The Liberties of the Colleges

Curious legal enclaves within Vienda not subject to Common Law, but which are ancient extensions of Brunnhold. Based upon such places as The Liberty of the Savoy in London

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Runcible Spoon
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Fri Aug 07, 2020 8:18 pm

The Liberty of the Colleges
The nation of Anaxas operates, for the most part, under Anaxi Common Law. There are, however, significant exceptions. Most notable among these is the University of Brunnhold itself. Within university proper, the Arcane Law alone holds sway. These Common and Arcane Laws have very different origins, methods of adjudication, and even foundational principles. The Anaxi Common Law is, as the name suggests, a common-law system whereby the body of legal precedent and commentaries upon the same form the core of the legal code, with statues existing largely as either clarifications of disputes between the courts, as broad outlines of legality, or as regulatory law. Within the Anaxi Common Law, precedent is given primacy. In contrast, Arcane Law is more statute-based and puts considerably less emphasis on precedent. In the main, the two systems can co-exist largely due to the benign neglect of the civil authorities in Vienda towards the Arcane Law as practiced in Brunnhold.

There are, however, some areas of the nation wherein the Arcane and the Common Laws intermesh, which has produced a number of curious legal jurisdictions. The most well known of these are the Liberties of the Collages.

Within Vienda, there are several small pockets of the city wherein the Common Law does not apply but are instead subject to the Arcane Law. These areas are known collectively as The Liberties of the Collages, or more commonly, the Liberties.

Originally, the Liberties were small estates beyond the original city limits in which magisters of Brunnhold established satellite colleges both for educational purposes, and as de jure extensions of the university campus. In this sense, they were rather like ambassadorial compounds. Over the centuries, especially as Anaxas became more internally unified, the ambassadorial function of the Colleges faded, and slowly they were swallowed up by Vienda itself. Still, they remain, little islands of Arcane Law within the very heart of Common Law and precedent.

As the Common Law does not apply within these jurisdictions, they have come to be known as the Liberties of the Collages, or in common parlance, simply the Liberties. Here, Arcane Law holds sway and a tiny, enclosed legal bubble exists. Curiosities of the Liberties abound and though all of them are small, each has their own distinct character, local political culture, and even courts. In the Liberty of Doritt College there is an autonomous Chancery court that issues its own writs, settles civil cases, and attends to the machinery of justice. The Liberty of the Marsh also has its own courts, as does the Liberty of Barrow College

Politics of the Liberties

As extensions of Brunnhold, the Liberties are overseen by representatives of the University.
These are often non-faculty who hold the title of Pro-Magister and serve as the nominal governor of their respective Liberty. Here they run the district with some semblance of order and many try to make their little enclaves as homes to scholars and academics who wish to not be bothered by more mundane legal concerns.

As Debt Havens

By far the most notable and celebrated oddity of the Liberties is their use as a debt haven. Arcane
Law does not allow from imprisonment for debt, so any apprehension for that offense cannot be carried out within the confines of a Liberty. Similarly, personal property within a Liberty may not be seized for non-payment of debts. As a result, the Liberties often play host to debtors, especially those with sufficient unencumbered assets to lead a possibly comfortable life.

Because of this, the boundaries of the Liberties are often well-patrolled by debt collectors,
tipstaffs, and bailiffs, ready to pounce on their targets should they stray even a little from their sanctuaries.

As Places of Incorporation

Arcane Law is fairly rudimentary when it comes to the regulation of businesses, their articles of
incorporation, and the taxes and duties owed. Many devious enterprises file their papers of
incorporation within the Liberties and maintain formal, though often minimally staffed, offices within the boundaries. So long as at least one of the corporation’s senior officers maintains an office within the Liberties, the organization can be considered as existing under Arcane rather than Common law.


As Extended Gateing

Being areas technically part of the campus of Brunnhold, the Liberties are known to possess small populations of nominally gated passives. Often they are those trained in certain specialized tasks, personal servants of Magisters (local or visiting), or those whose diablaries have been both discovered and deemed to be of no significant public concern. They still wear the blue and are not permitted to leave the Liberty but it does give them an opportunity to be away from the more stifling confines of Brunnhold and to make use of what comparative luxuries the Liberties can provide.

Liberties in Vienda

  • The Liberty of Doritt College (Roylott)
  • The Liberty of The Marsh (Frogmarsh)
  • The Liberty of Aubrey College (Marlingspike)
  • The Liberty of Barrow Collage (Queen Daphne Hill)
  • The Liberty of Harrow-in-the-Fields (Bleaching Fields)
  • The Liberty of Lansdale College (Thripping Bite)


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