Giovanni Russo

Major ruler of the Marstoli Commonwealth in 1950 and helped set the foundation of the current political treaties in and around the Azurali Sea, along with Annalise Feywine. Nephew of previous leader, Marco Rossi.
In the years leading up to his own death, Marco Rossi had become paranoid. As the Commonwealth had been governed by the same family for the last several hundred years, typically passed from father to son, he began to believe his own family would attempt to take the throne from him. In a shocking and disturbing consolidation of power, he executed his own son and wife, convinced they were plotting a coup. Public opinion was swayed heavily against Marco, and civil unrest began to prove an even greater threat than the Selenavi Republic.
Giovanni was kept out of the public eye by his parents, who were worried that the ever more paranoid Marco would begin targeting people with further claims to the throne. When he was twenty-three, he began attending political meetings, though he never spoke up, remaining mostly anonymous. After the execution of his cousin and aunt, Giovanni began slowly and quietly gaining public trust, making small appearances in order to gain favor. His intention was to easily step into the power vacuum as soon as his uncle was no longer fit to rule.
Five years after Annalise became the new ruler of Selenia and publicly offered a cease-fire, Marco Rossi died in his sleep. While the circumstances and timing of the death might have been suspicious, it was quietly glossed over in favor of a smooth transition of power to Giovanni. As soon as his place as Governor was secured, Giovanni immediately reached out to Annalise, accepting the offer for a ceasefire and agreeing to negotiations. While eager to end the fighting and focus on the Commonwealth's struggling economy, Giovanni proved a shrewd negotiator, managing to ensure even lower tariffs and special permissions for Fort Marstol and the rest of the Commonwealth to act as military security in the Azurali Sea out to Barshaa. 
With pressure taken off the war, Giovanni turned his attention to the rest of the Commonwealth, and invested heavily in exploration and mining of the Aarasyl Desert, which he obtained exclusive mining rights for in the negotiations. Giovanni was convinced that there were resources and wealth deposits hidden under the sands, and although only a mediocre amount was found during his lifetime, his son continued the expeditions, leading to the discovery of massive underground cave systems filled with gold, silver, and gemstones. Giovanni remained in power until his death at the age of 85. Public opinion remained behind him so strongly that it extended to his heirs, creating a ruling family that was almost unopposed in subsequent transitions of power. Currently, Anton Russo , Giovanni's great-great-grandson, is sitting Governor of the Marstoli Commonwealth.