Information for Members

• Current League Table
• Resources and Variants
• The Committee
• Archive and History
• The Constitution
• Return to the DipSoc main page

Current League Table

The League Table is updated (in theory) on a weekly basis. There is also a page with statistics.

Resources and Variants

• The list of variants, rulesets, and articles owned by the society is available. Members of the Society can borrow any of these in and around full-term by contacting the committee. Those wanting the less popular variants to be brought along to meetings should ask him to beforehand (the penalty for asking for too many is to have to come and help him carry them to the meeting!). Members wanting to use boards in Cambridge outside full term should contact the President during full term, and he may be persuaded to forgo his presidential privileges and leave them in Cambridge.
• The best place to look for variant rulesets and boards in electronic format is the variants page of the Diplomatic Pouch.

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The Committee

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Archive and History

The committee was recently contacted by Nicholas Whyte, president of DipSoc in 1987-1988, who could tell us that DipSoc was founded in 1986. Apparantly both he and the founder Paul Brummell have continued to diplomatic careers.

The written records (games, people and finances) go back to about 1996.

The current committee would welcome any further information of years past.

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The Constitution

This is a copy of the current Constitution of the society, adopted at the AGM on 5 May 2003. It is identical to the original apart from some formatting changes. However, the original copy is binding in all situations.

1. Title
   The name of the society shall be "Cambridge University Diplomacy Society", hereafter referred to as "DipSoc" or "the society".
2. Objects
   The aims of DipSoc shall be to:
   1. promote the development of the board game Diplomacy and its variants, and such other pastimes of a similar nature as the members wish to sponsor.
   2. assist the members in enhancing their understanding of and skills in these activities through organising venues and facilitating contacts within Cambridge and with other equivalent societies within the United Kingdom and abroad.
3. Organisation
   The society shall consist of:
   1. all of its members (as defined in section 4 below),
   2. an Executive Committee ("the committee") which shall be responsible for the day to day running of the society in accordance with the objectives set out in section 2 (above), and the provisions of sections 6 and 7 (below), and
   3. a Senior Treasurer, who shall examine DipSoc's finances at the end of each year.
4. Membership
   Annual and life memberships of the society shall be granted in three catagories:
   1. junior members of Cambridge University,
   2. senior members of Cambridge University, and
   3. such other persons as who from time to time apply to the committee, at the discretion of that committee,
   on payment of a fee. That fee shall be, at the option of the new member, annual or once only, and shall be determined regularly by the committee, on the advice of the Treasurer.
5. Finances
   5.1 In the event of the society being dissolved the current funds will be distributed evenly between all full members. Any other assets are to be sold at a value determined by a third party and the resultant funds distributed evenly between all full members of the society.

   5.2 No member of the committee (including the Senior Treasurer) shall be liable for any debt or other obligation of the society except where they have personally authorised it in writing.

   5.3 Officers of the society should not authorise any transaction involving financial liability, whether by signing a cheque or by authorising the making of a contract or agreement, unless they are sure it is intra vires and that sufficient funds are available. If there are doubts, the transaction should not go ahead without all the members of the society agreeing to it in advance and undertaking liability for it. Funds should only be used for purposes consistent with the constitution of the society.

   5.4 All requests for funding for purchases or events must come before the purchase or event takes place, or no monies will be made available.

6. The Executive Committee
   6.1 The committee shall consist of the individual members holding the following offices:
   1. President,
   2. Secretary,
   3. Treasurer,
   4. Co-opted members, of whom there shall be no more than three at any time,

   6.2 All members of the committee may vote. A committee decision shall be quorate if three or more office holders participate in the vote. No member may hold two or more elected posts concurrently, nor may any member cast more than one vote.

7. Office Holders
   Office holders shall be held for one year following election; duties shall be:

   7.1 The President shall have discretion to act for and represent DipSoc in such circumstances as may make impossible a collective decision of the committee, subject to the terms of the Constitution and the spirit of the society. The President shall ensure that the provisions of the Constitution and the spirit of the society are adhered to by the committee, and shall in addition ensure that DipSoc is registered with the Junior Proctors following the Annual General Meeting each year. The President is responsible for ensuring that other office holders perform their duties to a satisfactory standard.

   7.2 The Secretary shall ensure that all correspondance is promptly brought to the attention of the committee, and that the society is efficient in its dealings with other bodies. The Secretary shall ensure that meetings are properly conducted and that fair and accurate minutes are taken and distributed as appropriate. The Secretary shall be responsible for ensuring that the standards of regular Diplomacy are maintained in email equivalents. The Secretary shall also ensure that the relevant statistics and results are compliled and processed annually, in order that members may improve their Diplomacy skills.

   7.3 The Treasurer shall maintain those records which are necessary to ensure that the society is administered in accordance with such applicable laws and conditions as are laid down from the relevant authorities from time to time, and this is demonstrably so. The Treasurer shall prepare annual estimates for the year ahead and accounts for the year past for presentation to the Senior Treasurer and the University Junior Proctor's Office. All items of expenditure must be authorised by the Treasurer in writing before DipSoc may take responsibility for them.

   7.4 Co-opted members may fill the following offices:
   A Conventions Officer, who shall organise DipSoc participation in and hosting of, conventions. A Purchasing Officer, who shall negotiate prices and terms of such new acquisitions as are periodically required. An Archivist, who shall undertake the statistical processing required under section 7.2 (above). A Website Manager, who shall maintain the Society website.

8. Meetings
   8.1 DipSoc members shall meet to engage in Diplomacy and other variants on a weekly basis throughout full term. Email Diplomacy and variants shall operate in conjunction with this.

   8.2 There shall be a Convention at least annually, where Diplomacy and other variants may be undertaken during the course of a full day.

   8.3 The committee shall meet at least monthly to undertake the running of the society.

   8.4 There shall be an Annual General Meeting in Easter term to elect new office holders and to amend this Constitution. Elections shall be by secret ballot of all members present. Candidates may nominate themselves by submitting to the outgoing Secretary a statement of intention to stand at any time up to 30 minutes prior to the vote. Quora for these votes shall be 7 full members, or one third of the society's current active members, should this ever be less than 21. Votes will be counted by two non-candidate members of the society. Voting results may be challenged during the 30 days following the vote.

9. Interpretation of this Constitution
   In all circumstance in which the two diverge, the spirit of the sentiments expressed, rather than the exact wording expressing them, is to be taken as sovereign. In the event of irreconcilable differences over interpretation, an extra-ordinary meeting is to be called with 30 days of the dispute arising, and a secret ballot of all members in attendance is to be taken as settling the issue in accordance with the procedures laid out in section 8.4

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