Tamriel Data:The Line of Emperors
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A COMPREHENSIVE INQUIRY
into the
LINE of SUCCESSION
of the
EMPERORS of CYRODIIL
Tyr Ymanwe (after Volume VII)
Volume I
By the virtue and patronage of Emperor Pelagius IV, I, Jaume Abtacil, have been granted the scholarly task of presenting to the discerning public a full and unbiased account of the Line of Emperors, beginning with the first, Blessed Alessia, who did found the First Empire, and her many descendants, to the rule of the Remanites, whose iron hand did maintain the Second Empire, to the ascendancy of Tiber Septim, anon Talos, from whom the line of Septim does continue to this day and forever. Herewith I will chronicle their lives and deeds, tally their virtues, expound on their blessed example, so that the people of Tamriel may know the Emperors in their glory.
I. ALESSIA or AL-ESH, ALESHUT, PERRIF, PARAVANIA
What little we know of the early Emperors came to us through hearsay and myth, and is as such an unworthy basis for fair scholarly enterprise. The true and unvarnished record as was written by the scribes of ages past has sadly felt the tooth of Akatosh, and, more insidiously, the blind zealotry of the Marukhati, whose dogmatic refusal of time's arrow led them to the ritual destruction of many an archive and library. What little they left was once again victim to man's thirst for destruction, and fell to fire and ruin in the War of Righteousness.
As such, when we speak of the Emperors of the First Empire, we must guard for the contrivances of the bard, who seeks to lead us astray on the byways of legend and folklore. Still, where of history naught remains but story, it is the scholar's duty to record, and extract from the song of the past the essence of verity.
The ancestry of the First Empress of Man is forever shrouded in mystery. Empress Alessia first rose to prominence in the Ayleid fiefdom known as Sard or Sard Avar Leed, where many tribes of Man were held in service, and the old clan-bonds and lines of patrimony had fallen into obscurity. Of course, many a fanciful invention tries to fill this lacuna. Some claim Alessia a princess of the wetland tribes, the Al-Gemha or Men-of-Ket, and as such of Nedic royalty. Others make her a descendant of the Men-of-'kreath, either a pure Nord or of mixed blood. Some fables even portray her as the love-child of a Nedic slave and an Ayleid city-king. The underlying purpose of these stories is, obviously, to affirm the first Empress as a legitimate ruler by descent, with a substantiated claim to the White-Gold Throne. Regardless of the verisimilitude of these accounts, in todays [sic] age of meritorious aristocracy it is clear that Alessia's claim came about not through inheritance, but through her own actions, and through Divine favor.
The exact moment of Alessia's ascendancy is much debated. Some point to the Insurrection at Sard, where Morihaus did come to her aid, others to the Emancipation at Vahtacen, where for the first time was uttered the name Al-Esh. The Annunciation at Sancre Tor is an obvious candidate, were it not that this likely apocryphal event does not fit in the known chronologies of the Rebellion. The Bestowing of the Imperial Ruby by the Divine Akatosh is another obvious candidate for the moment of ascendancy, but suffers much the same problem: there are about a thousand different accounts of the Bestowing, all in contradiction with each other in time and in place. Most scholars have come to agree that the Taking of the Citadel marks the true beginning of Alessia's reign.
Be it as it may, Empress Alessia's reign is remembered as a time of splendor and provenance. In but several decades, Alessia succeeded in shaping a rabble of ex-slaves and mercenaries into an efficient, powerful and sophisticated culture. This was, in part, due to the tutelage of the remnant Ayleid kings who had sworn fealty to the new Empire, and also due to the Nordic mercenary forces who had brought with the accomplishments of Atmoran civilization. Some Nordic scribes take pleasure in claiming Alessia's Empire as a client-kingdom to the then prominent Empire of Vrage the Gifted, which stretched from Bretony to the holds of Morrowind. Of course, the political relationships between both mannish Empires were much more complicated, based as they were on a foundation of the mutual respect and obligations that two mannish kingdoms would naturally feel for each other. Sadly, such subtleties are oft lacking in northern history writing.
The crux of the matter lies in Alessia's Nordic allies, who had joined the rebellion at Sancre Tor in return for the promise of land and riches. Alessia, in her wisdom, granted the Nordic chieftains expansive estates in the undeveloped west, later known as Colovia, to keep their divergent Nordic customs and religion from dissension with the Nedic Elven-inspired views (a situation happily resolved by later Divine Revelation). These Nordic chieftains, now Colovian gentry, still swore fealty to the Nordic High King, even as their Nedic and Ayleid subjects belonged solely to the White-Gold Throne. This feudal complication would haunt the relations with the Colovian Estates in years to come.
II. BELHARZA or THE MAN-BULL
Little is known of the second Emperor of Man, save, of course, his half-bullish aspect. Belharza's father was Morihaus, god of legend, who in turn was the favored son of the Divine Kynareth. Thus, his lineage is peerless, even if the maternal line is understandably marred by our ignorance of Alessia's true ancestry. The ascension of Belharza was said to suffer from a crisis, caused by the Nedes' insistence on a maternal succession. Emperor Belharza spent some of his youth in voluntary exile amongst the Nords before claiming his throne, and as such his rule was saturated in a Nordic ideal of life and governance.
Belharza's reign was sober and soldierly, in sharp contrast to his developing Nibenese cortège, but necessary for the defense of his fledgling empire. Belharza fixed the borders of Cyrodiil with great stones, and pressured the southern Blackwood tribes and Colovian estates into the giving of tribute to the White-Gold Throne. Of his personal life we know little. Memories of his marital status are muddled and unsure, though the record states with great surety that Belharza did never marry a consort, if ever he had any.
III. AMI-EL
Possibly the most obscure Emperor of the early line, as almost nothing is known of Ami-El save his (or her) name and involvement in a Nord-Direnni conflict in the Western Reach. Fraudulent myth surrounds this Emperor, and makes any definitive statement little more than supposition. Speculation on Belharza's matrimonial arrangements have led some to believe that Ami-El was an illegitimate child of one of Belharza's odalisques, or even a common pauper elected as figurehead after a coup by one of Belharza's cousins. While it is true that the Marukhati reveled in the electing of random commoners to vaunted symbolical status, it is a matter of historical truth that they did not at any time have the requisite power to install an Emperor. Iconographical depictions, at least, agree on the signs of Ami-El's ancestry, depicting him with a single vestigial bullhorn.
