Karl Michael Emmerich was an adviser and trusted confidant of the Emperors Dawud I and Mehmed I. He was an American-born scientist of German extraction and later general and ambassador, who stood in the service of the Dawudid Empire, and was created the "Baron of Heimlich-Braddock" by a decree of Mehmed I in 2049. He was a lifelong Roman Catholic, and though the Great Cathedral of John Chrysostom" was built in his honor, one branch of his descendants later converted to Islam through intermarriage with other noble families. He was given the Chinese courtesy name Mei Kai-rui (Chinese: 梅凱瑞) by Mehmed I, however he is also known by the Arabic sobriquet "Khalil Abu Yahya" in some historical sources.