In Ottoman Empire, the emperor would give his sons important governorship away from capital. When he died, there'd be a race among his sons to ensure they reach the capital first and secure the crown. Whoever gets crowned then orders all his brothers to be killed to kill off any future rebellion.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_dynasty#Succession_practices
How would you resolve the Ottoman succession dilemma with minimal bloodshed?
Teach them science, particularly about mitochondrial DNA, so they switch to a matriarchal lineage ;-)
AJ
We actually have an illustration of the method used in that era:
https://www.midorisnyder.com/the_labyrinth/2016/01/jousting-snails-a-medieval-martial-art.html
It's the heir and the spare. They did things that way, because it was rare for more than one or two to live long enough to be needed.
My approach, teach them all that it's not as fun as it looks being the guy in charge and responsible.
Then when dad dies, rather than a race back to the throne it becomes a man hunt as they all go "Not Me!" and head for the hills. :)
An Ottoman sounds like a used car dealer. Or possibly one with a franchise from an automobile manufacturer but not a major manufacturer. Ottoman sounds like an auto man to me.
An ottoman is an item of furniture, often used and abused in erotic stories.
The OP was asking a legitimate question for a sex story site. Stay on topic! ;-)
AJ
How would you resolve the Ottoman succession dilemma with minimal bloodshed?
The simple solution is to do as almost all monarchies do. The oldest inherits the throne.
Even the US has the succession act in case a nuke takes out the President and his Vice.
The oldest inherits the throne.
The oldest who?
Clear cut succession order written in law is a great start, sure, but those guys were afraid simple primogeniture would produce an inept leader. That it eventually morphed in a system that basically guaranteed the next ruler would be elderly man spent all life in effective imprisonment is in some ways ironic, but I suppose, the wet dream of established corruption engine.
the next ruler would be elderly man spent all life in effective imprisonment
It's ironic that Prince Charles gets to fly around the world but my instinctive reaction to his moronic pronouncements is that he needs to get out more ;-)
AJ
The oldest inherits the throne.
The Ottoman's might have wanted the bloodshed to insure that the strongest/smartest/most vicious/most capable took the throne.
Ultimately all dynasties fail, and the reason they fail is because they eventually produce an incompetent heir.
Another bloodless choice would be where there are multiple potential heirs, the throne goes to the first to produce an heir of his own.
Ultimately all dynasties fail, and the reason they fail is because they eventually produce an incompetent heir.
That makes perfect sense but isn't entirely accurate historically.
Choosing an heir because they are the oldest child, best fighter, most fertile, etc ignores the point that the most suitable heir need not be any of those things. Then again, competency to rule has seldom been a factor in selection.
All to often rulers don't train their successor, often fearing a coup.
There are many instances where followers reject the chosen heir in favour of another.
Ultimately all dynasties fail, and the reason they fail is because they eventually produce an incompetent heir.
That makes perfect sense but isn't entirely accurate historically.
Dynasties may fall for other reasons before producing an incompetent heir, but that an incompetent heir will eventually be produced makes an eventual fall inevitable.
Choosing an heir because they are the oldest child, best fighter, most fertile, etc ignores the point that the most suitable heir need not be any of those things. Then again, competency to rule has seldom been a factor in selection.
This is true, but I would suggest that what the Ottomans did was much more complex than the best fighter.
Each potential heir had to govern a limited region, giving them experience in ruling.
But there's more to it. To win the race back to the capitol, they need support.
I doubt the violence only started once one of them sat on the throne.
An heir could improve his chances of reaching the throne first by attacking his competitors and killing or at least slowing them down before any of them reach the throne.
They would all(at least the remotely competent ones) know this.
This means each would need support. Soldiers to follow them, spies and intelligence.
In other words, in order to win the competition to take the throne they have to demonstrate leadership, military tactics, and strategy.
If they had governed their individual districts poorly, getting loyal soldiers and other followers for the contest to take the throne would be harder.
If they had governed their individual districts poorly, getting loyal soldiers and other followers for the contest to take the throne would be harder.
It is entirely possible to govern the people poorly yet have a loyal army and equally loyal followers.
Admittedly that loyalty is in part 'bought' by allowing the army to treat the populace like shit and those with any sense might support the leader because anyone who replaces him might well put them on trial for their past actions.
Various versions of this system can be seen in action today.
