Attack on Titan: Shingeki no Kyojinhas evolved from the storyline, starring a personal vengeance sought by Eren Jaeger, to the reveal of the century-long hatred between the Marleyans and the Eldians. InAttack on Titan’sfirst season, the trio: Eren, Mikasa, and Armin expressed their desire to see what life was about beyond the walls. However, after they experienced awesome scenes like the ocean’s vastness, their dark history was uncovered.
They discovered that the Eldians were seen as the “Devils of Paradis” due to their connection with the Titans and Ymir’s bloodline. Eren and his cohorts also learned that all titans were initially Eldians, and the spies: Bertholdt, Annie and Reiner, were tasked with obtaining the Founding Titan. Despite the unraveling of the trans-generational conflict, the cause wasn’t revealed until Season four of the series. Regardless, the Eldia-Marley conflict only catalyzed Eren’s impending wrath on the world. The situation of the Eldians appears to have worsened, so depending onAttack on Titan’sending,the Eldians may become either the scourge of the world or the last human tribe.
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What Spurred Marley’s Hate for the Eldians?
The Eldia-Marley dispute is one of the central themes inAttack on Titan. The conflict between the nations is so convoluted that neither side has a clear nor untarnished account of what caused their dispute. After the Marleyans sent the Eldians back to Paradis Island, they referred to them as “Spawns of the Devil.” They continued spreading their hate-filled propaganda to even children, forcing them to grow up with a twisted mentality that the Eldians are inhumane creatures.
Marley’s account of what happened in the past really puts Eldians in a negative light. Marley’s history version showed that to obtain thepower of the Titans, Ymir Fritz bargained with the devil. Subsequently, after Ymir’s death, the power of the Titans split into nine different Human-Titan shifters. These shifters were responsible for establishing the Eldian Empire. After gaining immense power in the form of Titans, Eldians now led a tyrannical government that ruled over Marleyans. Non-Eldians were oppressed, and the supposed devils, Eldians, spearheaded continent-wide genocide. However, after experiencing tyranny, hope finally surfaced for the Marleyans in the Great Titan War.
Marleyans used the war to crush their oppressors. The Tybur Family and Helos fooled the Eldian Empire into self-destruction. As a last resort, thepreceding Founding Titan, King Fritz, fled to Paradis Island with other Eldians. Even though the Marleyans succeeded in backing the Eldians into a corner, they still possessed great power capable of causing mass genocide if left unchecked. For this reason, Bertholdt, Annie, and Reiner, the Members of the warrior unit, were tasked with retrieving the Founding Titan from the Eldians in Paradis.
What Really Happened Between Eldia and Marley?
Attack on Titanfinally demystified the truth behind Ymir’s origin. Ymir was a slave under King Fritz, the head of the Eldians. After she was accused of allowing a pig to go missing, an unjust leader condemned her to be hunted to death, similar to the animal she was blamed for. Ymir desperately tried to escape from her pursuers, and by luck, she discovered a strange-looking tree and tried to hide within. She entered a gap between the trees, trying to hide, but she slipped into an underground area, where her body combined with a Titan’s spine.
Her pursuers stared in shock when Ymirresurfaced in Titan form, towering over the surrounding forest. However, this development did not still earn Ymir any favor from the king. Instead, he used Ymir to further the kingdom’s goals, such as eliminating the despised Marleyans. King Fritz’s form of reward was allowing Ymir to bear his children. Ymir remained loyal to her oppressor husband, safeguarding him even from assassination, which resulted in her death.
In spite of her physical death, Ymir’s spirit was transferred to another realm known as the Coordinate as a slave to King Fritz’s will. Despite Ymir’s noble sacrifice, King Fritz still ordered his daughters: Maria, Rose and Sheena, to consume Ymir’s corpse to gain her powers. Ymir’s daughters successfullygained Titan shifter powersand furthered King Fritz’s will to conquer the whole world, including Marley. This breeds a generation of power-driven Eldians with the desire to gain continental dominance; however, King Fritz’s will was stumped by his descendant, Karl Fritz.
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The Tybur family inherited the War Hammer Titan, which has been passed down for generations, including their ancestor’s memories. Consequently, they knew the truth behind the end of the Marley-Eldia conflict. Willy, a member of the Tybur family, revealed that Helos didn’t end the Great Titan War. Karl Fritz (not Fritz the 1st) ended the war after discovering Eldia’s blood-soaked history and constant oppression of the Marleyans. Helos, the Marleyan Hero, was only a figurehead – a lie sold to the people of Marley.
After ending the war, Fritz left for Paradis Island and closed off his subjects from the rest of the world, using walls that were made from Titans. King Fritz then swore to wipe out Humanity if Eldia’s security is breached by Marley – an obvious lie to keep future invaders at bay. After ending the war, Fritz wiped people’s memories within the walls, which is why no one knew the truth revealed inSeason Four ofAttack on Titan.
Will the Devils of Paradis Eventually be Accepted by the World?
In Season Four ofAttack on Titan, Eren met the Founding Titan, Ymir and convinced her to let go of the Fritz-imposed servitude she followed for over 2000 years. After Ymir transferred her powers to Eren, he confessed his motive to the Eldians: Continental Genocide. Next, Eren reverted the Wall to its original form, unleashing thousands of Titans into the world.
Initially, only the Marleyans were sceptical of Eldians, but presently, Eren has given the whole world a reason to fear Eldia.In Episode 87, Titans visibly crushedhundreds of ships that tried to stop their movement. If Eren fails in completing his genocidal mission, the people of Paradis may forever be ostracized. It is also possible that the world may try to eliminate the Eldians completely since their bloodline is a threat. Either way, the fate of the Eldians now lies in the hands ofEren Jaeger.
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