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Galactic Empire

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Galactic Empire
250pximperialemblemsvgkq6.png
Political information
Type of government Authoritarian empire
Founding document
Constitution
Head of State Emperor Vodo
Head of Government Executor Thomas Cherokee
Commander-in-Chief Emperor Vodo
Executive branch Imperial Inner Circle

Imperial High Command

Regional Government

Legislative branch Imperial Security Bureau

Regional Government

Judicial branch Imperial Security Bureau
Societal information
Territory Bormea Sector

Bothan Sector

Corellian Sector

Corporate Oversector

Coruscant Oversector

Darpa Sector

Deep Core Sector

Dolomar Sector

Fakir Sector

Kuat Sector

Capital Coruscant
Official language Galactic Basic
Currency Imperial Credits
State religious body Order of the Dark Hand
National holiday
Historical information
Formed from Galactic Republic
Date of establishment Year 0 Day 5
Date of dissolution

The Galactic Empire, also known as the New Order, is the rightful government of the galaxy, currently ruling a number of sectors in the region of the galaxy known as the Core, as well as territories in other outlying sectors. It is the most militarily capable and economically dominant government of the galaxy.

History

The early history of the Galactic Empire, while relatively recent on a galactic scale, is largely undocumented. As the fortunes of individuals and groups have changed in the Empire, and Emperors themselves risen and fallen, historical documents have been altered, misplaced or outright destroyed. Much of what remains is lacking, and has been pieced together with what remnants, poorly sourced and often blatantly propagandic, remain from those years.

Origins

After a thousand years of growing mismanagement and corruption, the Galactic Republic fell. More and more factions, both political and economic, grew weary of the stagnation and bureaucracy to the point where they gathered together to seceed and declare themselves independent from the Republic. Events rapidly deteriorated until armed conflict was inevitable. The 'Seperatists', armed with vast droid armies, fought openly with the newly created Clone Army of the Republic. At the same time, other political bodies and trade groups broke away to form their own independent territories as their own.

The Seperatists, eventually, were worn down and broke apart due to their massive losses and internal factionalisation, its members collapsing into obscurity or being absorbed by others so only a few largely independent factions of varying influence remained. However, the damage was done, as the galaxy collapsed into innumerable local wars between local warlords.

Hiram Drayson, an ambitious but not particularly skilled Admiral of the Republic Navy, forcibly took control of what was left of the Republic and declared the First Galactic Empire with himself as its Emperor. The formation of the Empire and his ascension to the new throne meant little, as rival claimants (including his own commanders) warred against him. At the end of the final battle of the war, Captain Vodo Bonias of the Imperial Navy turned his fleet against the Emperor's, destroying much of it and forcing Drayson to flee with what remained of his force.

Suntzu, Commanding Officer of the Imperial Navy, was next to sit on the throne. However, his reign was no better, as General Balsaraph of the Imperial Army formed his own rebellion with the intention of taking the throne himself. The resulting campaign was short and brutal, with newly appointed Moff Bonias' forces routing Balsaraph's and forcing the latter into hiding with Drayson. In the aftermath, Suntzu abdicated and Bonias took the throne.

The first reign of Vodo Bonias saw no relief for the Empire. Years of infighting had caused economic ruin on many worlds, and corruption was entrenched in the Imperial bureaucracy. The members of the Imperial government hoarded the wealth of worlds as billions of sentinents starved. The breaking point was when a young female Imperial Army officer was raped in front of, and by, the Imperial High Command, the news of which turned the population against the Imperial bureaucracy and the Emperor. With the wrath of the citizenry and the Imperial Army held back only by the increasingly deserting Imperial Navy, and to restore order to the Empire, Bonias abdicated in favour of Executor Spytek.

Around this time, the former Emperor Drayson reappeared along with those that followed him, in the form of the Order of Darkness. This group was short-lived and quickly dissolved following the death of Drayson.

