Empress Varkula
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===Reign: 125YE to 167YE=== | ===Reign: 125YE to 167YE=== | ||
===Called | ====Called the Undying==== | ||
Empress Varkula (also known as the Dowager Empress, the Iron Empress | Empress Varkula (also known as the Dowager Empress, the Iron Empress, the Carrion Queen and the Winterborn) ruled for over forty years, the longest uninterrupted rule in the Empire’s history. A [[Varushka|Varsushkan]] [[Draughir|draughir]], she rose through the ranks of the Imperial army before making the leap to politics. | ||
Taking advantage of a weakened and divided senate, she manipulated (and in some cases, allegedly extorted) her way to the throne, then set about dramatically increasing the military strength of the Empire. She was ruthless in her treatment of her political enemies, especially in the Synod, and went some way to reducing the powers that previous, more pious, Emperors and Empresses had ceded to the priesthood. At the same time took pains to ensure that the quality of life of the common citizen improved, enacting several sweeping reforms designed to ensure social mobility and freedom from oppression in all parts of the Empire. Under the hawk-like gaze, the rights of the Imperial Magistrates to investigate and prosecute crimes were extended, and despite some circumstantial evidence to the contrary, she insisted that while the Senate and the Throne could ''make'' laws, they would have a minimal role in ''enforcing'' those laws. | Taking advantage of a weakened and divided senate, she manipulated (and in some cases, allegedly extorted) her way to the throne, then set about dramatically increasing the military strength of the Empire. She was ruthless in her treatment of her political enemies, especially in the Synod, and went some way to reducing the powers that previous, more pious, Emperors and Empresses had ceded to the priesthood. At the same time took pains to ensure that the quality of life of the common citizen improved, enacting several sweeping reforms designed to ensure social mobility and freedom from oppression in all parts of the Empire. Under the hawk-like gaze, the rights of the Imperial Magistrates to investigate and prosecute crimes were extended, and despite some circumstantial evidence to the contrary, she insisted that while the Senate and the Throne could ''make'' laws, they would have a minimal role in ''enforcing'' those laws. |
Revision as of 19:47, 6 January 2013
Reign: 125YE to 167YE
Called the Undying
Empress Varkula (also known as the Dowager Empress, the Iron Empress, the Carrion Queen and the Winterborn) ruled for over forty years, the longest uninterrupted rule in the Empire’s history. A Varsushkan draughir, she rose through the ranks of the Imperial army before making the leap to politics.
Taking advantage of a weakened and divided senate, she manipulated (and in some cases, allegedly extorted) her way to the throne, then set about dramatically increasing the military strength of the Empire. She was ruthless in her treatment of her political enemies, especially in the Synod, and went some way to reducing the powers that previous, more pious, Emperors and Empresses had ceded to the priesthood. At the same time took pains to ensure that the quality of life of the common citizen improved, enacting several sweeping reforms designed to ensure social mobility and freedom from oppression in all parts of the Empire. Under the hawk-like gaze, the rights of the Imperial Magistrates to investigate and prosecute crimes were extended, and despite some circumstantial evidence to the contrary, she insisted that while the Senate and the Throne could make laws, they would have a minimal role in enforcing those laws.
Throughout her reign she was the victim of frequent assassination attempts, many of which she fought off personally, others of which left her scarred and eventually crippled. By the time of her death at the age of seventy-six, it was fully four days before anyone dared to approach the throne and try to remove her body – even then apparently her fingers were so tightly coiled around the arm rests that they had to be broken before she could be removed.
While her reign saw a great increase in the scope and efficiency of both the armies and the civil service, the individual nations chafed under her rule.