What about revolutions? Republics were very susceptible to social unrest and revolution as much as palace coups.
Rome itself, for example, suffered more than five republican and popular revolutions between the years 1000 and 1550 that established republican or "democratic" governments. Will we see:
- Popular preachers and
revolutions that ignite the mobs and a revulsive, an upside-down situation, in which the ruling families are expelled and new families from the lowborn families are set? Exiled families would want to return, Medici-style, as well as gain support to regain their city.
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Religious dictatorships like the Golden Ambrosine Republic in 1400's Milan, Savonarola in 1480's Florence, or, sort of, Giordano Pierleoni when he led the Roman revolt and was elected Roman Consul ("Patrician" was his title) in the XIIth Century. These dictatorships overthrow ruling families but are very unstable. They can mean solemn butchery of families
- The ruler of a vassal republic, or its elites,
demanding a "charter" from the ruler that turns it into a merchant republic?
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One year terms. Collegue magistratures. Two, four consuls, serving for just one year. Let's be honest, live-long doges existed only in Venice at first. In almost all other Republics, terms were one, two, four or five years long. Usually one. And almost everytime there were more than one doge or consul. Collegiate magistratures are somthing I don't expect, but one-year-terms would be nice. Some set of deicisions or "inheritance laws" for Republics could be set so that they can be one year, two, four, ten, or life-long.
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Podestàs: after the collapse of political life due to extreme violence, the Populus asks a famous foreigner to rule the town as arbiter, without alliegances or connections in town. It may turn into a podestà becoming ruler, head of a patrician family, or even prince.
I would like to see some of those things.
