Paul Atreides (10175 AG-10217 AG), son of Duke Leto Atreides I and the Lady Jessica, was the last Duke of House Atreides, the leader of the Fremen, and the first Atreides Emperor. He was the Kwisatz Haderach: the powerful prescient being, long sought by the Bene Gesserit and the product of their lengthy breeding program. He was known by many names throughout his life, including Muad'Dib, Usul, and The Preacher.
Early Life
The Bene Gesserit brought Paul's parents together with the intention of producing an Atreides daughter; who could then mate with the heir to House Harkonnen, and produce the fabled Kwisatz Hadarach, or super-being. However, the plans of the Bene Gesserit were thrown into turmoil by the Lady Jessica's longing to give her beloved partner a male heir to his House
Conception, & Birth on Kaitain
This was because of the pain her husband, Duke Leto Atreides I felt over the death of his first child, Victor Atreides.
As Paul was conceived, Jessica kept Paul's gender a secret until her summons to give birth to her child. Because of the import of Jessica's unborn child, the Bene Gesserit's Kwisatz Mother, the Lady Anirul Corrino, wife of the Emperor Shaddam Corrino IV, supervised his birth. Even after the stunning revelation during delivery that the child was a male, Anirul decided that Paul must live and be protected. As Anirul and the Gesserit staff realized that an assassin was in the Imperial Palace, the Lady realized she had to help kill the murderer herself.
Finding the murderer alone in the Palace, during Jessica's rigorous labor, Anirul was mortally wounded, which enabled Gaius Helen Mohiam to herself kill the murderer. The Imperial intruder turned out to be the twisted mentat, Piter de Vries, agent of House Harkonnen, and as word got out about de Vries' killing of Anirul, the capital city, Corrinth City, went into turmoil.
Leto, after landing on Kaitain, quickly searched throughout the Imperial Palace, and once Jessica and Paul were found, quickly left Kaitain for Caladan. A few weeks later, during Paul's announcement to the good citizens of Cala City; on far away Arrakis, giant sandworms paid homage to Paul's birth and performed a mystical right beneath the light of Dune's second moon.
War of Assassins
During the War of Assassins of 10,187 AG between House Moritani and House Ecaz, the Atreides family became involved as collateral damage when Ilesa Ecaz, the intended bride of Duke Leto, was killed just before marrying him. The entire planet went on lockdown, and Paul was left to Idaho's care in Castle Caladan. As Duke Leto prepared his attack force to meet the Moritani's on their home planet of Grumman, Paul was attacked shortly thereafter in his bedchamber.
He and Duncan had to flee into the night, where they arranged through ornithopter flight to escape and travel to Caladan's sparsely populated Eastern Continent. While fleeing, Paul and Duncan were ruthlessly hunted throughout all of the continent's dense forest overgrowth. The two eventually made friends with Caladan primitives, who helped them escape from the assassins over the course of the following week.
Eventually, Duncan arranged for he and Paul to gain entry to the abbey of the Sisters in Isolation, home in exile of Paul's grandmother, Lady Helena Atreides. The two rested and refreshed themselves as Paul met his cold demeanored grandmother for the first time. After the Moritani assassins found Idaho and Atreides, they bombarded and burned down the entire abbey, killing alomst everyone inside, including Paul's grandmother. Swain Goire, the Lady's bodyguard, who accompanied her in exile, gave his life, in a last ditch effort to allow Duncan and Paul to escape. Later, in the deep jungle, the Caladan primitives set traps for the assassins, as they came to understand the kindness of the Atreides' family, and their just rule over the planet.
As the Atreides and Ecaz families joined forces over and then landed on the planet of Grumman. Hundro Moritani led his forces into open battle on the salt plains near Grumman's capital city, Ritka. Paul learned first hand the bloody nature of battle, as he saw the hand-to-hand combat experinced by both sides; and it changed Paul's nature thence-forward. Later, when the Emperor Shaddam Corrino IV, landed near Ritka to enforce a peace treaty; Paul saw the treachery exhibited by Hundro as he threatened to blow up the entire city and plain with nuclear devices. No longer would the 12-year old Atreides view the world in naievte', but would be prepared.
