Gawain Knottman
Early Life
Gawain Knottman was born in 2465 and raised in a middle-class suburb outside New Koenigsburg on the planet of New Berlin, then known as Technopolis. During his childhood, there were crackdowns and oppression of the people by the “tyranny” of House Grumman and The Terran Empire. Gawain’s parents raised him with classic liberal values, telling him to think for himself, to value people for who they were and to be wary of the corrupting influence of power. Gawain attended top schools and then attended college on New Berlin at the University of New Hamburg, where he graduated with a BA in political science. He then studied for his juris doctorate, qualifying as a lawyer and practicing employment law. Gawain is married to Natalie Leeburg, who he met whilst he was practicing law. She was a family and divorce lawyer, who retired and occupied herself by teaching some classes at New Koenigsburg law school.Lawyer
Gawain later rose to become a top union lawyer and was he became a lawyer for the powerful New Berlin Teachers Union (NBTU). He was eventually selected as a senior union rep and became increasingly involved in politics. Due to his association with left-wing politics, he was arrested twice but released without charge either time.Political Career
After the collapse of the Empire, Gawain became involved with the newly empowered Social Democratic Party and organized campaigns, wrote speeches, offered legal advice and raised money. Gawain quickly rose to prominence and became one of the party’s top organizers on New Berlin. By the 2510 Election, Gawain was New Berlin Party chairman and part of the SDP’s senior executive committee. He despaired as the SDP lost the 2510 election after the Destiny Party flooded the campaign with Hansa cash from their allies and Dahlia Avander-Slade and her coterie were sworn into office, plunging the young Republic into the bloody war of Nova Terra. He was elevated to the post of Chairman of the Social Democratic Party in 2516, charged with raising money and preparing for the challenge of winning the Presidency in 2520. He was approached by Malik Grumman, who had only just seperated from the Destiny Party, and welcomed him to the SDP, which marked the start of a long friendship and collaboration between the two families. He welcomed his son Herrick into the ranks of the SDP and got him to work on the Lt-Governor campaign on New Berlin. After the victory of the Isolationist Party, Herrick convinced Gawain to give him the funds to start the Wye Street Partnership, a lobbying firm that would promote "Third Way" thinking and secure funding for the SDP. When Herrick won a senate race on Earth in 2540, Gawain picked his former Chief Of Staff and political protege Katie Flockhart to replace him.Role in Cabinet
In 2520, despite finishing 1st in all polls, the SDP were once again unable to win the Presidency after the Centrist party held the ballot to ransom. Gawain helped to organize a new coalition and was named as Foreign Secretary under President Creed. He was instrumental in the controversial negotiations that brought an end to the war on Nova Terra. In the mid-term reshuffle, Gawain was named as Secretary of the Interior. Going into the 2530 Election, Gawain threw his weight behind Governor Averssen for the SDP nomination and the presidency, helping him secure the nomination. In desperate attempts to find cash to combat the vast sums poured by the Hansa into the election, Gawain and Malik Grumman agreed to promise a cabinet position to Shelton Mavros in exchange for a sizeable donation. With Averssen elected as President, Gawain was named Transport Secretary in the administration. Honoring his campaign agreements with the unions, he passed laws securing a Republic wide minimum wage and minimum worker safety standards across all Republic worlds. In the 2535 reshuffle, Gawain was promoted to the role of Attorney General and had a packed five years as a close ally of the President. In his new role, Gawain could finally attempt to curtail the Hansa's growing influence in politics with a huge court case against many top Hansa corporations. This resulted in large fines being paid up by a number of corporations. During the last few years of his time in the Avressen administration, he found himself targeted of the Senate Oversight committee due to his deal with the Mavros family. Without firm evidence against him or Malik, Gawain continued on, but the damage to his reputation and career was extensive.Death
Gawain passed away in 2545, at the end of a long and illustrious career, culminating in twenty years in government.
Species
Age
80
Life
2465
2545
80 years old
Circumstances of Death
Natural causes
Family
Children
Gender
Man
Aligned Organization
Other Affiliations
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