4. Members
The full voting membership of the Society shall consist of all persons who have attained the age of fourteen years and have paid the full Society subscription fee. The Family membership shall consist of all close relatives of full members, residing at the same address. Family members who have not attained the age of fourteen years may only attend meetings if accompanied by their sponsoring full membership. Family membership does not confer the right to vote.
5. Subscription
The subscription and term of membership shall be fixed by the Committee. The term of membership or membership year is the period (which may be in excess of twelve calendar months) during which six issues of the Society's journal are published. Payment of the subscription shall entitle the full member to receive the Society's journal, and to attend meetings held by or on behalf of the Society during that term. Family members shall pay a reduced subscription fee, which shall be fixed by the Committee. Its payment shall not entitle the Family member to receive the Society's journal. It shall entitle the Family member to attend any meeting organised by on behalf of the Society and take part in its Wargames Championship.
6. Termination of Membership
The Committee may expel any member of the Society whose conduct is considered, to their satisfaction, to be detrimental to the interest and welfare of the Society. Any subscription refund, in whole or in part, shall be at the discretion of the Committee. An appeal against termination of membership may be made to a general meeting.
7. Management
The affairs of the Society shall be conducted by the Committee. The Committee shall consist of the following posts:
- President
- Secretary
- Treasurer
- Editor
- Membership Secretary
- Postal Sales Organiser
- Events Organiser
- Publicity Officer
The following posts are to be appointed by the committee with no voting rights at Committee meetings. Wargames Championship Organiser
All committee members shall be elected for each membership year. The Committee shall have power to appoint full voting members as:
| i. |
Overseas or Regional Co-ordinators to represent the interests of distant groups of members; |
| ii. |
Co-opted members of the Committee where a shortfall of Committee members occurs after an election. |
| iii. |
Gentlemen Volunteers to perform specific task that lie outside of the remit of Committee members. |
The outgoing Committee shall retire at the end of each Society year to be replaced by the Committee Elect. In the event of the Committee Elect not constituting a Committee Quorum, the outgoing Committee shall be empowered to retain authority until a duly elected Committee with a Quorum can be constituted. A Quorum for a Committee meeting shall consist of five elected Committee members present in person or represented by proxy. To be eligible for re-election, a Committee member must have attended in person or by proxy two or more correctly notified Committee meetings during his or her year of service. This qualification may be wavered by a General Meeting following a unanimous recommendation by the Committee. In the event of any Committee member being unable to perform his duties, the Committee shall be empowered to appoint a Deputy, and the Committee member shall promptly deliver all Society documents to such a Deputy.
8. Duties of the President
The President shall take the Chair at General Meetings and Committee meetings of the Society. If he or she is not present, a meeting chairman elected from and by the Committee for that meeting only shall take the chair. The President shall ensure that the Society is run in the manner prescribed by the Constitution of the Society and decided by the General Meetings, and shall be responsible for ensuring that tasks allocated by General or Committee meetings are performed. The President shall present the collated Officers' Reports at the Committee meetings, and in their absence, at General Meetings.
9. Duties of the Secretary
The Secretary shall keep Minutes of all Committee and General meetings and prepare Agendas for them. If the Secretary is not present, a deputy elected by and from the Committee for that meeting shall take the minutes. The Secretary will process the general correspondence of the Society, where it is not specifically the responsibility of another Committee member. Correspondence that cannot be dealt with by a Committee member will be presented by the Secretary to the next Committee meeting for resolution.
10. Duties of the Treasurer
The Treasurer shall administer the Society's finances, and will prepare a balance sheet and profit and loss account showing the Society's financial state at the end of each Society year for presentation to the next General Meeting. The Treasurer will maintain accounts with reputable institutions and all funds received form any source by the Treasurer on behalf of the Society shall be paid into the Society accounts, except for small amounts of foreign currency which may be held at the Treasurer's discretion. The Treasurer shall determine at which institutions the Society's accounts shall be, unless otherwise directed by the Committee. All cheques shall be signed by any two Officers of the Society. The Treasurer shall retain records of all payments.
11. Duties of the Membership Secretary
The Membership Secretary will keep the Membership Records of the Society, recording the addresses of the current members of the Society. He or she will have responsibility for posting Society publications and communications to the membership.
12. Duties of the Editor
The Editor shall edit the Society journal Arquebusier, and the Society newsletter Mercurius. He or she will also have overall responsibility for other publications of the Society.
13. Duties of the Postal Sales Organiser
The Postal Sales Organiser shall have responsibility for handling postal sales of Society merchandise. In addition he or she will have responsibility for holding all Society stock when it is not required by other members of the Committee.