With the Performing Group
When Paul was 13-years of age, he and his mother visited House Vernius in Vernii on Ix. In secret, Tessia Vernius was put into a mental coma by the Bene Gesserit psychic energy guilt-caster Stokia, for her disobedience to the Sisterhood. Rhombur Vernius then told Bronso Vernius of Ix of his true male parentage by way of Tyros Reffa. Over-reacting, Bronso ran away from Vernii City, and Paul, under an oath to Duke Leto "to protect Bronso", accompanied him. They first stowed away aboard a Guild Heighliner, and were let off on Chusuk.
Paul and Bronso were quickly picked up by a Jongleur theatrical production company, and began to learn the basic way that the Jongleurs put people under mass hypnosis as they performed. As the entire troupe stood still, the Jongleur Face Dancer leader and fellow performers began to use their techniques. Bronso saw a majestic play, filled with adventure; Paul saw a group of people simply waving their arms. The Jongleur leader was amazed at Paul's great ability to resist hypnosis.
Soon afterwards, Paul and Bronso traveled with the performers to Balut, where the duo was discovered by their parents shortly thereafter. A day later, Paul was able to figure out an assassination attempt that was to occur in that planet's Theater of Shards, a glass performance hall that contained millions of pieces of mirrored surfaces. Paul saved the life of the planetary Governor Alra Kio, but sadly Rhombur was killed as he sacrificed his life to save the life of Bronso. Just before Rhombur died, he whispered his last words to his son, "Is Paul safe?" This caused Bronso to be bitter, and to cast House Atreides out of his life for the next 12 years.
Though his time with the Jongleur performing group was less than a month, Paul was able to remember many of the techniques that the Jongleurs had taught him about mass hypnosis, and he was later able to use them to cement his rule amongst the Fremen, and later as Emperor.
Upbringing
As the son of Duke Leto Atreides I and his official concubine, Lady Jessica, Paul grew up with a privileged background on the water-covered planet of Caladan, the ancestral home of House Atreides. Though he lacked companions his own age, he did recieve tuition from his teachers, men like Thufir Hawat, Duncan Idaho, Gurney Halleck and Doctor Yueh, as well as education in Bene Gesserit methods and techniques from his mother. Shortly after his fifteenth birthday in 10191 AG, Paul's father revealed to him that Paul's training, through his teachers, had been geared toward turning Paul into a mentat. The theory was that when Paul succeeded his father as Duke of House Atreides, one of the most respected and moral Great Houses of the Imperium, a mentat-duke would truly be a formidable force in the Landsraad. Paul's latent talents also earned him the attention of the Bene Gesserit, who tested him with the Gom Jabbar as they hoped to salvage their breeding program through him.
The Rise of Paul Muad'Dib
Alec Newman as Paul Atreides in the Sci-Fi Channel miniseries.
Paul Atreides accompanied his parents when House Atreides was relocated to the desert world Arrakis to manage mining operations of the Spice Melange. However, when the deception of House Harkonnen and the Emperor Shaddam IV was revealed, he escaped into the desert with his mother and joined the Fremen. Upon joining the desert people he took the name Muad'Dib.
This experience, coupled with significant exposure to the Spice Melange triggered dormant prescient abilities within Paul's bloodline. These abilities, coupled with his leadership skills, his military training, and an ancient prophecy of the people of Arrakis, enabled Paul to become the leader of the formidable Fremen. It was on Arrakis that he discovered that his grandfather - the father of Jessica - was the Baron Vladimir Harkonnen. He also drank the Water of Life and survived, expanding his consciousness bringing his prescience near to perfection. He was the first and last male to drink the Water of Life and survive, showing himself to be the Kwisatz Haderach; although he claimed to be something else, something unexpected. After this he explained to his mother, that he doesn't just see into the future, but what he calls the Now.
