Council of Gisredde (concept)
The Council of Gisredde is the ruling government of Peti Gisredde and Chevalie's oldest continual government, tracing its history to the first century. While disbanded several times by invading violators of the Gisreddepact, the Council would always then rule in secret, and inevitably return after rebellion.
Gisredde (then Svergirssred, from the Gallicader Sweverg Irssraedl) first formed the council in the Three Pier War. Legends say that the scattered villages formed the emergency council to debate escaping the Viceroy of the West Mical Wisestar's demands for fealty (and taxes). Initially comprising locals, the villages pooled their meager wealth and bribed passing merchants, warriors and mercenaries into joining. Desperation likely led to local criminals also being welcomed. Local legend says the likely apocryphal Jan va Gisredde would rouse them to fight Mical. They agreed, but insulted by his brashness they gave him a host of livestock to lead, which Jan then used to attain victory.
Despite a muddled founding, the Council continued to lead thereafter. As Peti Gisredde grew, the council would become a byzantine senate of merchant leagues, artisan chapters, local notables, assassin and thief's guilds, knightly orders, banking organizations, noble houses, high-ranking Wayfathers and more. Outsiders oft-term this the 'world's most confusing government', and often (insultingly by others, jokingly by locals) 'a government of legal criminals.' Corrupt or not, the Council has maintained stability for over a thousand years, and the city has flourished into one of The Continent's richest. The term also refers to the former Council of Grande Gisredde, overthrown in the Coup of the Wayfathers and the city's independence, which most Peti Gisreddeans claim was a net positive.