Volturi

"The Volturi aren't supposed to be the villains, the way they seem to you. They are the foundation of our peace and civilization."

- Edward Cullen to Bella Cullen and Jacob Black

The Volturi are a civilized coven of vampires, the largest and most powerful one in the series, and enforce the laws of the vampire world.

Background
The Volturi act as the unofficial royalty of the vampire world, and operate from the city of Volterra, Italy. They have existed for at least three thousand years, and are the largest coven in existence, followed by the Olympic and the Denali covens. Carlisle Cullen lived with them for a while in his early years before he came to America. However, they do not follow a vegetarian diet, as seen in New Moon, in which they capture and murder several humans in a carefully planned "meal". The Volturi deal swiftly and decisively with anything they consider a threat to their city or to the vampire world; for example, they protect vampires' existence in secret. They destroy anyone who attempts to overthrow them or resist their authority and, at Caius' insistence, have hunted werewolves (true werewolves, not shape-shifters) to near extinction in Europe and Asia.



Purpose
Although they are not the 'official' royal family of vampires, they still act as though they are, and are an incredibly influential coven. They are also considered 'nighttime patrons of the arts' as, because of their inability to sleep, they study the arts at night. The Volturi act as guardians, keeping the secret society of vampires hidden from the human world as needed. They often send others to travel from Volterra to destroy overzealous covens from exposing vampires through mass eradication of every vampire (and any humans) present. In the Twilight series, the Volturi are becoming an increasing problem, as they want Bella turned into a vampire as soon as possible. Edward opposes the idea, as he believes it would destroy Bella's soul. They also went to Forks, Washington to destroy Victoria's evil coven of young vampires, as they were being a menace to the neighboring city, Seattle. However, by the time they arrived the fight had already ended, and the werewolves had to escape as the Volturi do not tolerate truces with werewolves. In addition, in the last book "Breaking Dawn" they are seen to come to destroy Renesmee along with those who created and protect her, as they wrongly think she is an "Immortal Child."

Laws
Acting as the unofficial royalty of vampires, the Volturi have implemented and are enforcing a number of rules of conduct, or laws, that all vampires are expected to obey under pain of death. There aren't many of them, and they mainly concern the secrecy surrounding the existence of vampires.


 * Incapable of self-control, and therefore a threat of exposure, immortal children are not to be created. Sasha and Vasilii are executed under this law.
 * Dealing with Children of the Moon, except for the purpose of extermination, is prohibited.
 * False witness, regardless of intent, is forbidden. Irina is executed under this law.
 * Hunting is forbidden in Volterra, the town of residence of the Volturi; their food is brought from outside, sometimes quite far away.
 * Hunts must be inconspicuous, with victims unlikely to be missed; their remains must be disposed of; and territory must be changed often.
 * Newborn vampires must be trained before they can be released on their own. Methods have been identified to do so, and they often require more than one mature vampire to be used.
 * Rebellion against the Volturi is prohibited as a matter of course; it is nearly impossible to succeed.

Powers
The Volturi are known for their amazing and powerful gifts. Aro, one of the leaders, can hear every single thought a person/vampire has ever had upon making physical contact with that person. Marcus, also one of the leaders, can sense relationships between people.

Jane and Alec, twin members of the Guard, are credited and worshiped for having the most useful powers. Jane can cause someone to believe that they are feeling excruciating pain, making it easy for the Volturi to attack and destroy their enemies. Alec's powers are also useful when attacking the enemy. He can cut off all senses making the prey unable to see, hear or feel anything, enabling the vampires to kill them without a fight.

Demetri, a member of the Guard, is a tracker. He can track a person down once he has the tenor of their mind. He is known as the best tracker in the vampire world. Renata, also a member of the Guard, is a shield. She shields Aro and stands by his side at all times. She is described in Breaking Dawn as being so close to Aro it appears she is touching him, moving with him as "being so close, her hands slightly outstretched, her hands looked to be "sewn" onto Aro's cloak." She shields physical attacks. When the person/vampire is attacking, she repels them by confusing them. They end up going in a different direction and are unaware of what they were doing in the first place.

Chelsea, another member of the Guard, can manipulate the ties of relationships. This is useful when The Volturi want a specific vampire to join them. Also useful is how she can loosen the binds of The Volturi's enemies, turning them against each other.

They formerly had the services of Eleazar, who could see abilities or potential abilities in vampires and humans, though he left after meeting his soulmate, Carmen.

Although they have a large amount of gifted vampires, there have been a few exceptions where non-gifted vampires are invited to the guard as well, such as Felix and Santiago.

Before the series
The Volturi were founded by Aro. When the coven was strong enough, the Volturi usurped control of the vampire world from the Romanian coven. At some point the Romanian coven tried to regain control, but the Volturi defeated them easily.

The Volturi have ruled the vampire world for centuries by the start of the series. During that time, they did a number of things to ensure stability in the world, including eradicating the immortal children and cleaning up after the Vampire Wars in the southern parts of America. At some point, Caius was almost killed in a fight with a werewolf. Becoming terrified of his people's mortal enemies, he pushed the Volturi to hunt them to near extinction in Europe and Asia.

