House Liao

Historically the smallest of the Successor States, the Capellan Confederation has nevertheless been a thorn in the side of Houses Davion and Marik for the past 600 years. The official birth of the Capellan Confederation occurred in July 2367 when Franco Liao managed to draw the 5 squabbling Capellan states together by offering himself as a compromise candidate for Prime Minister of the Capellan Commonality. Franco then managed to consolidate power for himself and his heirs by playing on the fears of each member state. The Family Liao has managed to maintain a hold on power in the Capellan Confederation in this way for almost 700 years, with but two exceptions. During the Succession Wars, and especially during the 4th Succession War, the Capellan Confederation took a massive pounding from Davion and Marik forces. During the 4th Succession War, the commonalities of Tikonov and Sarna were swallowed whole by the Federated Suns, and the Commonality of St. Ives seceded to become the St. Ives Compact. These events drove then-Chancellor Maximilian Liao to insanity. His daughter Romano took over the reins of power, and proceeded to remake the Capellan Confederation completely. Industry was nationalized, the military was remolded into a solid corps of soldiers that were more fanatical than even those of the Draconis Combine, and a reign of terror ensued as Romano purged everyone whom she felt was an enemy of the State. The social movement known as Xin Sheng is an important recent development.

The official symbol of House Liao is an inverted Emeral triangle with gold trim that contains a gauntleted fist holding a Dao sword.

Trivia
Applicable Pejoratives and Diminutives: Cappies