It is entirely possible to govern the people poorly yet have a loyal army and equally loyal followers.
You at least have to be governing well from the perspective of the soldiers in the army and the other followers you need.
We aren't talking about a democracy here. No one would have cared what the peasants thought. Those who are in a position to potentially do something about you if they think you are governing too poorly are another matter.
I suspect some sexual solution is sought. Let's say...
Each eligible pretendent arrives with a number (say two) of "voting maidens" supposedly virgins. Those are blindfolded and fucked by each pretendent in a tossed order. After the full round robin the women vote by number. Unlikely tie might be resolved in some other ways, perhaps a duel.
Deficiency of such would be the lengthy selection process. As soon there's protocol to kickstart it before everyone had arrived in the capital (with on itself can take weeks) it basically degenerates to the same infighting.
The greatest challenge however is how to design a prowess based system that inherently discourages assasination of the current ruler while letting eligible heirs of the previous to retain useful function that gives them effective power to implement conspiracy.
Those are blindfolded and fucked by each pretendent
I can see it now - lines of hundreds of nerds/dweebs, all 'pretenders to the throne', hoping to get to the point of eliminating their pesky virginities. Bags I the video rights to 'gangbang of the century'.
Does this cater for female pretenders? Maybe one or more of the 'voting maidens' should be male?
The harem element has little to do with the succession issue. Rich merchants and others had harems in that era and place.
As for the successor problem, being someone's offspring is a poor qualification for a leader. They should be trained and observed for qualifications and the best qualified person designated prior to death of the previous leader.
They should be trained and observed for qualifications and the best qualified person designated prior to death of the previous leader.
This approach is not without it's flaws. What do you do when one of the potential heirs disputes the assessment of his and his sibling's qualifications?
It would be nice if that kind of thing could have worked, but in a situation like a Medieval empire or kingdom, it would almost guarantee civil war.
What the Ottoman's did, while brutal and bloody, is in a sense an assessment of the potential heirs qualifications to rule.
This approach is not without it's flaws. What do you do when one of the potential heirs disputes the assessment of his and his sibling's qualifications?
Every approach will have a flaw. Most will have multiple flaws. If you're looking for a unicorn flawless solution, better bring a horse, horn, and some glue.
Every approach will have a flaw. Most will have multiple flaws. If you're looking for a unicorn flawless solution, better bring a horse, horn, and some glue.
And, we are back to a sex story...
Allegedly you have to be a virgin to ride a unicorn.
I read that and thought 'frigid bitch Zera' from one of Niven's shorts. Then, an online search later to give me the correct story name (The Flight of the Horse) also gave me the story text from Baen, so a re-read later, the actual quote is
"Your idiot tanj horse had the whole Center terrorized. All of a sudden it went completely tame, walked up to that frigid bitch Zeera and let her lead it away."
...and the Unicorn link:
"People who kept tame horses must have developed the habit of cutting off the horn when the animal was a pup. Why not? We all saw how dangerous that horn is. Much too dangerous for a domestic animal."
A nicely amusing reread, especially after over 30 years.
I was thinking of Ariel by Steven R Boyett, but I do like Niven's take. African elephant's are allegedly evolving into a tuskless species due to poaching pressure. Would similar epigenetic pressure from sorcerers have turned the unicorn into the horse before the Magic Goes Away?
Perhaps the unicorn's tale is the result of chinese whispers. It may have started as 'If you try to ride the Eunuch's horn you'll always be a virgin'.
The harem element is worth considering as I want to see a system in which women would choose to join the harem willingly as 3rd or 4th wives because the system guarantees their offsprings suitable financial protection during succession.
because the system guarantees their offsprings suitable financial protection during succession.
If you think it through, there is no guarantee of protection, financial or otherwise. The heir might well not keep his half sisters in his harem, let alone his father's wives, excepting his mother perhaps. Historically the heir has dealt with harem members in various ways, from their being put to death to serve their master in his death, to being sold or married off to loyal supporters of the heir. Especially since the heir is likely to have his own harem by the time he takes over.
If you are really looking at a system that guarantees protection of the children I suggest you consider the women joining a "line marriage" instead.
Honestly i think you could answer the original post in an infinite number of ways. You just have to choose something that floats your particular boat.
a suck session plan for a leader with a harem of wives?
Hold back and cum in the mouth of the last wife?
AJ