At one time, Marcus and his wife Didyme, who was also Aro's sister, planned on leaving the Volturi. Aro was upset by this, but appeared to give them his support; however, Aro later secretly killed Didyme to prevent Marcus from leaving. Their power increased after recruiting Jane and Alec; two vampire twins with extremely powerful gifts.

Carlisle, at one time, came to stay with them. The Volturi liked him greatly, but were unable to persuade him to hunt humans instead of animals. Carlisle eventually left and established his own coven in America. Eleazar also was once part of the Volturi Guard, but left with Carmen. The two later found the Denali coven and stayed with them.

Twilight
Although they don't make any appearances in Twilight, Aro, Marcus and Caius are mentioned by Edward as the inspiration of the gods in several Italian paintings that belong to Carlisle.

New Moon
The Volturi are first introduced in New Moon. Near the beginning of New Moon, Edward says to Bella that irritating the Volturi was the perfect way to get yourself slaughtered. When Edward thought Bella killed herself, he went to Volterra to ask the Volturi to kill him; the Volturi refused. Aro, in particular, wanted Edward to join them, and Edward decided to force their hand by exposing himself to the humans of the city. Bella and Alice, however, were able to arrive in the city and find him before he revealed and got himself killed. Three guards, (Jane, Felix, and Demitri) brought Edward, Alice, and Bella back to Aro, Marcus, and Caius. Aro was intrigued when he saw Bella was immune to Jane's, Edward's and his powers. After Edward, Alice, and Bella refused to join the Volturi, Caius told them that Bella, because she knew their secrets, had to either die or become a vampire, which Edward refused to allow happen. But Alice was able to convince them to let them go when she said she saw a vision of Bella becoming a vampire in the future.

Eclipse
"Either we let them do what they were created for... or we end them."

- Jane on the newborn army

The Volturi appear only at the end of Eclipse, though they are mentioned many times. At first, the Cullens suspect that the Volturi may be creating the army in Seattle. However, they know that even if it isn't them, they will soon come to sort it out. This causes worry that they will stop in to check to see if Bella is still a human. After finding out about an army of newborns created by Victoria, they sent a portion of their Guard to destroy the army: (Jane, Demetri, Felix and two other vampires). However, in Eclipse (film) they send Alec rather than the "two other members". But by the time they arrived, they found that the Cullens (with the aid of a werewolf pack) had already eradicated the army. The Guard merely killed a young girl named Bree, the only newborn who had surrendered. They promised to come back and check Bella's mortality soon.

Breaking Dawn
Caius was planning to send a hunting party to Forks to see if the Cullens had turned Bella into a vampire. To stop this, Alice sent the Volturi an announcement for Bella and Edward's wedding. The announcement delayed the Volturi because they weren't sure if it meant that they had actually gotten married or Bella had been turned. In the end, Aro decided that they should send Bella a wedding gift - a thick, gold-chained necklace with a diamond the size of a golf ball accompanied by a note saying "I so look forward to meeting the new Mrs. Cullen in person", which was worrying to Bella. Some time after this, the vampire Irina informed the Volturi that the Cullens had created an Immortal Child. They gathered the entire Guard together and, with their wives, set out to destroy the Cullens. It took them an entire month to do so, though it is unknown why they took so long. (Making immortal children is the one thing you didn't do because they could reveal the vampire secret within a month). Aro had another reason for gathering the entire Guard: he was determined to bring Alice into the Volturi (there has been some speculation among the Cullens and their allies that Aro had been waiting for an opportunity like this for years).

When the Volturi arrived, they found that the Cullens had gathered what appeared to be an army to oppose them, made up of 27 vampires, including their old rivals the Romanians, and a large number of werewolves. In reality, the Cullen's 'army' was really a group of witnesses that could testify that Renesmee, the so called Immortal Child, was really the hybrid daughter of Edward and Bella. Aro was convinced of this after seeing Edward's memories, and Irina admitted she was wrong. Caius, in an attempt to start a fight, ordered the guard to kill Irina. Caius also tried to use the werewolves as an excuse to attack, but Edward said that they were not real werewolves, and Aro agreed, referring to them as shape-shifters. Though they agreed that Renesmee was not an Immortal Child, they were not convinced that she would not become a threat. This almost led to a fight, but the timely arrival of Alice and Jasper changed that: they had found another Hybrid vampire named Nahuel. Nahuel was able to convince Aro that the few hybrid vampires in the world posed no threat, and the Volturi left.

After the confrontation, Edward revealed that Aro was actually scared of a fight breaking out: after finding out about Bella's power to block special abilities that involved the mind (which meant all the Volturi's powers were useless), Aro realized there was a good chance the Cullens and their allies would've destroyed the Volturi. The Cullens and their allies, however, suspect that the Volturi will attempt to avenge the humiliation they suffered in the future. If this happens, they intend to gather again to end the Volturi once and for all.

The Leaders
Aro, Caius and Marcus are the leaders of the Volturi. They command the Volturi Guard and act as representatives when dealing with other covens. Aro has the ability to read every thought a human or vampire ever had simply by making physical contact with them. Marcus has the ability to sense relationships, as demonstrated in New Moon. Unlike Aro and Marcus, Caius is not gifted.


