Summary
Without question, the World Nobles — also known as the Celestial Dragons — are some of the most contemptible individuals in the world ofOne Piece, due to their bigoted worldview, sadistic tendencies, extreme arrogance, and disdain for the lives of innocents. In truth, they are at the heart of the evil that plagues the World Government,as even certain Marines such asGarp and Fujitora have expressed their own indifference towards their well-being, despite being sworn to serve them.
Immune to any sort of persecution, even on charges of murder, the Celestial Dragons are entirely unaware of the hardship and suffering that most people in the world ofOne Pieceendure throughout their lives. Their blissful lives in Mary Geoise are funded through a system known as the “Heavenly Tribute,” wherenations under the World Government’s protectionpay a certain sum as part of their alliance. This process is at the root of the extreme poverty that many nations experience, despite the Celestial Dragons' immense wealth.
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What Is The Heavenly Tribute?
Put simply, the Heavenly Tribute is a monetary contribution paid by nations allied with the World Government, in exchange forreceiving protection from the Marines, due to the constant threat of pirate attacks. The sum to be paid is itself determined by the size of a nation’s population. As a result, it is imperative for countries to have large working populations, capable of generating income, in order to be able to pay their share of the tribute.
During instances when a country fails to pay, they will not receive any support from the Marines in case of an invasion by an external party, or an uprising of civil unrest from within. Additionally, their monarchs will be excluded from the Levely, and their citizens will be treated as people without any human rights, which is one of the main sources of the deplorable practice of slavery that is widely prevalent in many parts of the world —especially among the Celestial Dragons themselves.
Many nations are forced to give up the majority of their wealth to pay the tribute and appease the Celestial Dragons, which leaves them severely financially depleted, producing the desolate living conditions seen throughout the world, where citizens are forced to starve as the tribute has to be paid at any cost. On certain occasions,some kingdoms have even attackedand pillaged other ones — as in the case of Kaido’s homeland, the Vodka Kingdom — in order to pay the Heavenly Tribute. All this tragedy is made even more harrowing by the Celestial Dragons' monumental wealth.
The Tragedy Of The Sorbet Kingdom
Chapter 1097 ofOne Piecedepicted the lengths that monarchs would go to, to decrease their share of the Heavenly Tribute and keep most of a country’s wealth for themselves. The Sorbet Kingdom in the South Blue was the example given, where most of the country’s rich citizens lived in the northern part, near the capital. By contrast, the southern half of the nation was less affluent, andhoused a fair number of elderly citizens.
Due to this population distribution, the monarch at the time, King Bekori, proposed a resolution nearly20 years before the start of the story, to change the borders of the kingdom, which would significantly decrease their share of the Heavenly Tribute. He chose to exclude the southern half of the country full of the impoverished and elderly, keeping only the country’s wealthy citizens in the north under his protection. This resolution allowed him to take a greater share of the country’s income, without having to bear the cost of the tribute for the elderly and less fortunate in the Sorbet Kingdom.
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As a result, the southern part of the country became a lawless wasteland, allowing slave traders and even the Royal Army to abduct people, and carry out the despicable business of slavery. This scenario was made possible by the fact that people in the south were no longer recognized as free citizens under the protection of the Sorbet Kingdom, which led to the loss of their human rights. Enraged by this,a young Bartholomew Kuma attackedthe Royal Army but was swiftly imprisoned, along with many of his associates. Fortunately for him, the Freedom Fighters formed by Emporio Ivankov and Monkey D. Dragon soon came to their rescue and liberated the nation, casting out King Bekori in the process.
The Celestial Dragons' Greed
What makes matters worse is the ridiculous amount of wealth flaunted by the Celestial Dragons on a routine basis, despite the fact that they do nothing to contribute to improving the lives of people all across the world. Even though the Heavenly Tribute ismeant to enlist the protection of the Marines, most of the sum is paid out to the World Nobles, who heinously mistreat ordinary citizens as they believe them to be inferior.
Sincethey view themselves as divine beings— simply by virtue of being descendants of the original rulers of the Twenty Kingdoms —the World Nobles feel entitled to the Heavenly Tribute. The amount of wealth each one of them possesses is so vast, that they can easily purchase rare Devil Fruits, property, or anything else they desire. Where this wealth is often directed, is also a root cause of the larger problem of human rights in the world ofOne Piece.
In this regard, the Celestial Dragons indulge in the practice of slavery more than any other nation of ethnic group, even as many ordinary citizens are forced into becoming slaves after being unable to pay the Heavenly Tribute while living in poverty. This vicious cycle is the root cause of the poverty seen in many parts of the world. For this reason, many nations — such as Wano —choose not to ally with the World Government, just to avoid paying the tribute, even if they have the financial means to do so.
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