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Reiss is the true royal family. | 
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| — Djel Sannes admits the truth[1] | ||
The Reiss family (レイス家 Reisu-ke?) is the current royal family of Eldia that descended from Karl Fritz, the First King of the Walls. They branched off from the original royal family after the Great Titan War,[2] masqueraded as a minor noble family living inside northern Wall Sina, and set up a false King and royal family to further draw attention away from themselves. They passed the Founding Titan between ruling monarchs every 13 years, until it was stolen by Grisha Jaeger in the year 845. Currently, Historia Reiss, the illegitimate daughter of the late Rod Reiss, is the queen.
History
In ancient times the royal family was known as the Fritz family.[3] Around 2,000 years ago, the leader of a tribe known as the Eldians would have children with Ymir Fritz as a "reward" for being the first to gain the power of the Titans and bringing prosperity to the tribe.[4]
Their descendants would go on to build the nation of Eldia. However, towards the end of the Great Titan War, Eldia lost most of its territory to Marley, save for Paradis Island (Anime). King Karl Fritz moved Eldia's capital to Paradis Island and, with power of the Founding Titan, constructed the Walls using countless Colossal Titans.[2] After he gathered as many Eldians as he could on the island, he wiped their memories of the outside world, making the people believe they were the last of humanity in a world overrun by the Titans.[5]
The First King
However, this brainwashing did not affect those of minority bloodlines that were not Subjects of Ymir, such as the Ackermann clan and the Oriental clan. Those who agreed to the wishes of the First King of the Walls were given the status of nobility. The Ackermann clan and the Oriental clan, however, disagreed, and were hunted to near extinction for this.[5] To protect his subjects, the First King sent an ultimatum to the Marleyan government, stating that if they were to interfere with his vision of peace, the millions of slumbering Colossal Titans would be unleashed upon the Earth.[2] However, this ultimatum was merely a bluff to ensure a lasting peace. In secret, Karl Fritz made a vow renouncing war with the Founding Titan, ensuring that he and his successors would never use its power to wage war and would simply stand idle should the world invade in retribution.[6] After this, the royal family that moved to the island cast aside the Fritz name and renamed themselves the Reiss family.[1] Some members of the royal family decided to stay on the continent now controlled by Marley, however.[2]
Some time later, King Reiss gave the Founding Titan to a successor, dying in the process.[5] The Reiss family ruled the Walls in secret for the next 100 years by masquerading as a minor noble family living inside of Wall Sina near the Orvud District.[1] The King of the Walls would be their figurehead.[7]
Frieda under the power of the First King
A special ritual was conducted every generation in which the Founding Titan was passed down from one family member to another. The current inheritor of the Founding Titan would be chained in the cavern beneath the village chapel near the Reiss family estate. Meanwhile, the successor to the Founding Titan, would inject themselves with a serum and transform into a Pure Titan to devour their predecessor. This would give them the power of the Founding Titan and the lost memories of humanity inside the Walls.[5] However, this would also give them the ideology of the First King and force them to keep humanity inside the Walls under the Titans' rule, even if they previously had a desire to free them.[5]
They would never reveal the reason for this, even to their own friends and families.[5] While inheritors of the Founding Titan retained much of their original personality, whenever using the Founding Titan's power or falling under the will of the First King, it would become visible in the user's eyes by a darkening of their irises. This was apparent in Uri, Frieda, and Rod and Uri's father.[5][8] The Reiss who currently possessed the Founding Titan would be the true king or queen of the Walls for however long they possessed it, as shown by Uri and Frieda.[9]
One of the many Founding Titans was Rod and Uri's father. The brothers begged him to exterminate the Titans, but he always refused, so much so that he locked Rod behind bars for his attempts.[8] When it came time to pass his position to a son, Uri volunteered and asked Rod to pray. After the procedure, Uri had inherited the First King's ideology,[9] and wished to build a paradise for mankind inside the Walls. One of the ways he did this was by stopping the persecution of the Ackermann clan after a failed assassination attempt by Kenny Ackermann, who later became a Reiss bodyguard and Uri's closest friend.[9]
Years later, Rod married and had five children with his Rod's wife; Ulklin, Frieda, Dirk, Florian, and Abel.[10] Rod also conceived a sixth child, Historia, with Alma, his mistress, and confidant; one of the Reiss family maids.[11][8]