Of Ami-El's reign little is known, save that he furthered the cause of the Marukhati and decreed the Alessian Doctrines as the law of the land. Many dietary and occupational restrictions associated with Marukhatism were instated in this time, furthering the divergence between Nibenay and Colovia. Other than that, Ami-El is said to have strengthened the bonds with the Nordic Empire, and expanded the rule of the Alessians south along the Niben, subjugating the semi-independent Nedic tribes and Ayleid kings, and displacing the Khajiiti occupation of the left bank. Legends speak of a "marriage with the sea", hinting at an alliance with one of the great mercantile powers of the Topal Bay.
Volume II
IV. GORIEUS
Emperor Gorieus assumed the throne in 1E 478. Memory of this Emperor is pointedly divided: Colovians speak of him as the tyrannical usurper defied in the legend of Rislav the Righteous, while the Nibenese portray him as the wizened, immortal ruler from the extravagant fables of the Woven City. The longevity of Gorieus is no mere myth, though: all sources indicate that he ruled the Heartland for an uninterrupted five hundred years, before ceding the throne to Hestra.
Folk tales claim Gorieus was a great sorcerer who hid his soul in a marvelous silk tapestry, thus tricking Arkay into searching its convoluted geometric patterns for hundreds of years - or even for all eternity, if the folktales of the Wandering Emperor are to be taken serious. More sober heads have theorized that there were not one, but several emperors in this period, the so-called Goriathite dynasty, and that current confusion is the result of destruction of primary sources, deliberate misdirection by Marukhati iconoclasts, and the homogenizing tendencies of myth. Most likely, he was merely an accomplished mage, who mastered the Ayleid arts even as his priests rained down death on that hapless people.
Be as it may, Gorieus' reign was an eventful era. After the crushing defeat at Glenumbra Moors, Alessian political influence beyond the Nibenay was for all practical purposes at an end, and the rule of the Cyrodiils limited. The Niben's commercial culture, however, flourished, and riches from all over Tamriel flooded the valley. An age of decadence followed, wherein the Niben's indulgent society and totemic cults were further shaped into their current form. The trade of silk was paramount, and came near to a religious sacrament in some ways. For a while, the Imperial City was decked out in layer upon layer of the most splendid silks, truly earning the title of the Woven City. Excesses in this regard caused the city to burn down no less than five times during Gorieus' reign, eventually necessitating a complete rebuilding in many quarters.
Gorieus eventually abdicated in favor of daughter, Hestra (or, in the alternate record, his great-great-granddaughter Hestra), and left the palace, never to be seen again. His tomb lies empty.
V. HESTRA or HESTRA, THE BUILDER
Empress Hestra is remembered as the Builder, for she finished the renovation and expansion of the Imperial City that started under her father's reign. Furthermore, she was responsible for the many great highways that were built in this time, still remembered as Hestra-Ways. Only Reman I and Potentate Sidri-Ashak did more to improve the Empire's road network. Hestra sought to rejoin the Colovian Estates with the Empire, and with their military support, she waged war across the Empire, reconquering the Reach, and making inroads into both Argonia and Valenwood. Hestra thus demonstrates the true strength of Cyrodiil, that, when East and West are united, the Rule of Law across Tamriel is assured.
Hestra was faithful to the example of Alessia, both as a wise ruler and a great warrior. She often shared the hardships of war with her soldiers on the Reachman front, thus earning their undying loyalty. Indeed, her great military campaigns were equated by many with the triumphs of the Alessian Rebellion, until they were regarded as pilgrimages and crusades in the honor of the first of Emperors.
It should be noted that Hestra was not only mighty in battle, but also a perceptive diplomat, being among the first to establish friendly relations with the newly arrived Yokudan exiles. A great and enduring affection grew between Cyrodiil and Hammerfell, and many wondrous Redguard customs and practices were introduced to the Imperial people. The greatest of these is no doubt the sophisticated tradition of duels and arena fighting, which is still being practiced in the Imperial City and the city of Kvatch to this day. Hestra herself invited the great blademaster Gaiden Shinji to found the Imperial Arena, for she took great pleasure in these contests of skill, as did her people.
Sadly, for all her great works, Hestra could not prevent the critical discontinuation of all written record which the ignorant and the Numidianists refer to as the "Dragon Break" or the "Middle Dawn". In this period, the Marukhati aversion to record-keeping germinates to such fearsome heights that all written sources of this time must be discounted as fundamentally unreliable. Hestra's later life is the subject of pure conjecture. It may be assumed she continued her policy of conquest and infrastructure, eventually holding a substantial territory (though the exact nature of these lands is obscured to us). Some sources indicate that Hestra was the first Emperor to hold extramundial colonies, possibly having one or more tribute-kingdoms in Oblivion. The matter of succession is veiled in mystery.
VI. SHOR-EL
A most obscure and possibly apocryphal Emperor. Shor-El's reign is victim to the negligence of his scribes, as it falls squarely into this period of abhorrent anti-scholarship. His relation to Hestra is unknown. Some believe Shor-El to be not of the true line, but a Nordic usurper who held the Imperial City for but a scant few years. The poets' words state that Cyrodiil in this time became "like an egg", signifying that its political might was once again limited to the Belharzarian borders. Whatever the cause, the seat of Emperors lost much of its splendor, and in later years was overshadowed by the growing might of the Oloman Confederacy in Colovia - a curious reversal, indeed.
VII. HERDA
Emperor Herda is the last Empress of the Alessian line known to us by name. She ruled somewhere shortly after the devastating War of Righteousness, with both her predecessors and successors unknown. The records speak of her as a mediator, who restored friendly relations between Colovia and Nibenay after many years fraught with dissension. Let it be understood that those of the early Emperors who brought unity and strength to Cyrodiil were remembered, while other languish in obscurity: A fitting lesson, I believe, for both ruler and servant.
No mention of Herda is made after 1E 2260, and later records fail to elucidate us on the subject of the Alessian rulers. Most likely the line of Alessia had died out by then, being replaced by the traitor priest-kings and insipid potentates who would come to epitomize the First Interregnum. A sad end for this most mythical of lineages.
Volume III
VIII. REMAN I or THE CYRODIIL
After the War of Righteousness, the Alessian throne was crouched in the tattered remnants of misrule. Colovia and Nibenay were without true rulers, carved into city-states and negligible kingdoms, and ruled by corrupt local magnates. Save a few unlucky fools, none came forth to claim the title of Emperor, and for four hundred years the White-Gold Throne gathered dust in the shadowed halls of the Emperor's palace.
So it would have continued, were it not for the rise of Reman Cyrodiil. Born on the sacred heights of Sancre Tor, he was the child of King Hrol of the upper provinces and the maiden Shoni-Et, a distant relative of the true Alessian line. By the age of thirteen, Reman I had united the Colovian kingdoms through his piety, leadership and sacrosanct example. By joining his army with the Battlemage forces of the Nibenay he defeated the dreaded Tsaeci horde at Pale Pass, and elicited from that serpent people the promise of eternal servitude to the Emperors of Cyrodiil. Reman thus reunited Colovia and Nibenay under his rule, and entered the Imperial City as a conqueror and peacemaker.
