James Reynolds

Lord James Reynolds served as the Director of Imperial Intelligence for more than 12 years, making him the longest serving Director in Excalbian history. His appointment, however, came to an abrupt end in 2005 when he was forced to resign under the cloud of an undisclosed scandal.

Lord James joined the intelligence service in 1977 after having served four years as an officer in the Imperial Army and having served six years as a Foreign Service Officer in the Ministry of State. He quickly rose through the ranks in Imperial Intelligence until he was named Deputy Director for Operations in 1986. He resigned his position under uncertain circumstances in 1988 and was named Managing Director of the Ministry of State's Office of Strategic Analysis in the Bureau of Intelligence and Research in 1989. He returned to Imperial Intelligence as Director in 1993.

While the reasons for Lord James' dismissal as Director in 2005 have never been publicly acknowledged, it is rumoured that he attempted to use information gathered through covert methods in a bid to prevent the Pantocratorian Socialist Alliance from forming a governing coalition following the 2004 elections in Pantocratoria. It is also widely believed that his firing is connected with his agency's failure to predict the anti-Altman coup in Upper Virginia, the rise of the Order of the Invisible Hand in the Confederation of Sovereign States or Knootoss' growing interest in the Excalbian Isles.

Despite his dismissal and charges that he failed in his responsibilities as intelligence chief, Lord James has remained in the public eye as a fiery critic of the government. In the 2005 elections in Excalbia, Lord James accused the government of then-Chancellor Lady Christina Freedman of expanding the power of the central government, stifling dissent and indulging "socialist" tendencies. He also accused Emperor David IV of arrogance, interventionism and militarism.

Following the Emperor's heart attack in late 2005, Lord James was linked with efforts by some of barons to reestablish the Council of Lords and to use the council as a tool to remove the Emperor and replace him with his cousin, Prince Jeremiah. Following the collapse of the barons' attempt coup, Lord James was rumoured to have fled Excalbia along with Prince Jeremiah and the leaders of the coup - Baron Jekob Perkonis and Baron Alexander Skrastins. While the prince and the two barons have not been seen since, Lord James has frequently been seen in the Confederation, Upper Virginia and Knootoss.

Lord James has been married to the former Beatrice Potts since 1974 and the couple have one daughter, Elizabeth, who is an attorney. Lord James and Lady Beatrice, however, separated in 2005 and his daughter has recently petitioned the court to take her mother's maiden name.