Yastrebian Autocracy

Goldshire functions as a Yastrebian Autocracy, named for the Yastrebs of Goldshire whose governing style was used as a model. A Yastrebian Autocracy can be described as a small oligarchy of Counts whose ranks are selected by an autocratic King whose right to wield power is maintained at the discretion of those Counts. This balance of power can become very volatile should one or more of the Counts chose to work against the King (it was a factor that led to at least one civil war), thus encouraging both parties to pursue good communication and walk a path of moderacy and compromise.

The Yastrebian model is essentially a replication of the Erikist feudal power balance that once existed across the entirety of Shireroth, wherein the Kaiser's power was nominally absolute but would be abruptly thwarted by provincial rebellion if exercised absolutely. While that arrangement was uncodified, the right of Goldshire's population to rebel in certain circumstances was explicitly incorporated into the restored Codex Aureus in 5077 ASC - a document which inspires legal headaches to this day, centuries after the Yastrebs' departure and to the great amusement of their exiled descendants.

A rare consequence of this form of government is that, when Counts are either absent or uninterested, the King holds absolute power over the entire domain with no checks or balances to handicap his power. This may be either a blessing or a curse depending on who is on the throne at the time.