Inspired by the loyalty and strength that manifested in his people united, Reman felt called to the holy purpose of uniting all of Tamriel under his Divine rule. His hand forced by the growing aggression of Alinor, Reman united the mannish races of Tamriel and waged a war as had until then never been seen on Nirn, conquering all of the north, the southern lands of Anequina, Pelletine, and Camoria, and much of Argonia. He secured heavy tribute from the kingdom of Alinor in return for accommodation. Only the dusky people of Morrowind resisted this rule, an act of willful sedition for which they were to suffer greatly in times to come.
Reman I was among the most wise and just rulers Cyrodiil ever knew, bringing peace and Imperial Law to the ignorant provinces, instigating great works of infrastructure and fortifications, and reuniting the Imperial people in their common cause and culture. On his deathbed he was thus called upon by the Divines to serve as a guiding star and example to man, and ever since he has been worshiped as the Worldly God, who did come to the aid of man in their hour of need, and returned to them the fires of purpose and identity.
IX. BRAZOLLUS DOR
While the name and deeds of Emperor Brazollus Dor are sure to ring out in beauty in the hallowed halls of Aetherius, his time of life was clearly overshadowed by the reign of his vaunted predecessor, Reman I. As such, we know precious little of Brazollus Dor, though it can be deduced that he continued the good works of his father, namely the building of Empire, through the construction of Remanite highways, bridges, and fortresses. Brazollus Dor was crowned in 1E 2762, and assumed his name in recognition of Emperor Belharza, also the second ruler in a line, whom Brazollus sought to emulate in all aspects. As such, Brazollus rejuvenated the cult of Morihaus in the Imperial City and instated many rituals in honor of that deity. From the forges of the Zenitharites he ordered a crown of golden bull-horns made, signifying the resurgence of Cyrodiil's Divine bloodline.
Brazollus Dor's date of death goes unrecorded. Let this be a warning to the scribe and the record-keeper, that they must be truthful and exacting in their work, so that further generations may come to know of the great works of their betters.
X. KASTAV or THE WARDEN
Through the byways of myth we are told the story of Emperor Brazollus Dor's succession. Upon his deathbed, Brazollus surveyed his progeny and found them a bitter disappointment: his many sons and daughters were to the last one drunks, halfwits, cowards and traitors. The Emperor thus denounced and disinherited them all, save for his latest grandson who had been born but three days before. Brazollus then called to his side his trusted advisor and close friend, Kastav of the Crossing Vale, and adopted him as his son and heir, tasked to keep the Empire safe until a son of the line of the Remanites came of age. And Brazollus instructed Kastav to lock away each and every one of his negligent sons and daughters in the holds of the Imperial Prison, so that they could never plot and conspire to overthrow him. By virtue of his adoption into the true line Emperor Kastav is counted among the true Emperors, and for his policy of detaining and imprisoning all his unworthy rivals he is to be known as Kastav the Warden.
Like Brazollus Dor, Emperor Kastav felt the negligence of the scribe's hand. Kastav was known to quell unrests in the lands of Skyrim, that eminent province whose people were normally first to join and advance the cause of the Empire, but under his rule did quarrel and chafe. Kastav had no patience for such reticence, and engineered the downfall of these upstart rebels, intending to entrench the Empire far into the north, so that its righteous rule would never again be doubted by the people of that land. Sadly, Kastav died before he could see his plans come to fruition, and it fell to his successor to lay the keystone on his great political work.
Volume IV
XI.REMAN II
Emperor Reman II assumed the throne in the early twenty-ninth century, receiving the mandate of power from the dying hand of Emperor Kastav, his caretaker and foster-father, in a time when the Empire was beset by Nordic and Argonian insurgents. Reman II wasted no time in putting an end to these uprisings, making clever use of his Tsaeci servants as he did so, sending these brave and loyal warriors first to the north, where they brought down the Nordic rebels, and then south, where they fought the great Battle of Argonia, establishing Imperial Law and the Rule of the Emperors in that stygian land.
Remembering the ideals of his predecessor, Reman I, who did intend to join all of Tamriel under his rule, and seeing what good his regime did in the newly joined province of Black Marsh, Reman II decided to honor this great ambition, and to that purpose declared war on the lands of Morrowind, for the Dunmer who lived there were in thrall to dark powers, and their resuscitation was a noble goal indeed. For Four-Score years the war against the Dunmer raged, as they were abetted by a dark three-headed spirit, who went by the name of Ephen. With his great endeavor unfinished, Reman II was slain in battle in the year of 1E 2851, and his people did weep over the fall of so mighty a man.
XII. THE EXPUNGED REMAN
XIII. REMAN III
In the year 1E 2877 Reman III did take the throne, fated to be the last of the line of Reman. Brave as his predecessors, Emperor Reman III fought the Dunmer of Morrowind to a standstill, though he was undermined at every turn by treachery and deceit. Even his own consort, the Empress Tavia, conspired against him with revolutionaries and tribesmen of the Blackwood borderlands, who were moved by perverse instincts to struggle against legitimate authority. So it came to be that the Emperor was forced to confine Tavia in the dread prisons of Black Marsh.
Though these actions may seem harsh, Reman III was a more gentle ruler than his predecessors, and was known far and wide for his mercy and kindness. As such, he is remembered by the people of Cyrodiil as a martyr of kindness and good governance, for his enemies did wound him, and killed his only son, and assassinated him as well, on the eve of his triumphant victory over the Dunmer. So the Second Era began, which was an Era of chaos, in which no true Emperor would appear.
With his last breath, Reman III entrusted the administration of his Empire to his Tsaeci servant, Versidue-Shaie, who safeguarded the Empire as Potentate for many years, as did his son, Savirien-Chorak. But the lands of Cyrodiil did not prosper under an alien hand, and the Potentates were never a good substitute for the true rule of the Emperors. In time, they too fell to the hands of murderers, and the Empire was left in the delinquent care of the Interregnum Pretenders, a ceaseless flow of hapless warriors and champions who sought the legitimacy that only the White-Gold Throne could ensure. Without a true Emperor, the land was soaked in blood, and the people of Tamriel knew despair.
Volume V
XIIV. CUHLECAIN or EMPEROR ZERO
While never fully inaugurated, the warlord Cuhlecain did rule the Imperial City for more than a day and is numbered among the Emperors of the Septim line as Emperor Zero, on the express request of Emperor Tiber Septim himself, for the latter did love and respect the former as a father, and did not wish to see his name vanish into obscurity along with the Interregnum Pretenders.
