Government
The Emperor's seat, and the heart of Imperial Administration, is the Imperial Palace, a massive construct that covers most of what used to be the continent of Asia; the "Inner Palace" is built on top, within, and under the Himalayan mountain range.
Though the Emperor is the nominal head of state, in practice the highest tier of command is the Council of the High Lords of Terra, based in the Inner Palace, that has ruled for over ten millennia in the Emperor's name. Under this top echelon is a multi-tiered hierarchy consisting of countless departments, agencies, and organisations, both military and civilian, charged with implementing the decisions of the High Lords, and with the day-to-day administration of the Imperium as a whole. However because of its vast territory and the great distances separating Imperial star systems, the Imperium is by necessity decentralised; the final, localised tier of Imperial Authority is usually the Office of Planetary Governor, whose responsibility is limited to a single world.
Outside and above the Imperial hierarchy is the Imperial Inquisition, the all-powerful and much feared secret police and main intelligence agency. The Inquisition may answer only to the Council of the High Lords; historically it has even had the power (and opportunity) to investigate and sanction individual members of the Council.
Read more about this topic: Imperium (Warhammer 40,000)
Famous quotes containing the word government:
“What happens in a strike happens not to one person alone.... It is a crisis with meaning and potency for all and prophetic of a future. The elements in crisis are the same, there is a fermentation that is identical. The elements are these: a body of men, women and children, hungry; an organization of feudal employers out to break the back of unionization; and the government Labor Board sent to “negotiate” between this hunger and this greed.”
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“Chile consents to do all we can reasonably demand. My regret is that our Government blustered and bullied. President [Benjamin] Harrison argued in his message like a prosecutor—made the most of the case against our weak sister. Forbearance, charity, friendship, arbitration should have been in our words and thoughts.”
—Rutherford Birchard Hayes (1822–1893)
“The basis of our governments being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right; and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)