Erwin Josef II

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{{infobox/character | image-top = Erwin_Josef_II_1.jpg | caption-top = Kaiser '''Erwin Josef II''' | gender = Male | affiliation = [[Galactic Empire]] | occupation = Kaiser of the Galactic Empire (former) | status = Unknown | born = Early {{d|791|uc}} | father = [[Ludwig]] | actor = [[Emori Hiroko]] }} '''Erwin Josef von Goldenbaum II''' (Japanese: '''エルウィン・ヨーゼフ・フォン・ゴールデンバウム2世''') was the 37th and penultimate kaiser of the [[Goldenbaum Dynasty]]. He ruled over the [[Galactic Empire]] in name only for about two years, with Prime Minister [[Reinhard von Lohengramm]] holding most of the power, and was a key member of a [[Galactic Empire Legitimate Government|"legitimate" Imperial government-in-exile]] on [[Heinessen]] for nearly a year. ==Early life== Erwin Josef was born in early {{d|791|uc}}, the son of Crown Prince [[Ludwig]] — and therefore a direct successor to the [[Galactic Empire|Imperial]] throne. Ludwig died some time between his son's conception and mid-{{d|796|uc}}, leaving him with no influential parentage. ({{logh|016}}) ==Rise to throne and reign as kaiser== [[Friedrich IV]], the reigning kaiser, died of a heart attack in {{d|796|uc}}, having left no stated heir. This produced the possibility of a bloody power struggle amongst the various factions vying for power at the time. Specifically, Duke [[Otho von Braunschweig]], husband of Princess [[Amarie]], supported his child, the 16-year-old [[Elisabeth]]; and Marquis [[Wilhelm von Littenheim]], husband of Princess [[Christine]], supported his own child, the 14-year-old [[Sabine]]. [[File:Erwin_Josef_II_crown.jpg|thumb|left|190px|The crowning of Erwin Josef II ({{d|796|uc}})]] Erwin Josef's much younger age might otherwise have made him an unsuitable successor given the more mature alternatives. However, his lack of strong parental support made him far more easily controllable, which appealed to both {{rank|imperial|fleet admiral}} [[Reinhard von Lohengramm]] and acting Imperial Premier [[Klaus von Lichtenlade]]. Both of them did not want to see the high nobles — their rivals for power — take control of the Empire by placing one of their children on the throne, and created a political alliance. Lichtenlade had political authority while Lohengramm had the military strength. This ultimately led to the ascension of Erwin Josef II to the crown. ({{logh|016}}) ===Civil war=== {{main|Imperial Civil War}} This was an unwelcome turn of events for Braunschweig and Littenheim, and the two vowed secretly to eliminate the Kaiser. News of this new alliance spread quickly throughout the [[nobility]], with most of the high nobles ultimately siding with the Braunschweig—Littenheim faction. The resulting coalition became known as the [[Lippstadt League]]. Although Marquis Lohengramm and his subordinates were able to detain many of the Lippstadt nobles before full-scale combat broke out, most of them — including Braunschweig and Littenheim — escaped to [[Geiersburg Fortress]], which became their primary base of operations during the ensuing civil war. In response to these events, Erwin Josef (through Lichtenlade) conferred to Marquis Lohengramm the title of [[Imperial Armed Forces|Imperial Fleet]] Chief Commander and ordered him to subjugate the Lippstadt forces. Civil war officially broke out on 6 April {{d|797|uc}}. ({{logh|018}}) The war proceeded largely without the Kaiser's direct participation. Approximately 7 months after the war began, Marquis Littenheim, who had sacrificed some of his men to secure his own escape from the forces of [[Siegfried Kircheis]], was killed in a suicide-bombing by a resentful subordinate. Duke Braunschweig died shortly thereafter, having been force-fed poison by {{rank|imperial|commodore}} [[Ansbach]]. Geiersburg was quickly [[Assault on Geiersburg Fortress|taken]] by Lohengramm's forces, and the war officially ended in September {{d|797|uc}}. ({{logh|022|023}}) Upon the end of the war, Duke Lichtenlade began making plans to eliminate Lohengramm and his supporters and seize the Imperial government for himself. These plans became known to Reinhard, and a contingent was sent back to [[Odin]], where Lichtenlade and his family were arrested. Following this, Erwin Josef and his officials had little choice but to declare Reinhard as Imperial Prime Minister, effectively eliminating the child Kaiser's own influence over the government. ({{logh|025|026}}) ==Abduction and the 'legitimate' government== In {{d|798|uc}}, the [[Dominion of Fezzan]] conceived a plot that would allow Duke Lohengramm to invade the [[Free Planets Alliance]], so that they could monopolize the galactic economy and control the Empire. They smuggled two former Lippstadt officers, Count [[Alfred von Landsberg]] and {{rank|imperial|captain}} [[Leopold Schumacher]], from their home in exile on Fezzan back to the Empire with fake documents issued by the Fezzani government. Once Landsberg and Schumacher had arrived, they made it through security and were unnoticed until an anonymous tip to the [[Imperial Military Police]] had been made. Landsberg and Schumacher kidnapped Kaiser Erwin Josef II and smuggled him to the Alliance, where Count [[Jochen von Remscheid]] and other Goldenbaum loyalists former a [[Galactic Empire Legitimate Government|"legitimate" government-in-exile]]. It sought to overthrow Lohengramm and restore the [[Goldenbaum Dynasty]]'s power, using Erwin Josef to give itself legitimacy. ({{logh|036|037|038}}) As a result, on 20 September {{d|798|uc}}, the abdication of Kaiser Erwin Josef II was announced in the Empire, he was succeeded in absentia by the eight-month old [[Katharin Kätchen]]. ({{logh|041}}) Being a small child, Erwin Josef did not play a major role in the government-in-exile, other than being their source of legitimacy. Count Landsberg and Schumacher took up the role of his caretakers during that time. After the success of [[Operation Ragnarok]] and the fall of the Alliance to Lohengramm's forces, Landsberg took the exiled Kaiser with him and disappeared. ({{logh|045|049|054}}) ==Ultimate fate== What exactly happened to Erwin Josef, Landsberg, Schumacher after Operation Ragnarok is unclear, but former Imperial {{rank|imperial|high admiral}} [[Willibald Joachim von Merkatz]], who had served as the exiled government's war minister, believed that it was his duty to locate the former Kaiser. The Count was later discovered on Heinessen by the [[Imperial Military Police]] in {{d|800|uc}}. He had become deranged by that point, and was carrying around a corpse that was believed to be the exiled Kaiser's. According to a journal he had been keeping, the Kaiser had died of starvation. ({{logh|064|099}}) However, it would be revealed in July {{d|801|uc}}, upon the capture of Schumacher, that the corpse was fake and that Erwin Josef had gotten away from Landsberg's custody, with his whereabouts being unknown. ({{logh|110}}) ==Appendices== ===Appearances=== <div class="appear"> *{{logh}} **{{e|016}} (first appearance) **{{e|018}} **{{e|026}} **{{e|027}} (flashback) **{{e|036}} (memory) **{{e|037}} **{{e|038}} **{{e|046}} **{{e|049}} (final appearance) **{{e|099}} (fake corpse) </div> ===Background information=== [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erwin-Josef_Speckmann Erwin Josef] was the name of a German neuroscientist. Kaiser Erwin Josef is similar to [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puyi Puyi], the last Emperor of China, who briefly ruled his country in name as a child until his regent was eventually forced to abdicate on his behalf. Both also tried to become monarchs with the assistance of a foreign power. {{navbox/monarchs/Goldenbaum}} {{navbox/officials/Goldenbaum|collapsed}} [[Category:Imperial citizens|Erwinjosef 2]] [[Category:Nobility|Erwinjosef 2]]

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