Alma gave birth to Historia on her parents' farm, which was on land controlled by the Reiss family. Historia had an isolated upbringing and was raised to believe she was an unfortunate and unwelcome mistake. She had no friends and could never leave the farm. Her mother was distant to her, only speaking to her twice, and both times wished she did not exist. Her grandparents rarely spoke with her either.[11] This led Historia to developing a martyr complex. She wished to die in a way in which everybody would remember her fondly and not hate her for existing.[12]
However, Historia was not as alone as she believed. Her half-sister Frieda would visit her in secret and taught her to read. Frieda encouraged her to be a lady, like the girl in Historia's book; a kind girl who was always thinking of others. After her visits, Frieda would wipe Historia's memory to protect her. For a while, Historia would only recall those memories in dreams and forgot them when she awoke.[10]
Uri was eaten by Frieda
When Frieda was fifteen, she inherited the Founding Titan by devouring Uri in the Reiss family's succession ritual.[5] She was well loved on her family's estate and would be known to go out to the fields to thank the farmers for their work.[13] However, after becoming the true queen inside the Walls, she began to experience bouts of mania followed by depression.[5]
Story
The Fall of Shiganshina arc
Frieda is eaten by Grisha
During the day of fall of Wall Maria in 845, the Reiss family goes to the village chapel to pray. However, Grisha Jaeger, a man with the power of the Attack Titan invades the chapel and meets them there. He begs Frieda Reiss to save the people inside the Walls from the Titans, but she refuses.[14] Grisha decides to transform into a Titan to steal the Founding Titan from Frieda. Frieda transforms into a Titan and battles Grisha, but is defeated due to not being experienced enough to fully control the power of the Founding Titan. Grisha devours Frieda and obtains her Titan, and then proceeds to slaughter the rest of the Reiss family, killing Rod Reiss's wife and children and destroying the chapel.
Only Rod survives the massacre and Historia is unharmed by virtue of having not been present. With Frieda's death, Rod succeeds her as the true king. To cover up Grisha's attack, he blames the chapel's destruction and his family's death on bandits.[10]
Rod arrives to take Historia
After losing his entire legitimate family, Rod seeks his illegitimate daughter Historia, who is living on a farm owned by the Reiss family. He tells Historia she is coming to live with him, but Alma accidentally admits Historia is hers, and thus an illegitimate child born from an affair. Kenny Ackermann reminds Rod of the consequences of this, leading Rod to abandon his daughter. To spare her life, Rod sends Historia away with a new name—Christa Lenz—to live a quiet life.[11]
Under the identity of Christa Lenz, Historia enlists in the military years later. Once enlisted, Rod sends the Order of the Walls to monitor her. Under her Christa persona, Historia is the lady Frieda wanted her to be, but also constantly seeks to die in a way that would be considered a martyr. She graduates 10th in the 104th Cadet Corps because Ymir, her best friend, slacks off the last several weeks of training to give Historia the 10th spot so she can join the Military Police. Historia joins the Scout Regiment with Ymir, in a squad under the command of Nanaba, due to her martyr complex.[12]
Clash of the Titans arc
Years later, during the Wall Rose invasion, Ymir's Titan powers are used to save her fellow Scout Regiment recruits from Titans at Utgard Castle. Staying true to her promise, Historia reveals her true name to Ymir and the others.[12] Pastor Nick reveals to Hange Zoë that Historia is technically allowed to disclose details about the nature of the Walls that regular members in the know are barred from revealing. Later, after Historia speaks with Hange Zoë, Hange briefly questions Historia about her family and their nobility, which Historia confirms to be her true lineage.[15]
Royal Government arc
Historia and Eren are captured by Kenny Ackermann and taken to meet Historia's father, Rod Reiss. Having lost track of the two abductees, Levi and Hange torture Djel Sannes for information regarding the Reiss family. Sannes eventually reveals that the Reiss family is the true royal family, with the currently recognized King being a puppet monarch.[1] Upon learning this, Erwin Smith plans to overthrow the current monarchy and install Historia as queen.[11]
After relocating to the Underground Chapel on the Reiss estate, Rod attempts to persuade Historia to transform and devour Eren, saying that she would be able to meet her sister Frieda again and become strong enough to kill all the Titans.[10]
Historia rejects Rod's plan
Historia considers reclaiming the Founding Titan, but is told how all the previous rulers of Reiss family fell under the sway of the First King's ideology, her sister included. She would not be able to change a thing. Kenny argues how her father is only using her to regain the Titan power. After considering the situation, Historia rejects the plan by smashing the Titan injection, throwing Rod to the floor, and going to free Eren.[5]
