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oaths

flykiller

SOC-14 5K
british:

"I, (Insert full name), do swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, her heirs and successors, according to law. So help me God."



u.s.:

"I, _____ (SSAN), having been appointed an officer in the Army of the United States, as indicated above in the grade of _____ do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God."

"I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God."



(tried to look up oaths of service for spain and the netherlands as they have royalty, but couldn't find them.)

so. what are appropriate imperial oaths of service?
 
Probably a bend on the British oath.

"I do solemnly swear to uphold and defend the Imperium to the best of my ability, in the name of the emperor/duke of (sector/subsector)."

I don't know if the Imperium would require a "so help me god" given the many different possible faiths from the thousands of worlds. Maybe a "or let me die."

Maybe? I'm not to knowledgeable on who the Imperial Navy swears allegiance to (the nobles, the emperor, the planets paying their wages). And it could change depending on what level of the navy is involved.
 
(tried to look up oaths of service for spain and the netherlands as they have royalty, but couldn't find them.)
As for Spain:

The officer commanding the ceremony (usually O6 equivalent or higher) asks to the soldiers:

Soldados! ¿Juráis o prometéis por vuestra conciencia y honor cumplir fielmente vuestras obligaciones militares, guardar y hacer guardar la Constitución como norma fundamental del Estado, obedecer y respetar al Rey y a vuestros jefes, no abandonarlos nunca y, si preciso fuera, entregar vuestra vida en defensa de España?

Translated (to the best of my capacity):

Soldiers! do you pledge (vow? swear?) or promise for your conscience and honor to fulfill your military obligations, to preserve and to make to preserve the Constitution as fundamental law (norm?) of the state, to obey and respect the King and your officers, never to abandon them and, if it was ever required, to give up your life in the defense of Spain?


And the soldiers are expected to answer:

Sí, lo hacemos (Yes, we do)
 
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While a very worthwhile topic for both flash AND McGuffin, I was disappointed- I was expecting material for cussing in the far future.
 
As for Spain:

The officer commanding the ceremony (usually O6 equivalent or higher) asks to the soldiers:



Translated (to the best of my capacity):

Soldiers! do you pledge (vow? swear?) or promise for your conscience and honor to fulfill your military obligations, to preserve and to make to preserve the Constitution as fundamental law (norm?) of the state, to obey and respect the King and your officers, never to abandon them and, if it was ever required, to give up your life in the defense of Spain?


And the soldiers are expected to answer:
fundamental law is the more correct.
Vow implies religious-backed oath.
Pledge or swear are the most likely, and given the "honor" in context, and that the latin derived from is translated as Swear... Swear is probably the better choice.

Rendering thus
Soldiers! do you swear or promise for your conscience and honor to fulfill your military obligations, to preserve and to make to preserve the Constitution as fundamental law of the state, to obey and respect the King and your officers, never to abandon them and, if it was ever required, to give up your life in the defense of Spain?

Which scans pretty well...

And the SCA's WK oath of fealty, for comparison for the rest of you...

Knight:
"Here do I swear
by mouth and hand
fealty and service
to the Crown and Kingdom of the West
to speak and to be silent
to come and to go
to strike and to spare
to do and to let be
in such matters as concern the Kingdom
on my honor
and the lawful commands of the Crown
in need or in plenty
in peace or in war
in living or in dying
from this hour henceforth
until the King depart from His Throne
or death take me
or the world end
so say I, ____."

Reciprocal:
King: "And this do We hear,
nor fail to remember,
and We for Our part do swear fealty to you,
____,
to protect and defend you
and all your household,
with all Our power,
until We depart from Our Throne,
or death take Us,
or the world end.
So say We, ___, King of the West."
Queen: "So also say We, ___, Queen of the West."​

These are grounded in an English orign. I use them little changed for elevations in Traveller to the knighthoods or peerages.
 
fundamental law is the more correct.
Vow implies religious-backed oath.
Pledge or swear are the most likely, and given the "honor" in context, and that the latin derived from is translated as Swear... Swear is probably the better choice.

Rendering thus
Soldiers! do you swear or promise for your conscience and honor to fulfill your military obligations, to preserve and to make to preserve the Constitution as fundamental law of the state, to obey and respect the King and your officers, never to abandon them and, if it was ever required, to give up your life in the defense of Spain?

Which scans pretty well...

TY for the clarifications. Sometimes I'm not sure about the best English word in those cases, so I give several options (e.g. I was not sure if the word "swear" was used in such positive way, not just as "saying profanities")

While a very worthwhile topic for both flash AND McGuffin, I was disappointed- I was expecting material for cussing in the far future.

Sorry if it disppointed you, I only tried to answer about the Spanish oath, as you said you didn't find it. (BTW, the law regulating this oath is expected to be reviewed in January 2016, so the oath may change...)

so. what are appropriate imperial oaths of service?

While it's a Knight oath, not a military one, you have and example in Challenge 47, page 25, for the oath given by the Knights of the Blue Feather (an order of Dephy knights that serve Margaret in the Rebellion).

Maybe it can be useful for you...
 
From my experience in the OTHER career, a typical oath goes something like this ...
"Dammit, man! Make up your mind!! Are you in or out?"

To which the traditional response is ...
"Don't stroke out. Yeah, I'm in."

;)
 
"Here do I swear
by mouth and hand
fealty and service
to the Crown and Kingdom of the West ...."

that's beautiful, wish I could think that way. but it's personal, as the old oaths are. I was thinking of something official, something that might be said at a naval ceremony or a scout celebration, where the crown is by necessity absent and many light years away. something like the american pledge of allegiance.
 
"Here do I swear
by mouth and hand
fealty and service
to the Crown and Kingdom of the West ...."

that's beautiful, wish I could think that way. but it's personal, as the old oaths are. I was thinking of something official, something that might be said at a naval ceremony or a scout celebration, where the crown is by necessity absent and many light years away. something like the american pledge of allegiance.

I expect the oaths of Nobles to be equally as personal, formal and old-form.

Officers would have a different one.
 
"Here do I swear
by mouth and hand
fealty and service
to the Crown and Kingdom of the West ...."

that's beautiful, wish I could think that way. but it's personal, as the old oaths are. I was thinking of something official, something that might be said at a naval ceremony or a scout celebration, where the crown is by necessity absent and many light years away. something like the american pledge of allegiance.

I would have thought a rendering of the 3i Anthem would have been done, in that kind of gathering?
 
a rendering of the 3i Anthem

hm. does the 3i have an anthem? it's hard to imagine an anthem that is not nationalistic, but the 3rd imperium is not a nation. the first and second might be so viewed, but the third is ... well, it's a trade consortium. "I pledge allegiance to the profit of the reigning emperor of vland ...." doesn't work.

come to think of it, what would a 3rd imperium oath even appeal to? "so help me god"?
 
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