Princess

Princess is the title given to the supreme leader of the Principality of the Pillow Fortress, being the head of state, head of government, and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. It is a hereditary title bestowed through matrilineal primogeniture.

Powers and Qualifications

Powers

The fundamental duty of the Princess is to fulfill her promises as laid out in the State Charter. The government exists as a means to this end, and as such, at this highest level of Fortressian law, the Princess really only has two powers, those being the ability to disband a government which fails to successfully fulfill her promises, and to establish a new government which will successfully fulfill her promises.

The majority of the Princess's powers, as well as her roles as head of government and commander-in-chief are granted by the Constitution (the Charter grants her the role of head of state). They include the powers to:

• grant titles of nobility
• engage in diplomatic relations with foreign states and organizations
• dismiss the Directory, either collectively or as individual advisory councils, and call new elections
• collect taxes
• issue letters of marque and reprisal
• issue royal decrees
• empower individuals and organizations within the Throne to exercise her powers in her name and on her behalf

Qualifications and Removal

The Princess, though having far more real power and authority than other constitutional monarchs, is not a dictator. The State Charter simply says that there must be a Princess, while the Constitution decides both what it means to be a Princess and also under what circumstances a Princess may be removed from power. Firstly, in order to assume the throne, one must:

• identify as female
• be nineteen years of age or older
• be of sound mind and body
• be a citizen of the Principality
• renounce any and all titles of nobility [...] granted by foreign states prior to [...] assuming the throne
• resign any position of power or prestige within any foreign governments
• be the legally designated heir to the throne as per the order of succession.

Should an heir apparent not meet all of the above criteria (typically because they haven't come of age), a temporary regency is established until such time as they are able to assume the throne.

The circumstances in which a Princess may be removed from power are few in number, but potentially broad in scope within their domains. The goal is to not bog the Princess down with technicalities that can be used to lessen her day-to-day power and thus turn her into a "ceremonial" head of state while also leaving in place a serious check on abuses of power. The Princess may be removed if she has:

• committed an overt and explicit act that any reasonable observer would conclude is likely to result in the imminent destruction of the Principality
• become permanently incapacitated
• has voluntarily and without undue influence chosen to abdicate
• been found to have assumed the throne fraudulently or under false pretenses
• no longer has all the qualities of a Princess
• failed to fulfill her promises as per Articles IV and V of the State Charter

It's the Directory which may bring a case for removal to trial in the Xeer where the Princess has an opportunity to defend herself. If she does not wish to defend herself against the accusations that she is unfit, she can be removed without a trial. This is essentially abdication.

First Princess

First Princess is a special form of Princess granted to the founder of the Principality by the State Charter. It carries all the same powers as that of Princess with two additional, those being the ability to modify the State Charter and to not be subject to removal by the government. First Princess is not an inheritable title, and will become extinct upon the death, abdication, or permanent incapacitation of its one and only holder, Julia Platz-Halter, with all subsequent rulers of the Pillow Fortress having the title Princess.