Knights of the Round



The Knights of the Round (ナイトオブラウンズ) is a unit of twelve elite soldiers in the Holy Empire of Britannia, each being assigned into the group by royalty and under direct command of the Emperor. The Knights of the Round extended to at least the 18th century, with the first Knight of One being Sir Richard Hector. Named after the Arthurian Knights of the Round Table, they operate outside the standard Britannian military and are given special privileges and authority.

Privileges
Aside from the Knight of One, there were no known distinctions in privileges between the numbers as they existed in the era. The 'Knight of One' may request governance of any colonial area of his choosing from the Emperor. Only eight of the twelve have been revealed. The Code Geass novels explain that not all of the seats are filled, so those featured might be the only active members.

A special title called the Knight of Zero was created by Lelouch vi Britannia following his ascension to the throne. This title is classified as a member of the Rounds above all others, giving the person authority above all the others, even the Knight of One.

Bismarck Waldstein
Bismarck Waldstein (ビスマルク・ヴァルトシュタイン|Bisumaruku Varutoshutain) is a man who bears the title of the Knight of One under Charles, the strongest amongst the Knights of the Round. He pilots the Knightmare Frame Galahad, and curiously keeps one of his eyes stitched up. Despite his status and combat abilities, he believes that war should be used as a last resort, and also sees strength without restraint as needless violence. He was previously the Knight of Five.

During the second battle of Tokyo, he leads the Britannian forces guarding the shore against Li Xingke's invasion force. Li and Bismarck battle, with Li unable to defeat him. Bismarck compliments Li's skill when he purposefully takes a hit to move into position to rescue the Chinese command vessel - Da Longdan.

During Schneizel's attempted coup d'état, he intervenes to stop Suzaku's assassination attempt on the Emperor. Suzaku's "live on" Geass urges him to flee, indicating that Waldstein is a potent combatant (Suzaku usually has to give up for his Geass to activate). Bismarck also reveals a Geass ability in his sewed-up left eye. When Charles is killed by Lelouch in the World of C, Bismarck is somehow aware of the fact, even though he is on Schneizel's flagship. Afterward, Bismarck is seen along with the remaining Knights observing Lelouch's ascension to the throne. Bismarck then leads three of the remaining Rounds' members and a squadron of knightmares in an attempt to usurp Lelouch from power, but they are decimated by Suzaku in the Lancelot Albion. Bismarck attempts to use his Geass, which allows him to see a few seconds into the future, to even the odds, claiming that the only person he ever had to use it on was Marianne. Suzaku's "live" command allows him to achieve victory despite Bismarck's Geass; slicing the Galahad in half. Bismarck dies gasping Marianne's name.

Gino Weinberg
The Knight of Three, Gino is a seventeen-year-old ace pilot of noble descent. He comes from a very rich upbringing, and as such doesn't quite understand how the real world works.

Dorothea Ernst
Dorothea Ernst (ドロテア・エルンスト, Dorotea Erunsuto) is the Knight of Four. She is a dark-skinned, dark-haired woman who is described as being as heroic as Bismarck. She joins Bismarck during the attempt to remove Lelouch from power, but is the first killed by Suzaku in the Lancelot Albion.

Anya Alstreim
The Knight of Six, Anya is a small quiet pink-haired girl with an somber pragmatic and emotionless demeanor. She holds the distinction of being the youngest individual ever appointed to the Knights of Rounds at the age of 15.

Suzaku Kururugi
Suzaku Kururugi is the former Knight of Seven, granted his position for capturing and turning over Lelouch, and the only non-Britannian in the circle. A main character of the show. Following Lelouch's ascent to the throne of Britannia (with Suzaku's help), Suzaku is appointed by Lelouch to be his Knight of Zero.

Nonette Enneagram
Nonette Enneagram is the Knight of Nine. She attended military school with Second Princess Cornelia, who considers Nonette her senior. An upbeat and cheerful woman, she happens to be one of the few people Cornelia actually fears. She is first seen in episode 2 of the second season when Zero announced the reformation of the United States of Japan. She is later seen along with the other Knight of the Round during Lelouch's ascension to the throne. Out of all the Knight of the Round, she is the only one not to have a speaking role in the anime. Her first and last names contain the Latin and Greek prefixes for 9, non- and ennea- respectively. She also appears in the PSP/PS2 video game, Code Geass: Lost Colors.

Luciano Bradley
Luciano Bradley (ルキアーノ・ブラッドリー|Rukiāno Buraddorī) is the Knight of Ten and is known as the "Vampire of Britannia". He pilots the Knightmare Frame Percival. A violent and confrontational man, he is fond of provoking others and attacking without provocation; several of the Knights of the Round appear to dislike him. He shows little care for the lives he ends, be they friend or foe, as long as he can cause destruction. In fact, he fights battles specifically because it allows him to freely kill people in public. He claims to be a "homicide genius", and carries a number of large knives which he is adept at throwing. He is fiercely loyal to the Empire, but does as he pleases most of the time, even around members of the Imperial family.

His wicked personality is a direct result of a troubled childhood, caused an abusive father, who believed that Luciano's life was not important, and an alcoholic mother. After a fight, Luciano ended up killing his father when he was seven years-old.

Luciano first appears shortly before the formation of the UFN; he throws a knife at Suzaku and then insults Euphemia. He later walks in on a conversation between Nunnally and Kallen, telling Kallen that she is to be used as a hostage, and threatens to harm her because her body is expendable so long as she is alive. Gino intervenes, and Luciano insults him by suggesting that his nobility is what allowed him to reach his position. During the second battle of Tokyo, Luciano destroys a number of the Black Knights' Knightmares and nearly kills Lelouch in tandem with the Valkyrie Squadron. All four Valkyrie pilots are subsequently killed by Kallen, followed by Luciano himself. Before Luciano dies he calls Kallen a worthless monkey.

Monica Kruszewski
Monica Kruszewski is the Knight of Twelve; she is a gentle-looking woman with blonde hair whose appearance masks just how dangerous she can be. She is stationed aboard the Emperor's flagship, Great Britannia. During the attack on Kamine Island, the Emperor leaves her to deal with Schneizel and the Black Knights and she is visibly surprised when the Emperor refers to the attack as a trivial matter. She is among the remaining Knights of Rounds observing Lelouch's ascension to the throne one month later. She joins Bismarck during the attempt to remove Lelouch from power, and is killed shortly after Dorothea.

Marianne vi Britannia
Marianne vi Britannia was also known to have been a member of the Knights of the Round prior to becoming one of the Emperor's consort, however her exact designation is unknown.