A little side project to provide an overview over the lore surrounding the Imperial Federation in my books 'Saga of the Bridgers'. There will be different chapters covering History, Politics, Armed Forces, etc...basically it's a Wiki page.
The Vignoli dynasty can look back to a unique history, as no family in human history ever sat on a throne for so long. Between cadet branches and derived Houses, the dynasty counts around 138 living members all around the galaxy, but the core is of course the family living in the Imperial Citadel, directly descending from the founder Anastasia.
In 2225, the Imperial Family is composed of Empress Benedetta, her consort Howard Scott Bradshaw and their four children: Claudio, Anastasia, Francesco and Federico.
Benedetta IV dei Vignoli
48th Head of the Vignoli Dynasty, 47th Pontifex Maxima, 7th Empress of the Imperial Federation. These are the three most important titles owned by Benedetta. Born inside the main palace in 2154, Benedetta grew up with a lot of expectations: contrary to the tradition, her father didn't sire more children, so the Princess had to become a worthy leader in one go or it might doom the dynasty.
Luckily for all the monarchists, Benedetta grew up with a strong sense of duty and the will to prove that she was going to be fit for the throne. At the age of 18 she enlisted into the Imperial Armed Forces and studied as an officer, coming out as one of the top students and being scouted for the N7 program. She also showed a good amount of both biotic and psionic powers, which led them to become a 'Fury'.
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Benedetta was then recalled to court to complete her education in other fields, but it was actually a cover from her father to let her know of the Reaper threat and involve her in the search for clues about them. When Commander Shepard proved their existence thanks to the Prothean beacon on Eden Prime, in 2183, Benedetta joined the Normandy to stop rogue Specter Saren Arterius and she made the call to save the Destiny Ascension with the combined fleets of the Federation and the Systems Alliance.
This move earned her the sympathy of the Council species and she stayed on the Citadel to help reconstruction and to stabilize the new position earned by Humanity in the Council. She wasn't on the first Normandy when the ship was destroyed and the news of Shepard's death struck her hard. For the three years before the Commander's return, she took care of Jane Shepard, by then three years old, earning a deep relationship with the daughter of the legendary hero.
Benedetta gave a huge contribution to the buildup of the Federal forces in preparations for the Reaper invasion and her father actually put her in charge of the war leadership. She proved herself to be extremely talented not just to humanity, but to all species.
After her father died at the end of the war, Benedetta rose to the throne and married her lifelong friend and comrade Howard. She then managed to federalize all the species of the Citadel, transforming the Federation into the superpower of the Milky Way. She is extremely popular among the people and the armed forces. Many consider her the third on a streak of 'Good Emperors' started with her two predecessors.
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