Edwin Fischer (Galia)

Duke Edwin Fischer is a member of the Fischer family, a cadet of House Avington. As Duke of the highly valuable oceanic world Mao, in the Akari system, he has held a coveted position in the Galian social system as a prominent and respected Duke. Fischer served as the respected Admiral of the 2nd Fleet until his defeat and subsequent forced retirement at the disastrous Battle Over the Sepulchre.

Early Life
Edwin was born February 1st, 3073 (1031/127 UST) to the Duke of Mao Henry Fischer, and daughter of the influential House Kozue Yuki Miyake. From an early age Edwin was raised to succeed his father's role as the Duke of Mao, and was given an early education in rulership and military leadership. As a child Edwin was largely left in the care of the house maids, and had little regular interaction with his busy father, and distant mother. Edwin had a elder sister, Eliza, who he was very close with until her untimely death when he was only thirteen. Edwin was considered to be an intelligent and charismatic child, if a bit rowdy.

Education
As Edwin grew up he received both a quality education from a number of private tutors in addition to his state provided education. While Edwin was an unremarkable student in the traditional sciences and arts, he particularly excelled in the military sciences, especially in the areas of void-fleet tactics and logistics management. Despite his immense talent for set piece battles, it was remarked that Edwin's leadership style was remarkably inflexible, and weak to asymmetrical warfare, and unconventional tactics.

Edwin was enrolled into the Imperial Academy at Izuna, where he quickly excelled in the Military Science department, graduating first in his year for 3095. During his time at the Academy Edwin's professors often remarked on his stellar test scores and near encyclopedic memory of fleet formation and procedures. Despite this, Edwin failed to secure a position in the semi-finals of the Academy's annual combat sim-games, a failure which Edwin maintains was due to the lax rules of the games, and failure of the referees to maintain an even playing field.

In addition to his formal education, Edwin enrolled in the Imperial Combat Society while attending the Imperial Academy, where he attained the rank of Journeyman combatant, favoring sabers.

Adulthood
Following his graduation from the Imperial Academy, Edwin joined the Admiralty and was placed first as Lord-Commander of the famous Kasatrix-class battleship Lacasse. While commanding the Lacasse Edwin quickly gained prominence in the Admiralty and rose through the ranks at a high speed, increasingly recognized for his excellence in drill and fleet formation. By his thirties he had attained the rank of Sub Admiral, being placed in charge of the 2nd Fleet's attached armies, until eventually succeeding his superior at the age of 41 and being granted the rank of Admiral of the 2nd Fleet. Edwin's ambitions were obvious, and it quickly became common knowledge that he was aiming for promotion to Crown Admiral. These ambitions would be dashed, however, when Admiral of the 3rd fleet Lawrence Holcomb would receive the coveted title regardless.

Alongside his military service, Edwin was serving as Regent and Steward of his father's holding of Mao. Seeking to teach his son the basics of stewardship and governance, Henry Fischer ensured that Edwin have an important role, and held many responsibilities from his twenties. By the time he had attained the rank of Sub-Admiral Edwin's father formally announced his abdication to his son, declaring that Edwin would be coronated Duke of Mao on his 35th birthday.

Reign
Edwin's reign over Mao began on his 35th birthday, February 1st 3108 TST (1068/71 UST) when his father abdicated the throne citing concerns over his health. Mao is a largely rural world, with the largest industries present being agriculture, technology, and tourism. Nearly 90% of the planet's surface is water, leaving little land for urban or industrial development. As such, it has long been considered a minor title compared to the vast and wealthy Akari, an immense proto-ecumenopolis in the same system.

As Duke of Mao, Edwin mostly chose to delegate the planet's leadership, choosing a steward, Antoine Bassani, to govern the planet in his stead. Development on Mao has mostly been steady since his ascension, with the most heavy investment going toward expanding the planet's budding technological services, and tourism industry. With a large, and highly wealthy white-collar class developing in Akari, Mao has quickly become a hot real estate market, as wealthy executives, and financial analysts seek out increasingly scarce luxury villas and ocean property in a star system of more than two-hundred billion people.

Some natives of Mao have come to criticize Edwin's "Leadership in absentia" style, as the Duke spends the majority of his time in Akari, working with the Crown-Chancellery, or (prior to his dismissal) working with the Admiralty and 2nd fleet. Critics view him as too distant, and uncaring for the development of his homeworld, while others support Edwin, claiming his decorated and long service with the Imperial Admiralty as a point of pride for the world, though these points have become increasingly less common following his defeat in the Battle Over the Sepulchre.

Awards, Citations, and Honors
As a former Galian Admiral, Edwin received the Admiralty's silver Naval Crown, representing his command over the 2nd Fleet. Though he was forced out of the navy, he was allowed to retain his crown as recognition for his service to the Galian navy, as is standard practice for admirals retiring on good terms (Though this was a compromise, and his retirement was far from on good terms).

Further, to assuage the former Admiral's anger against the Admiralty, he was granted the Valiance Stripe for (relatively minor) injuries sustained during the Battle Over the Sepulchre, during his evacuation of the Ark Royal.