Steel Empire
Law Reform

Weeks had passed since Berengar took over the title of Viscount, and all of his father's followers came and went after swearing allegiance to the new regime. Berengar, of course, was quite pleased with the result; even Lambert's stern supporters had swallowed their pride and knelt before him and kissed his ring. The fact that he did not need to shoot to ensure his controversial transition to power was a victory in itself.

At present, Berengar is studying the codification of laws in Kufstein and overhauling almost everything. The first change he gave was the concept of equal protection under the judicial system for all citizens regardless of class and gender. This in itself would be a considerable point of contention against the nobles in his territory. Still, as a Viscount, and with the overwhelming military force under his direct command, he was not afraid of any acts of rebellion from their side.

The second major reform act was the establishment of an innocent system until proven guilty, inspired by the legal system of the country where he lived in his past life Berengar completely turns the judicial system on its head with the establishment of proper courts, lawyers, law enforcement, and all the other things you can think of for a semi-modern justice system. The new codex of law has removed some of the foolish traditions such as court after battle which has actually been a way for people to determine the courts in many Germanic territories.

Berengar's next major legal reform was to establish a legislative branch of government representing the nobility and commoners. Simply put, the more Berengar grew, the more jobs it sank into, and he needed a dedicated branch of government to handle this for him. Because of this, he built a system that was once again inspired by the American legislative branch from his previous life. Basically its congress has two rooms, like America; however, it is divided between the House of Commons and the House of Lords, as did England in its past life.

The house of commons consists of representatives of the common people elected to power by the same people. The House of Lords essentially acted as the Senate of Berengar's previous life and consisted of members of the nobility elected to power by the nobility. Under this system, there are strict voting requirements. First and foremost, one must be a citizen of Kufstein; second, they must be male, third they must pass a literacy test, and lastly, they must pass a literacy test, they should be total Germans who are all citizens because this is not the era of globalism. Although Berengar wanted to create a future Semi-Constitutional Election Monarchy that provided representation for both the nobility and the general public, he was by no means an egalitarian.

Just like America, the area currently known as the Visounty of Kufstein would be broken up into more localized districts led by a form of local government similar to America from its past life. By city, city hall, mayor, etc. The district itself was ruled by a Governor elected by commoners, and nobles of the region.

As far as the executive branch is concerned, the seat of power is ruled by the Viscount, who upon Berengar's death will be elected by the House of Nobles from among the male members of his dynasty. If for any reason there are no surviving male members of his dynasty, then the next ruler will be chosen from the female members, and he will be required to marry matrilineally with his spouse. This will ensure power will forever be in the hands of his family, but hopefully, his most competent family members will succeed. If the current Viscount chose to abdicate for any reason, he was also allowed one vote to decide who his successor was. His position as Viscount held significant authority; like the president of America, he both signed laws into law, held the power to issue executive orders, and was commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The main difference is the fact that his position is for life, or until his abdication voluntarily.

Of course, Berengar did not forget to explicitly enact the separation of Church and State in this reform, thoroughly removing any influence the Vatican had over secular affairs in the Visounty of Kufstein. This action will undoubtedly anger the Vatican, but what else is new? Berengar was really pleased with how stable and efficient he was at making things as he glanced at the form for review.

He knew that by reforming the feudal system as early as possible, he could familiarize the people in his territory. If he waited until he had an actual Kingdom or Empire under his command to implement these reforms, he would definitely fight a rebellion against the nobles for decades to come. Thus, he predicted things would go much smoother by starting the transition of power early on and incorporating the territories he would conquer into this process.

When Linde saw this Law Reform, she was completely shocked by the change; eventually she started to complain about the situation. As a girl who grew up as a pampered noble, she could not imagine handing over unlimited authority for future stability.

"So you just gave up your power?"

Berengar chuckled and patted his lover's head as he tried to explain his actions.

"It is true that with this reform, I will not hold absolute authority over the land, but once again, as my territory develops into a mighty Empire, I will not have time to micro-manage every aspect of society. Times changed; when commoners became educated and were given more free time due to industrialization, they would inevitably demand representation in government. To reject it is a revolution. By taking the first step to ensure the future of the people, and by giving them a degree of representation that they have never seen before, they will see it as an act of divine virtue and will see that my Dynasty is not a bunch of haughty nobles leading them like cattle, but rather like a shepherd defending his flock from wolves."

Linde was utterly shocked by her vision for the future and the fact that she was willing to give up absolute authority in order to create a stable monarchy ruled by her family for generations. However, when he read about the law of succession, he could not help but smile and cling to her with the grip of the representative. He interprets this law as a way to put his future son on the throne despite being a scoundrel, unaware that although Berengar sees Monarchy as one of the most efficient forms of government, the current laws of succession are often ineffective.The reigning monarch often results in disasters both in this timeline and in his previous life. Therefore, his true intention was that he tried to reduce such an outcome as much as possible.

Nevertheless, the Viscount and his mistress remained like this for some time, as they discussed the future implications of his law and his idea for a unified German Empire. Berengar was happy because he had someone he could talk to discuss his vision. Up until now she had never really discussed her plans for the future with anyone, but with Linde by her side, he felt as if he could say anything to her without her stabbing him in the back. Before long, Berengar was forced back to work. Many things need his attention, especially mass recruitment into public education. As always, there is no rest for the tired.