Sobbing, Rod licks the evaporating Titan serum while calling the names of his dead family members. This transforms him into the largest Titan in existence, a 120-meter Abnormal Titan. Now a Pure Titan, he begins to crawl towards Orvud District.[16]
Before battle preparations, Levi bluntly informs Historia of the plan to install her as queen after the battle. Historia agrees on the condition that she will be participating in the battle.[16] Regardless of who kills the Titan, she wants the Scout Regiment to credit her with the kill to unite the people behind her as their new queen.[8]
Historia declares herself the true ruler of the Walls
When the Scout Regiment blow up the body of the enormous Titan, Historia is among the soldiers who attack the various chunks of flesh in an attempt to find the nape. Historia herself delivers the final blow, and sees visions of her father's past when she kills him. Landing in the streets below, she declares to a surrounding crowd that she is the true ruler of the Walls.[8]
Historia is crowned Queen, but in practice the military becomes the true power of the state. Though a figurehead, Historia is still admired by her people.[9] She uses her family assets to start a farm to care for orphans and other people in need.[17]
Return to Shiganshina arc
No longer part of the Scouts, Historia remains behind during the operation to reclaim Shiganshina.[18] When the soldiers return with the truth of the outside world,[19] she presides over the military meeting[3] and sides with Dot Pyxis in releasing that information to the public. She later bestows medals of honor to the nine surviving soldiers of the Scout Regiment.[14]
Marley arc
When the Anti-Marleyan Volunteers reach Paradis Island, Historia attends the military meeting regarding whether to cooperate with them. Eren reveals that he can use the Founding Titan's power if he is in physical contact with a Titan of royal blood, and this will allow them to get around the First King's vow to renounce war. Historia appears surprised when Eren says he refrained from speaking of this sooner because he was concerned that she might be turned into a Titan so he could use it.[20]
When the first Hizuru ambassadors arrive on Paradis, Historia listens to Kiyomi Azumabito go over the processes that must be in place to secure the island's safety. One of them is for Zeke to pass down his Beast Titan to one with royal blood. The next is for the one with royal blood to use the remainder of their 13 years to bear as many children as possible. Although the suggestion causes much controversy among those present, Historia agrees to the plan.[21] By 854, she is pregnant and now bears the burden of constantly passing down the Power of the Titans through her descendants just like her predecessors.[21]
War for Paradis arc
Frieda says that the Eldians will accept the world's rage
When Zeke and Eren enter the Coordinate, the former attempts to convince Eren that he has been brainwashed by their father's machinations, proceeding to go through different moments of Grisha's memories on Paradis. Eventually, they travel to the memory of the day Grisha stole the Founding Titan from the Reiss family. As Eren observes the exchange between his father and Frieda Reiss, Eren becomes increasingly agitated by Frieda's claims that the Eldians must take on the world's wrath for the sins of their ancestors. Despite Grisha's declaration that he will steal the Founding Titan from the Reiss family, Eren is disappointed to see that his father cannot bring himself to carry out his mission. To spur his father forward, Eren reminds Grisha of his fellow Restorationists and Faye, ordering him to finish what he has started. Convinced by Eren, Grisha proceeds to slaughter the Reiss family and steals the Founding Titan, but has also come to fear Eren's intentions and urges Zeke to stop him.[22]
In the year 854, Historia gives birth and would later marry the father of her child.[23]
Members
Political Members
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References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 39
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 57
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 58
- ↑ Attack on Titan anime: Episode 80
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 5.9 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 44
- ↑ Attack on Titan anime: Episode 64
- ↑ Attack on Titan anime: Episode 62
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 46
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 47
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 43
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 40
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 30
- ↑ Attack on Titan anime: Episode 42
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 59
- ↑ Attack on Titan anime: Episode 31
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 45
- ↑ Attack on Titan anime: Episode 48
- ↑ Attack on Titan anime: Episode 54
- ↑ Attack on Titan anime: Episode 56
- ↑ Attack on Titan anime: Episode 68
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Attack on Titan anime: Episode 69
- ↑ Attack on Titan anime: Episode 79
- ↑ Attack on Titan anime: Special 2