Charles zi Britannia



Charles Di Britannia ( シャルル・ジ・ブリタニア or Sharuru Ji Buritania in Japanese) is the main antagonist of the series, though his role is minimal compared to that of his children.

Character outline
Charles Di Britannia is the 98th emperor of the Holy Britannian Empire and Lelouch Lamperouge's father. He installs his children in important positions throughout the Empire to see their true abilities.

A strong proponent of Social Darwinism, Charles views equality and justice as an evil that must be dispelled and encourages social battle to maintain evolution within society. As such, he publicly supports inequality and calls for competition and fighting, so as to create progress, even proclaiming the death of his son, Clovis La Britannia, as a demonstration of Britannia's unswerving commitment to progress. In the seventh episode of the second season, he reiterate his viewpoints by saying that the traditional morals of not murdering, not deceiving others, not stealing, and remaining faithful are lies used by the weak to defend themselves, and that survival of the fittest is the only truth, which he considers Britannia's duty to show the world. Despite openly supporting warfare, he views it as an ineffective tool compared to diplomacy and bargaining.

First season
Charles' appearances in the first season are minimal. In a flashback, Lelouch questions why the Emperor did not try to protect his mother, Marianne Vi Britannia. Irritated and considering his son to be nothing without him, the Emperor sends both Lelouch and his sister, Nunnally, to Japan as political hostages.

He makes a number of short appearances throughout the season, displaying apparent knowledge of Lelouch's activities, particularly in relation to his Geass usage. He also claims to be speaking to Clovis after his death, though he may not have been speaking literally.

Second season
In another flashback in the second season, Lelouch is brought before the Emperor by Suzaku Kururugi. Suzaku requests a position within the Knights of Rounds as a reward for capturing him, which the Emperor grants because he is impressed with Suzaku's willingness to sacrifice his friendship with Lelouch to begin his quest to change Britannia from within. He then uses his previously unknown Geass ability to rewrite Lelouch's memories and suppress his Geass power. He apparently does the same to the students of Ashford Academy.

Because Suzaku is the only one of the Knight of Rounds who knows of Zero's identity and Geass, the Emperor trusts him enough to lead him to The Sword of Akasha, a temple above the clouds and skies designed as a weapon against "the gods". C.C. suggests that V.V. is the one who granted Charles his Geass, though the specific nature of their alliance and contract is unknown; it seems to be related to the "gods" that they seek to defeat. The Emperor playfully refers to V.V. as "older brother." General Bartley's earlier suspecions are partly correct, as the Emperor plans to use the Thought Elevators to unleash Ragnarök, which will wipe away the world and replace it with a new one.

The Emperor initially possesses a Geass power given to him by V.V. which allows him to suppress memories and create false ones through eye contact. It can also suppress the Geass power of the target, even if it is permanently active. During Lelouch's assault on the Geass Directorate, he takes on V.V.'s "Code," exchanging his Geass for immortality. He now intends to unlease Ragnarok through all the Thought Elevators on the planet.

During the ceremony of the UFN and the preperations to liberate Japan from Britannia, Charles appears to Zero and the Black knights declaring that the E.U. has finally collapsed and that the victor shall take control of the entire world, since the world is literally divided between the Holy Britannian Empire and the UFN. During the second battle of Tokyo, Charles is seen aboard his flagship approaching the coastline of Japan, much to the shock of Lelouch. Bartley's earlier suspicions are partly correct, as the Emperor plans to use the Thought Elevators (using the one in Kamine Island) in conjunction with the Sword of Akasha (damaged by Lelouch) to unleash Ragnarök, which will wipe away the world and replace it with a new one. However before his plans can come to fruition, Lelouch uses a set of explosive to destroy the Thought Elevator in Kamine Island and sealed Charles along with himself inside. Lelouch disrupts this plan and kills his father, taking the throne for himself.

Geass
Though the exact nature of the Emperor's Geass is unclear, he possesses the apparent power to suppress memories of others and implant false ones. He may also seal the ability of another Geass user. When active, Geass sigils appear in both of his eyes. C.C. suggests that it was V.V. who bestowed Charles with his ability. He loses this ability after receiving V.V.'s Code. The Code mark is situated on his right palm. They had formed the contract 55 years ago.