The King of Midland (ミッドランド国王 Middorando kokuō?) was the previous ruler of Midland.[2] Despite a relatively prominent and recurring role in the Golden Age Arc, his actual name was never mentioned.
Quick Answers
What led to the King of Midland's physical deterioration in the manga?
How did the King of Midland react to Griffith's imprisonment?
What was the relationship between Griffith and the King of Midland?
How did the King of Midland's rule impact the Band of the Falcon?
What is the significance of Princess Charlotte in the King of Midland's storyline?
Appearance[]
He was a tall man with long brown hair and facial features.[3] In the manga, his hair whitened and his body became emaciated a year after he had Griffith imprisoned.[4]
Personality[]
Initially, the King was largely seen as a fair, wise, and generous man, allowing the Band of the Falcon into the ranks of the nobility, and rewarding them generously for their assistance against Tudor.[3] [5] The King thought highly of Griffith and seemed to recognize his talent and usefulness, something that other nobles, specifically Julius, refused to accept due to Griffith's lower-class background.[2] He was also regarded by his second wife as a good king, albeit a poor husband and lover.[6] The King held a secret that ultimately led him down a spiral of madness; a repressed lust for his daughter Charlotte.[7] At some point during his rule, he began to see his status as a burden and greatly resented the stresses and pressures of his position as ruler of Midland.[8][1] He sought for resolution through his daughter, whom he deeply loved and saw as the only good thing in his life. However, once this love turned to lust, and he attempted to rape her, Charlotte began despising her father, which drove him insane though he realized he had committed a deed "lower than even a devil's" against her.[9]
After hearing that Griffith slept with Charlotte, the respect he once had for the knight turned into contempt and he saw to it himself that he would be the one to personally punish Griffith by lashing him in his dungeon. After Griffith deduced the king's incestuous feelings toward his daughter, the King from then on became a frenzied and unforgiving man, ordering the brutal daily torture of Griffith and even threatening his guards, warning them that if they were to ever repeat to anyone what Griffith said, their families would be executed.[8] He blamed Griffith for "stealing" Charlotte away with his words.[9] For two years, his obsession with Griffith made him dispatch seven tenths of the military in order to pursue him.[10]
Story[]
Golden Age Arc[]
The King is first seen when he observes the Band of the Falcon decimating the Black Ram cavalry of Tudor. Taking a shining to Griffith, the King makes the Band of the Falcon a part of his army and later names Griffith viscount,[3] while allowing the group take the place of Julius and his White Dragon Knights during the Autumn Hunt.[11] Once the Hundred-Year War ended, the King announces Griffith's promotion to general within a couple days.[5]
Yet, when the King learns that Griffith had sexual relations with his daughter Charlotte, he orders the capture and execution of the Band of the Falcon members, and personally lashes their leader in the Tower of Rebirth. Griffith's remarks about the King's incestuous lust for his child and belief that he won the war himself pushes the King to the brink of utter rage. After exhausting himself, the King gives the torturer instructions to keep Griffith alive to be endlessly tortured.[8] When the King visits his resting daughter, he gives into weakness and attempts to sexually assault her, but Charlotte fought back and kicked him out of her room,[8] causing Charlotte to hate and despise her father deeply, even going as far as to no longer call him her father.[12]
A year later, the King learns of Griffith's escape and sends a group of Bakiraka assassins after them.[4] However, the assassins fail, and the King, after telling Charlotte that he will not continue his hunt for Griffith when she uses his lust for her as blackmail to save Griffith, secretly entrusts the task to Wyald and his brutish mercenaries.[9]
Conviction Arc[]
The Falcon of Light in the Midland King's vision.
Two years after Griffith escaped from the Tower of Rebirth, the king has succumbed to illness. On his deathbed, the king has a vision of the Falcon of Light in a dream, like many in his kingdom. In the king's delirious vision, he is sitting on his throne, his soldiers keeping him from his daughter, as the Falcon of Light appears behind her, then reveals itself to be Griffith. The sight makes the king wonder, in his dying moment, if all that he wanted was someone to free him from the burden of his rule after all.[1]
Gallery[]
Notes[]
- The Berserk Official Guidebook states that circa the Conviction Arc, the King of Midland was 53 years old, 173 cm, and 70 kg. (NOTE: The Berserk Official Guidebook is highly questionable in its veracity.)
- In the Berserk 1997 anime, the King's feelings for his daughter are never alluded to, nor are they mentioned by Griffith.
- In the Berserk film trilogy, the King's feelings for his daughter are never fully confirmed and are simply alluded to by Griffith. However, the King's reaction to Griffith's proposal is still just as frantic and enraged. The King also did not become sick like he did in the manga.
- In the 2016 Berserk anime, the King's vision was cut from the story.
- The Berserk: The Golden Age Arc companion artbook BERSERK Film Artbook; Backgrounds features a compilation of Tudor and Midland military formations made in the early years of production. In this image, the king is given the epithet "Auguste" (尊厳王).
References[]
- ^ a b c Berserk :: Volume 17, "Revelation (2)"
- ^ a b Berserk :: Volume 6, "Sword Master (2)"
- ^ a b c Berserk :: Volume 5, "Sword Wind"
- ^ a b Berserk :: Volume 10, "A Way Through"
- ^ a b Berserk :: Volume 8, "Moment of Glory"
- ^ Berserk :: Volume 8, "Triumphant Return"
- ^ Berserk :: Volume 9, "Tournament"
- ^ a b c d Berserk :: Volume 9, "Demise of a Dream"
- ^ a b c Berserk :: Volume 11, "Demon Dog (1)"
- ^ Berserk :: Volume 17, "Revelation (1)"
- ^ Berserk :: Volume 6, "Assassin (1)"
- ^ Berserk :: Volume 10, "The Eve (1)"
- ^ Berserk :: Volume 9, "Fallen Falcon"