House Marik: The Free Worlds League

The Principality of Regulus

The third of the League's founding states, the Principality of Regulus draws much of its population and cultural heritage from India and Central Asia. The Selaj family, Indian-born traders since well before the advent of space travel, dominated this region from its beginnings as a five-world mercantile conglomerate until the 2680s, when their alleged involvement in a brutal terrorist assassination forced the Selajes to flee into the Magistracy of Canopus. The Cameron-Jones clan, tenacious rivals of the departed Selajes in the lucrative Regulus spice trade, swiftly stepped into the power vacuum and has dominated the Principality's capital world ever since. Several other wealthy families also joined the ranks of the Regulan oligarchy over the ensuing years, most prominently the Lombards of Hellos Minor and the Alexanders of Wallis. The newcomers gradually diminished the overwhelming dominance of Indian culture in the region, but the heritage of the Selaj clan remains a vibrant force in Regulan society. Hindustani is still widely spoken, Indian classical raga music has enjoyed an energetic revival since the early 3040s and many Principality planets remain dotted with ubiquitous Hindu temples.

Politically, the departure of the Selajes nearly four centuries ago has done little to diminish opposition to House Marik's control of power in the League. Derrick Cameron-Jones, former opposition leader in Parliament, has become an elder statesman of the provincial rights movement. The current opposition leader, Kirc Cameron-Jones, and other MPs from Regulan worlds tend to follow Derrick's lead. Among the common people, however, good economic times go hand in hand with largely pro-Marik sentiments. Though the masses of Regulan citizens generally back their leaders, most prefer them to get on with the business of protecting Regulan mercantile interests rather than indulging in anti-Marik political gamesmanship.

Personal loyalty to Thomas Marik runs highest in the Regulan Free States, three breakaway Principality planets that won their independence in 2681. Born from Captain-General Gerald Marik's war against the Selajes that he believed had killed his family, this small federation bought its safety as well as its freedom by declaring its loyalty to the Mariks and hastily installing a pro-Marik government. The Free States soon discovered, however, that freedom on paper was worth little against constant meddling in their politics and economy by their former parent province. Not until Thomas Marik passed the Addendum to the Incorporation in 3037 did the Regulan Free States finally gain the power to chart their own course. Since then, local cultures and planetary economies have undergone a vibrant renaissance. No longer strangled by Principality trade embargoes, Free State industry and exports are thriving. The Mongol and Kazhak languages outlawed in the early days of secessionist rumblings and then rendered virtually irrelevant by Principality dominance of local life, have made a striking comeback to become the primary languages in this tiny province. Norwegian is also widely spoken on Olafsvik, site of a sizable Norwegian enclave since the earliest days of human settlement.