Lord British is not a native of Britannia; he was born on Earth. His hopes of finding any good on Earth slowly faded away, and eventually, he stepped through a moongate to set foot on Britannia for the first time.
From Ophidian Dragon's "A History of Britannia":
"Lord British's Arrival
Several years before Mondain's first attack, a youth was growing restless in his own world. Believing that there was no good left there, he stepped through the first recorded moongate into Britannia where he met Shamino. Shamino helped the youth, whom he named British, to become a major king in Britannia and he has been ever since."
British eventually proved his worth when he defeated Mondain in the times of Akalabeth. After this, Shamino, a king, helped British to become a king, and from then on he was known as Lord British. Initially, Lord British rose to the throne as one of eight kings of Sosaria. However, Lord British was also the most powerful, since he owned one of the four continents and thus one of the other kings was situated on his own land.
Mondain soon returned to threaten the land, and Lord British summoned a Stranger from his own world to deal with him. Once Mondain was killed and his Gem shattered, there was a sudden backfire that divided the four continents each into worlds themselves. From then on, Lord British was the single ruler of Sosaria.
The land was threatened twice more by Minax and Exodus - Mondain's lover and his spawn respectively. Again the Stranger dealt with them, and after Exodus' defeat, an era of peace commenced. Lord British sought to unite the people of the land under one ruler - himself - since his virtue and wisdom made him qualify well as righteous king. The land, which was once Akalabeth and which was later renamed Sosaria in honour of the sorcery used to fight Mondain, was renamed Britannia in his honour.
Lord British sought to promote peace and goodwill by introducing a system of eight virtues, based on three principles, which would serve as guidelines for people to follow. The mages of Moon, led by Erstam, did not like the idea of following honesty, and left for Serpent Isle where they could cheat people in peace. The people of Fawn and Montor followed, and the towns of Monitor, Fawn and Moonshade were built on Serpent Isle. The other people accepted the virtues, and the Stranger himself was the first person to master the eight virtues and achieve Avatarhood.
Soon after the newly-entitled Avatar recovered the Codex of Ultimate Wisdom, earthquakes shook Britannia and the Underworld was discovered. Lord British led an expedition to explore the Underworld, but most of his crew died and he was captured by the Shadowlords. Blackthorn, once a noble warrior, was corrupted by the Shadowlords and took the throne, oppressing his people. The Resistance summoned the Avatar back, and he eventually managed to defeat the Shadowlords and free Lord British. Blackthorn was given a choice between judgement and exile, and he chose exile - he went through a moongate and left Britannia.
Lord British found his kingdom to be in trouble again when the gargoyles, intelligent residents of the Underworld, attacked Britannia whilst their world was collapsing. He again resorted to the Avatar, who came to terms with Lord Draxinusom, leader of the gargoyles, and restored peace. The gargoyles have resided in Britannia ever since, as their home, the Underworld, collapsed.
The next time the Avatar was summoned, Lord British did not know of any trouble. However, the Avatar had to deal with a double-faced organisation called the Fellowship, which promoted unity, worthiness and brotherhood in order to create a strong community to unknowingly serve the Guardian, who wanted to enter Britannia and conquer it. The Avatar prevented him from doing so, but was stranded in Britannia like this. Nonetheless, the Avatar went to Serpent Isle to continue thwarting the Guardian's plans even as an Imbalance was hurting both Britannia and Serpent Isle - in fact the Avatar met Lord British in his dreams and learned of what was happening in Britannia.
Lord British, however, could not stop the Guardian from entering Britannia when the Avatar had been imprisoned on another world after restoring Balance to the universe. When the Avatar returned to Britannia, he found it conquered by the Guardian. The Avatar cleansed the eight shrines, and Lord British killed Blackthorn, who was back in Britannia by the Guardian's side, shortly before the Avatar merged with the Guardian and ascended into the void with him.
When Lord British found himself to be incapable of solving things himself, he summoned a stranger to do it for him. The noble king would rather sit on his comfortable throne (which only came to be by Ultima 6, which means he'd rather sit on the floor) and let the Avatar risk his life than get out of his castle and fix things without any risk since he's immortal. Lord British did make himself useful as long as he didn't get off his throne, though, as he healed the Avatar and gave him valuable information in Ultima 4. The only time he ever got off his seat on the floor was in the Avatar's absence - and since he got 'kingnapped' by the Shadowlords, he caused more problems than he solved. The Avatar had to wait until Ultima 9 to have Lord British get off his throne to help him, and that was when he killed Blackthorn.
Shamino is also a good friend of Lord British - without him, the king would just be a daydreamer dreaming of a better Earth, because it was Shamino that helped British to become king.
