Vampire Authority

Vampire Authority

Organization Information

Founder

Roman Zimojic

Founded

Headquarters

New Orleans

Function

Lead the vampire population

Notable members

• Salome Agrippa
• Roman Zimojic
• Kibwe Akinjide
• Dieter Braun
• Alexander Drew
• Nan Flanagan
• Nora Gainesborough
• Rosalyn Harris

Notable patrons

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[[:Category:{{{Images}}}|Images]]

"Are you serious? Who are the Authority? What gave them the authority? Nothing. No one. They took it, as I am taking it today. I no longer recognize the.. Authority."

―Russell Edgington

The Vampire Authority was a semi-religious, clandestine council originally comprising eight of the most politically powerful vampires in existence, but has since lost nearly all original members to the True Death, and is now technically defunct. This council was the ultimate authority over all vampires across the globe. It was worshiped by many and feared by even more.

History

"I swear fealty now, and always to the one true Vampire Authority, whose wisdom and justice I..."

―Jorge Alonso de San Diego

Nan interviewing Eric at Fangtasia.

The Authority was originally created to protect the blood of Lilith. Lilith is estimated to be about 6,000+ years.The Vampire Bible says that after she met the Sun, her progeny collected her remains the following night. Later transferred to a flask containing only her blood, the Authority was said to have guarded it ever since. It is from this lineage and the blood of Lilith that Authority derives its power and religious stature.

The Authority was said to be thousands of years old. The halls of its current sanctum are supposed to date to the Byzantine era. However, Eric Northman spoke of the Authority's existence of only 500 years as commonly known fact, casting doubt on its antiquity.

It was led by Guardian [of the Blood] Roman Zimojic for over 400 years, working in secret to acquire absolute power over the vampire race. Using state-of-the-art technology and a secret police, the Authority controls every aspect of institutionalized vampire society, from the monarchs to the agenda of the American Vampire League, by setting law and settling disputes.

Defying the Authority was considered blasphemous, treasonous act.

The Authority sanctions all vampire monarchs known to hold crowns and will forcibly remove, by way of the True Death, any king or queen who loses its favor. Some degree of the Authority's oversight of the monarchs was exercised by the Magister, the highest adjudicating official in the New World. The Magister was sworn to serve the Authority. It was known that many vampires fear it, though Russell Edgington mocks the idea.

Composition

The Authority consisted of a chief of state, the Guardian, who was assisted and advised by six Chancellors. Nominally, each Chancellor was assigned to oversee a specific continent, but in practice, the Chancellors shared their duties when necessary.

Nothing is known about how Guardians or Chancellors were selected, though Chancellor Agrippa mentions that she sponsored Nora's appointment, suggesting that incoming Chancellors require the recommendation of a sitting one to be considered.

Agenda

Due to the Authority's secret nature, not much was known about its official policies. Since at least the 20th century, mainstreaming was the focal point of the body's agenda. It was the brainchild of and masterminded by the Authority under the leadership of the late Roman Zimojic. The idea of mainstreaming was also part of an agreement between the Authority and the United States government. The Authority, at the height of the Authority's support for mainstreaming, feeding on Humans in public was punishable by the True Death. However, several of its members were never true supporters of the policy.

Following the coups which culminated in the death of Guardian Roman and Chancellor Braun, Sanguinistism was supported by the Authority for a time.

All of the Authority Chancellors have now either met the true death or resigned as have many of the Authority's employees and guards. Only Bill remains as a member. It is likely that the U.S. military will launch an assault on what is left of the Authority due to the death of general Cavanaugh.

Shortly after the downfall of the authority, its headquarters was destroyed; removing all traces of its origins. 

Opposition

Under its mainstreaming agenda, Sanguinistas were opposed to the Authority. However, the Authority then became Sanguinista controlled. Thus mainstreamers then became the ones opposed to the Authority.

Russell Edgington was also opposed to the Authority for a time due to their being an obstacle for his ambitions and later for the threat he posed to mainstreaming. After he was freed by Salome Agrippa and played his part in her coup, he joined the Authority for a short time, but eventually dissented from them, finding the Sanguinistas just as irritating as the mainstreamers.

The United States government made it quite clear that a Sanguinista-controlled Authority would not be acceptable, as per their original agreement with Roman, suggesting that the US government was officially allied with Roman's mainstreaming.

Membership

Salome        Nora        Rosalyn        Kibwe        Russell        Newlin        Bill        Eric

The Guardian

• Salome Agrippa (Formerly, Destroyed)
• Roman Zimojic (Formerly, Destroyed)

Chancellors

• Kibwe Akinjide (Formerly, Destroyed)
• Dieter Braun (Formerly, Destroyed)
• Bill Compton
• Eric Northman (Formerly, Resigned)
• Alexander Drew (Formerly, Destroyed)
• Russell Edgington (Formerly, Resigned then Destroyed)
• Nan Flanagan (Formerly, Destroyed)
• Nora Gainesborough (Formerly, Resigned)
• Rosalyn Harris (Formerly, Destroyed)

Minions

• Molly (Technology expert; destroyed)
• Chelsea (Receptionist; destroyed)
• Hayes (executioner/assassin; destroyed)
• Jorge Alonso de San Diego (the Magister of North America, i.e. the highest adjudicator and legal inquisitor; destroyed)
• The Gatekeeper
• Louis Pasteur (researcher)
• Gondry (V-Fed; destroyed)
• Lambert (V-Fed; destroyed)

Image Gallery

Authority first scene in Season 3

Salome and Roman

Roman overseeing a meeting

Behind the scenes

• The Authority is mentioned in the Season 3 episode Everything Is Broken, as well as "Post-Mortem: Sunday Morning with McCafferty" and other after-hours specials on HBO. The Authority was actually shown in Everything Is Broken when Nan Flanagan questions Eric at Fangtasia about the Magister's death.("Everything Is Broken")