The Twenty-Fifth Council-General of the Kingdoms of Gondor and Arnor

Late last spring, the Commissioners for the Execution of the Office of Lord Great Steward issued Writs of Summons to convoke the highest legislature of the realms in exile for the momentous task of electing a new Lord Great Steward, in succession to the Hon. Dr. Goldman, who had, as Duke of Ithilien, served in that High Ministry since its revival in the early days of the Restoration. As usual, the assembly of "great men and women of the Realms" also served as something of a social event, including a dinner at a Thai restaurant in the center of Lexington, Massachusetts, on the eve of the Council itself.

The Council-General was called to order by the Rt. Hon. the Viscount Mering, acting as Lord President in the absence of the M.N. the Duchess of Belfalas. When the Osgiliath Herald had read the Writs of Summons and the Mayor of the Shire had accepted the Certificate of Election of the one Representative present, those in attendance were: The M. N. the Duke of Númenor, Regent; The M.N. the Duke of Anorien, Earl Marshal; The Most Hon. the Marquess of Mirkwood, Lord High Chancellor, Lord Commissioner for the Office of Steward, Lord Great Chamberlain; The M. Hon. Sir John Elder, styled Marquess of Minas Tirith, Representative of the Palatine Duchy of Anorien; The Rt. Hon. the Viscount Mering; The Rt. Hon. the Baron Min-Rimmon, Osgiliath Herald; The Hon. Sir William Mendelsohn, Bart.; and The Rt. Hon. Sir Jonathan Reich, K.E., P.C., Mayor of the Shire. No sooner had the President declared the Council formed than the traditional cry "I spy strangers" went up, and His Grace the Regent introduced His Excellency the Lord Elrond, High Commissioner of the Forodrim and in his own right former head of Eregion, the Tolkien Society of Jerusalem.

Inasmuch as Lord Mirkwood was in the difficult position of being both Lord Chancellor and Commissioner for the Stewardship--circumstances in which the ritual of the Council would have found him frequently talking to himself--Sir William Mendelsohn agreed to act as Chancellor, and Lord Mirkwood then gave the speech from the Throne, traditionally delivered by the Lord Great Steward but written for him by, and expressing the plans of, the elected Government which has asked that the Council be summoned. The inspiring speech, with its appeal to more than twenty years of tradition, was warmly received; in response, His Grace the Regent presented the Report of the Nominating Committee, which recommended that Lord Mirkwood be relieved of his existing offices, raised to a dukedom, invested with palatine authority, appointed Lord Great Steward, and given a purse to cover the expenses of assuming the High Ministry. A motion having been made, seconded, and passed to receive the report, His Grace the Regent (placing, perhaps, too much reliance on Robert's Rules) rose to congratulate his colleague, only to be reminded that the Council had not actually moved to put the recommendations of the report into effect. The chastened diplomat having taken his seat, the appropriate motion was made, seconded, and passed, and the new Lord Great Steward was inducted into that ministry by the Earl Marshal. His Grace the Regent welcomed the new Steward by raising him to the degree of a Knight Grand Cross of the M. N. Order of the Flame of Anor, and His Excellency the High Commissioner expressed congratulations with a decoration from Eregion, as well. As his first official act, the new Steward declared that he would be styled "His Grace" rather than "His Highness," out of respect for the example of his predecessor.

Turning to foreign affairs, His Grace the Regent gave a report on the year's diplomatic developments, after which His Excellency the High Commissioner spoke informally about the history and activities of the Forodrim.

On the call for other motions, His Grace the Regent moved The Taxation and Salary Act of 7550; after some debate about the policies of the Central Bank, as established by Adanedhel of Esgaroth, apparently a "Chicago School" economist, the Act passed, essentially dismantling the structure of taxation and government salaries until such time as the Privy Council may see fit to make other arrangements. (The Act was inspired at least in part by the failure of the successive Privy Councils to put into effect the arrangements made from time to time by the Council-General.) His Grace the Regent asked whether legislation to allow H.A.M. Privy Council to meet by means of electronic media; the consensus of opinion was that the Privy Council could do so without further enabling legislation. The Marquess of Minas Tirith, in his capacity as Royal Librarian, reported on the current state of the Kingdoms' collection of the arcane and the unique, and showed some recent acquisitions. In two courtesy resolutions, His Grace the Steward moved that the Council send greetings to the Goldmans, and His Grace the Regent that it send greetings to the Forodrim: both motions were seconded and passed.

For the first time in some years, the Council did not move to excuse those peers who were not actually in attendance; without such a motion, the clock begins ticking toward rustication of the peerage titles involved for non-user. It seems likely, however, that the lack of a motion was a mere oversight and will be remedied by some future council.

After a particularly elegant spread of refreshments--the acquisition of which had been the Steward's last action in his former capacity as Lord Great Chamberlain, the Council reassembled for elections. The Mayor reported that the Accession Council had found no viable claimant to the Throne, and recommended that the Regent continue in office. His Grace the Steward gave notice of his intention to summon the Council-General next in Urui of 7551, at the same time as the World Science Fiction Convention of 1998. His Grace the Regent read a letter from the M. N. the Duchess of Belfalas expressing Her Grace's willingness to continue to be of service, and Her Grace was without dissent re-elected Lady President. After Sir William Mendelsohn agreed to stand for the office of Lord High Chancellor at the 26th Council-General, the Marquess of Minas Tirith (technically a commoner, despite his high precedence as heir to the Duchy of Anorien) allowed his name to be put forward as Keeper of the Great Seal for the coming year, and he was accordingly elected. The new Government having taken their oaths, the Council was declared closed, the Privy Council called into session, and the traditional Patriotic Air sung.