14. Duties of the Events Organiser
The Events Organiser shall have responsibility for co-ordinating the Society's presence at public events such as wargames shows, historical re-enactments and other such occasions where it is thought to be of benefit for the Society to attend. He or she will be responsible for booking stands at events, arranging for Society members to staff them and supplying said members with adequate merchandise for sale and publicity material.
15. Duties of the Wargames Championship Organiser
This post is appointed at the discretion of the Committee and carries no voting rights at Committee meetings. The Wargames Championship Organiser shall run the Society's wargames championship. In this capacity he or she will devise the structure of the championship, organise Games Days and collate results from games into a league table.
16. Duties of the Publicity Officer
This post is appointed at the discretion of the Committee and carries no voting rights at Committee meetings. The Publicity Officer shall be responsible for all the Society's publicity activities. This includes organising the production of publicity material, co-ordinating the Society's publicity efforts and acting as a liasion between the Society and the media.
17. Gentlemen Volunteers
There are a number of tasks carried out by the Committee which are not Officer's duties. These tasks vary according to circumstances and can be created by the Committee or as a result of a request from a member. Volunteers from the ordinary membership of the Society may be undertaken these tasks.
18. Committee Meetings
There shall be at least four Committee meetings per Society year. Committee meetings shall be called by the Secretary. Four weeks prior to a proposed meeting date the Secretary shall request from all Committee members items to be placed on the Agenda. Such items as are received two weeks prior to the meeting shall be circulated with the formal note of the date and venue. Any item not included on this Agenda may be discussed but not voted on at the meeting. The President shall be empowered to call an Emergency Committee Meeting if he or she shall judge it necessary, subject to two weeks notice as above. Committee members who are unable to attend a meeting may in writing appoint other members as their proxies. Where no other member is available the Secretary shall act as proxy. Unless instructed in writing the proxy may vote as he or she wishes. Proxies apply only to one meeting. The appointment of a proxy does not prevent the appointing member subsequently attending. The President shall be empowered to exercise a casting vote in cases where the Committee is tied.
19. General Meetings
General meetings shall be held:
| i. |
At least once a Society year, no later than six month after the election of a Committee with a Quorum; |
| ii. |
And at such times as the Committee shall determine; |
| iii. |
And when a special requisition in writing of at least twenty full voting Society members or 5% of the full voting membership is presented to the Secretary. |
Twenty-eight days notice of General Meetings shall be sent to all members in writing. Twenty members or 5% of the current voting membership shall form a Quorum, of which at least fifteen must be signatories of any special requisition. Members who are unable to attend a General Meeting may, in writing, instruct the Secretary to act as proxy. Unless instructed otherwise, in writing, the proxy may vote as he or she wishes. Proxies apply only to one meeting. The appointment of a proxy does not prevent the appointing member subsequently attending.
20. Matters Arising
Any members of the Society wishing to bring forward any matter of complaint shall send it in writing to the Secretary who shall put it before the Committee, whose decision will be final unless amended by a General Meeting.
21. The Elections
In the event of posts being contested elections shall be held annually, to provide a Committee with a Quorum. The Committee shall be held once every Society year, to provide a Committee with a Quorum. The Committee shall appoint a Returning Officer who shall be responsible for the organisation of the election and the receipt and counting of ballot papers. Ballot papers shall be sent to all full voting members of the Society as of the issue of the journal preceding the Election. This must be a minimum of six weeks beforehand. The Election shall be by postal vote. No person may be nominated as a Committee member unless he or she is a fully paid up voting member of the Society, and no person not a fully paid up voting member shall be entitled to hold office as a Committee member.
22. Honorary Vice-Presidents
General meetings have the power to elect Honorary Vice-Presidents of the Society who shall hold their positions for life entailing free, full membership of the Society and shall be entitled to be notified of Committee meetings and attend them in a non-voting capacity.
23. Honorary Annual Membership
The Committee is empowered to award annual membership for the Society without subscription to individuals whom they consider to have performed a service to the Society deserving of recognition, subject to the approval of a General Meeting.
24. Amendments
The Constitution may only be amended by a Resolution, passed at a General Meeting by a majority of the full voting members present. When such a meeting is not quorate, any motions or proposals may be put to the membership for a postal ballot.
25. Miscellaneous
All members shall comply with the rules and regulations of the Society and those laid down by Associations whose accommodation is hired or used by the Society. It is a condition of membership that members accept this clause. Any matter arising out of or not covered by these rules shall be reported to the Committee whose decision on the matter is subject to the confirmation of a General Meeting.
This Constitution and these Rules supersede all other Constitutions and Rules of earlier date in their entirety.
Top portait - another giver of laws, Elector Max Emmanuel of Bavaria.
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