Etrandish Charter

The Etrandish Charter - also known as the Etrandish Bill of Rights or Etrandish Constitution - is a set of stipulations that outline the rights of the King of Etrand, his subjects (aristocratic vassals and commoners alike). It is not intended to a complete or exhaustive list of laws, but rather a basic set of guaranteed rights for the king and his subjects, and a set of guidelines in whose spirit the actual laws would be made and enforced.

It is a rather old constitution that dates back to reign of King Sighard the Hengistid (r. 117-145), though it has since been ammended multiple times, most recently by King Bryant I of Etrand (r. 718-744).

Present form

 * 1) § All religions that do not involve demons, undead or darkness are to be tolerated, but the Church of Titanius is the official state religion and its rules and traditions shall be upheld. Those found guilty of heresy against the Church shall also be punished by burning at the stake.
 * 2) § All races that have not been tainted by darkness shall be considered equal under the law. The undead and demons shall not be tolerated and must be slain on sight.
 * 3) § All free and crimeless subjects of the King of Etrand, or any of his vassals are entitled to own property and bear arms, and no rulings shall be made to unjustly prevent them from exercising this right.
 * 4) § Neither the King, nor any of his vassals shall treat their subjects with wanton cruelty, and any such actions shall be deemed a grave offence and punished accordingly.
 * 5) § Neither the King, nor any of his vassals shall arbitrarily detain or torture innocent commoners, and any such actions shall be deemed a grave offence and punished accordingly.
 * 6) § Neither the King, nor any of his vassals shall their power to unjustly seize the property or lands of their subjects, and any such actions shall be deemed a grave offence and punished accordingly.
 * 7) § The King shall not act with impunity, and shall be held to account by the Church and the noble lords of the realm for any abuses of power.
 * 8) § The King shall uphold the principles of the Yanus Protocol.
 * 9) § The rights and autonomy of the Etrand's indigenous minority races (Dwarves, Gnomes, Halflings and Lizardmen) shall be respected, and any discrimination or mistreatment of these races shall be punishable by law.
 * 10) § Neither the King, nor any of his vassals shall make war without the consent of the noble lords of the realm and the Church.
 * 11) § Neither the King, nor any of his vassals shall not make any laws or decrees that are in opposition to the teachings of the Church of Titanius or the stipulations of the Yanus Protocol.
 * 12) § Neither the King, nor any of his vassals shall not make any laws or decrees that are in opposition to the rights and liberties of his subjects.
 * 13) § Neither the King, nor any of his vassals shall not make any laws or decrees that are in opposition to the stipulations of this very document.
 * 14) § If a noble subject of the king violates any of these stipulations, the King is obligated to mete out the appropriate punishment for the transgressions. The King shall not pardon violations of this document by any of his subjects.
 * 15) § If the King violates any of these stipulations, his subjects have the right to disobey him. If the violation is particularly egregious, they have the right to dethrone him and replace him with his closest relative.

History
The Etrandish Charter, in some forms, has its origins even before the Kingdom of Etrand itself: when the Humans of Etrand were still tribal, illiterate nomads without a unitary state, they were surrounded by states (Kingdom of Froturn, Kingdom of Dragoc, Kingdom of Hulra, various Dwarven clans and Lizardman tribes) that had clearly defined laws, meaning that the concept of a constitution, Bill of Rights or royal charter wasn't exactly foreign to them. Indeed, it is said that even Fathred's Confederation and the Human Kingdom of Steelhelm had a constitution of some kind, which outlined the rights of the king's subjects and put various limitations on the king's power.

While Etrandish nobles - and even King Bryant himself - often spoke of a supposed "two-millenia old constitution" that supposedly harkons back to Fathred the Great or before, in reality, the first true royal charter within Etrand was created during the reign of King Sighard I of Etrand (r. 117-145). It was somewhat similar to its present form, but it focused on the privileges of nobles and offered little protection to commoners; lacked the references to the Demons; and also lacked the special protections for minority races. King Tondbert I of Etrand amended the charter to protect the indigenous Lizardmen, and later, during the Etrandish annexation of Dwarven clans, King Andrei I of Etrand placated the Dwarves by giving constitutionally protected autonomy to them, as stipulated in the 9th section. Following this, the royal charter would only see minor adjustments, until King Bryant I of Etrand overhauled the document, ratifying a new variant with much more unambigous wording and more widespread protections and guaranteed rights for all free subjects of the king, commoners included.