[Discuss] An observation

[Lyman Stone]

> Are you actually suggesting that there is a historical basis for  
> weeks of
> prolonged peasant resistance to nobles after land changed hands?
>
> Popular sovereignty as an idea did not come around until the second  
> half of
> the 17th century, and had absolutely nothing to do with serfs and very
> little application to medieval feudalism -- it's about 300 years  
> too late.
> There is absolutely no "consent of the governed" in an agrarian,  
> feudal
> society.
It is impossible to rule without consent of the governed. If they do  
not revolt against you, then they consent. Now, of course, death may  
be the result of them not consenting. But it's still a choice they  
made. Militant popular sovereignty is the idea that popular  
sovereignty may be expressed through revolts or rebellions.

Also, if there is a peasant militia, there is probably some local  
beaurocrat or minor noble who is leading them. And I would daresay  
there are examplesof peasants holding out for weeks, months, even  
years. One example of peasants lead by a minor nobleman for an  
extraordinarily long time after the rulerof an area changedwould be  
Robin Hood. Now, of course, it wasn't a TO I suppose, but it was  
still peasants holding out. Or you can just look at the common  
banditry of the middle ages.

>
> BS. The game forces you to spend your time doing bookkeeping if you  
> actually
> want to hang on to your regions. Again, I like this as a reasonable  
> aspect
> of the game. It makes sense. The present implementation is far too  
> extreme,
> and none of the examples you gave are either good history or good game
> design.

Did I say if you wanted to hold onto your regions? No. Now, if your  
realm is very small, there is precious little bookeeping to be done.  
But a larger realm, will have a fair bit. Whatever the case, you  
wanting to hold onto your regions is your choice. But do remember, in  
the actual middle ages, when the nobles went off to war, that was the  
time when locals back home got restless. Maybe nobles in the middle  
ages didn't do that beaurocracy.


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