On 03Jul2023 0419, Jim Vassilakos - jim.vassilakos at gmail.com (via tml
list) wrote:
> Is there an Imperial Pledge of Allegiance or some sort of standardized
> Oath of Loyalty anywhere in the Traveller literature?
>
> I'm thinking of something along the lines of pledging loyalty first to
> the Emperor, then to the Archduke, then the Subsector Duke, and then
> down the line to the Count and/or Baron, although an oath that goes this
> far down the hierarchy would create the issue for interstellar travelers
> over which count and/or baron one should pledge loyalty to, the one in
> their official place or residency (home world) or the one where they
> happen to be at any given moment. I'm guessing the latter. What do you
> folks think?

I would assume that upon entering service in the Imperial Navy, etc.
you'd swear allegiance to the Emperor, and to obey the orders of those
lawfully delegated authority by the Emperor, and so on.

Oaths to lesser nobles would be only if you entered into service with
them, and I'd expect only those who were their direct personal retainers
(bodyguards, chamberlains, etc.) would do so. I also expect that there
are laws about how many personal retainers and (especially) security
staff a noble can have, based on rank, holdings, and any current
appointments (being the subsector duke would bring a certain amount of
security just from the job, aside from any that the duke's various noble
titles would allow them).

Just how large and heavily armed one's ducal yacht can be before it
counts as part of one's security force is a matter of interpretation,
negotiation, and debate.

--
Rupert Boleyn <xxxxxx@gmail.com>