In B for Bayangan, I talked a little about the kingdom itself and said I’d go a little more into the Succession rules under S.
Here are a couple of excerpts from The Tale of the Hostage Prince that explains how the next Raja of Bayangan is selected.
Chapter 4 excerpt
Succession in Bayangan is expected, but not guaranteed. Unlike Terang, where the throne is always passed to the firstborn male, the Bayangan Raja’s successor is elected from a pool of candidates who fulfil certain criteria.
First, they must have been present at the prior Raja’s death and funeral. Second, the candidate should be a prominent figure in court life or be well-known by the citizens of Bayangan. Third, and last, is that there must be a consensus or majority vote for his or her rule.
This was one of my forefather’s methods to help Bayangan break away from Maha’s dynasties—their dictatorship, he called it—where the Sultan’s family ruled with an iron fist. Yet over the years, things have drifted. Terang instituted the Majlis Maha, a council of seven, to curb the power of the Sultan; in Bayangan, while theoretically the Majlis DiRaja can depose the Raja if he falls out of favour, in practice the Raja does whatever he wants with little repercussions. It has also become almost a given that whoever the Raja appoints as his Raja Muda—normally his eldest son—will be voted in as the next Raja upon his death.
Chapter 8 excerpt
I swallow hard. He’s right. The rule of Bayangan has historically alternated between three prominent families in the Majlis DiRaja: mine, Uncle Jeffett’s and Azman’s—the Bayas, the Ishis, and the Tuahs. Uncle Jeffett and Azman were not around when Aunt Layla died, so their candidacy defaulted on the first point—but they would both be eligible if I were to be deposed now. Other names have been brought up since then, but none that have been from families prominent, or strong, enough to gather majority support.
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That's it for today!
Head back to my theme reveal and master list.
Go check out the other A to Z Bloggers!
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The Tale of the Hostage Prince (Absolution 1.5)
Yosua wears an uneasy crown. Although he is now Raja of Bayangan, he still
longs for the land of his birth where everything was much simpler…and less
deadly.But peace doesn’t come easily, not for a twenty-year-old servant playacting at being king.
With his parents brutally murdered and his uncle bent on revenge, Yosua must decide where his loyalties truly lie. With his only remaining relative and the kingdom he has claimed? Or with his best friend Mikal and the sultanate that raised him as a hostage?
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