Jean Robert Lapp
From Gineipaedia, the Legend of Galactic Heroes wiki
 Lt Commander Lapp (796 UC (487 IC / 3596 CE)) | |
| Gender: | Male |
| Affiliation: | Free Planets Alliance |
| Rank: | Captain (posthumous) |
| Status: | Deceased (killed in action) |
| Died: | 796 UC (487 IC / 3596 CE) |
| Played by: | Tanaka Hideyuki |
Jean Robert Lapp (Japanese: ジャン・ロベール・ラップ) was a Free Planets Alliance military officer, who was best friends with Yang Wen-li since their cadet days in the Free Planets Alliance Officer Academy and was reputed to be Yang's intellectual equal.
Contents |
Early life and career
Little is known about Lapp's early life, except that he was not well-off and had to join the Free Planets Alliance Officer Academy for a free education like Yang. It was during his time in the Academy when he met Yang as well as his future fiancée Jessica Edwards. The trio became fast friends and spent plenty of time with each other, which included being engaged in student activism. Most notably in 785 UC (476 IC / 3585 CE), Lapp became involved in a student protest against the dissolution of the War History Studies Department initiated by Jessica Edwards. After his graduation in 787 UC (478 IC / 3587 CE), Lapp rarely got to meet up with Yang due to their different assignments and usually had to rely on Jessica as a messenger. (SL: 'The Hero of El Facil', 'A Short Trip to the Past', 'Planet POW Camp')
Later military career
By 795 UC (486 IC / 3595 CE), Lapp was assigned under the 6th Fleet as a staff officer. Unlike Yang's meteoric rise, Lapp remained as a Lt Commander due to the lack of opportunities to display his talents. Nevertheless, he never harboured any resentment to Yang and even confided with him his decision to propose to Jessica, whom he had a relationship with for a number of years. Before his marriage however, he was dispatched to the front lines along with Yang as part of the Alliance interception force against an incoming Imperial expeditionary fleet led by Reinhard von Lohengramm. The subsequent Battle of Astarte in January 796 UC (487 IC / 3596 CE) proved to be disastrous for the Alliance when Reinhard exploited the Alliance strategy of separating its fleets to surround Reinhard's fleet by attacking each fleet individually. After news of the 4th Fleet's engagement with Reinhard's fleet reached the 6th Fleet's flagship Pergamonn where Lapp was stationed in, Lapp tried to convince the fleet commander Vice Admiral Moore to group up with the 2nd Fleet immediately but was rebuffed. Later, when Reinhard had the 6th Fleet completely surrounded, Lapp again tried to persuade his superior to accept Reinhard's offer of surrender so as to save the lives of the surviving soldiers in the 6th Fleet but was rejected again and was instead accused by Moore for trying to incite mutiny. After Moore rejected the surrender offer, Reinhard proceeded to obliterate the 6th Fleet and Lapp was killed in action when the Pergamonn was destroyed by Imperial cannon fire. (Overture to a New War)
After the Battle of Astarte, Lapp was posthumously promoted by two ranks to Captain. (Overture to a New War)
Legacy
Lapp's death had a profound impact on his fiancée Jessica Edwards. After her initial stage of grief, she entered politics and became devoted towards the nascent anti-war movement in Heinessen to ensure that no more personal tragedies like hers would befall to anyone again, and with her assiduous campaigning of her cause she quickly became the leading opposition figure in the Alliance until the Alliance Civil War.
Appendices
Appearances
- LOGH:
- 'In the Eternal Night' (first appearance; death)
- 'The Battle of Astarte' (flashback)
- 'Jessica's Struggle' (flashback)
- Overture to a New War (death)
- SL:
- 'The Hero of El Facil'
- 'The Hero's New Assignment'
- 'A Short Trip to the Past' (final appearance; flashback)
Name variations
- Jean Robert Lappe (Novels)
- Jean Robert Lapp (DVD subtitles)
- Jean Robert Lap (LD subtitles)
- ジャン・ロベール・ラップ (LD/DVD subtitles — Japanese)
