History Characters / CodeGeassBritannianImperialFamily

* ALighterShadeOfBlack: A zig-zagged case in regards to his son Schneizel. While both are WellIntentionedExtremist characters, they seek different aspects: Schneizel seeks the present, and Charles seeks the past. Both their methods are morally bankrupt, but Charles at the least understands from experience what people have suffered from. Schneizel on the other hand [[LackOfEmpathy lacks empathy]], so his attempts at being a WellIntentionedExtremist are marred by the fact he lacks the perspective of others. However, Charles' plan involves [[spoiler:conquering enemy nations with the intent of gaining access to Thought Elevators, so he can in turn use the Sword of Akasha to kill God and initiate the [[AssimilationPlot Ragnarok Connection]], which will reunite the dead with their loved ones and remove the concept of lying, at the cost of forcing humanity into stagnation.]] Schneizel meanwhile has a ''slightly'' less destructive plan where he [[spoiler:threatens the entire world into obeying him under threat of death by nuclear warhead, and intends to rule the world through fear under the guise of creating a utopia, and has no issue with killing thousands to accomplish his goals.]]

* BigBadEnsemble: Forms one alongside Prince Schneizel in the second season. The two are Lelouch's biggest opponents, with Charles causing Lelouch to fall into a state of amnesia to keep him out of the way of stopping his [[spoiler:plan to kill God]], while Schneizel directly antagonizes Lelouch and his troops on the battlefield.

* MoreDespicableMinion: Somewhat. Charles and Schneizel both had plans that were more destructive than anything she carried out, but both were {{Well Intentioned Extremist}}s who sought to put an end to the cycle of violence. Cornelia, although possessing some redeeming qualities of her one (her care for Euphie and her men) is still a virulent racist who commits several onscreen massacres, including overseeing the mass murder of a ghetto of innocent Japanese civilians simply based on bigotry.

* NobleDemon: Her courage, genuine desire to build stability in Area 11, and her relationship with [[MoralityPet her sister Euphemia]] are there even in her first appearances, as well as her ruthlessness and racism.

* BigBadEnsemble: With his father, Emperor Charles. While TheEmperor is Lelouch's primary target and the cause of his amnesia, Schneizel is able to turn the Black Knights against Lelouch and constantly blocking his advance. In both the series proper and ''Suzaku of the Counterattack'', Schneizel [[spoiler:outlives Charles to become the final antagonist.]]

* EvilCounterpart: To Lelouch. [[spoiler:The biggest difference, Lelouch points out, is that Schneizel is sheltered in a villainous royal family and lacks perspective on what the world is really like. Opposed to his GoodCounterpart, who wishes greatly to destroy Britannia and knows the man on the street well enough to have more than just selfish reasons.]]

* ALighterShadeOfBlack: Zig-zagged in comparison to Charles - both have sympathetic motivations for their schemes ([[spoiler:kill 'God' via the Ragnarok Connection]] for Charles and [[spoiler:intimidate the world into a global peace via FLEIJA]] for Schneizel). Although Schneizel, due to his sociopathy, has no concern with sacrificing millions to achieve this goal, his plan would grant humanity more autonomy than [[spoiler:Charles' AssimilationPlot]].

* ShadowArchetype: He's essentially the person Lelouch would have become if he was not exiled, as without his exposure to suffering in Japan, Lelouch would probably never have developed empathy for others besides his mom and Nunnally.

* EvilCounterpart: To Lelouch. [[spoiler:The biggest difference, Lelouch points out, is that Schneizel is sheltered in a villainous royal family and lacks perspective on what the world is really like. Opposed to his GoodCounterpart, who wishes greatly to destroy Britannia and knows the man on the street well enough to have more than just selfish reasons.]]

* ALighterShadeOfBlack: Zig-zagged in comparison to Charles - both have sympathetic motivations for their schemes ([[spoiler:kill 'God' via the Ragnarok Connection]] for Charles and [[spoiler:intimidate the world into a global peace via FLEIJA]] for Schneizel). Although Schneizel, due to his sociopathy, has no concern with sacrificing millions to achieve this goal, his plan would grant humanity more autonomy than [[spoiler:Charles' AssimilationPlot]].

