A review of a basic history World Government 101

A review of a basic history of the World Government is in order. Since the World Government was introduced to us in the earliest arcs of One Piece, we’ve been fed the same narrative as the populace of One Piece‘s world. The World Government was founded by 20 kings after they emerged victorious in the war which engulfed the Void Century.

The 20 kings made a pledge to be equals before what’s now called The Empty Throne. In modern day, that pledge means that the monarchs would each have an equal amount of power. This leads us to the Reverie: the event where all the monarchs come to debate and revise World Government policy.

Sounds nice and idealistic, right? Well, if you’re a citizen of the real world, you won’t be surprised to learn that idealism isn’t reflective of One Piece‘s reality. Of those 20 kings, 19 became Celestial Dragons (along with their families). Celestial Dragons are treated as infallible gods in the current day. The monarch of Alabasta, the descendants of our beloved nakama Nefeltari Vivi, declined this invitation.

And besides, there’s a body in the World Government with higher authority than the monarchs (who are the lowest level) and the Celestial Dragons (who rank above them). That would be the Five Elders, some old men who make up the highest authority in the World Government. Very relatable to the real world. Anyway, exactly who these geezers are remains to be revealed. We do find out (relatively minor spoiler) that one of them takes his last name from the Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia, so that’s fun.

It’s also worth noting that World Government really hates it when people look into the Void Century or try to figure out what happened in the time before it. It’s a crime punishable by death—and then some. The Nav razed Robin’s home island Ohara to the ground and killed all of its inhabitants simply because the scholars there had the gall to research the Void Century.