Manfred Lohrenz (1827-1915) was a Templar of the Prussian Rite and later the Grand Master of the Imperial German Rite. Manfred was born in a middle-class family, his father was a sailor and his mother worked as a diligent driver.
Especially from 1833 to 1871, Manfred was publicly known for being a Prussian military man and statesman who, together with the bourgeoisie and the army, sought to unify Germany as a single nation.
Already among the Templars and the Assassins, he was remembered as a pioneer, a huge threat against the Brotherhood - the French who say so - and a great advantage for the Order.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Born in Bremerhaven, in the Kingdom of Prussia in 1827, his childhood was relatively busy. His mother worked as a coach house all day long, with a series of wealthy fixed customers who paid her to drive to every corner of the city and even on trips to Prussia. So he spent most of the day with his father, a former infantry soldier who worked at the port, tending the mooring of ships.
Manfred was taught in his father's craft, learning everything he needed to know to run a port sector. But obviously, he was not destined to follow in the steps of the parent. When he was thirteen, he received news of his mother's death from bronchitis, which devastated him immensely. Unable to support himself and his son, Manfred's father sent the heir to Berlin under the tutelage of an old friend, Hilbert Martin
Manfred was taught in his father's craft, learning everything he needed to know to run a port sector. But obviously, he was not destined to follow in the steps of the parent. When he was thirteen, he received news of his mother's death from bronchitis, which devastated him immensely.
Unable to support himself and his son, Manfred's father sent the heir to Berlin under the tutelage of an old friend, Hilbert Martin, a disguised Prussian Templar. Manfred remained with his new mentor for the next five years, being properly - and rigidly - educated. At eighteen, Hilbert placed him at a Military Academy in Königsberg.
Military Studies[]
He was educated in the warlike arts to become a soldier, and perhaps an individual of high standing in the Prussian hierarchy. And indeed for his incredible performance he was expected to become an influential military man. Soon he was charged far more than anyone else.
And it was also because of the expectations of himself and of the military and nobility that Manfred did not develop many - in fact only one, Franz Rask - friends at the Military Academy. Because he had no friends, he had no distractions, so he spent his time with extra hours of training and lots of reading - and Manfred read books of philosophical content, several of them presenting the first models of ideals known as "Enlightened Despotism." It was in this way that his philosophical-political character and vocabulary grew enormously at that time.
In addition to the other military tasks, Manfred was notably dedicated in mathematics, geography and history - especially history. In five years he completed his studies in Berlin. When Hilbert came to pick up him he realized that the young man had become a different man from before, and saw him as a really promising one who could become an illustrious in society and perhaps even in the Templar Order itself.
Hilbert introduced Manfred to the Prussian War Academy, and Lohrenz decided on his own, where he learned - without missing a lesson. Missing was not an option - it must be tactics, modern military history, ancient military history, military geography, general geography, military hygiene, military law, international law, armaments, fortifications, staff functions, administration, communication and general history. Manfred chose among the sciences no less than chemistry and the language he chose to select was Russian - he already knew French and English, and his interest in Japanese was not great at the time.
After three years, in 1827, with twenty-seven, it was formed like second lieutenant of the Prussian Infantry.
Growing in Politics and Introduction to the Order of the Templars[]
After leaving the Prussian War Academy, Manfred was obsessed with uniting Germany in a centralized state, believing that only then would the country evolve economically and socially, gaining greater internal, external and international prominence. At a dinner with his tutor, Manfred introduced and discussed both his new dream, his philosophical and political ideas, and military ambition.
It was then that Hilbert spoke about the Order of the Templars, their existence over the centuries, and how the philosophical views of Manfred's order, chaos, control, and freedom align almost perfectly with the same dogmas that founded the Order of the Templars , and that with its constant evolution in the noble / military hierarchy of Prussia, it could be very useful in the fight against the Assassins. This was the opportunity Manfred had been waiting for so long, and he had seized her with all his might.
The Lohrenz joined the Order of the Templars, and as a member of it obtained a certain influence that allowed him to appear before the political nobility of Prussia, where it discursed and presented philosophical theses of illuminist content, but still with strong absolutist characteristics - Despotismo and many military projects of intercontinental and / or regional expansion, as well as measures of economic investment and a considerable amount of Prussian nationalism.
