[Dragaera] Vassals

[Philip Hart]

On Wed, 22 Oct 2008, Peter Granzeau wrote:

> At 06:24 PM 10/21/2008, Philip Hart wrote:
>> Are there tax collectors, if there's no local aristocracy?
>
> I would have assumed that the title belonged to the Empire, and the tax 
> collectors would have been appointed by the Imperial crown and render 
> taxes to it.  Now that Vlad is Count Szurke, he collects the taxes etc. 
> I assume he also collects and keeps the rents (rather than having it be 
> forwarded to the crown, too).

I kind of doubt that there is any reason for the orb to bother 
taxing a hundred Teckla families on the edge of the empire who
aren't under a noble or any other apparent administration - they
would likely have to pay in kind, and what would that be useful for? 
Vlad doesn't tell N-p anything about collecting taxes, or dealing 
with the empire - he'll be able to keep working and to dispense advice 
as he likes.  But Perhaps someone who is more familiar with feudal 
societies than I am just from reading _A Distant Mirror_ twenty
years ago can chime in about how such situations worked in Europe
or wherever; maybe "manorial" is the right term.