Between Ultima 5 and 6, Lord British found the first and only talking mouse in Britannia - Sherry. Sherry was obviously very fond of cheese, but also of the stories Lord British used to tell her. Her favourite was "Hubert the Lion", which Lord British knew by heart:
"Hubert the lion was haughty and vain
And especially proud of his elegant mane.
But conceit of this sort is not proper at all
And Hubert the lion was due for a fall."
Sherry was also essential for the Avatar in Ultima 6 when she was needed to retrieve the Rune of Valor from a mouse hole. She also featured in Ultima 7, and was actually an easter egg for Lord British's girlfriend at the time.
Chuckles the jester is supposed to be a means of entertainment so that Lord British would not sit on the floor all day doing nothing. However, all Chuckles does is muddle up the Avatar with useless clues. Chuckles appears from Ultima 4 to 7, and is an easter egg for Chuck Beuche, a co-founder of Origin.
The seer Hawkwind played an important role in Lord British's life. Lord British even let him live in his castle. Hawkwind gave the Avatar advice about the virtues in Ultima 4 and in Ultima 9 he saves the Avatar from incineration. In Ultima 3 he is only mentioned as a dead cartographer.
Lord British is an easter egg for Richard Garriott, the father of Ultima. Since Mr. Garriott created the Ultima universe, he placed himself as king of the world. In Ultima 2, aside from the Lord British, Richard Garriott is also present on some other planet. In Ultima 9 there are also two Lord Britishes, one being a prisoner in the castle dungeons claiming to be Lord British and calling out with Richard Garriott's voice. In Martian Dreams, Lord British could not near to be absent and put himself in the shoes of the cowboy called Garrett (which, you may notice, is similar to "Garriott").
Lord British's first enemy was the evil Mondain. What they have in common is that they are both immortal to some extent. Lord British fought Mondain's black magic with his white magic and defeated him in Akalabeth, however Mondain returned for Ultima 1 and the crybaby British had to call the Avatar since his mommy wasn't there. Mondain obtained his immortality by slaying his own father and taking his Ruby of Power, which he later transformed into the black Evil Gem.
With the help of the three Shadowlords who threw Lord British in a cell in
the Underworld, Lord Blackthorn rose to power and had his own
castle built. When the Avatar freed Lord British, our friend the king was
compassionate and let Blackthorn decide whether to face the Council or be exiled
from Britannia thanks to British's Orb of the Moons, and Blackthorn chose to be
exiled. He was mentioned in Serpent Isle, showing that me might have visited there.
This illusive foe returned in Ultima 9 with the help of the Guardian, and he
was a thorn in the Avatar's side all along until he was killed by Lord
British in the Abyss.
The Shadowlords were the only ones capable of making Lord British
innocuous and throwing him into the Dungeon Doom in the deep Underworld. They
were immortal to normal means of killing, and if anyone was strong enough to
kill a Shadowlord, it would come back to life. Their focus of power was in Lord
British's Sceptre which they stole and left in Stonegate. The Shadowlords
corrupted Lord Blackthorn's once noble soul and sat him on the throne.
They used to haunt the towns of Britannia as well as guard the sceptre at
Stonegate and the entrance of the dungeon Doom for any who dared try to free
Lord British. But the Avatar managed to destroy them by burning the shards of
Mondain's Evil Gem in the flames of the three Principles. It took long to
get rid of them and it was with great fatigue that they were destroyed, but
they return in Martian Dreams. In Martian Dreams, they appear in the final dream,
accessed through the Dream Machine in Argyre, and they set the final tests based
on the three principles before the Avatar can reach Raxachk.
The people of Serpent Isle also turned against Lord British, and hated him so much as to call him "Beast British". The first inhabitants of Serpent Isle were people led by Erstam who left Sosaria because they considered Lord British's virtues tyrannical. However, the truth is that they could not bear to live by honesty, as Xenka explains, so they fled to Serpent Isle where they could cheat people in peace. It is ironic, however, that each of the three cities they founded on Serpent isle reflects the principles of virtue which they detest so much.
The most powerful threat to Britannia was that of the Guardian. The Guardian charmed Britannians through the Cube Generator and put Batlin as the leader of a group that would pretend to be doing good - The Fellowship. The chief members of The Fellowship would gain power throughout Britannia and would, in the end, build a black moongate out of blackrock that would function only at the Astronomical Alignment, an event that takes place every 800 years. However the Avatar destroyed the Black Gate just when the Guardian was preparing to enter Britannia through it. The Guardian's revenge was to banish the Avatar into Pagan, and when the Avatar returned he found Britannia ruined. He had to merge himself with the Guardian to defeat him, and ascend with him into the heavens and become the constellation of the Ankh. The Guardians' plans are always well organised, however the Avatar always manages to ruin them. You can read more about the Guardian at a page all about him.