Cuhlecain, king of Falkreath, saw the chaos and misrule of his age and set out to return the world to righteous rule. He was an intelligent ruler, quickly perceiving that, to restore the Empire, it was necessary to unite the Colovian Estates, and to do that, he would need safety and security on his northern border. In the north, the Reachmen and the Nords had been at war for many a year. In acknowledgment of the ancient Nordic blood that flows through all true Colovian houses, Cuhlecian sided with the Nords against the Reachmen agitators.
In his service there was then raised a mighty warrior, a general-prince hailing from the high north, from Atmora - this was general Talos, anon Tiber Septim. Cuhlecain recognized in him the great power of the heroes of old and gave Talos the command of his armies, saying: "You who has come on the royal breath of the north, I call you son, and as no child I have before you, the Empire I have wrought will be yours in times to come," thus anointing general Talos as his rightful heir.
With the aid of Tiber, Cuhlecian united the Colovian Estates and raised a mighty army of the sons of Colovia. From the west they marched, and the men of Nibenay rejoiced and laid down their weapons, recognizing the true ruler of Empire. Still, treason, in those days, was ever present. On the day of his coronation, Cuhlecain fell victim to a conspiracy of his enemies, and was struck down. There exists a legend among the people of the Imperial City, that claims Cuclecain's lifeless body sunk into the ground after his defeat, and that now he rules beneath the city as the King Underground. Such fancies as the populace invent have, of course, no basis in anything of history, but may serve to lighten the mood of such heady tomes as the wise and powerful take to hand.
XV. TIBER SEPTIM or TALOS, YSMIR, DRAGON OF THE NORTH, STORM-CROWN, HJALTI EARLY-BEARD, DRAGONBORN
The greatest of all Emperors, and progenitor of the greatest line of Emperors, which does continue to this day and will continue forever-more, Akatosh willing, Emperor Tiber Septim, who did ascend to join the ranks of the Divines in Aetherius. He was born in 2E 828 in distant Atmora under the name Talos, which means Stormcrown in the tongue of the Ancient North. There, on the March of Giants, he did learn the arts of combat and governance under the benevolent eye of the High King of Atmora, and when he came of age, he departed for the south, knowing the path of his destiny. For the tales of discord in the Empire of Man had reached even the far shores of the Uttermost North, and the rulers of that boreal place were mindful of their brothers, saying: "Once, we sent our greatest and most virtuous warriors to Tamriel, knowing then of the pain that the land endured under the harsh reign of the Elves. Now that the spirit of misrule and slavery stalks the land again, let once more the fruit of our frozen arbors set sail, and do right in the Southland, though it pains us to lose one so great."
Thus Talos came to Skyrim, where he learned much from the great kings of that land, and learned the secrets of the Tongues, by which the world can be made to shake and submit. He led the Nords in the taking of Old Hrol'dan from the Witchmen, an act which spread his fame far and wide, causing Cuhlecain to anoint him as the leader of his forces, and the ancient monastic order of the Grey-Beards to vouch for him, proclaiming his Divine right to rule.
But not all men were in favor of the return of righteous rule. In Skyrim and High Rock there were then usurpers who dreaded the return of the Empire, knowing that their crimes and misdeeds would surely be brought to bear on them were a true Emperor to claim the White-Gold Throne. An alliance of Nords and Bretons was raised against the forces of Cuhlecain, and while the latter had proceeded to the Imperial City in preparation of his coronation, Talos stood alone to break the coming invasion at the fortress of Sancre Tor. There, a great battle of the age was fought, and by the power of Talos' voice the Nords recognized the true leader of Men and fell upon their erstwhile Breton allies. In the catacombs of Sancre Tor, Talos then found the sacred Amulet of Kings, signifier of the Will of Akatosh.
From Sancre Tor, Talos returned victorious to the palaces and lofty towers of the Imperial City, where he was feted by Cuhlecain on the eve of his ascension. Then, the poison of betrayal struck, as the dagger found Cuchlecain's heart, and found the throat of Talos, too, a wound which would surely have killed him were it not for his Divine nature. Talos carried the lifeless corpse of Cuhlecain from the flames of the burning palace, and, lifting the Amulet of Kings high above his head, he spoke in a whisper, reminding the gathered nobility of Colovia and Nibenay of their oaths, their loyalty, and their place in the order of things. And Talos anointed himself Emperor of Man, ruling king of all the nations of the world, and he took the name of Tiber Septim, that all his subjects may know him as such.
And the Emperor was much dismayed by the deeds of the Nordic and Breton traitors, who had conspired to assault him, and fought against the natural order. So he set about to break these wayward sons of Man, and even before the seasonal rains came to blanket the Imperial City, the first kings of Skyrim and High Rock came to kneel before the White-Gold throne. In but a few years time Tiber had Septim conquered the north, bringing peace and order where before there was only misrule.
But the great and the good will forever be opposed from all corners. The Aldmeri Dominion grew fearful of the rising star of the North, and they plotted to engineer the new Empire's downfall. Under their tutelage, the beastmen of Elsweyr and Argonia grew restless, attacking the borders of Cyrodiil without cause or provocation. The Emperor replied in kind, cutting deep into the wild domain of these baseless peoples. He skirmished with the Altmeri forces on the high seas, too, but that people's mastery over the waves proved ever obstructive.
Instead, his attention was drawn to Hammerfell. Ever did the people of that place quarrel with one another over an ancient and forgotten matter, so that the blood and tears of men were spilled in vain. Tiber Septim offered his wise and impartial counsel to end this matter, and, with sound judgment, brought the Redguard into the fold of Empire, to prosper under his guidance. In 2E 864 then was signed the First Treaty of Stros M'Kai, where after all the races of Man were united under the Rule of Empire. The might of Men was then a spearhead, and thrust into the heart of the unruly natives of the south, it brought them too to the foot of the White-Gold Throne.
Then only the empires of the Elves stood strong. Tiber Septim first looked east, to Morrowind, and found that the bane of the Remanites was weak and divided. His numberless legions poured into the lands of ash, and took from the Dunmer the capital of the Mourning Hold, which is where they worship their strange and wrong-headed god, Ephen. The Dunmer were forced into the signing of the Armistice, which promised their complete surrender, and in return, Tiber Septim graciously allowed them to hold onto some of their quaint traditions. The legions of men returned to the Imperial City victorious, and laden with tribute and great golden statues.
Then, Tiber Septim looked to the west, to the Aldmeri Hegemony. The Altmer were strong, stronger than any enemy Man had ever faced, but the Emperor was flushed from his victory over the Dunmer, and knew himself a being of a higher order. Then first did manifest the Divine power for which he was to be elected to sit among the gods in high Aetherius, and lead them, and Tiber Septim, anon Talos, called upon a gestalt of gold and great power, that was followed by his numberless legions, and in but a year they crushed all opposition, and all of Tamriel was united under the banner of the Cyrodiils. Ninefold blessings on the Emperor Tiber Septim, anon Talos, who cleared the way for Man's dominion!
