Emperor of the Bacterian Empire
The Emperor of the Bacterian Empire is the supreme imperial ruler of the Bacterian Empire. A female Emperor is alternatively known as the Empress of the Bacterian Empire.
Court of Bacterium
The Emperor is surrounded by the Court of Bacterium, with representatives from ministries responsible for the administration of all levels of life in the Empire. Of these, the Ministry of Central Affairs is the governmental agency for matters most closely pertaining to the Emperor. The officials of this Ministry will perform attendant duties and will relay to the Emperor military matters and orders, be present at military reviews in his name and accompany him to formal ceremonies and interviews.
Succession
The legitimacy of an Emperor's rule depends on his control of the military, political and religious circles of Bacterian society; an Emperor can be proclaimed by his troops, or invested with imperial titles by the Court of Bacterium, or both.
The Ministry of Ceremonies in the Court of Bacterium is responsible for the oversight of the succession and marriage of officials, as well as oversight of the formalities relating to deaths, funerals, and memorial activities which honor the anniversaries of the demise of a former Emperor. Its chief officer is the Chief Minister of Ceremonies, who is tasked with finding the successor in the event an Emperor dies.
Cloning has been used extensively by the Empire for ages. It is not uncommon for an old Emperor to continue ruling the Empire even after his death, by simply transferring to another, younger body. This tradition was broken by Gracilibacillus XI, who, after centuries of rule, wished to die a warrior's death and "ascend beyond the plane of mortals".
Although the imperial succession is generally hereditary, it is only hereditary if there is a suitable candidate acceptable to the army and the bureaucracy, so there is no principle of automatic inheritance. Various noble houses of Europe, at different times, effectively became hereditary holders of the title.
Known Emperors
This is a list of known Emperors throughout the ages. It is likely to remain incomplete, as data from the early history of the Empire is fragmentary at best.
- Xuii I
- Xuii II
- Xuii III
- Xuii IV
- Gigantis I
- Gigantis II
- Xuii V
- Xuii VI
- Diabolicus I
- Gracilibacillus I
- Gracilibacillus II
- Gracilibacillus III
- Aestuarianus I
- Gracilibacillus IV
- Gracilibacillus V
- Aesturianus II
- Aesturianus III
- Gazogenes I
- Metschnikovii I
- Gracilibacillus VI
- Gracilibacillus VII
- Metschnikovii II
- Gracilibacillus VIII
- Gazogenes II
- Gracilibacillus IX
- Gracilibacillus X
- Gracilibacillus XI (Before the Third Age)
- Bacterionema I (First Bacterian War)
- Unknown Regent (Peace Station Era)
- Bacterionema II (After the Peace Station Era)
- Unknown Regent (After the Gigerdian Civil War)
- Professor Namgron (Inter-Stellar Alliance Era)
