Lord Commander
From Lexicanum
Lord Commander is a rank which occurs several times, past and present, in the upper echelons of the Imperium.
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Imperial Navy
Occasionally referenced as Lord Militant Commander, a Lord Commander of the Imperial Navy has jurisdiction over the Imperial Navy in a Segmentum of the Imperium.6 Of these, the Lord Commander of the Segmentum Solar is the foremost, and is often appointed to a position on the High Lords of Terra.7, 9
Notable Lord Commanders of the Imperial Navy
Imperial Army
During the Great Crusade, a Lord Commander of the Expedition Fleet was a position in the Imperial Army, the highest of its kind. A Lord Commander was in charge of an entire expedition fleet, unless a Primarch was attached to it; in which case the Primarch took precedence and the Lord Commander was chiefly in charge of the soldiers of the Imperial Army.1
Notable Lord Commanders of the Imperial Army
- Hektor Varvarus (63rd Expedition Fleet)
- Thaddeus Fayle (28th Expedition Fleet)
- Teng Namatjira (680th Expedition Fleet)
The Astartes
Lord Commander was one of the titles given to the members of the Astartes in charge of a Chapter formation during the Great Crusade2.
In the Emperor's Children, for example, each of the Company Captains within the legion was assigned and reported directly to a specific Lord Commander. The Emperor's Children were taught to lead by example, and it was expected of Astartes to emulate their superior officers in the quest to become the perfect warriors. In this way the Company Captains reflected the beliefs of their Lord Commanders, and in turn passed these traits to the Sergeants and Initiates under them. 3
During the Great Crusade, the Emperor's Children were lead by several Lord Commanders, most notably Eidolon and Vespasian. Command of the III Legion's thirty companies was divided amongst them. As the Warmaster planned the legions' betrayal at Isstvan, Fulgrim realized that the companies under Vespasian's command were likely to remain loyal to the Emperor. He personally murdered Vespasian and sent the Lord Commander's men, including Captains Demeter and Lucius, to their doom on the the planet's surface. Vespasian's followers were beseiged by their corrupted brethren on the wasted remains of Isstvan III. Lucius, however, betrayed his friends Saul Tarvitz and Captain Demeter to the rebels, and all the marines that remained loyal to the Emperor were eventually killed. This treachery earned Lucius the title Lord Commander. 4
Notable Lord Commanders of the Astartes
Emperor's Children
Roboute Guilliman
Primarch Roboute Guilliman, after the Horus Heresy, took command of the entirety of the Imperial armed forces and took the title Lord Commander of the Imperium in order to stabilise the Imperium and begin the reforms for which he is famous. He was the only person in the history of the Imperium to control all of the Imperial armed forces (before this, the Imperial war machine was administered by the War Council). The Lord Commander of the Imperium was one of the High Lords of Terra during its use. 5
Knights of Taranis
The Knights of Taranis, a Knight House on Mars, was ruled by joint commanders each known as a Lord Commander of the Knights of Taranis.8
Sources
- 1 Horus Rising and Legion, both by Dan Abnett
- 2 Horus Heresy: Visions of War
- 3 Index Astartes Emperor's Children
- 4 Fulgrim by Graham McNeill
- 5 Codex: Ultramarines (2nd Edition), by Rick Priestley
- 6 Eye of Terror (Novel), by Barrington J. Bayley
- 7 Codex Imperialis, by Rick Priestley
- 8 Mechanicum
- 9 White Dwarf 140, The Stellar Fleets, by Jervis Johnson, Andy Jones, Simon Forrest and Rick Priestley
