Now we're getting to the interesting stuff. I believe that the House has usurped power from the Lords and the Monarch, so there are no longer any checks and balances in place to prevent insane behaviour. The House in turn is being run by financial interests based in the City of London.

Russia created the Pale of Settlement in 1791, to contain the spread of said group within its Empire. Will go and research more, this might be what I'm looking for - the reason that Alby and Russia fell out.