Edelgard von Hresvelg

Edelgard possesses long, white hair and lilac eyes. At a certain point, she is revealed to have been experimented on as a child to possess two "Crests", markings passed down through the bloodline that bestows magical powers upon the wielder, in an attempt to create a worthy heir. This turned her hair from brown to white and left her with lasting psychological trauma, which was worsened by the fact that she was the only survivor of ten siblings to be similarly experimented on. Despite already possessing the Minor Crest of Seiros, she was given the Crest of Flames (the "Fire Emblem") by force, drastically shortening her lifespan.[2]

In battle, she has a particularly strong aptitude for swords, axes, heavy armor, and commanding units, while faring poorly with bows and light magic. She has a hidden talent with dark magic that can be brought out through classroom instruction.

Edelgard has a dignified and modest personality, and is rarely seen acting casually in public.

The character Hubert von Vestra is Edelgard's most dedicated and loyal retainer, and rarely leaves her side. Called a "towering, jealous henchman", he threatens to murder Byleth if they try to cause Edelgard harm.[2]

Edelgard was born on the 22nd of the Garland Moon, Imperial Year 1162 (June 22nd, 1162 on the Gregorian calendar) to Emperor Ionius von Hresvelg IX and his consort Anselma von Arundel, a minor lady of the Empire, who later went by Patricia when she went to the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus.[3] Anselma was considered Ionius's true lover, as Ionius fell in love with her after he was married off to his unnamed wife, the Empress of Adrestia, for political reasons. Anselma's relationship with Ionius raised the social standing of her house and helped her elder brother, Volkhard, rise in political status. Edelgard was declared the heir to Adrestia after she was born due to her having the Crest of Seiros unlike her siblings, which were her half-siblings due to Ionius having many consorts.

In Imperial Year 1171 when she was nine, her uncle, Volkhard von Arundel, took her to Fhirdiad, Faerghus during the Insurrection of the Seven, in which he was one of the key conspirators against Edelgard's father, alongside the prime minister Duke Ludwig von Aegir. Anselma also escaped to Faerghus without anyone knowing, not even Volkhard, Edelgard, or Ionius, and took on the alias Patricia, where she eventually married Lambert Egitte Blaiddyd, the king of Faerghus, and became the step-mother to Lambert's son, Dimitri. Edelgard later met and befriended Dimitri, in which Dimitri gave her a dagger. Edelgard kept and held on to it, though she forgot how she obtained it later on.

When Edelgard returned to the Empire, Ionius IX was stripped of his power completely due to her uncle and Duke Aegir's actions, leaving the emperor powerless when his children, including Edelgard and the rest of her unnamed siblings, were taken away from him to undergo experiments by major antagonist group, Those Who Slither in the Dark. Ionius did not want this, but due to his power being taken away there was nothing he could do to stop them as Those Who Slither in the Dark were backed by corrupted Empire nobles. The experiments killed Edelgard's siblings and left Edelgard barely alive, with Edelgard's unnamed siblings going mad and/or dying from exhaustion. According to Edelgard, she was locked in chambers with rats which caused her to have a deathly fear of rats. Edelgard was the only successful subject and because of the experiment, she bore the Crest of Flames as a second Crest, turning her hair from light brown to white and gravely shortening her lifespan. She then looked down upon the Church of Seiros and Crests in general, hating them and wanting to destroy them.

Eventually during the Tragedy of Duscur in Imperial Year 1176, Patricia was manipulated by Cornelia to cause the Tragedy of Duscur. Cornelia told Patricia that she would never see her daughter again, claiming Edelgard was in Fhirdiad but Lambert never told Patricia about her presence, which turned Patricia against her husband and caused her to become a conspirator in the Tragedy. Cornelia and the other noble houses supporting her co-ordinated Patricia's secret escape to Duscur. When the Tragedy took place, Patricia and her carriage vanished and she was never seen again. Patricia was believed to have been a victim because of this.

