The Bloodline Thus Far

It is a commonly accepted fact by now that the Emeritus bloodline of Ghost canon is modeled loosely off of the Swedish royal family before 1818. This first became clear with the ascension of Papa Emeritus III in 2015, who took major influences in costuming from King Gustav III of Sweden (see pictures) and in his placement in the lore. These aesthetic influences also bled further into Terzo’s characterization (though this strays into far more theoretical realm with little to back it up in the canon). Gustav III represented the Swedish monarchy taking away from the Swedish Rikstag, perhaps representing the Emeritus Bloodline taking power away from the Clergy. With Terzo being the only Emeritus to be ‘violently’ deposed, perhaps he was a threat to the Clergy and so it was necessary to replace him with a more mild mannered front man.

Gustav III staged a coup d’etat that placed him as an absolute monarch, but also a collision course for a reign that would not last. He was assassinated at a masquerade by conspirators ending the reign of the Gustav family until Gustav IV took the throne, although interestingly not being coronated until 8 years after he took the throne. Copia represents two Swedish regents of the 19th century, Gustav IV but also King Charles XIII. King Charles was regent in the immediate aftermath of Gustav IV’s reign but he had an issue where his health was failing but he had no heir, causing the Swedish monarchy to search for a foreign heir to succeed the throne.

The primary candidate was Jean Bernadotte (Karl Johan once ‘Swedish’), the at the time French Marechal. He enjoyed a successful military career alongside the legendary Napoleon Bonaparte, serving him dutifully from 1804 to 1810. Bernadotte was offered the Swedish throne in a bid to cement an alliance between the French Empire and Sweden. Bernadotte accepted the throne, becoming Karl Johan, the fourteenth Swedish monarch after Charles XIII. Karl Johan turned against his former French allies and went to war with them in 1813. Besides this period of war, Johan’s reign was defined by ‘stabilizing the ship’, with such accomplishments like settling national debt, promoting education and increasing internal infrastructure. Johan’s reign was the most stable reign in decades, especially given that two of the previous monarchs in the past 40 years had been forcefully deposed.

With the Emeritus bloodline completely extinct after the events of Rite Here Rite Now (2024) the Emeritus bloodline must follow suit and find a foreign successor. Papa V Perpetua, as indicated by the name, is not an Emeritus. Although he is the secret second son of Sister Imperator and Papa Nihil, he is given a different name. Another issue is the matter of the twin hints at the end of Rite Here Rite Now, which indicated Copia and Perpetua to be akin to Romulus and Remus. This makes it tricky, especially given the degree to which Perpetua matches Karl Johan aesthetically.

Enter: Perpetua and Karl Johan

The aesthetic similarity is simple, the truth lies in the sideburns. It remains to be seen if there will be further similarities in the costuming of Perpetua and Karl Johan (Charles XIV John) as we have only seen Perpetua in his papal attire thus far. From what we can see, the bat wing outfit most likely worn during Cirice by Perpetua, it shares the high collar of the military uniforms of Karl Johan’s era.

So Perpetua is Karl Johan, What Does This Mean For Ghost?

If Ghost chooses to adapt the elements that defined Karl Johan’s reign, it means that this will be the most stable reign for Ghost since 2018. Copia’s time as front man was very erratic, with the constant hints about death being a defining quality. This reflects his synthesis of the two monarchs before, Gustav IV and Charles XIII who were forced into lonely exile and died of old age respectively. Perpetua will more than likely become the new status quo of Ghost, just as the ascension of Karl Johan marked a shift for the Swedish crown. If mentions of Ghost moving away from lore heavy to purely music based are to believed, than this transition to Perpetua is apt. A long stable reign with no major concerns for revolt or calls for Karl Johan to abandon the throne. The Swedish crown prior to Karl Johan was marked by destructive wars, political strife and territorial loss. After Karl Johan finished the war against his French allies, Sweden committed itself to neutrality that would last for over 200 years.

As for Copia, if history is to be believed his fate could go one of two ways. If he goes the way of Charles XIII who inspired Copia in his Papa IV era, then he will die of old age. However given what has been made clear by Rite Here Rite Now, Copia unlikely to be killed off now that Perpetua has ascended. More likely is the route of Gustav IV, who abdicated the throne and fled to exile in Switzerland. Copia will certainly be kept around, in order to fill out the cast of the Clergy and fulfill the roles previously held by Nihil and Sister Imperator as the ‘Old Guard’ of the Clergy, alongside Psaltarian.

Karl Johan Vs The Free Press : Perpetua and Frater Imperator Conflict?

The most infamous quality of Karl Johan’s reign as Swedish monarch is his hostile relationship to the free press. Within two years of ascending to the throne, Karl Johan instituted a decree that required press institutions to have their publications be approved by the royal court. This was aimed at limiting criticism of the regime and thus maintaining stability more easily. This was the first foray of the Karl Johan regime into pure autocracy, an action that would only intensify throughout the following decades. It was not a product of legislation necessarily, but Karl Johan pursuing cases against press censorship with zeal previously unseen. This is what differentiated Karl Johan from the other rulers before him, seeking to wrestle more power and quell the tumultuous throne. Notably these cases often had the court shielding people on the grounds of freedom of expression, creating a hostility between Karl Johan and the judicial system, as well as press.

Within the Ghost storyline, this certainly hints at the conflict between Perpetua and Frater Imperator. With the release of Chapter 20 ‘Arrival Of A Secret Agent’, the animosity between the old regime and the new ‘foreign’ front man is obvious. Additionally after this, it seems that Frater has taken much more control of the Ghost social media (in this case, the press) and used it to voice disapproval for the new ruler. If history is to be believed then this perhaps mean an attempt by Perpetua to wrestle more power from the Clergy. The relationship between Papa and the Clergy has regarded the Clergy as superior to the current Papa, removing them whenever they see fit, but will we now see a Papa resist the Clergy?

Implications

More than anything else, these historical allusions mean that Perpetua’s reign will be different. The reign of Karl Johan was defined by an embrace of autocracy in order to finally put the chaotic succession of the past few decades to rest and bring peace to Sweden. Viewed as one of Karl Johan’s greatest contributions to Swedish history is the commitment to neutrality after Sweden was a major regional player for centuries, with neutrality being enforced in perpetuity (get it?) after Karl Johan’s reign. How or if this contribution is addressed within the Ghost lore remains to be seen, since it seems that the factors of the monarchs upon which Papas are based pertaining to outside of Sweden are largely ignored.

This also beckons the issue of the fact that Karl Johan was once Jean Bernadotte and how Ghost lore will address the ‘foreign’ king. For one, Papa V is not of the Emeritus bloodline which makes him similar enough, but considering Karl Johan was a Frenchmen, perhaps Perpetua will not be characterized as Italian like the others. Part of Karl Johan’s appeal to the Swedish people was his good standing within Europe, making him the most qualified and attractive of candidates, despite his relative geographic difference to the rest of the candidacy.

Still unresolved historically is the issue of Frater and Perpetua being confirmed as fraternal twins, which is unfortunately beyond the realm of this discussion (but always open to further writing!). This complicates the analysis by having the ‘foreign’ Perpetua chosen to ascend to the throne be actually related to the old ruling house, but the similarities still stand. As is the case with Ghost lore, we cannot know which direction the lore will go in, and we will have to wait and see.