Spytek, through luck and a population tired of strife, brought to the Empire a measure of the peace and prosperity that had been so craved and sorely lacking for many years. The Emperor himself, though, was lacking in personal influence over more capable and charismatic officers such as Admiral Gorn Veynom and Surface Marshal Trey Connel. With his support eventually failing in favour of these two men, Spytek abdicated.

The Empire immediately fell into yet another civil war as the forces of Veynom and Connel fought over Coruscant itself. However, the throne ultimately went to Grand Admiral Piett, entering with his own fleet, obliterating the already tired forces of both and declaring himself Emperor.

Piett

For a time, the reign of Emperor Piett was good, if conservative. Few reforms were made, and institutional and structural problems of the Empire remained, which could have been accepted but for except for the machinations of a handful in the Empire. Neither Veynom nor Connel were willing to accept second place, and soon joined their forces in an attempt to overthrow Piett. Their attempt was unsuccessful, with themselves and their supporters either being arrested (such as Admiral Gunther von Esling) or fleeing Imperial space (such as former Emperor Bonias). Piett, however, pardoned and reinstated both ringleaders and those supporters that remained.

Slowly but steadily suffering from bouts of paranoia after the attempted coup, and increasingly frequent and vivid visions through the force, Piett eventually retired in favour of Connel and departed for the Outer Rim.

The Great Break, the Imperial Core and the Dark Empire

Despite Piett's words, succession would again be decided in battle. Grand Admiral Veynom quickly rallied his forces against the new Emperor in a short but bloody campaign that saw Connel victorious but Veynom remain head of the Navy.

As time passed, both Veynom and Minister Ranma saw visions through the force, believed to originate from the former Emperor Piett, and both decided to depart for the unknown regions in order to find Piett.

It should not have been expected that Veynom would meekly accept Connel as Emperor, and as subsequent events proved, this was indeed the case. Some time prior to leaving for the Unknown Regions, Veynom had rallied his supporters to break with the Empire, a move taken a few days subsequent to his departure by his successor and friend, Fleet Admiral Simms. A large number of officers and enlisted hijacked Imperial ships and declared they would form a new Imperial government.

From now on, the Empire would be divided into two groups - the Galactic Empire, with Connel at its head and claiming direct lineage from Drayson, and the Imperial Core, proclaiming Veynom the true Emperor. However, Veynom never returned, leaving Simms to rule in his stead as Lord Protector. These divisions did not go without notice by the rest of the galaxy, with many regional governments expanding by taking systems now abandoned by the Empire and beyond the control of the Core.

With support dwindling, Emperor Connel soon decided to step down in favour of Mccarthur. As Connel departed Coruscant, his shuttle exploded. Months later, it was discovered he had not been killed in the blast, and later accepted the post of Minister of Defence under Mccarthur before finally retiring.

Little of significance was achieved during Mccarthur's reign, however a number of noteworthy events did occur. An alien artifact was discovered by members of TetraCorp that by an unknown means stimulated the transformation of an unknown number of humans into non-humans.

Also during Mccarthur's reign, the Rebel Alliance, a group dedicated to restoring the Republic, proposed a peace treaty between the Alliance and the Empire. Days later, the Alliance withdrew their proposal, claiming that it was merely a test of the Imperial leadership, however public opinion towards the Alliance was clearly shaken. The next day, the Empire reaffirmed its demand of unconditional surrender.

Eventually, Mccarthur abdicated in favour of Executor Charon. Not long afterwards, the Imperial Core saw its first leadership change as Lord Protector Simms, having lead the Core since its foundation, stepped down in order to focus on training in the force. Jennifer Dreighton took his place as Lady Protector.

Around this time, Veynom made an announcement from the Unknown Regions that had major ramifications across the galaxy.

At some point, members of both the Galactic Empire and the Dark Empire began to approach each other with the issue of a 'merging' of the two Imperial factions in their minds.

