Cephorus Septim II

Cephorus Septim II was the sixteenth Emperor of Tamriel, ruling for twenty one years between 3E 247 and 268.

Overview
Cephorus belonged to a distant branch of the imperial Septim dynasty. He descended from Emperor Magnus (r. 3E 140–145) through his daughter Jolethe. Jolethe succeeded her brother Emperor Pelagius III (r. 3E 145–153) as High Queen of Skyrim. From the city of Solitude, rule of Skyrim remained in Jolethe's line and eventually passed to her great-grandson Cephorus. Jolethe's successors married into the Nordic clans, and Cephorus himself was considered a Nord.

In 3E 247 the emperor, Uriel IV, died. By intrigues of the Elder Council, the emperor's son Prince Andorak was disinherited and Cephorus – now High King of Skyrim – was elected to the Ruby Throne. This was the first time in history that the Council had presumed to appoint an emperor of their choosing. Cephorus accepted the will of the Council and travelled in procession from Solitude to the Imperial City. There he was invested with the imperial regalia (namely the Amulet of Kings) and lit the Dragonfires.

 

Despite being the first true Septim to sit on the Ruby Throne in almost half a century, the rights of the  'stranger from the north' were contested by the loyalists of Prince Andorak. For nine years this civil war remained the emperor's principal concern, and he devoted his legions to this effort.