LoTHNet: House Westerly
Posted by The Bellman on May 21, 2010
House Westerly (sometimes known as House Ehrwood or The Eclipse House) is the name of one of the extended “families” or “dynasties” that have concentrated their power and possessions through inheritance, purportedly dating back to the Passage or Old Earth. Its primary compound and ancestral home is located just outside the Mark on an estate known as Ehrwood. Ehrwood is a land parcel of approximately 0.5 square kilometers ((about 125 acres)) some parts of which constitute the estates, grounds and outbuildings occupied by various family members, and other parts of which either were never developed or have been permitted to return to woodlands. Ehrwood has been in the lawful possession of members of House Westerly for as long as title records are available, at least since 1 CR. This possession was not disturbed, nor seriously contested, during the Newmarket uprisings. House Westerly has innumerable other holdings available as Learning to appropriate cells, including smaller land holdings and compounds in or near at least four other Cities.
The leader of House Westerly is usually referred to by the name “Ehrwood”, rather than Westerly, for reasons that are not within present Learning. Matrilineality and Patrilineality are both recognized under the House charter, and leaders have been of both genders. Presently, the ranking member of House Westerly is its First Son, Colin Jaycott Westerly bar Ehrwood. Colin Ehrwood, apart from his various foundation and House duties, is also the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Haight Western, one of Newmarket’s largest investment banks. Bank holding structure and ownership is not transparent, however it is within Learning that interests within the control of House Westerly own a majority of Haight Western, and have for many years, including prior to Colin Ehrwood’s taking over the chairmanship. Colin Ehrwood’s Mark profile and related reputational tagging indicate that he is considered extremely competent at his job, if somewhat ruthless, and is not seen to be running the bank as a “vanity” project. Available data suggests that the bank has grown substantially in the seven years he has been at its head. It is now the primary (visible) income driver for the House. Estimates of the wealth of the House vary widely. Colin Ehrwood (who does not pay himself a salary) has been estimated by sources believed reliable to have a personal net worth in excess of 20 billion en. This is the Learning of the Hive.