XVI. PELAGIUS I SEPTIM
After the victories of Tiber Septim, it was declared that the Second Era was over, and now was the beginning of the Third Era, which was to be the Era of the Emperors Septim. Tiber Septim led a long and prosperous life, further unifying his great Empire, and in the latter years of his life the Divine Arkay was always by his side, to give councel and prepare the way ot Divinity. Then in the year 3E 38 Tiber Septim ascended to high Aetherius as Talos, to forever-more sit amongst the Divines, to lead and protect us, as he did in life.
Tiber Septim was succeeded by his grandson, Pelagius Septim I. Though Emperor Pelagius was young when first he donned the Amulet of Kings, he was wise, and assisted by the many spirits and guides his grandfather had groomed for him. His reign was glorious and free of strife, as he furthered the cause of Empire, connecting the provinces with bonds of blood and commerce, and striking down rebellion with an even hand.
Emperor Pelagius was pious, too, and instated the worship of Talos in the entirety of Tamriel, and he summoned the Octadic Council from their distant dioceses, and caused them to reflect upon the Divine nature of Talos, until they declared him one of the Divines, henceforth to be known as the Nine Divines. And Pelagius founded the Citizen's Cult of Talos, Tiber Imperator in the northernly city of Bruma, which Talos had once saved from disaster by his actions as Sancre Tor, and for which he had held a strong affection in mortal life.
The piety of Pelagius was to be his downfall, for he was assassinated in the Temple of the One by foul interlopers of the Dark Brotherhood, on the behest of malcontent provincials. As he had no living children, Pelagius was succeeded by his first cousin Kintyra, daughter of Tiber Septim's brother Agnorith, who had been made king of Silvenar.
XVII. KINTYRA I SEPTIM
Empress Kintyra Septim ascended the throne in 3E 41, and though her reign only lasted a short seven years, it is remembered as a period of prosperity, in which the harvests were bountiful, the people content, and agitators laid down their weapons and submitted to Empire. Kintyra was known as a great patron of the arts, and under her guidance many great public works were made, such as the great Imperial Opera, or the Library of the People in the Imperial City. She was known as a great actress and dancer herself, and an delighted in the noble Nibenese art of skin-painting and tattooing, as she made many intricate designs that were admired by all.
In the life of Empress Kintyra we see once again the shadow of the empresses of old, of Alessia and Hestra, and it would be fitting to remember here the old Nibenese adage: "Blessed are they who live under the law of River and the Bull, they will know joy their whole life, and the land rejoices".
Volume VI
XVIII. URIEL I SEPTIM or THE GENTLE
After his mother's untimely death, emperor Uriel Septim assumed the throne, being the first Emperor to carry that illustrious name. Emperor Uriel continued the good work of his predecessors, furthering the unity of the Tamrielic provinces, and his reign is now remembered as a golden age of peace and harmony. Uriel was also a great lawmaker, who long studied the old codices of Nordic, Elven, and Monkey-law, synthesizing them into the shape of Law we know today. Blessed above all others are the Lawmakers, for the Law is Empire, and Empire is Sacred. In his own way, Uriel conquered and wrought an Empire as Tiber Septim had done, and made the will of Emperors clear to the land. Uriel Septim saw new wisdom in the old Marukhati edict "All are guilty until proven innocent", and set about to rationalize the system of punishment and incarceration he had inherited - under his rule, the great prisons of Black Marsh were once again full of industry, and many malfeasants found a fitting end there. For this, he is remembered as Uriel the Gentle.
XIX. URIEL II SEPTIM or THE MISFORTUNATE
Emperor Uriel Septim I died in 3E 64, to be succeeded by his son, Emperor Uriel Septim II. He was similar in kindness as his father, though his reign was plagued by insurrection. Uriel II attempted to counter this mindless violence with forgiveness, only for his goodwill to me betrayed and mistaken for weakness. Under his reign, the judicial legacy of his father was squandered, and enemies of the Empire roamed free, terrorizing the populace.
Plague and blight, too, stalked the land, and Uriel II expended much of what his predecessors built up to aid his people in their suffering. Uriel II died in 3E 82, bent by worries and strife. Though many have laid the blame of these times of hardship at his feet, we must at all times remember that the Empire prospers not for the sake of simple prosperity, but for the sake of Empire, meaning law and purpose. Here, in the hour of need, Uriel II did not hesitate to use the whole of the Empire's means in order to fight what ailed his realm, and this steadfast attitude is to be admired.
XX. PELAGIUS II SEPTIM
When Pelagius II ascended the throne, the Empire was in disorder: his father's policies had expended the treasury and set the provinces on the rebellious path of independence. The Elder Council, ever a trustworthy tool in the hands of his forefathers, was now filled with vipers and traitors. Pelagius II did well to disband that institution, and assembled a new Council of loyal and trustworthy vassals, reforging the Elder Council as one would reforge a broken sword. He encouraged the princes and kings of Tamriel to do likewise, and by the end of his reign the Empire was a prosperous place once more.
Though Pelagius II was beloved by his servants and his people, he was conspired against by those he had slighted through his forceful policies - indeed, there were even vicious tongues who falsely claimed the Emperor had committed heresy by disbanding the Elder Counil! After seventeen years of his blessed reign, Pelagius II was poisoned by a former councilman, leaving the throne to his son, Antiochus Septim. Let this be a lesson to the wise and powerful, that a righteous ruler is never without enemies, as righteous rule will always find malice at its door.
XXI. ANTIOCHUS SEPTIM or THE DEBAUCHED
Much has been written of Antiochus Septim's supposed depravity and moral laxity by those too unwise to see an Emperor's true virtue beyond superficial deeds. True, Antiochus was much seduced by the simple pleasures that is realm brought, but is that not the right of any Emperor, to enjoy the fruit of his labor? Indeed, Antiochus did many great and goodly thing, bringing about peace and stability in the inner provinces, and furthering the systems of Imperial justice and taxation. If there were rebellions and uprisings in his time, then it was surely these measures of order and wise rule that unsettled the corrupt provincial kings, rather than Antiochus' Dibellan demeanor. Indeed, in the hour of his greatest need, the 3E 110 Pyandonean invasion of Summerset, the Emperor was assisted by a great and sudden storm which utterly destroyed the dreaded Maormeri armada - a clear sign of Divine favor.