Reunification

Imperial Union

Government and politics

The Galactic Empire is an authoritarian empire: the Empire is ruled with absolute power by the Emperor, with the support of Imperial High Command.

The Executor, or Regent, serves as the second-in-command of Empire, often alongside or in place of the Emperor, and most commonly when the Emperor is either absent or incapacitated. The Executor serves directly under the Emperor, and thus his authority and word is considered of the Emperor's.

Aside from the Emperor, the Imperial Inner Circle is the highest executive body over the Galactic Empire. The Inner Circle is the Emperor's cabinet and is tasked with assisting and advising the Emperor in affairs of governance. The Inner Circle consists of the leaders of the Order of the Dark Hand, COMPNOR, Imperial Military, Ministry of Industry, Council of Moffs, and Imperial Intelligence.

In addition to the Imperial Inner Circle, Moffs, appointed by the Imperial Throne, are given full governance over their Sectors. With a seat in Imperial High Command and the Council of Moffs, a Moff has command of all citizens and military units within his Sector. The Sector Moff is assisted by a Sector Adjutant, typically the second-in-command of the Sector. Most Sector Adjutants control the daily activities that occur across the Sector that requires the Government to act. The last position in the Regional Government is that of Planetary Governor. Appointed by the Sector Moff, Governors are only responsible for their planet and are tasked with the running of the planet. Additionally, Governors are required to improve, maintain and develop their planets as much as possible without hampering any Imperial plans.

The Imperial Security Bureau, a sub-branch of COMPNOR, is responsible for law enforcement within the Galactic Empire. ISB maintains the Imperial Code of Laws and ensures that protocols and procedures are followed by all Imperials. Most charges are brought up by the ISB; however, the Imperial Military may court-martial any within their ranks as needed.

Society and Culture

The role of art and media in the Galactic Empire was primarily didactic; cultural expression served as an instrument for inculcating New Order ideology. The Coalition for Progress, a sub-branch of COMPNOR, oversees many aspects of Imperial Government not directly related to politics, the military, or economics. Artistic and written propaganda was managed by the Art Team and Imperial News Bureau respectively as departments under the Coalition for Progress.

Competitive sports (particularly Bolo-ball, Shockball, and Podracing) are also popular within the Galactic Empire. The Imperial Gaming Commission regulates all gambling, as well as organizes and oversees all sporting events, within the Empire. Their responsibility is to ensure all events run fairly and that winnings are correctly distributed.

The Galactic Empire is a militaristic society; the Imperial Military is greatly revered and supported by the average Imperial citizen, with most - if not all - politicians and officials rising to prominence through their service in the military early in their careers.

The Empire also advocates Humanocentrism, the tendency to view the galaxy from the perspective of a Human majority. The Imperial policy of Human High Culture is not actively anti-nonhuman; it simply classifies nonhumans as cultural and ethnic minorities. The foundations of the Empire rest on the views of the Human majority, and as such the Empire heavily promotes such views through COMPNOR. The Order of the Dark Hand welcomes acceptable Force-sensitives of all species within their ranks, and could in no way be viewed as xenophobic.

Economy

The Ministry of Industry manages the various companies and corporations that contribute to the Imperial economy, including the Corellian Engineering Corporation, Imperial Resource Extractions, Magnaguard Manufacturing, Myorzo Weapon Systems, and Primus Medical. These nationalized factions enter into a contract with the Galactic Empire with the agreement that they will only trade with the Empire, its allies, and any neutral factions. In fact, trading with enemies of the Empire, all named in the Blacklist, is forbidden for all Imperials and is a punishable crime according to the Imperial Code of Laws.

Regional Governments have been focusing on building up cities on the planets and systems within their Sectors, which provides more jobs, better standards of living, and stronger economies for the Sectors and, in turn, the Empire overall.

Military

The Imperial Navy and Imperial Army make up the Imperial Military.