The Governments of the City-States..

Yeah... that's todays speculation topic:  the leadership and system of governments found in the three city-states of Eorzea.   TGS comes next week and my excitement about finding out more info about the game in general has me speculating so many factors of Eorzea.  So far, we are only given a brief overview of the type of government for Limsa Lominsa which is a Thalassocracy style of government.   To simplify I'll just go get the definition of a thalassocracy from the Wiki:

The term thalassocracy (from the Ancient Greek: θάλασσα, meaning sea, and κρατείν, meaning "to rule", giving θαλασσοκρατία, "rule of the sea") refers to a state with primarily maritime realms—an empire at sea, such as the Phoenician network of merchant cities. Traditional thalassocracies seldom dominate interiors, even in their home territories (for example: Tyre, Sidon, or Carthage). It is necessary to distinguish this traditional sense of thalassocracy from an "empire", where the state's territories, though possibly linked principally or solely by the sea lanes, generally extend into mainland interiors; under such a definition, empires such as the British Empire were not thalassocracies.

Please note that the term can also simply refer to naval supremacy, in either military or commercial senses of the word "supremacy." Indeed, the word thalassocracy itself was first used by the ancient Greeks to describe the government of the Minoan civilization, whose power depended on its navy. Herodotus also spoke of the need to counter the Phoenician thalassocracy by developing a Greek "empire of the sea.    The people of Limsa Lominsa... (we are all still speculating that they are made up of a Roegardyn majority)... however address their leader as "Admiral" and the present 77th Admiral of Limsa Lominsa is N'bolata Tyata.  Is he or she a Roegardyn?  The name 'N'bolata' suggests this... but if I'm wrong, perhaps it's a Mi'qote or Hyuran?

Anyway, to maintain shipping routes, the thalassocracy employs a powerful navy known as the Knights of the Barracuda, who patrol the Eorzean seas, ensuring safe passage for all those who do business with the nation.

Now that we have that established, what kind of government do we hope to see in Girdania and Ul'Dah?

What if Girdania has a "Theocracy", which is rule by a religious elite?    For the Elezen, that will sound... dunno... a bit more like tham and traditional towards how we percieve the world of "Elves".   A more concise way of stating it would be that they might have a "Theocratical Monarchy" which is a form of government that has a monarch, but his/her power is strictly limited by the members of an 'elected' or 'nominated' religious or divine enclave (usually made up of the priests who are from perhaps aristocratic bloodlines). 
 
I think this style of government more suits the description of the Elezen much more closely than just a plain  theocracy (that sounds grossly bland or fanatically rigid)... and if they do have a monarchy, something tells me that the Elezen will likely have a Queen.  Yep... a female at the helm of the priest-style government.   Dunno why my instincy keeps telling me this, but it sounds somehow plausible and should make room for some seriously awesome stories.

The race description for the Elezen appropriately denotes that they are a noble and proud race (similar to the Elvaan of San d'Oria) and in Vana'diel, they had a monarchy style of government.   Although the royal family of the Elvaan (House d"Oraguille) were somewhat dysfunctional, it went on to underline how interesting the storyline was (Prince Trion ftw!)... and of course, my Paladin character was a seriously loyal Elvaan through and through (heck, even the king adopted my character as a potential heir to the throne.  So now that we have the "Elves" again in Eorzea, it'll be only fitting that they will have a monarchy.  And as far as military system is concerned, maybe the Elezen will have an elite Order of Dragoon Knights?

The Queen will no doubt have a few impatient, restless, power-hungry male relatives around her (can we have an Amen for awesome royal drama?)... maybe a younger brother, male cousin or uncle who uses his influence (maybe as the general of the military?) to has cede thousands of Elezen over to the side of the Duskwights?  

Hmmm... interesting thought, yes?

And Ul'dah... with all their "technological' advancement, (and obvious similarity to FFXI's Bastok), I think they will have a "Constitutional Republic" which is rule by a government composed of representatives who are voted into power by the people.  Anywayz, we'll find out soon enough.