 * Aro - Mind reading by touch
 * Marcus - Seeing relationships
 * Caius

The Wives
Mates of the Volturi leaders. The wives are also powerful figures of authority, but only go to trials with their husbands on behalf of extremely important matters, not leaving Volterra but once every few centuries. Didyme had the power to make an aura of happiness, similar to Jasper's gift. Unlike Didyme, Sulpicia and Athenodora are not gifted.


 * Athenodora (Caius's mate)
 * Sulpicia (Aro's mate)
 * Didyme (Marcus's deceased mate) - Aura of happiness

The Guard
The Volturi Guard is a group of vampires with powerful gifts. The Volturi has been shown to invite only vampires with incredibly powerful gifts that the leaders of the coven see as useful to ensuring that their authority amongst the other covens goes unchallenged. When a vampire is invited into the Volturi, he or she is forced to feel content about joining due to Chelsea's gift to manipulate the emotional bonds of others, usually guaranteeing a swift initiation into the group. Their most powerful members are the twin vampires, Alec, who can cut off all senses of a person, and Jane, who can implant an illusion of pain into a target's mind. Renata also is a powerful member but only because she can protect Aro with her ability. Felix and Santiago are the only two non-gifted Volturi guards. The members are as follows:


 * Afton - Unknown talent
 * Alec - Sensory paralysis
 * Chelsea - Relationship manipulation (cannot manipulate emotional ties as easily, e.g. Bella and Edward)
 * Corin - Unknown talent
 * Demetri - Tracking sense (known as the greatest tracker in the world)
 * Felix– Although he has no gift, he has great strength and fighting Skills
 * Heidi - Unknown talent
 * Jane - Illusion of pain
 * Renata - Protective shield (can form a mental force field to avoid physical attacks, her power is quite similar to Bella's ability to create mental shields to avoid mental attacks.)
 * Santiago

Former members

 * Eleazar: A former member of the Volturi. He was invited into the coven because Aro thought his ability to sense the gifts and potential gifts of others was useful for when the Volturi scouted for new members. He resigned after meeting his spouse, Carmen, and joined the Denali Coven.
 * Carlisle: He did stay with the Volturi in his earlier years but then decided to move to North America.


 * Didyme: Killed by Aro in order to keep Marcus in the Volturi.
 * Gianna: Human secretary of the Volturi, appeared only in New Moon. She had hoped to become a vampire also, but Stephenie Meyer has said that Gianna did not survive and was instead killed to sustain the Volturi.

Desired members

 * Carlisle Cullen: The leader of the Olympic Coven. Carlisle stayed as a guest with the Volturi for a couple of decades. Though he didn't have a special talent that the Volturi saw as useful, they still enjoyed his company. He left due to his reverence of human life, and created his own Olympic Coven in the United States.
 * Edward Cullen: A member of the Olympic Coven. Invited several times by the Volturi because of his ability to read minds at a distance; he declined each time.
 * Bella Swan: A member of the Olympic Coven. Aro was impressed with Bella's ability to block mental powers when she was still human. He invited her to join the Volturi when she was still human, and again when she had been turned into a vampire; she declined both times.
 * Alice Cullen: A member of the Olympic Coven. Invited by the Volturi due to her precognitive powers; she declined. Edward said that Aro never wanted anything more than Alice's powers.
 * Benjamin: A member of the Egyptian Coven with the ability to physically control the elements. He was offered a place with the Volturi at the confrontation in Breaking Dawn; he declined.
 * Zafrina: A member of the Amazon Coven with the ability to project illusions into the minds of others. She was offered a place with the Volturi at the confrontation in Breaking Dawn; she declined.
 * Kate: A member of the Denali Coven with the ability to shock others with an electric current on her skin. She was offered a spot with the Volturi at the confrontation that took place in Breaking Dawn; she, like the rest who were offered, declined.
 * Renesmee Cullen: The resident half-human half-vampire hybrid member of the Olympic Coven. Since Renesmee is one of the few half-human vampires in the world, the Cullens assumed that Aro would want her in his "collection." However, while Aro was intrigued by her, an offer for her to join the Volturi was never made.
 * Shape-shifters of La Push: During Renesmee's "trial," Aro saw memories of the Cullens' interactions with the La Push wolves. Thinking the Cullens had somehow tamed the wolves to be their pets, he was intrigued by the idea of the wolves working for him as guard dogs. The wolves snarled in response, effectively putting an end to that line of thinking.

Other members
There are supposedly more unnamed Volturi Guard, making the entire Volturi based on approximately thirty-two vampires in Breaking Dawn, including the leaders and their wives, but they are not named in the books.

Appearances

 * Twilight (Mentioned Only)
 * New Moon (First appearance)
 * New Moon (film)
 * Eclipse
 * Eclipse (film) 
 * Breaking Dawn
 * Breaking Dawn - Part II
 * The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner

Behind the scenes
In the New Moon and Eclipse films, each member of the Volturi wears a V pendant signifying their status. Every member, including the Guard, wears one.