During this period Paul met and fell in love with Chani, the daughter of planetologist and native Fremen Liet Kynes. Their first son, Leto Atreides II the Elder was murdered by Glossu Rabban Harkonnen, further fueling the existing enmity between House Atreides and House Harkonnen.
After spearheading a highly effective campaign of guerilla warfare against the House Harkonnen and Sardaukar forces that had taken control of Arrakis, Paul conquered the powers in Arrakeen and, thanks to the presence of Emperor Shaddam IV, successfully negotiated the end of the long-standing Corrino Empire and his own ascendancy to Emperor.
The New Empire
Paul becomes Emperor
Upon crowning himself Emperor in 10,193 AG, Paul enacted a strategy that had been revealed to him through his prescient abilities. This decision saw the theology (and many customs) of the Fremen thrust into the whole of the Empire. A result of this was that Paul Atreides himself a revered god-head on many worlds in the Known Universe. There was resistance, and Paul found himself increasingly isolated from his family and friends as he decided that the Jihad to place his view of the future of mankind in place, must be bloodthirsty and relentless. Whole planets were sterilized as some of the Great Houses put up a struggle against Paul's relentless Fremen armies.
Assassination attempts
Paul was also the target of assassination attempts, the first of which was tried at the Great Surrender ceremony, at the dedication of his new Palace in Arrakeen. The plot, orchestrated by a misguided Swordmaster Whitmore Bludd, though unsuccessful, killed his sister-in-law, Rugi Corrino, as she was representing the former Royal House at the galaxy-wide event.
The second attempt was a twisted and convoluted attempt involving the former Count, Hasimir Fenring; his wife Margot Fenring; and their daughter, the gifted Marie Fenring. In regards to Fenring, Paul's prescience constantly failed and provided little insight due to Hasimir's genetic make-up of a failed Kwisatz.
- "All relationships change, Count Fenring, and as humans we must adapt to them or die."
- ―Paul Atreides, Paul of Dune
As a result, at a banquet in honor of the Fenring's, Marie attempted to attack and stab the Emperor, but instead, was killed by Alia. In grief, Hasimir thrusted the Emperor's Blade deep into Paul's body, which brought him to the brink of death. Paul remembered that he had the abilities of a full Reverend Mother, and as Suk doctors stitched the damaged organs of his body back together on the cellular level; he passed the Water of Life that Chani gave him to save his life. Paul exiled the Fenring couple permanently to Salusa Secundus to live out their days with the deposed Shaddam Corrino IV.
Rise of Bronso
In a secret meeting, Paul arranged to meet his mother and the now restored realtionship with Bronso on the planet Ix. Just before the meeting, Jessica had to resist the urge to kill her son, as she had been promised the Mother Superior leadership of the Sisterhood by Mohiam, if she murdered the Emperor. Jessica had hitherto been concerned about Paul being possessed by Abomination, since he had sterilized so many worlds for the Jihad.
Paul explained that he had to sterilize those worlds, as the people had looked upon him as some type of messiah; they would have to learn the tyranny that false messianic hopes could foster -- namely him. Paul calmly explained to his mother that he planned to sterilize even more worlds, but was secretly evacuating the populace of each world to limit the number of deaths. He also explained to Jessica about Bronso's secret mission -- to write diatribes and publications about Paul's failings.
Over the next few years, as Bronso published and distributed writings about all of Paul's faults; naturally the Qizarate, Alia, and the Fremen wanted Bronso captured and punished. Bronso eventually was captured, and put into Paul's secure prison on Dune. To facilitate the expansion of Bronso's writings, Paul personally released the Vernius heir, and set him free.
Final Days as Emperor
After the bloody Jihad that lasted more than twelve years, and claimed more than sixty-one billion lives, Emperor Paul Atreides eventually subdued all outright rebellion. The order of the Known Universe was maintained through the replacement of Corrino imperial power, which was supported by Sardaukar military strength; with Atreides imperial power, supported by Fremen military strength.
