Sovereign Rulers claim the absolute right to rule an area of land such as a state, country or island – however the justification for the claims can be varied. Legally this is known as Allodial Ownership: The land is not subject to the rights of any lord or superior; owned without obligation of vassalage or fealty.

However, within The Hann Empire, each of these Sovereign Rulers has agreed to adhere to the legal principles of the empire, and thus follow The Empire’s Law when required. These mainly deal with defence and trade relations between countries and ‘fair trial’ is required for people of all ranks. However, the exact legal structure is left to individual countries.

Royal Families claim Sovereign rights for the head of their family, known as the Monarch, through birth right. This often arises from an ancient conquest or colonisation by the Family’s founder, and as these rights have been passed down the generations, the populace (generally) comes to accept them. However, there is, as always, a pecking order that differentiates different levels of ‘royalty’. Status is, in broad terms, defined by size and population of the region ruled.

• King / Queen – A title generally reserved for the sovereign ruler of a country large enough to be split into administrative regions, districts or counties – which is known as a Kingdom. Kings often have Governors, Sheriffs, Counts or Barons to oversee the districts, their nobles aren’t royal as their holdings are subject to loyalty, tax and legal obligation to their ruling monarch.
• Imperial Dukes / Duchesses - A title generally reserved for the sovereign ruler of a country that is NOT large enough to be split into administrative regions, districts or counties – which is known as a Duchy. A Duchess might appoint a Baron, Lord, Governor or Sheriff, to oversee a town or sub-province.
• Imperial Prince / Princess – A title generally reserved for the sovereign ruler of a city state. A Principality is rarely large enough to have any devolved management, although they may well have nobles and aristocrats involved in administration.
• Children and grandchildren of a monarch (King, Duke or Prince) are given the courtesy title of Prince or Princess and are still considered Royal. Great-grandchildren and successive generations do not get this title.

Some sovereign states use other forms of government, and their leaders are normally accorded similar status to other Sovereign Rulers. They are considered to be Sovereign, accorded the respect of minor royalty, and given a place on the Hann Council. Some examples include …

• Small Nations - The hereditary, sovereign ruler of a land with a population, but without a city.
• Republic – The ruler is chosen by a small group of people. The Lord-Mayors of independent city states are often appointed from a group of (often self-appointed) power brokers. This group might be wealthy merchants, successful adventurers, hereditary aristocrats, bishops of various churches, or come from a range of power groups. Note (Based on the republics of medieval Italy) Lord Mayors of City States are treated as Princes, others as Imperial Lords.
• Theocracy – A sovereign state ruled by priests from a single religious organisation, where their leade could be considered a Prince Bishop.

These nobles have a hereditary right to their lands, who pay homage and taxes to their sovereign, but they are recognised as minor royalty and given a place on the Hann council.

Chiefdom – Unlike other ‘paltine’ rulers, a Chieftain rules over a large, disparate family group, rather than over a distinct area of land, and is generally a holdover from days gone by. It stems from the times of antiquity, where a single extended family were spread across an area of land, but subsequently, lost control to outside forces. The family then became distributed across several newer countries that dominate the political scene. A classical diaspora, but with family members still owing a duty of loyalty to the Chieftain and the family name. Both the Chieftain and the extended family will have duties and responsibilities to other rulers, perhaps in more than one country, however this is tempered by their loyalty to their Chieftain and their name. This long-standing relationship of command and loyalty is recognised as significant, and the heads of the Pagini, Marisi and Treverii families, within the Hann Empire, are examples of this.

Imperial Barons are not Royal but all states are required to treat them with the proper respect. They are life-time awards, that reflect the authority and responsibility the holder has within the Empire. They cannot be passed down to heirs.

Imperial Barons are recognised in three different grades.

• Grand Baron - the highest non-sovereign rank in the Empire, and reserved to those who represent one of the three Imperial Services at Council. (Navy, Army, Administration) These appointments are few and far between. Once a Grand Baron retires from council, they retain the rank of Imperial Baron for the rest of their life.
• Baron - Governors of Imperial Holdings. These are few and far between
• Visbaron - Most frequently, department heads in the various Imperial enclaves.

Imperial Knights are people who have performed a fairly major service for the Empire. The Raven King of Arms rates the imperial Order of Hann, as one of the highest and most prestigious orders of knighthood, and counts them among the highest ranking of all the Knightly Orders. It is not reserved for service in battle, and may be awarded to any character who the Imperial Court wishes to honour. However, they are mainly awarded to successful military officers or others who have served the empire well in a hostile environment. There are four ranks within the order.

• Knight Grand Commander - often a political appointment.
• Knight Commander - often awarded to the commander successful in fleet, or large group, actions.
• Knight Captain - often awarded to in medium sized actions
• Knight Lieutenant - Often awarded for an individual effort of great gallantry, or commanders of smaller units who have a good record.

The rank you are appointed to, when you are appointed to the order, depends on your status, the service that you have provided and, of course, on who you know. These are lifetime appointments, that come with a small honorarium. Higher ranking members are senior and more important than lower ranking members, although there are no local chapters to impose a formal hierarchy. The Imperial Knights are so prestigious, that many members prefer to use their Imperial Title ahead of their local tiles - even if the local titles confer great honours.