Before Dimitri kills Cornelia, Cornelia claims that Patricia would've done anything to see her daughter again, which included turning against and killing King Lambert. Cornelia also claims that Patricia never loved him. Dimitri disregards her words until a man involved in the Tragedy confesses that he had orders to avoid Patricia's carriage.

Patricia's fate is never revealed, though because of Thales abducting Volkhard and assuming his identity it can be assumed that Patricia was captured by Thales.

Eventually Edelgard assumes the throne and becomes the Emperor of Adrestia in Imperial Year 1181, waging war on the Church of Seiros. Rhea, the archbishop, resents Edelgard due to her actions and declares that the entire continent must work to kill Edelgard.

Edelgard's fate at the end of the story depends on the route the player chose. If the player chose the Black Eagles route they have two options: to side with Rhea or to side with Edelgard. Siding with Rhea is the default, as the player can only side with Edelgard if they meet other requirements. If the player sides with Rhea, the player and the rest of the Black Eagles will work together to kill Edelgard and stop the war. If the player sides with Edelgard, the player and Edelgard will work together to conquer Fódlan under the rule of the Adrestian Empire, abolishing the Church of Seiros and the Crest system. If the player sides with Dimitri and the Blue Lions, the player and Dimitri will work together to kill Edelgard and end the war. If the player sides with Claude and the Golden Deer, Claude and the player will work together to stop Edelgard and kill her, then eventually deal with Those Who Slither in the Dark.

After her appearance in Three Houses, Edelgard was also added to Fire Emblem Heroes as a Legendary Hero.[4]

In 2020, Good Smile Company released an Edelgard Figma.[5]

Edelgard was noted as being the subject of a "fandom explosion", featuring fan art and cosplay, as well as being the most-deployed character in the game as ranked on its internal leaderboard. Patricia Hernandez of Polygon stated that "much of the fandom in Fire Emblem now revolves around shipping and romance, and it seems as if most people are falling for Edelgard."[6] Over time, however, her ranking was noted to have been supplanted by the character Dorothea.[7]

Daniel Friedman of Polygon stated that "the developers at Intelligent Systems have evidently been reading some George R.R. Martin along with their J.K. Rowling, as there’s an unmistakable Daenerys Targaryen vibe to Edelgard," calling her "intense, driven, and willing to pay any price or inflict any cost on others to achieve her goal."[2]

The game's Crimson Flower path, in which players ally themselves with Edelgard and turn against the Church of Seiros, has been seen as controversial by many players.

XeeCee of Vice stated that "Edelgard is right about everything," and despite singling out her evil actions as the Flame Emperor, said that "when all was said and done [...] I was comfortable with my choices. For the first time in what feels like a long time, a video game had offered me the chance to play as a medieval revolutionary". Stating that "what makes this entry so different is its commitment to building out a world with believable politics", XeeCee stated that they "joined [Edelgard] immediately" when given the option to turn against the Church, calling her "the avatar of all the class resentments bubbling in Garreg Mach for the first half of the game" and saying that "considering the ills I’d seen throughout the game up to this point, her unmasking as the Flame Emperor wasn’t a heel turn, but a call to arms."[8] Lucas White of Siliconera agreed with this, claiming that "supporting Edelgard is the most morally sound choice", and stating that "Edelgard pursues a complete, violent upheaval of everything, literally destroying the Church and reforming the Empire into something new". Despite saying that "Edelgard is no innocent in Three Houses‘ violent world. She schemes, assassinates, and betrays," he concludes that "her mission is the only one that holds Rhea and her secret society accountable for their actions."[9]

The optional support and romance between Edelgard and Byleth, the main character, was called a "lovely, touching scene" by Todd Harper of Vice, but also criticized due to the fact that is "90% the same" no matter what gender Byleth is. Harper states that, with regards to female Byleth, "that queer reading that hit me right in the gut emotionally has absolutely, positively no impact whatsoever on the actual story of Three Houses."[10]