Apostolic King of Urcea

Apostolic King of Urcea
Incumbent
Riordan VIII since 14 August 2006
Details
Style	His Most Christian Majesty
Heir apparent	Leo, Prince of Halfway
First monarch	Riordan I
Residence	Julian Palace (de jure) Castle Welute (de facto)
Appointer	Hereditary

The Apostolic King of Urcea is the constitutional monarch and head of state of the Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea as well as its dependencies, the Kingdom of Lariana and the Kingdom of New Harren in addition to roles in NSTA nations. The Apostolic King of Urcea is also, nominally, the Emperor of the Levantines due to the legal fiction established at the conclusion of the Second Great War. The Monarchy was created with the Golden Bull of 1098, and according to that documents its "inseparable constituent parts" are the Archduchy of Urceopolis and the Grand Duchy of Harren, both titles that the King holds in his own right alongside the Electorate of Canaery.

Within the Constitution of Urcea, the Apostolic King exercises primarily non-partisan ceremonial functions, such as bestowing honors, making Concilium Purpaidá appointments based on the constitutional advice of the Chancellor and Temporary President, though the King does appoint the officers of the Armed Forces of the Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea and the nation's judges in his own right, and can rule in a more executive manner during a period of divided government. Though the ultimate executive authority over the government is still formally by and through the monarch's royal prerogative, these powers may only normally be used according to laws enacted within the conventions and precedents of the Constitution. The King's powers over foreign policy are slightly more expansive; in conjunction with the Ministry of State, the King is the nation's highest diplomatic official and can exercise diplomatic authority on behalf of the Government of Urcea, though precedent is emerging for these powers to largely be constrained to Urcea's foreign policy in Crona

Besides his role within the government, the Apostolic King is the central symbolic cultural figure of the Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea as the so-called "national steward". The King is the head of the Estates of Urcea as Custóir of Custóirs, and also plays a significant religious role as "first and only honorary canon" of St. Peter's Archbasilica. A non-partisan actor, the King is often considered the focal point of appeals to national unity, and is respected as a moral and social authority within the country.

Origin

Further information: Constitutional history of Urcea

The Julian Throne as a Royal institution was created by the Golden Bull of 1098, elevating the Archduke-Grand Duke of Urceopolis and Harren respectively, both historic possessions of the Julian dynasty, to the rank of King. The development of the Constitution of Urcea throughout the second millennia brought about ebbs and flows of Royal authority. The decline of the optimate nobility and power of the Estates of Urcea increased the power of the Apostolic King to a height in the late 1600s and early 1700s. This followed by increasing constitutional prerogatives for the Concilium Daoni and various royal concessions which have created the modern Constitution and Government of Urcea, in which the Apostolic King holds full sovereignty but may only exercise Royal authority in a very strict set of circumstances. Nevertheless, the Apostolic Kingship has retained the religious and moral significance it acquired during the Medieval period. Case law has posited that the position of Apostolic King is not a public office in the traditional sense but rather is an "indelible personal characteristic" of the man on the Julian Throne.

Roles and responsibilities

Constitutional monarch

The primary duty of the Apostolic King is to be the constitutional monarch of Urcea. In this position he is sovereign, serving as the source of Urcean sovereignty in a concept sometimes referred to as the "federal union"; P.G.W. Gelema described this as "the union...of the whole people with the Apostolic King, bonded to each other through the provinces which themselves are bound to the Kingdom in perpetual allegiance to both the Kingdom as legal entity and to the King as a man."

In addition to the legal sovereignty of the King, the King has a number of specifically delineated responsibilities within the Constitution of Urcea.

Limited executive authority

Although most executive responsibility in Urcea is executed by the Procurator and Concilium Purpaidá within the constitutional apparatus, the Apostolic King still retains a number of important executive functions.

Social and cultural leader

The person of the Apostolic King has traditionally been viewed as the "father of the nation", giving him centrality within Urcean society and culture. This national fatherhood not only is exemplified by his constitutional and symbolic significance, but through the holding of several titles and offices related to Urcean social institutions.

Custóir of Custóirs

The Apostolic King of Urcea is the head of the Estates of Urcea, giving him the title of Custóir of Custóirs as the entire nation, and every estate comprising it, is considered to be part of his estate. Through this title, the King is viewed as "sitting at the head of the national family". This position is understood to be a recognition of his moral authority over the nation through social, rather than strictly religious, ties.

Custóir of the Julii

The Julii is an Estate of Urcea traditionally considered to be the first estate among equals, and it descends from the influential Julii family of Great Levantia, from which Gaius Julius Cicurinus descended. The Archdukes of Urceopolis, and then Apostolic Kings of Urcea, have always been the Custóir, or head, of the Julii estate, with an exception occurring during the Saint's War. Consequently, the Royal House of Urcea, currently House de Weluta, is always considered to be the "great house" of the estate. During the Great Interregnum phase of the Saint's War, the leaders of the House Julio-Aleckán always held the Custóirship even when their opponents, the Cónns, ruled; this greatly delegitimized the Cónn claim to the throne according to most contemporary sources.

