Practically all Sartarite princes (descended from Saronil) were road builders. Now roads don't remain in shape all by themselves, there is bound to be some frost damage to the road cover in typical Sartarite weather. Who keeps the roads in good working order?
The logistics for creating fortifications and roads over such a short period are immense. The Princes of Sartar completed the construction and fortifications of five small cities (Wilmskirk, Jonstown, Swenstown, Duck Point and Alone) over a period of 115 years (roughly 1485 for Wilmskirk to Terasarin's death 1600, by which time Alone was complete), as well as two principal keeps in non-urban territory (Jarolar's and Tarkalor's Keeps south of the Creek) and notable fortifications to at least one tribal town (Runegate) with a population base of 120,000 (except for Terasarin).
There are only a few comparable examples of similarly effective building programs. The mediaeval minsters each took up similar efforts from similar population bases.
The Welsh castles and towns built for King Edward are a similar effort to the work done during Sartar's own reign. A vast work force was required to build the majority of the principality's edifices, and most of the work was done by humans, not dwarfs (or Saronil's affront in using dwarf tech for building the Boldhome temple to Orlanth would have been impossible). They were using dwarf-invented technology, though - the man-powered cranes rediscovered by Jurstan the Sainted Librarian must be an example.
Apart from the magic involved, the creation of Boldhome and the other Sartarite cities reminds me of the cities built along the shore of the Baltic Sea which became the Hanseatic League. Aided by allied (slavic) chieftains and inhibited by others, the Saxon colonists established a number of small cities (though no roads woth mentioning) within fairly short notice. The cities were populated in about equal numbers by neighbouring villagers and by immigrants from further south - craftspeople and merchants. The cooperative native tribal nobility gained a voice, but no ultimate rule, in the cities' administration.
Like Sartar, Holstein was a crossroads linking two separate areas (Baltic Sea and formerly Frankish Europe) together for trade. Like Dragon Pass, the region had been depopulated after the end of the previous empire (Anglo-Saxon migration, and also Saxon and other Germanic migrations southeast, during the fall of the Roman Empire and the Frankish kingdom) and had to be re-settled. Like in Heortland and Dragon Pass, an increasing feudalism got into conflict with a society of farmer-warriors.
Julian Lord on the role of the mayor:
>>she is the intermediary between the important >>citizens/families/clans and the other Magistrates of the City, >>Kingdom, and Tribes.
Peter:
> No she isn't. KoS p134 specifically states that Sartar instituted
> the Mayor to represent the city residents on the city's Rings. The
> power circles of Sartar are the King, the Tribal Confederations and
> independant tribes such as the Colymar. There's no conception of
> mayors having the major importance in the Kingdom that you describe.
Mayors tend to be the spokesmen of their city population, and should wield similar influence to powerful clan chiefs judging from the amount of people they represent. This is far from the influence of a tribal chieftain.
> And there are zilch other Magistrates in Sartar.
That awaits to be seen when and if official detail on Sartarite cities gets published.
As for principal officials these must exist. Roads don't get maintained by themselves, and high-class roads like the royal highways - which consist of lots of sophisticated masonry - cannot be tended by ordinary tribesmen. The princes have to have a body of accountants, scribes, and foremen supervising the work away from the court.
>>>>and the Prince would certainly make sure that the >>>>Gustbran smiths tithed directly to him, rather than via the Tribes.
>>> Why would the Prince want to do this?
>>To simplify Administration, and to make sure that his supplies >>were as little affected as possible by the vagaries of inter-Tribal >>politics.
> Administration? You are thinking like a Renaissance Despot which
> the Prince of Sartar most certainly isn't. There's no Royal
> Administration in Sartar as anything the Prince wants done beyond
> Boldhome is handled by the Tribes.
I can't see how the tribesmen build advanced bridges. Surely the princes send foremen and master craftsmen familiar with their designs rather than let some tribal king do all the logistics. Of course each building project is a cooperative effort involving all local residents some way or the other - much like the mediaeval minsters, and unlike the Welsh castle building which excluded the natives. But I doubt a group of tribal kings would have been able to build a straight road from Wilmskirk to Roadend, or from Dangerford to Aldachur.
Julian:
>>But, the Cities only make sense, politically, if the Tribes have >>permanently surrendered portions of real political power to the City >>Rings, which would have power in these domains even over the Tribal >>Kings, as long as the Tribe is a member of the coalition.
Cities weren't set up to make political sense, but economical. They were designed as safe places for trade and production, not as seats of governmental institutions.
Some limiting powers certainly are part of a city's constitution, for instance I can't imagine a tribal weapontake or muster to take place in a confederated city without causing immense strain. The king cannot re-allot land or wealth within the city's domain as he can outside (evidently a part of the king's business, see Enjossi joining the Colymar tribe). There might be some parallel to the medieval city freedom allowing escaped thralls to become freemen, but in Orlanthi society I really see no direct need for this since an escaped thrall could establish himself as stickpicker wherever he likes and is tolerated.
> The tribes have lost or surrendered no power.
No more than they would to an Issaries market spell, at least - the city provides ground in their territory where they have to tolerate others as equals.
> The tribal kings
> have a major influence over the city as they are the people who
> sit on the City Ring.
When present. The city is not the tribal king's power base, but his own stead or hall in his clan's lands is. The rural revenues are what keeps a king in power.
>>Probably, there are independant City militias which are independant >>of the Tribes. Basically, police forces.
> Again this is too modern.
I'd go for gate guards and market guards ready to step in when small riots are about to break out, and possibly a city delegate or two in charge of this happening.
> The city militias would be furnished
> by the tribal kings and be factionalized.
Yep, with your average participation of three tribes per city, about five factions, two factions from non-tribal citizens. With the "tribal" factions generally made up those of the tribe's clans living closest to the city.
> There are no Mayors of Boldhome.
I'd like to see the source for this. Home of the Bold featured a mayoral election. I can't see why this should not be the case, although the question remains whether Boldhome had a mayor prior to the Lunar occupation.
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