Despite his lust for pleasure, Emperor Antiochus was to find no joy in the governance of his Empire: the remaining years of his reign were marked by the continuing rebellion of the outer provinces. Still, he remained ever a jovial man, quick with a word and a smile, and genuinely fond of even the least among his people. He was greatly mourned when, in 3E 119, he died of a mysterious suffocation - later rumored to be the work of his rapacious stepsister, Potema Septim of Solitude - the dread Wolf Queen.
Volume VII
XXII. KINTYRA II SEPTIM or THE CAPTIVE
Sad and woeful, the tale of Kintyra II! From youth, she was much sinned against, thrust onto the throne at the tender age of fifteen, while her aunt, Potema Septim, spread the blackest slander in the hallowed chambers of Empire. Queen Potema questioned, in terms that no worthy historian could bear to repeat, the legitimacy of Kintyra's claim, referring to the somewhat loose morals of her father's reign. In turn she proposed her own son, the weak-willed Uriel Mantiarco, as heir of the Septim Empire. Despite the support of the Elder Council and the willingness of Stone, Hedge and Flame towards Kyntyra II, Potema's words succeeded in riling up the ever-treasonous rulers of the outer provinces.
Kintyra II ruled but shortly, though her rule carried the seed of squandered greatness. By her command, the court returned to the austerity that is ever the hallmark of the Septim line. Similarly, many provincial insurgents laid down their arms when confronted with her gentle authority, and many voluntarily offered reparations to the White-Gold Throne. Kintyra was an accomplished sorceress, despite her youthful age, and would doubtlessly have become the foremost of her line to practice that cerebral discipline, and a patron saint to its adherents everywhere, were her life not so tragically cut short. For the lesser kinglets of Skyrim and High Rock were ever ready to undermine the authority of a true Emperor. During a festive visit to the Iliac Bay, Kyntira's escort was attacked, and the Empress herself imprisoned in the keep of Glenpoint, where she was murdered by the faithless lords of that place. For this reason, no Emperor will ever again set foot in the duchy of Glenpoint, nor will its name be spoken in the presence of an Emperor, nor will Imperial administration refer to it as anything other than the Hold of Traitors, much reviled.
XXIII. URIEL III MANTIARCO or THE CINDER-KING
Of all men and women who held the vaunted title, Emperor of Tamriel, none were unworthy as Uriel III (save the Expunged Reman). Only for the sake of completeness will his life and deeds be tallied here.
Mantiarco, under the tutelage of his mother, the cursed Wolf-Queen of Solitude, had engineered the petty kings of High Rock and northern Morrowind to rise in rebellion against Imperial authority. With the Legion's strength now divided, Mantiarco set his mercenary armies against the sacred Imperial City itself, against the very heart of the Empire. The Legion was in disarray, the Empress missing, and in but a fortnight the City's sheer white walls were broken, its red shores defiled. Uriel Mantiarco usurped the throne, crowning himself Uriel Septim III, though he has no right to that name.
This heresy would not stand. The coronation of Uriel Mantiarco was defied by both brothers of the traitor Potema, Cephorus Septim, the king of Gilane and Magnus Septim, the king of Wayrestm neither of these noble lords sharing Potema's innate pull to misrule and madness. For six years they battled the forces of the traitor Mantiarco across the whole of northern Tamriel, until the fate of the Empire was decided by a twofold battle in 3E 317. The brothers Septim had devised a brilliant military campaign, which had divided the armies of the Mantiarcos across Hammerfell and Skyrim, and cut off the weak Uriel III from the tutelage of his more intelligent and warlike mother. In the Battle of Ichidag, Hammerfell, a cornered Uriel III faced the armies of Cephorus, consisting of the defectors of the Ninth Legion and his loyal Redguards subjects. Uriel III proved himself an inept tactician, and was captured a few hours into the battle. He was sent to Gilane, but when news of his capture spread, the common people rose up in righteous anger, overwhelmed his battle-weary keepers, and burned Uriel III alive in his carriage. This, the fate of a traitor.
Simultaneously, Queen Potema was engaged in her own struggle against King Magnus, who had taken shelter in the ruins of Kogmenthist Castle near the Nordic city of Falconstar. Potema being a more apt tactician, the battle went well, and when the news of her son's death reached her ears she was infused by such rage and madness than she took to the field herself, forcing Magnus into a hasty and painful retreat. Potema then retreated to her stronghold of Solitude, where for ten years still she degraded herself and her subjects with the blackest arts of necromancy, vampirism and Daedra trafficking, in a futile attempt to keep the judgment of the Emperor and the Divines at bay.
XXIV. CEPHORUS I SEPTIM
With the death of Uriel III and the disgrace of Potema, the throne fell to Cephorus, third child of Pelagius II. So was crowned Cephorus I, who had won his right to rule through blood and ruthless war, and would know nothing but war his entire reign. The Empire was in utter chaos, with dissidents spreading lies here and there, the misled supporters of Uriel III continuing their blind opposition, and the Wolf-Queen herself launching endless attacks on the righteous ruler of Tamriel, gradually descending into the use of dark and dishonorable tactics. Cephorus I was ever a kind and intelligent man, who could speak with beauty on all subjects of poetry, philosophy and theology, but in the hours of his time he was thus reforged into a ruthless general and a leader of men, perhaps one of the greatest warriors the Septim line ever knew.
It is said that Emperor Cephorus I took the blackened bones of his fallen opponent, Uriel III, with him to the Imperial City, and there exhibited them to the Elder Council, attesting to his absolute victory and ruthlessness in battle. Hereafter he let these bones be locked in a lead coffin and thrown into the inner depths of the Imperial Palace, fearful as he was that Potema would use her necromantic powers on the remnants of her own kin next. Cunningly, this also insured him the support of his Nibenese subjects, who loathed their erstwhile usurper and the defiler of their holy city, and where convinced by local superstition that Uriel III's soul would thus be held by the roots of White-Gold Tower, never to flow downstream to rejoin the Circle of Arkay.
XXV. MAGNUS I SEPTIM
In 3E 340, Emperor Cephorus I died of old age. As his life of struggle had left no time for marriage or the raising of a suitable heir, the throne now fell to Magnus I. He was almost as old as his brother, but his bloodline was strong and fit to continue. Magnus I ruled only five years, but in his time he returned peace and stability to the finally subjugated northernly kingdom of Solitude, helping to erase the mark of Potema from the mind of its citizenry. With the more warlike of the dissidents finally subjugated by his predecessor's campaigns, Magnus I was free to pacify the few remaining points of opposition in more kindly ways, and brought about peace and stability in his Empire. His legacy, then, is the final defeat of the Mantiarco insurrection, and the continuing reign of the Septims.