From that night he became famous, loved and hated. Supported and rejected. But as said, famous, and there is no such bad publicity. What mattered was that they were talking about him. Manfred drew the attention of Prime Minister Otto von Bismarck for sharing the ideals of a unified Germany. The two allied politically, and from 1870 to 1871 waged series of wars and formed agreements to unify the nation.
Unified Germany[]
In 1871 Germany became the German Empire and the country was unified. The Prussian Rite was also dissolved with this, and the Imperial German Rite of the Templar Order arose having Manfred Lohrenz as its Grand Master. As such he promoted enormous changes within the Rite he led, beginning with the execution of corrupt templars driven only by greed, naming a new Black Cross and defining that the Order's top priority in the Empire would be the development of Germany and order in its domains , and does not seek blindly for the Parts of Eden.
After realizing such reforms in the German Rite, Grand Master Lohrenz encouraged the emergence of numerous industries in the Empire, the urbanization of the same and the strengthening of its forces in the colonies. Concealed from Bismarck's eyes he manipulated the economy, politicians, military and businessmen to leverage the country's military and monetary power. Using its own wealth it renewed several cities of the Empire, founded schools, asylums, hospitals, military academies, botanical gardens, museums and theaters.
In 1875 he married Marquise Cecilie Kauffman - the same year he was elected by the people and reached one of the highest degrees of authority in the Reichstag - which he met in 1871 at the coronation party of Wilhelm I of the Hohenzollern House. Already in 1877 he had a daughter, whom he named Karen Lohrenz-Kauffman, and a year later had a son, named as Niklaus Lohrenz-Kauffman.
Manfred was described as being a father and husband as good as he was Grand Master and German statesman. There was a long period of relative peace, since it had established a cooperation agreement with the German Assassin Brotherhood, in a similar way as François de la Serre did in France.
At age 67, in 1894, after two decades and three years as Grand Master, he passed the position to his successor and apprentice, Herschel Waltz. He lived only in Berlin, at the Lohrenz-Kauffman Mansion, with his wife. Manfred even had grandchildren - whom he met - his daughter had had two girls - Amelia and Marianne - and his son a boy - Leopold. Marianne would follow in her grandfather's footsteps, becoming a Templar focused on politics and dedicated to the good of the German people and world peace and stability. Amelia would follow her mother's career, becoming the Black Cross. Leopold, on the other way, became a Assassin Hunter.
World War I and Death[]
In 1914 World War I began, beloved Germany - and consequently the German Imperial Rite - was in enormous danger. Despite being 87, he would still face the enemy, an enemy supported by the Brotherhood of the Assassins. So he persuaded Herschel Waltz to break the deal with the group, ordered assaults on the murderers' bases across Germany, and a hunt for his most influential and prominent members in the nation and in the neighboring countries. Manfred mobilized troops and together with the generals of the Emperor Wilhelm II coordinated the battles against the French, British and Russians. His genius strategies combined with master tactics proved to be a powerful weapon, and all the battles he led ended up winning. It is likely that if his efforts continued for the rest of the war the German Empire would have won.
But that did not happen. On November 14, 1915, while he was in Rome attending a court-martial, Assassins were sent to put an end to his life. They invaded Manfred's room during the night, and when they were ready to kill him, soldiers entered through a hidden door and shot the invaders. The old Grand Master was already sure the Brotherhood would try to eliminate him. But then what caused his death? Turning to search the squad leader's body, one of the near-death Assassins shot Manfred. Lohrenz was attended by a doctor almost immediately, but he could not bear it and passed away.
Legacy[]
Manfred became a figure of power, prosperity, incarnation of the Templar Order, national hero and one of the greatest opponents the Brotherhood of the Assassins ever saw. This is your immaterial Legacy. Amongst the material is its property, the Mauser C96 pistol personalized with the carved Lohrenz's House symbol - a snake, specifically a naja, wrapped in a spear with the blade pointed up -, his robes, a hidden blade he designed himself, a fragment of a Scepter of Eden and his diary. Besides of course, an entire lineage.