Galactic Empire
From Gineipaedia, the Legend of Galactic Heroes wiki
A nearly five-hundred year old totalitarian state, the Galactic Empire encompasses most of the human colony worlds within the galaxy, including Earth. Ruled by a Kaiser, or Emperor, the Empire was structured around a rigid feudal system that lasted all the way to the end of the Goldenbaum Dynasty. When Reinhard von Lohengramm ascended to the throne, founding the Goldenlohen Dynasty, he abolished the aristocracy and began numerous social and political reforms, returning to the citizens freedoms they had not held for five centuries. Eventually these reforms would lead to the total reformation of the Empire into a constitutional monarchy under the reign of Kaiserin Hildegard von Lohengramm. The Empire's main language was English.
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History
Founded in the first Imperial Year, when Rudolph von Goldenbaum declared himself Emperor (or Kaiser), the early Galactic Empire was a brutal place, where the citizens were kept in order through fear. The most infamous example of Rudoph's harsh societal reforms was the Inferior Genes Exclusion Act, which enabled the mass-sterilization of the handicapped, the murder of the mentally ill, and eventually became used to justify the creation of a police-state, where any form of government protest could and would be met with imprisonment, exile, or execution.
Rudolph's successor, Kaiser Sigismund I, was instrumental in consolidating the Empire's power, and firmly establishing as the de facto government of all human territories. Though there was still widespread discontent among the Empire's population, mostly among the lower classes, most people were simply too terrified to open act against their oppressors. This fear ensured the Empire's survival through a string of grossly incompetent rulers, to the point where the aristocracy obtained so much power over the people that revolution--change of any kind, really--was little more than an impossible dream. As the nobility tightened its grip on Imperial Power, they gradually abolished the process of promotion. At one point, commoners who sufficiently proved their value or ability could be elevated to the ranks of nobility (or could even purchase a title, if their merits were insufficient to the task). This allowed for a degree of upward social mobility in Imperial Society, giving hope to even the lowest social classes that, through hard work, they could make a better life for themselves. Naturally, the High Nobles, increasingly inferior to the men from whom they inherited their titles, were wary of any competition. Within a century, such hopes were futile. Imperial society--art, politics, literature, music--entered into a long period of stagnation when the aristocracy ceased the practice of "ascending" regular citizens into their ranks entirely.
In Imperial Year 164, a Imperial Citizen, Arle Heinnesen, was stripped of his citizenship and reduced in status to a serf. It is unknown whether this loss of status was the result of some crime or political vendetta. Heinnesen was sent to a labor camp in the Altair star system, where he promptly organized his fellow serfs in a revolt against their Imperial lords. Ultimately, Heinnesen and 400,000 other Imperial citizens decided to leave the Empire rather than fight against it. Their Exodus Fleet discovered the Iserlohn Corridor, and founded a democratic government, the Free Planets Alliance, on the planet Heinnesen.
For nearly 150 years, the Empire was unaware of the Free Planets Alliance. In Imperial Year 331, however, they encountered an FPA fleet. Decrying the FPA to be rebels, mounting an insurrection against the throne, Kaiser Friedrich III dispatched an Imperial Fleet under the command of Grand Duke Herbert through the Iserlohn Corridor to invade the Free Planets Alliance. From the time of Rudolph I, the Empire had been undefeated in battle. Since the reign of Sigismund I, the Empire had never faced any legitimate threats to its authority. The High Nobles of the Empire naturally assumed that their invasion of the FPA would be no different--and were stunned when the FPA fleet, under the command of admiral Lin Pao, defeated the Imperial Fleets and Grand Duke Herbert was driven insane by the battle .
By Imperial Year 489, the Galactic Empire was estimated to have a population that was over hundred billion in the last census before the war it was 35 billion before the exodus of part of galactic empire population to the Alliance after that it was 27 billion it grow to over 100 billion in century and half during the FPA-Imperial War.
Politics
Much like the historical feudalism, galactic nobles administrate their own fiefdoms. High nobles like Otto von Braunschweig own numerous planets. . Political power either comes directly from the kaiser, or a high noble. In the latter case, a property dispute would be settled between two houses either by negotiation or a duel. Upward mobility is possible, but depends on marriage or an exchange of favors. A commoner can politically advance if his military career earns enough merit. Such a soldier, upon retirement, may be awarded a title or civilian position close to his sponsor noble.
Corruption
Since breeding was the biggest factor in one's social status, imperial society bent itself in favor of nobility. In military, high nobles almost always were promoted for the sake of being nobility. Fleet commanders were such because of their blood and not because of capability. Low nobles and commoners simply had to appease a given high noble to progress in life. Because high nobles and commanding officers often used bribery and embezzling, company grade officers likewise resorted to such tactics. High nobles also felt entitled to steal from the good of the empire to pursue their own selfish interests.
Reformation
The Empire saw numerous democratic reforms upon the ascension of the 37th Kaiser, Erwin Joseph II, to the throne....
Appendices
Background Information
- The Galactic Empire refers to the FPA simply as "the rebels." A closer translation might be "the rebel alliance," as the Japanese words used are identical to those used in the Japanese translation of Star Wars for the 'Galactic Empire' and 'Rebel Alliance,' respectively.
- When Rudolph von Goldenbaum created the Aristocracy, he "gifted" his new nobles new names--Gemran names. This, coupled with his genocides of the genetically impure, have led many fans to think of the Galactic Empire as "space Germans." Or some sort of evolved form of NAZI facism. This is a misconception. Though common Imperial names are germanic in origin, there is nothing to suggest that the Empire favored any one ethnicity over another. The fact that the Imperial citizens who fled the empire to found the Alliance began adopting names of all origins for themselves and their families supports this.
