Kalistan

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Empress to Reform Peerage
Nobility to no longer be guaranteed membership in the Order of the Grey Smoke
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
May 12, 5593


Her Imperial Majesty in Regalia of Order of the Grey Smoke at Order at Order Day ceremonies 

Her Imperial Majesty announced this month that she intends to reform the Peerage.  The reforms will come primarily in the form of the Creation of a new Chivalric Order known as the Most Excellent Order of the Anantonese Empire, which will be awarded to all current non-Royal members of the Nobility, Grand Mayors, and members of the Executive in Lodamun and Gaduridos.  The Order of the Anantonese Empire will consist of three classes of Knights:  Knight of the Order, Commander of the Order, and Member of the Order.  Knight of the Order will be awarded to those who hold Noble Title of any rank according to the Peerage Tables, both in Kalistan and their rough equivalents in Lodamun and Gaduridos.  Officer of the Order shall be open to those Commoners who have performed exceptional civic or social duty for the Empire as a whole, and Member of the Order shall be opened to all commoners who have been awarded in recognition of specific achievement.  Knights/Dame of the Order and Commander of the Order shall be entitled to use the honorific Sir or Dame before their name (if they do not already use a senior prefix), and all members who are citizens of one of the Constituent Nations of the Empire shall be entitled to hold an advisory seat in a new Upper House of Legislature that the Empress has long planned.

The Ancient Order of the Gray Smoke, remaining precedent, will, in turn have its membership limited to Members of the Royal Family who have reached their Majority, including the current living descendants of Mark Ananto-Orleans who shall be known as "Royal Knights and Ladies Companion", as well as a total number of 20 "Knights and Ladies Companion" who shall be invested by the Sovereign for Lifetime membership.  There shall also be an indefinite number of "Stranger Knights and Ladies of the Realm" such as the Empress shall designate.  According to the reform plan, this category will be opened to spouses of current members, as well as Foreign Heads of State, including the Lady Viceroy of Gaduridos and the Lord Protector of Lodamun.  All members of the Order of the Gray Smoke will gain the title Lord or Lady which they may use as a prefix to their name.  All membership of the Ancient Order of the Gray Smoke is to be considered Lifetime, and especially Stranger Companions will be entitled to keep their positions if they abdicate or, in the case of Lodamun, are voted out of their office.

The only specific regalia associated with the Order of the Anantonese Empire shall be a medal and a ribbon which all members may display on their left breast.  A small insignia clasp will be affixed denoting the class of the ribbon.  If displayed publicly, the ribbon must be clean, serviceable, and no more or less than one inch above the breast pocket, or centered squarely upon the left breast panel, four fingers below the left clavicle in the case where there is no pocket.  The Empress shall be made Sovereign and Grand Master/Mistress of the Order of the Anantonese Empire, and such title will be added to her Stile.

Regalia associated with the Order of the Grey Smoke will remain as it is:  A royal purple velvet robe in cloak fashion, trimmed with fur, dyed black for all Royal Knights and Ladies Companion, and white for all Knights and Ladies Companion and all Stranger Knights and Ladies.  Both Royal Knights and Ladies Companion and (non-royal) Companions will wear a red and white plaid sash, while Stranger Knights and Ladies Companion will wear a sash of their home National Colors.  All Knights Companion may don an orange billed flat cap with their regalia, but only when out of doors and it must never be worn indoors.    The Sovereign of the Order alone will wear a gold Embroidered bunch of grapes over her left breast.  This regalia must be maintained in clean serviceable condition, and must be worn to all specific Order Functions, but may not be worn at any other time.   Invited Guests must also observe a specific dress code for all events.  Men must wear a red or black blazer over a white button up shirt and tie, with black slacks, while women will wear a purple, red or pink dress as it suits them. Attendance at all Order events is by Invitation only, and all Official Order Procedures remain strictly off limits to non-Members, nor may they be reported on or about in the press or on the internet.

All members of the Order of the Gray Smoke may attach one of the following Suffixes to their name in ordinary and extraordinary correspondence:  RKC, RLC, SKC, SLC, KC, or LC, depending on their rank of the Order.  All members of the Order of the Anantonese Empire may attach the following suffixes to their name: KAE or DAE, CAE or MAE, depending on their rank.

The formalization of the Order of the Gray Smoke is something Her Imperial Majesty has intended to do for a long time.  Maintaining the roles was growing difficult for the Order's Scribe, and the prestige of the Order itself was almost non-existent due to its inclusivity.  The idea being to regain the mission of the Ancient Order of the Gray Smoke as being those who have the Empress' ear in matters of state, and those who personally swear friendship and comity to the person of the Sovereign, it is hoped that appointment will be something that people will actually seek and work to achieve.  It is also hoped that the Order of Vintalli and the Order of Andalay follow suit with the Order of the Anantonese Empire and establish more formal designations of membership and insignia.

The new rules for the Peerage and the Chivalric Orders will take effect immediately.

@LaModa