lovelace, Defender of the Faith(less), Keeper of the Light (Beer), Speaker to Machines
    # Her Grace, Vicereine Kamilah Hauptmann, Duchess of Lionsgate

    Currently the Barony of Bardhaven is held in feifdom under the Duchy of Loch Avie (though additional titles may soon attach themselves). Therefore myself and the Baroness are both vassals in the Court of Loch Avie.

    The following Knights of the red Rose are also vassals to the Court of Loch Avie:

    # Sir ZenMondo Wormser, Order of the Red Rose (Sir ZenMondo, Sir Zen)
    # Sir Telemachus Dean, Order of the Red Rose (Sir Telemachus, Sir Tele)
    # Sir Adso Krogstad, Order of the Red Rose (Sir Adso)

    Sir Edward and Lady Pearse are vassals to the Court of Carntaigh I believe.

    As for the rest, I am unsure.

    As to military rank, I fear they are currently too diverse and complicated to note in any sort of rational list. I myself am both a Major and Lt. Col. Don’t ask me how.

  2. Lady Hermionne, my brother, Colonel (Ret. HMS Artillery), Gottfried Lord Eusebio abdictated his authority to me as Baroness of Bauerhoff de Caledon. We are considered a Crown Barony…that is, we are not part of the court of any higher nobility, except the Crown’s, in this case, the Crown’s representative, Governor (Guv’nah) Desmond Shang, as our Barony came into existence before there were any “official” Caledon Duchies. Sir Alex Chadbourne is a knight of the Bauerhoff Estate…though seldom seen, he is still a Caledon Landowner. As well, Americanpsycho98 Book will soon also be knighted as a Knight of the Bauerhoff Estate. As an aside, His Grace Lord Puck Goodliffe, though seldom seen in Caledon these days, is a Duke preceeding the official Caledon Duchies.

  3. According to Kamilah Hauptmann, she is the only one of the original Stewards still in that position. I know for a fact that Khashai Steinbeck is no longer involved with Caledon and I’m fairly certain that while Mr. Fizz still maintains a branch of Fizzworks in Caledon, he is no longer Steward. I know Charlene Trudeau is currently a Steward, and I believe the other three Duchesses are Stewards, I know there are others with Steward powers, thought I’m not sure if they’re officially called Stewards

    I have taken to referring to Shenlei as Lady Flasheart, since she renounced her Duchy by choice.

    I know the Court of Carntaigh will be holding some new investitures soon but I can’t say anything further on that.

    I would lastly seek clarification of Lady Amber’s assertion that the Guvnah is as representative of the Crown. As Caledon is “The Independent State of Caledon” that would make Des the ruler in his own right. Our “benevolent dictator”.

  4. In my observation, there appears to be a primary and secondary class of nobility in Caledon.

    There are those who, somewhat like your Ladyship’s responsibilities in Weyre, enjoy estate management duties (in Caledon, for Guvnah Shang in abstentia). We have called them “Stewards”, now we call them “Duchesses”. This is the form of nobility I call “Nobility with Teeth” (beg pardon, Kamillah). Their status appears to be linked to either to Sim ownership or long-standing residency (in the Vicerine’s case, both). In my mind, these ARE the nobility, as they have the power to “wield the steel fist in the velvet glove”– e.g., they have the power to give the boot to the unwelcome and to delete the trash of the trespasser. That’s real power.

    The second class is more akin to true roleplaying, those that are either given titles by the previous class (Sir Edward, Baron Bardhaven, etc.) or are caught up in a detailed roleplaying scenario that essentially RPs being noble (Lady Amber, Baron Bardhaven before investiture). This class of noble benefits from consensual RP and the willingness of the Caledon Society to play along with the role– a thin tissue at times, but surprisingly durable over the long run. I consider the basic courtesy given to RPing one of the strongest selling points of Caledon.

    I don’t know if it’s appropriate to bring up in the same list, but there appears to be a third class of “casual” nobility cropping up, started by Her Highness, Princess Ellison (Princess of the Park). This group (and there is a no-kidding Group that just cropped up) seems to be devoted to the proposition “I’m noble because I want to be” (I know this, cuz I got elevated to the Peerage in an instant.. took about a minute in a half). I’m not sure how one would add these titles to the “Big Book of Caledon Nobility” but they appear to be as valid as the second class of nobles in fact. The ones I know of so far are:

    Princess Bryndal Ellison (Princess of the Park)
    Comtessa Hermoine Pennyfeather
    and of course,
    your humble servant.
    “Baron” O’Toole of Polymath

    Good luck figuring that out.