Volume VIII
By the will of Emperor Pelagius IV, I, Tyr Ymanwe, have been given the task of presenting to the discerning public a full and unbiased account of the Line of Emperors, that all may be made aware of the history of Empire, and that the piety, strength, courage, and wisdom of the Rulers of Man be an example to all citizens. In this I succeed my master, Jaume Abtacil, who passed away before the completion of the great work for which he was commissioned. This book is dedicated to him, too, that I may always work in the tradition of excellent scholarship, as he has taught me.
XXVI. PELAGIUS III SEPTIM or THE MAD
Much has been written of Thoriz Pelagius Septim, the Emperor often maligned as Pelagius the Mad. The reality of his illness cannot be denied, nor can the simple fact that he was in truth not fit to reign, noble blood notwithstanding. Were it not for the insurrection of the Mantiarcos, the Imperial line would have continued by the blessed Kintyra II, full of life and promise, and Pelagius III would never have been near the White-Gold Throne. So the plans of the Divines, graceful and providential, are often crossed by the wickedness of men, who aspire only to the betterment of their selves and care not for the good of the Empire. Indeed, it should come as no surprise that the withered branch of Pelagius III was to carry no good fruit, and the true line of the Septims will continue by a different path before long. Still, the successors of Pelagius III were Emperors in their own right, and though their faults were many, it would be unwise to dismiss them outright.
Emperor Pelagius III assumed the White-Gold Throne in 3E 145, after ruling both as King of Solitude and as High King of Skyrim. He was at this time already married to the Katariah Ra'athim, the Dunmeri Duchess of Vvardenfell, a marriage orchestrated by his father Magnus I to placate the rebellious Dunmeri warlords. By virtue of Katariah's diplomatic temperament she was made Empress Regent when the Emperor's sickness deteriorated beyond his capacity to fulfill his duties. The Emperor was relegated to a life in the country, where healers and priests attended him until his death in 1E 153.
XXVII. KATARIAH I
As Katariah Ra'athim had adequately governed the Empire during her husband's long deterioration, she was affirmed by the Elder Council in her full regency: an arrangement inspired by the reign of Emperor Kastav during the Remanite dynasty. This decision was rightly contested, as the Dunmeri upstart was utterly foreign to Imperial morals and society, and proved unwilling to adjust. While the official record naturally makes no mention of it, there are enough anecdotes of Katariah's strange and scandalous behavior to affirm that she was unsuited to life among the crown of Imperial nobility. It should come as no surprise that Empress Katariah I avoided the Imperial court, where she was scorned, and instead sought the company of the people and the lowly provincial rulers.
If Empress Katariah I's reign is remembered as a good and joyful time, this is likely the result of her acute diplomatic skills and frequent sojourns among the provinces. For her stewardship, she must be commended. Of course, the period preceding her was plagued by civil war, sickness and rebellion, so the peace of Katariah's time would have seemed a respite even if her rule had been a mediocre one. Regardless of her skills in governance or the people's love for her, Cyrodiil is not one to suffer a foreign hand for long, nor will it truly prosper under one. Katariah's death, caused by a bandit attack during an ill-timed visit to the province of Black Marsh, should come as no surprise.
I hereby wish to warn the reader against a fraudulent account of the death of Katariah by the hand of the scholar Montalius, whose rumormongering and false accusations against families of great stature should by discounted and avoided at all costs.
XXVIII. CASSYNDER SEPTIM
Little can be said of the rule of Cassynder Septim, which lasted only from 3E 200 to 3E 202. Cassynder, having lived through the reign of his father and his long-lived Elven mother, was already of advanced age when the throne fell to him. Suffering from the debilitating conditions so often encountered among people of half blood, Cassynder at first was unwilling to accept the responsibilities of leadership, but was at last convinced by those loyalists who insisted on the continuation of the true bloodline of Tiber Septim. The demands of governance took a further heavy toll on the Emperor's health, until even the weight of the Amulet of Kings proved too much for him to bear.
XXIX. URIEL IV LARIAT or THE ILLICIT
Emperor Uriel Lariat was to be the last of this line of steward-Emperors, whose claim to the blood of Septim was often weak or nonexistent. They maintained the Empire, but did not truly rule it as an Emperor might, and were ultimately detrimental to its virtue and glory. Of these, Emperor Uriel IV's claim to the throne was by far the weakest, barely more legitimate than that of an Interregnum pretender.
Uriel Lariat, son of Empress Katariah I and a Breton consort of hers named Gallivere Lariat, was adopted into the true Septim line by Emperor Cassynder - a simple technicality, to allow Uriel the rule over the kingdom of Wayrest while his half-brother was indisposed. Cassynder was then called upon to fulfill his duty as Emperor, and when he later fell to his responsibilities, Lariat's adoption proved enough to claim the throne. Uriel IV thus had not a drop of Septim blood in his veins, a fact which offended both the low people and the noble members of the Elder Council. Uriel IV's reign was thus inhibited by a certain recalcitrance, the nature of which lied with the monarch, not his subjects.
Volume IX
XXX. CEPHORUS II SEPTIM
After the death of Uriel Lariat IV, also known as the Illicit, the ELder Council greatly protested the further advancement of the line of Lariat, as their claim on the White-Gold throne was founded on nothing more than the oaths of adoption made by Emperor Cassynder towards Uriel IV, the likes of which do not extend to his children or his children's children. In turn, the councilmen of the Elder Council consulted the annals of ancestry and at long last discovered there an heir more true to the line of Tiber Septim: a Nordic nobleman by name of Cephorus, raised to the throne by the assent of the Elder Council, and duly accepted by Stone, Hedge and Flame.
This was not to the will of the line of Emperors now deposed. Andorak Lariat, son of Uriel IV, opposed the Council's decision and declared his hostility to the appointed Emperor. Once again, civil war frayed the borders of the Empire. Those loyal to Lariat were few in number, and there is no doubt that Cephorus II would have dealt with them swiftly were it not for the sudden onslaught of the Camoran Usurper. The exploits of this Bosmeri sorcerer are better recounted elsewhere. Suffice to say that he was both a ruthless and cunning conqueror, and that the Legions, forced into fighting on two fronts, proved incapable of stopping his northwards advancement.
At long last, Cephorus II was forced to accommodate Andorak, providing amnesty in return for an end to the war. With Andorak back in line, the march of the Usurper was quickly halted, and Cephorus II returned a measure of peace to the inner provinces: truly a rejuvenation of the Emperors of old. Still, many of the provincial lords, ever fickle, turned away from the Empire, and the northwest was to flounder in a state of permanent rebellion for decades to come.
