The Emperor of Lendia was the head of state (and sometimes head of government) of the Lendian Empire, which existed between 115 AP and 289 AP. There were five Emperors in total, all members of the House of Talriez.
List of Emperors[]
| Name | Ruled | Summary of reign |
|---|---|---|
| Emperor Ravamiro | 115 AP - 142 AP | Founder of the Empire. Originally a general in the Army of the Republic, but leveraged his popularity to undermine the Republic and seize power. Ruled absolutely until 135 AP, when the elected Imperial Council forced him into the role of a constitutional monarch. |
| Emperor Virantoro | 142 AP - 178 AP | Son of Ravamiro. Attempted to restore the monarchy to the position of power it originally had, but was thwarted by the Imperial Council and forced to keep to a ceremonial role. |
| Emperor Tandisto | 178 AP - 234 AP | Son of Virantoro. Appeared to be largely content with a limited role in government, and made no open attempt to regain power. In modern times, the best-regarded Emperor, although was considered weak and ineffectual at the time. |
| Emperor Carigo | 234 AP - 289 AP | Son of Tandisto. Harnessed rising nationalist, militarist, and authoritarian sentiment to increase the monarchy's powers, with control swinging backwards and forwards between him and the Imperial Council. Led the Empire to war against its neighbours. Only Emperor than Ravamiro to exercise substantial power, but eventually lost popularity and was relegated to a figurehead position. |
| Emperor Xavier | 289 AP - 299 AP | Son of Carigo. Attempted to repair damage done to the monarchy by his father, but had little success. Did not want the throne, and resented the burden of office. Nevertheless, tried to save monarchy from abolition, but failed. |
Rules of succession[]
The Lendian monarchy was unusual in that it did not have formal rules governing the succession. This is because the Emperor was technically given his powers freely by the elected Imperial Council. Although the first Emperor always intended this choice to by an illusion, the need to retain at least partial democratic legitimacy meant that no formal rules overriding the Council's free choice could be established. The Council's actual power over the appointment varied — on some occasions, it had little choice at all, but other times, it could likely have installed its own choice without difficulty.
Despite the lack of formal rules, some observers (particularly monarchists) argue that the process did have informal conventions which served the same purpose. However, there is no broad agreement among these observers as to what those conventions are. Possibilities include:
- Succession by the emperor's oldest son. Each of the four successions fit this pattern — Virantoro was the oldest son of Ravamiro, Tandisto was the oldest son of Virantoro, Carigo was the oldest son of Tandisto, and Xavier was the oldest son of Carigo. Some claim that this could be a coincidence, however, and that they gained the crown based on some other factor. This policy is also closest to the succession systems of the pre-revolutionary monarchies.
- Succession by the emperor's oldest child. Similar to the previous, but including women as well as men. The problem with this claim is that if it is accurate, the second emperor, Virantoro, should not have gained the throne — he had an older sister, Marissa. Defenders of the idea point out that Marissa's husband did indeed make a claim based on Marissa's seniority, and that this claim only lapsed on her death. They argue that Marissa should have been Lendia's first reigning empress, and that with this case excepted, this system of succession fits events just as well as the previous one.
- Succession by the emperor's preference. Some claim that emperors chose their own successor, and that their choices happened to be their oldest sons is a coincidence. They point to rumours that Xavier, the last emperor, planned to name his neice Cantra as heir, rather than one of his sons. Critics say that if there had been a genuine choice, Xavier himself would probably not have gained the throne — his father Carigo is known to have preferred Xavier's younger brother, Gabrielo.
Prospects for re-establishment[]
Lendosa, the successor to the Lendian Empire, has a monarchist movement which seeks to restore the imperial throne. There is debate, however, as to who the legitimate successor is — the last Emperor's sons are twins, and there is no agreement as to which should take precedence. There are also those who argue that while the throne passed down from father to son, there was no actual law mandating this, and that another member of the imperial family (such as the popular Princess Cantra) could be elevated.