The most famous of Lord British's powers is that of immortality. Lord British cannot be killed by normal means, but some special means can bypass his immortality. The reason why Lord British is immortal is unknown, but it seems as if Richard Garriott wanted to be personified by an all-powerful king who is invincible. This tradition was inherited in every game ever since Ultima 1.
Lord British also has the power to send you on a quest to the Codex of Ultimate Wisdom. Throughout the Ultimas, there are three ways you can be sent to the Codex (and if you are not on a quest, the Codex Guardians will keep you out). In Ultima 4, Lord British automatically sends you on a quest to the Codex. The other ways to get to the Codex are to get permission either from the Shrines of Virtue (Ultima 5) or from the Temple of Singularity (Ultima 6).
As a powerful mage, Lord British can also heal you. If you ask him about his health (Ultima 4) or ask to be healed (Ultima 6 and 7), he will heal all wounds and cure all poison of all party members. In Ultima 7 he will even resurrect party members. Despite his imprisonment in Dungeon Doom, he even heals you in Ultima 5, when he comes as an apparition when you camp, to heal you and raise your levels. He does not heal you, however, in Ultima Underworld 2 because the blackrock gem drains his magic (as Hacki Dragon told me). He doesn't heal you in Ultima 9 either, and gives no explanation for this.
Having all these powers, Lord British just couldn't lack the power to raise levels. In Ultima 4, Lord British would raise any levels acquired by your party as soon as you talked to him. In Ultima 5, he would come in your sleep to heal you and raise your levels. In Ultima 3, he would raise your levels to level 5, while he would only raise more levels if you have the Mark of Kings.
In Ultima 5, Lord British's four items are scattered all over Britannia and the Underworld, and are necessary to complete the quest. His artifacts include the Crown, Sceptre, Sandalwood Box and Snake Amulet.
His crown
disables use of magic if worn (like Jaana's Storm Cloak in Ultima 6), acting like
an IN AN or Negate Magic spell, and is found in the magically locked
room on the roof of Blackthorn's castle guarded by stone gargoyles that attack as
soon as you approach the door.
His sandalwood box is in the magically locked room of his own
castle. To get to it you must play "Stones" (678-987-8767653) on the
harpischord there to make a section of the wall disappear, and the box is beyond
that wall. It contains the Orb of the Moons and must be given to Lord British at
the end of the game so he can teleport everyone out of the prison there.
The sceptre
is at Stonegate, surrounded by traps, and you need the magic carpet from the same
room as the sandalwood box to get over the traps, otherwise they'll kill you.
Besides, you must kill the Shadowlords first or they'll come and get you, or
else you can sneak around them if you are lucky. The sceptre is only used at
the end of the game, in the Dungeon Doom where Lord British is held prisoner,
and is used to dispel the special fields in there.
Finally, the snake
amulet (from the times of Mondain - it was used to summon Lord British
from Earth) is in the Underworld at the graves of the knights that went on the
expedition
with Lord British, at the southeast of the Underworld. You need it also in the
Underworld, when you go to the Dungeon Doom. Doom is surrounded by darkness,
and unless you're wearing the amulet, you'll get lost if you enter the darkness
and you won't be able to get out.
Both Blackthorn's Castle and Stonegate absorb any magic cast so it is essential to obtain the skull keys from Minoc or Serpent's Hold to open the locked doors; though this is not the case in Castle British where you can open the magically locked door with magic or by firing the cannon onto it a few times and smashing it.
In Ultima 6, you can actually see Lord British's inventory - this is the only game where you can view an NPC's inventory. Lord British wears a pair of common leather boots, his Snake Amulet, a regeneration ring (green) and a protection ring (red). There are a few ways you can rob Lord British.
The Sandalwood Box reappears in Ultima 9. As Natreg Dragon told me, it contains the Ankh of Spirituality. This time, "Stones" needs to played on the harpischord in Lord British's room to actually open the box. Siona will teach you the tune.
Since Lord British is immortal and immune to regular methods of killing, most Ultima fans have found entertainment in discovering ways to kill him. Each Ultima has its own unique way(s) of killing Lord British:
You can have more fun with Lord British by robbing him in Ultima 6. There are 3 ways to do it, and they are explained in detail at my Ultima 6 Fun Cheats, Tricks and Bugs page.
This compilation of information about Lord British was first written as a Microsoft Word document on Friday 8th February 2002. It was lightly revised on Saturday 1st May 2002 and Monday 1st July 2002, and it was heavily revised and converted to HTML on Friday 11th October 2002 when it first went online. On 2nd-4th September 2003, it was finally updated to be better organised and adapt more with the current design of Dino's Ultima Page.
© by Daniel D'Agostino 2002-2024