Paul's interpretation of his prescient visions also necessitated that Arrakis be transformed from a barren desert planet into a lush and fertile world, with the exception of a small desert for the sandworm to remain alive and keep producing spice. By the end of his rule this plan was well on its way to succeeding. This program had begun under Pardot Kynes as an attempt to harness a planet; however, under Paul, it became part of a plan to save humanity.
Despite his strong leadership and formidable prescient abilities, Emperor Paul Atreides began to feel building pressure from discordant groups within the Empire: notably the Bene Gesserit, Bene Tleilax, fringe groups within the Fremen, and the dethroned but still powerful House Corrino. Among the schemes of his enemies were the detonation of a stone burner near where Paul and his forces stood in Arrakeen, which resulted in his physical blindness. Upon Paul's recovery from this incident, he shocked all by his ability to 'see' despite not having eyes. His perfect prescient abilities allowed him to perceive the world around him.
Despite being able to 'see' through prescience, doubts began to surface in Paul's mind regarding his interpretation of the future. Feeling increasingly frustrated and out of control, he began to seek a way out. That escape route emerged through the combined treachery of his enemies, and became even more enticing following Chani's death during childbirth.
Upon the birth of his children, Ghanima and Leto, Paul became convinced he had lost his prescient abilities; he did not forsee the birth of his son, only his daughter. Therefore, as a no more than a blind Fremen, Paul disappeared into the desert, offering himself up to Shai-Hulud, as was the Fremen custom for the blind.
This action made a powerful statement: it signified to the Fremen that Paul's interest was for the tribe, and that even he, Usul, Paul who was Muad'Dib, was not above Fremen law.
The Preacher
Many years after his apparent death alone in the desert, and while the Atreides Empire was under the regency of his younger sister Alia Atreides, a new figure, The Preacher, appeared from the deep desert.
By urging civil disobedience against the Atreides Empire, and warning of the consequences of a green Arrakis, The Preacher attracted an ever increasing number of followers. Many believed this thundering blind stranger to be Paul Atreides, as he was blind and led by a boy.
The Preacher eventually revealed himself to his son Leto, and the two of them travelled throughout Arrakis, breaching the water storage of every sietch so that it would spill out onto the sand. Eventually Leto and the Preacher returned to Arrakeen to confront Alia, who had clearly shown herself to be Abomination by this time. Eventually rising tensions saw Alia commit suicide in front of her mother and Duncan Idaho. During the ensuing chaos, The Preacher was assassinated in Arrakeen, but not before he had revealed beyond a doubt to Gurney Halleck and Jessica that he was indeed Paul Atreides.
Thus, the great Paul Atreides, son of Leto the Just and the first Atreides to ascend to the Golden Lion Throne since its inception more than ten thousand years prior, was dead, passing into legend for eons to come, laying the way forward for his son to take the Golden Path to its logical conclusion.
While Paul envisioned the Golden Path, the ultimate transformation that would see his humanity dissolve into a sandworm frightened him. Upon revealing himself to his son, Paul confessed that his desire to maintain his humanity, and the fear of abject loneliness that the Golden Path would bring, were too much for him. He related that he walked away from what he knew he had to do, and admired but lamented for his son who had taken on the mantle that would see humanity restored, but at the cost of his own.
Behind the Scenes
Biographical Notes
In Original Dune it is noted that Paul Atreides was born on Caladan, both in an excerpt from Princess Irulan's Manual of Muad'Dib, as well as through his own thoughts. However in Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson's prequel novel Dune: House Corrino, his birth takes place on Kaitain - and in Paul of Dune, it is asserted that Irulan, through her history books, "streamlined the story for mass consumption". This however, casts doubt on the canonical status of Frank Herbert's Original Dune in the Expanded Dune universe.
In Other Media
In the 1984 movie Dune, the role of Paul was played by long time Dune fan Kyle MacLachlan. In interviews, McLachlan related that when reading Dune for the first time as a teenager, he imagined himself as being Paul Atreides, and to be provided the opportunity to portray him in a big budget film was a dream come true for him.
In the 2000 and 2003 Sci-Fi Channel mini-series Paul was played by Alec Newman.