Ewald Alphonso

―*Ewald Alphonso*

Portrait of Ewald Alphonso

**Ewald Alphonso** is a Sordish statesman, businessman and former politician who served as the third president of Sordland from 1950 to 1954 and the vice president of Sordland from 1946 to 1950. He also served as the chairman of the United Sordland Party from 1946 to 1953. Currently, he serves as the chairman of the Gasom Corporation, serving as CEO prior to entering politics. Alphonso was considered the face of reform within Sordland after his victory in the 1946 USP Congress, which signalled the end of the Soll era. However, his administration was ineffective. A majority of his policies were obstructed by various opponents, notably Heron Garaci, and the mismanagement of the economy led to the Recession of 1951.

## Appearance

Ewald Alphonso is a middle-aged man with a medium complexion, and has visible wrinkles on his face, likely due to the stress he faced during his time in the presidency.  Alphonso also has a well-groomed hairstyle. In his portrait, he is seen wearing a black suit, white shirt, and a black bowtie.

## Biography

### Early Career

After studying civil engineering at Kingshill University, he briefly worked in the state department for oil and gas planning in 1924. He later undertook postgraduate studies on energy planning and management in Arcasia between 1927 and 1929. He returned to Sordland after the end of the Sordish Civil War and started working for the Gasom Corporation. He bought a large portion of the shares of the company after Contanan partners pulled out, and was later elected as its CEO.

During the construction of the Soll Dam, he worked as a project advisor and in 1935 was appointed Head of the Department of Energy, under the Ministry of Economy. He joined the USP in 1940 and was elected to the executive committee of the USP in 1941. He stepped away from his active role as CEO in 1945 and became the chairman of the board after appointing a new CEO to direct the operations of Gasom.

### Political Career

Alphonso gained a huge following in a very short time after his campaigns for free market reforms, and in 1946 ran as a candidate for party leadership against Tarquin Soll. He won the ‘46 congress and became the chairman of the USP. President Soll appointed him as Vice President and he came the de-facto government leader as the President stepped back from politics. He later ran as a presidential candidate in the general elections of 1949 and was elected president. He was supported by influential figures like Kris Schar, Konrath Koronti and Walter Tusk, which are believed to have played a great role in his election as president.

His term saw many market reforms that were implemented very quickly in his first year. He privatized several industries, brought tax cuts, relaxed immigration policies and changed several of Tarquin Soll’s authoritarian laws to bring foreign investment to Sordland. However, he was faced with the economic recession of 1951, which quickly proved to be the worst economic crisis in Sordland since the Sordish Civil War. Some claim the ineffectiveness of his economic reforms were the result of a conspiracy by the Old Guard.

In 1953, his cabinet resigned after his inability to control the economic crisis. He resigned from politics after losing the party congress against Anton Rayne. Upon his departure from politics, Alphonso channeled his leadership and resources into his role as chairman at Gasom and towards philanthropic efforts, establishing the Alphonso Foundation.

## Role

Alphonso does not generally make much of an appearance in older versions of Suzerain. His only in-game appearance is during the trial of Tarquin Soll.

However in recent versions of Suzerain, Alphonso makes far more appearances, as he not only leads the private Gasom Corporation that involves decisions in energy investment for the player but also appears in the Anrica match, where he would argue with Soll on the legacies of their presidencies left for Sordland. He also appears far more nuanced than how he was portrayed previously, willing to provide workers in Gasom private housing and other benefits, as well as donating his assets to help homeless people. This will depend on Rayne's actions.

## Trivia

* The name *Ewald* is a Germanic name which derives itself from two Germanic roots: *ēo,* meaning law, custom, right (found mostly in Old Saxon); and *wald*, meaning rule, power, brightness.
	+ The surname *Alphonso* is an English variant of *Alfonso*. This name is the Spanish and Italian form of *Alphonsus*, the Latin form of the Visigothic name, *Adefonsus.* It comprises of *aþal* "noble" and *funs* "eager, brave, ready".
* Dialogue between Rayne and Alphonso references the Smash Mouth song, All Star.
> **Anton Rayne**: "*It's not about rejecting Gasom, it's about evaluating what's best for Sordland. Not **all that glitters is gold**, Alphonso*."
> **Ewald Alphonso**: "*That may be true. But **only shooting stars break the mold***."
>
>

## Gallery

President AlphonsoOfficer Alphonso