Regent

A Regent is an individual who assumes the role of ruling in the name of a Monarch when the rightful ruler is unable to govern effectively. A Monarch may only have a single Regent appointed at any given time, though they are theoretically free to reassign the title any time they please; in practice, such reassignment is a very unusual and rare event.

The appointment of a Monarch's Regent is crucial to maintaining stability and a smooth transition of power during periods of Regency. After all, the Regent must possess the necessary qualities of wisdom, leadership, and loyalty to the monarchy, and must be able to be entrusted with the responsibility of upholding the best interests of the realm while safeguarding the throne until the Crown Candidate can ascend.

In Zarthura, the Regent to the throne has almost always been a Monarch's spouse. As such, the marriage of a Monarch is a hugely public affair, with a Monarch's choice of spouse highly scrutinized. In some cases, a Monarch has appointed a trusted advisor as their Regent instead, though this usually only happens if the Monarch is unmarried; if they were to have a spouse whom they do not name Regent, this would be seen as a huge insult to the spouse and call into question the Monarch's judgement and priorities.