XXXI. URIEL V SEPTIM or THE CONQUEROR
Uriel V assumed the throne in 3E 268, and faced an Empire of dissension: while the administrative and military might of the Imperials was stronger than it had been for over a century, many had lost faith in the rule of Cyrodiil, and the people were fractured. Uriel V was a farsighted man, and, taking the example of Reman I and Tiber Septim, the conquering Emperors of old, he decided on a policy of military expansion far beyond the borders of the continent. In this way, the peoples of Tamriel were once again united to a single purpose, as has been the higher calling of the Emperors of Cyrodiil since the dawn of man.
These conquests, the subject of many a song, carried Uriel V and his faithful Legions across the Padomaic Ocean, to distant Akavir, where in 3E 288 they settled a large and prosperous valley, bringing Imperial culture and civilization to its natives. For two years the Imperial Province of Akavir prospered under the hand of the Emperor. However, this enterprise, grand and beautiful in its design, was not to last. The Tsaeci lords of this realm, quick to forget the ancient oaths they swore to Emperor Reman at Pale Pass, responded to the Emperor's arrival by amassing in great number, and attacking the fledgling colony without warning. Despite the great effort of his soldiers, including the willing sacrifice of the Tenth Legion, the Emperor was killed. Fallen in foreign lands, never will he rest in the tombs of his forefathers, in Cyrodiil, his home.
Though his venture was seemingly futile, Emperor Uriel V is to this day remembered as one of the greatest generals and leaders the Empire has ever seen, the first to increase the Cyrodiil's borders since Tiber Septim himself. Indeed, Uriel's conquests convinced many of the Provincial rulers of the legitimacy of this branch of the Septim dynasty, and proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that the will of Talos was alive and well in the heart of Empire.
XXXII. URIEL VI SEPTIM or THE PATIENT
When Uriel V, his father, was cut down in Akavir, Uriel VI has but five years old. The Elder Council had since the days of Pelagius III assumed many responsibilities, a necessity in the face of the often weak regents of that branch. Uriel V had restored the grandeur of the Emperor's sole and undisputed power, but the COuncil was yet loath to give up its privileges, accustomed as they were to the wielding of power. They gave Thonica, the consort of Uriel V, a limited regency only, and later conspired with her to further encroach on those prerogatives that are the right of the Emperor alone.
When Uriel VI was belatedly crowned Emperor in 3E 307, he found this to be a largely ceremonial role. No content with this illusory power, the Emperor set about to regain his position through a careful and measured policy, exploiting both the complex systems of governance as the weak mind and will of many a councilman. In but six years, he had reconquered the governance of Tamriel much as his father had conquered the eastlands.
XXXIII. MORIHATHA SEPTIM
When in 3E 313 Uriel VI came to a premature end in an unfortunate horse-riding accident, his beloved and well-respected sister, Morihatha, was crowned Empress of Tamriel. Morihatha, as beautiful as she was cunning, had been instrumental in her late brother's takeover of Imperial might, and was now well-accustomed to the mechanics of power. Unlike the purely diplomatic Uriel VI, Morihatha had mastered both the word and the sword, using both in her quest to once and for all rid the Empire of the simmering rebellions that had been ongoing since the days of her grandfather, Cephorus II. By her will the Empire was reshaped, as institutional and administrative structures took root even in the most distant and unruly provinces.
Still, her calm and deliberate demeanor in dealing with these insurgents proved to be her ultimate undoing. In 3E 339 Empress Morihatha was assassinated, a deed later found to be ordered by Thoricles Romus, Councilman of Black Marsh, who was enraged by the Empress' refusal to send military aid to his mismanaged province. Romus was promptly executed, and any and all Argonians were henceforth banned from sitting on the Council, until an Emperor decides otherwise.
Morihatha had no living children, and her younger sister, Eloisa, had passed away four years before. The throne thus passed on the Eloisa's only son, who was crowned Pelagius IV, the current Emperor, and Emperor for many years to come! In the ten years that Pelagius IV has been in power, the Empire has been blessed with a never before seen sense of peace and purpose: the Emperor has continued Morihatha's good work of uniting the warring provinces, and striking down all opposition with an even hand. Under his tutelage, the Law has been kind and strict, the Legions honorable and strong, and by his intercession with the Nine Divines all harvests and industry go well. In the name of this humble scholar, and in the name of my dearly departed master Jaume Abtacil, I hereby humbly give thanks to Emperor Pelagius IV, for his continued defense and benevolent governance of the Empire, and for commissioning this full account of the Line of Emperors.
Volume IX: Addendum
As of this writing, the blessed Emperor Pelagius IV has passed away, to be succeeded by Emperor Uriel VII. After twenty years of his enlightened reign, Emperor Uriel VII has graciously granted me, Tyr Ymanwe, the privilege of publishing this small addendum to "The LINE of EMPERORS vol. IX: from CEPHORUS II to MORIHATHA", further describing the life and deeds of Pelagius IV. Also included is a preliminary draft of the life of Uriel VII, unfinished, of course, as this scholar sincerely wishes our Emperor many years of good health to come.
XXXIV. PELAGIUS IV SEPTIM
Emperor Pelagius IV ascended the throne in 3E 339, after the brutal and untimely end of his beloved aunt and predecessor, Morihatha. In his ascension many saw a sign of continuance and unification, as he was named Pelagius, as many of the great and wise Emperors of the original line of Septims, as as such indicated their continuing relevance.
Pelagius IV was quick to continue the good work of Morihatha, pacifying the provinces, and bringing them closer still through a grand investment in the good infrastructure of the Empire, the building of good roads across Tamriel, and bold strongholds to project the mighty hand of the Legions far and wide. If some claim that Pelagius' work of peace was less absolute or durable than that of Morihatha, it should only be noted that the former is continuing this work where the latter did not venture, cracking even the hardest and most obstinate of the provincial rulers. Indeed, the Empire in its present state is more peaceful and unified than ever before, and the legacy of Pelagius IV is sure to continue a hundred years or more.
XXXV. URIEL VII SEPTIM
When in 3E 368 Pelagius IV passed on to his rightful place by the side of the Divines, the current Emperor, Uriel VII, twenty-first Emperor of the Septim dynasty, ascended the White-Gold throne. Truly, a more splendid ruler has not been seen since the days of Tiber Septim himself! For Uriel VII combines within him the diligent diplomacy of Empress Morihatha, the cunning and patient political acumen of Emperor Uriel VI, and the military genius and foresight of Uriel V.
In the ten years of his reign, our youthful Emperor has cunningly and with a noble sense of purpose defeated any and all challenges in his path, safeguarding Tamriel from they who would do it harm. In his visage, we see the keystone of this present age, which is in itself the iron foundation of an age yet to come! By the love of the Divines, may his reign continue from the present day for many an age, as may the reign of his sons! The reign of the Septims, now and forevermore!
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