    As for the blend of military ranks, this is not something to stress over. I would consider this “Class Two” in ranking.. “I’m a Colonel cuz I say so”. I adopted the title of “Colonel” in fine old Victorian historical tradition. I bought it with a large donatio to SL RFL. Before that, I was (and suppose, AM) a Major in the regular, pre-existing militia formed by Col. Exrex Somme. Why? Because he made me one. Now, with the onset of the Caledon Lancer regiment, I am assuming a promotion in *another* fine old military tradition, I shelled out some dough to set it all up. 🙂 We are trying to run the group with “transparent rank” for once, and I hope the idea catches on. I think we sometimes get a little too puffed up with titles here in our beloved micronation. Oh? And the Post-Captain rank? I got it from Oolon, so I assume I am a Post-Captain when I am at the helm of a ship and a Colonel when my feet are on dry land. I suspect many other “military fellows and ladies” make the same distinction.

    A very nicely worded post, Lady F. I greatly enjoyed it. Pray keep up the fine work.

  5. First, in regards to Sir Edward’s comments…long ago, when I first discvered Caledon when it was only two sims, it was Guv’nah Desmond’s own words that he was a representative of “The Crown”. He may or may not remeber that statement, but I did. *grins* Secondly, in regards to my own investure, so to speak, I came to Caledon as a “transplant” noble…I rp’d as a Baroness before my discovery of Caledon, when I had 11,000+ sqm of land on the mainland. I was accepted by Des as a Baroness as such, which is one reason I am mentioned in the Caledon Covenant as being one of the “historical” nobility of Caledon. I was considered a Baroness, before there were any Caledon Duchies, and recognized by Desmond as such. Which is why I call myself a Crown Baroness…based on the fact that Des once stated he was a representative of the Crown, and was accepted as one of Caledon’s nobility before the Duchies ever existed.

  6. I have no rank or place in Caledon at all. I fall into the foreign area having created a back story to support my claim. Or maybe I am just a pretender those are certainly accurate both historically and now. I have heard it said that we have too many Colonels and not any enlisted or is everyone has a title who will be the commoners? But who really wants to be the ladies maid? Who wants to slop the pigs or see to the stables? In my mind those persons exist but because they do not move in our social circle, are unseen and unnoticed by us. One has only to tour a grand home of the era, watch an historically accurate film or read a novel to see to what great lengths the Victorians went to to keep the serving class out of sight and out of mind. Des makes us Aristocrats when we become citizens. If we are the aristocracy we can move in the same social circles as the Duchesses, if not, believe me we would NOT be included.

  7. I am surprised and flattered to find my own name in the list of titled Caldonians. But I think I might more properly be considered as having a foreign title, as my knighthood was granted by the Brotherhood of The Knights of The Order, a group dedicated to the sacred and ancient traditions of the Quest. I was inducted to the Brotherhood prior to my arrival in Caledon following the unfortunate affairs that led to the dissolution of my original homeland.

    Among my own people, the Nogoth, or Gnomes of Middle Earth, there are no such titles per se. We are a tribal people and rank such as it is comes from blood relationships in our extended familys. We keep extensive records of geneology, thus every one of my people can find out exactly how they are related to every living individual of our kind. Therefore the use of the strictly human honorific of Sir on my part is because it fits in so well with Caledon’s culture.

    As far as how I prefer to be addressed unless it is a highly formal occasion the use of my first name Amplebeak is fine with me. Or more informaly, Amp. My second name Tinlegs, is not as most humans assume a surname. It is in fact a nickname (the closest I could get to “Clayfoot” or “Mudfoot”) and properly should only be used by the closest family members or friends. However given the differences in naming practices inherent in different cultures I am not offended by being addressed as Mr. Tinlegs 🙂

    I should also like to note that my mate, AndoSaol Serapis is a citizen of Caledon and has been active in Caledon’s social and artistic activities. As I understand Sir Edward’s explanation of Victorian forms of address she would be addressed formally as Lady AndoSaol. She is Elven, so her second name is a proper Surname.

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