* ShadowArchetype: He's essentially the person Lelouch would have become if he was not exiled, as without his exposure to suffering in Japan, Lelouch would probably never have developed empathy for others besides his mom and Nunnally.

-->'''Charles:''' [[spoiler:You clever fool! If you stop me, then Schneizel's world awaits you! Ultimately, good and ill will are just two sides of the same card. Even you, you're...!]]

* CharClone: One of three. Of them, Schneizel has Char's blond hair, his LackOfEmpathy and his cynicism regarding humanity.

* FauxAffablyEvil: He wears the mask of a kind, affable ruler, polite to all of his subjects, and even towards his foes. Make no mistake though, Schneizel is a sociopath who can and will manipulate everyone around him to further his goals, [[spoiler:and even nuking and killing millions means absolutely nothing to him]].

* TheStoic: He never raises his voice, and doesn't really emote much past "bored and disinterested with the world". All this serves to higlight just how much he's hiding what a [[BitchInSheepClothing murderous lunatic]] he actually is.

** Unlike his dad, he does not react well to [[spoiler:mind controlled Euphemia massacring Elevens.]]

* OhCrap: [[spoiler:Just before Lelouch uses his geass on him, Schneizel has this look on his face as he realizes what Lelouch's true plan is.]]

* AmbiguousSituation: [[spoiler:It's hard to tell, but judging by her expression in the last episode, she could've likely seen what Lelouch and Suzaku were really planning and acted accordingly to help them fulfill it. Thought likewise could've just been seizing the opportunity. The show never really makes it clear, however ''Re;surrection'' does imply that she caught on to the gambit, as she is rather amicable to Lelouch upon meeting him again despite having been one of his most stringent critics in the past.]]

* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler:She ''does'' suffer in various ways (dead younger sister, messed up in the Black Rebellion, imprisoned for a while, shot by her brother), ''and'' does get better over time (see CharacterDevelopment and TookALevelInKindness), but [[LackOfEmpathy shows no repentance]] and suffers no direct punishment for any of her actions, which include one on-screen massacre and doubtless many other reprehensible acts committed under the banner of Britannia. Lelouch's ZeroApprovalGambit pretty much shields her from any retribution her actions may have entailed otherwise.]]

* AffablyEvil:
** Pretty nice to everyone in general. A notable scene is when he comforts Cecile after an embarrassing moment.
** Furthermore, in ''Suzaku Of The Counterattack" [[spoiler:he tries to become immortal and take over the world]].

* InformedAbility: She was supposedly excellent at piloting a Knightmare Frame, but has never been seen in one. [[spoiler:Although, there was that moment in episode 20 of R2 where, while in direct control of Anya, she deliberately let a very specific part of the Mordred's Float System get damaged in a brief scuffle with the Knight of One so she would have an excuse to leave the battle and land on the island. Her feint was apparently so good that Bismarck Freaking Waldstein didn't notice he'd been deliberately given the opening he exploited. [[AlternativeCharacterInterpretation It's also possible the only reason Anya was able to become a Knight of the Round was because of Marianne.]]]]

* EvilMatriarch: [[spoiler:Unlike most examples, she's fairly well-intentioned. She was HappilyMarried to Emperor Charles, despite the guy having 107 other wives, and out of all the children in the royal family, Lelouch and Nunnally were their favorites. It's because of this love that she was willing to side with Charles in creating the [[AssimilationPlot Ragnarok Connection]], committing her fair share of atrocities which include possessing a young girl at the time of her death, and routinely mind-raping her to prevent her own cover from being blown. When both she and Charles reveal their plans to Lelouch, Lelouch rightly calls them out on their atrocious behavior, stating that even though everything they had done for him and Nunnally were out of good intentions, the fact remained that they ''still'' abandoned their beloved children, putting their plans first while not caring if said children were alive or dead, and trying to justify it with self-serving excuses. She's also a rare example of an EvilMatriarch married to an ArchnemesisDad]].

* WalkingSpoiler: [[spoiler:It's not until late in ''R2'' that she is even revealed to still be alive.]]