List of assassination attempts on Shljaps-tsung

The following is a list of assassination attempts on Shljaps-tsung, Emperor of Themiclesia from 1921 to 2016.

Security measures

Traditionally, security of the emperor's person and his palaces was under the purview of the Secretary of State for War (五兵尚書), but the establishment was divided into several layers and overseen by different officers. There were driving political considerations behind this design, which developed early and was largely upheld by all dynasties.

Whenever the emperor was in the capital city of Kien-k'ang, the first layer of security was provided by the Capital Defence Force, or the regular army that protected the capital city and its vicinity. Compared to regional forces, the CDF was characterized by a higher degree of mobilization in the pre-modern period, though by the 19th century, when the entire Themiclesian Army was professionalized, this ceased to be relevant. The second layer was provided by the Royal Guards, which were small but dedicated formations permanently staffed in the outer perimeters of palaces; technically, each palace had its own Royal Guard formation, but the one at the Hian-lang Palace, in Kien-k'ang, was the largest by far, since the monarch almost invariably lived there, and also since it was the government's permanent seat. The third and innermost layer was provided by the three Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms, consisting of the nation's fourth- and fifth-rate civil service cadre. They were sometimes considered a "political" guard, having a vested interest in the survival of the monarchy.

With such an elaborate security establishment, the Themiclesian military took much pride in its proper operation, and the defence of the monarch's personal safety has always been deemed a high priority for the responsible minister. At its maximal extent, the Hian-lang Royal Guards numbered over 6,000, and the CDF over 15,000. However, there was evidently little prestige in the rank and file for guarding the monarch, since it was virtually impossible for enlisted men to become officers, much less the high-ranking ones that had general responsibility for the palace's security. Further, the Royal Guards have historically been recruited from veterans of regional armies by drawing lots—preventing miscreants from joining the force voluntarily. Nevertheless, due to these measures and the political impotence of most emperors, assassination attempts have been relatively rare. The layered approach also discouraged collusion and reduced the danger of negligence, on the part of any one segment. The efficacy of the system have led many Themiclesian officers to assume the defence of the monarch was impregnable by nature.