The Charter
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The Charter appears in Garth Nix's Old Kingdom series of novels (Sabriel, Lirael: Daughter of the Clayr, and Abhorsen). It is an ever-present force in the Old Kingdom, contains and joins all things, and acts as a source of legal, standardized, and benevolent magic, as opposed to Free Magic, which is inimical to life.
Children baptized into the Charter bear a Charter Mark upon their foreheads, which they bear for the entirety of their lives. The baptism process is described in Sabriel, and involves a Charter Mage anointing him or herself with ashes, on top of his or her existing Charter Mark, and then the ash mark appearing on the child's forehead during a magical, oral ceremony. Some people also receive the Charter Mark later in life, especially the Crossing Point Scouts of the Perimeter. It is possible for one who bears the Charter Mark to "test" another's Mark, revealing if they are a corrupted necromancer, Dead being, or sending.
The Charter is commonly manifested as Charter Stones and Charter Marks, which are the building blocks of Old Kingdom magic. The Charter Stones are, seemingly, emitters of Charter Magic, as near proximity to one gives a Charter Mage a boost to his or her magical abilities. Regular Charter Stones are scattered throughout the kingdom, and usually mark cities, towns, or villages. These are merely conduits for the Charter to flow through. The six Great Charter stones lie in a reservoir beneath the capital Belisaere, and they are more powerful than any of the other Charter Stones. Regular Charter Stones can and have been broken by a Free Magic rite involving the sacrifice and blood of a Charter Mage. The Great Charters, however, can be broken only by the blood of an Abhorsen, one of the Clayr, or a member of the Royal Family. Charter Stones can only be mended by those of the bloodline of the Royal Family.
The Charter is most often used through Charter Marks, a large language of symbols that represent parts of spells. These marks are held in the mind of the spellcaster, and then expressed through speaking, drawing, whistling, or any number of other means. There are a seemingly infinite number of these marks, causing there to be an almost infinite number of possible spells. Charter spells can take the form of shields, diamonds of protection, constructs, enchantments on weapons, and can influence and control the elements of the physical world, such as wind, light and fire and well as many other types of magic.
Another aspect of the Charter can be seen in the Five Great Charters, which refers to the Royal Family, the Abhorsen, the Charter Stones, the Wall (which separates the Old Kingdom from Ancelstierre) and the Clayr.
The makers of the Charter are believed to be the same powers which left their names as the names of the seven Necromantic bells.
| Garth Nix's Old Kingdom series | |
|---|---|
| Novels | Sabriel • Lirael • Abhorsen • Across the Wall: A Tale of the Abhorsen and Other Stories |
| Characters | Chlorr of the Mask • Disreputable Dog • Kerrigor • Lirael • Mogget • Orannis • Sabriel • Terciel • Touchstone |
| Magic | The Charter • Five Great Charters • Free Magic • Nine Bright Shiners |
| Places | Ancelstierre • Death • Old Kingdom |
| Magical objects | Necromantic bells • Nehima • Paperwing |
