Zaragram II, known among the Amarr solely as the Mad Emperor, was an emperor who committed several heresies, was assassinated, and had his name struck from the Book of Records. Subsequently, he is now known to few but his legacy nonetheless reverberates throughout the empire. Since his death his name has become a curse word for the Amarr, especially for the Ardishapur Family that spawned him.
Zaragram's Godlike Design
Zaragram II came to power two thousand years ago, in 21460, not long after the Amarr ventured out into space. At that time, the status of the Amarr emperor, though undoubtedly the head of state, was still subtly different. He was the leader of the Apostles, the first among equals, and his authority was channeled through the Council. But Zaragram hungered for more direct power; he wished to elevate himself above the common clergy into godhood itself. He regarded himself as the worldly manifestation of divinity. As soon as he came into power Zaragram started issuing decrees, most of them religious in nature. Many of these decrees directly usurped the Scriptures and many of the most sacred traditions of Amarr society were uprooted and eradicated.
City of God
Then Zaragram set out for his most ambitious project. He wanted to 'get in touch' with his supernatural self and to accomplish this he set out to construct the City of God - a place worthy of divine residence. The city was to be constructed in space, not bound to any earthly place, and was to be the eternal legacy of Zaragram II's greatness. Zaragram named his city Mezagorm, meaning "vision of god", though it was commonly known as City of God.
Assassination
Things came about differently than Zaragram wished. Just when the construction of his glorious city, located in the system of Shastal, was completed, Emperor Zaragram was assassinated. Having accumulated so many enemies by then, any one of dozens of groups could have been responsible, though it eventually came to light that his grandson, who could no longer bear Zaragram's decrees, had been responsible for the assassination, and was later canonized as St. Tetrimon.
Erased legacy
After Zaragram's death the Council of Apostles became all-powerful for a short while and they did their utmost to bury his memory. His decrees were reversed, all icons and pictures of him where either destroyed or his face and name scraped out, and his city was laid to waste. In a few generations his name was all but forgotten. Instead of the glorious legacy Zaragram envisioned for himself, his rule contributed to the power of the Apostles and the Moral Reforms it brought about some 500 years later.