Servant of the Levantine Union

As titular ruler of the Holy Levantine Empire, the Apostolic King has a number of legacy institutions he - and therefore the Government of Urcea - are responsible for maintaining on behalf of the Levantine Union. Besides distinct institutions like the Imperial War College and Imperial Order of the Holy Cross, the King also has nominal legal standing before the Cort de Antics to recognize or extinguish holding of noble titles, authority often necessary to settle disputes before that body.

In 1998, Aedanicus IX added the title "Servant of the Levantine Union" to his list of titles, a move that met with the general approval by resolution of the Levantine Union Diet. His grandson, Riordan VIII, has continued to use this title.

King in Crona

During the 21st century, the Apostolic King took on a new role following The Deluge - that of "King in Crona". Due to the nature of the states established in the Nysdra Sea basin, the King's role as King of New Harren, and constitutional restraints of the Government of Urcea to limit the King's authority outside of Urcea itself, the Apostolic King has taken on significant power of influence over the Nysdra Sea Treaty Association states. Modern scholars and academics are broadly divided on the personal authority of Riordan VIII in this sphere; the government of Urcea and King's Household Office maintains the propriety of the King's influence in the continent while critics believe that the King reigns effectively independently in the region through a series of intermediaries. A bare majority of scholars surveyed in the late 2020s believe that the Apostolic King exercises a power "resembling, but not exactly, independent executive authority" in the region.

The term "King in Crona" originally reached prominence as a criticsm of Riordan specifically and the institution generally by the pro-republican side of the 2018 Urcean institutional referendum, but later reached both common and scholarly acceptance describing the King's broad responsibilities and influence there.

Royal Household

The Royal Household is an administrative body responsible for managing the King's affairs. Its senior official, the Royal Chamberlain, is an individual nominated by the King and approved by the Concilium Daoni. The Chamberlain is responsible for managing the King's affairs and for hiring and firing officials within the Household. Within the Constitution of Urcea, the Apostolic King is responsible for issuing commissions to officers of the Armed Forces of the Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea and also for appointing all judges within the Kingdom. The Household is the administrative agency responsible for considering nominees and forwarding choices for the King's approval.

Household Office for Judicial Appointments

In addition to fielding candidates for positions within the Urcean judiciary, the Household Office for Judicial Appointments handles selecting candidates to serve as Censor.

Household Office for Grants of Title

Main article: Peerage of Urcea

The Household Office for Grants of Title is responsible for retaining records for the issue of Peerage titles in Urcea. As Urcean peerages have only lifelong tenure, extensive records of grants need to be kept in order to determine the history and eligibility of certain titles.

The Household Office is also responsible for nominating individuals to various orders of merit, such as the Imperial Order of the Holy Cross and the Order of the North Star. On some occasions, the King directly nominates individuals, which the Office is then responsible for processing. In all cases once the King approves conferring membership in the order to an individual, the Household Office is responsible for enrolling the individual within the order in conjunction with the order's administrators.

Household Office for Administration of the King's Necessities and Discretion

The Household Office for Administration of the King's Necessities and Discretion is the body responsible for overseeing care and discretionary funding of the Apostolic King specifically and House de Weluta generally.

Additional titles

Emperor of the Levantines

Since the formal renunciation of authority over most of the Holy Levantine Empire in the 1935 Treaty of Corcra, the title of Emperor of the Levantines has been attached to the Urcean crown. Legally speaking, this makes the still-extant Empire entirely coterminous with the person of the King himself, and consequently his holdings. It is often said that the Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea is still part of the Empire, but strictly speaking this is only true as a consequence of its crown. Functionally, this makes the continued existence of the Holy Levantine Empire a legal fiction, though most international powers recognize the succession of the Apostolic King to the Imperial throne.

Cronan titles

Due to Urcea's participation in The Deluge, the Apostolic King of Urcea has assumed several additional titles and roles in the Nysdra Sea region.

Titles, styles, and arms

The Apostolic King and his wife, the queen consort, are formally addressed as "His Most Christian Majesty and Her Most Christian Majesty" (Their Most Christian Majesties). The widows and widowers of monarchs retain these styles until they remarry. The heir from birth holds the title of Prince of Halfway. Other children of the monarch, and the children of the heir apparent, hold the title and rank of Archduke or Archduchess, and styled His or Her Christian Highness. Since the Treaty of Corcra, the address of "His Imperial Apostolic Majesty" has been used on some occasions, but its use was rare until the reign of King Riordan VIII, who uses the manner of address in New Harren and other Crona possessions.

The Apostolic King of Urcea maintains a lengthy full title, listing a number of titular and historic claims. King Riordan VIII's full title is

Riordan VIII, by the Grace of God, Emperor of the Levantines, Apostolic King of Urcea and Elector of Canaery, King of New Harren, Lariana, Crotona, Culfra, and Dericania, King of the Ængles and the Uzdehzani, Prince of Cetsencalia, Archduke of Urceopolis, Grand Duke of Harren, Sovereign Lord of Medimeria and Ventotene, Protector General of of the Unnuaq Missions, First and Only Honorary Canon of St. Peter's Archbasilica, Grand Master of the Imperial Order of the Holy Cross, Custóir of Custóirs, Custóir of the Julii, Faithful Servant of the Levantine Union, and Defender of the Faith.