Written from translations of the FF4 Setteishiryou-Hen and the FF4 PS1 Game Guide by Paladin.

Cecil's Biography

The main character of our game, a talented swordsman and the commander of the Red Wings.

    Cecil's past is a complete mystery. The woman that was his mother never told a soul who his father was, she died when he was very young in Baron City and took this secret to the grave. This left Cecil an orphan at the age of two with no known family. Fortunately for Cecil, the childless King of Baron found something interesting in his eyes and took pity on him at the orphanage and thus he came under the King's guidance. Eventually the King came to respect Cecil almost like a son and gave him the surname of "Harvey", which means "to serve", since the highest honor in Baron is to serve the King and country.
    After the untimely death of a beloved friend of the King and his wife, a young orphaned noble, Cain Highwind, also came to live in the Royal palace as a charge of the King. It was at this time Cecil and Cain first met and became fast friends growing up in the royal castle. Cecil also first met Cain's friend Rosa at about this time too. Later, upon graduating from primary schooling together, Cecil and Cain joined the Baron Military Academy at the request of the King, while Rosa studied archery and then joined the Society of White Magic. The three maintained their friendship although their professional careers differed. Cecil chose to join the army and soon became the leader of a squadron of knights.
    Currently at the age of 20, Cecil has become the young commanding officer of the Red Wings airship brigade. This is an important position; in fact it is the most important position in the Baron military - Cecil is the overall commander of the entire Baron Military. As such the king relies heavily upon Cecil in the field to command his forces. However for Cecil to achieve such a lofty rank he had to first train with the dark sword to become a Dark Knight. Once he had joined this prestigious group of elite warriors, the king appointed him to the command of that unit and hence the command of the Red Wings, which made him the commander of the armed forces of Baron.
    Primarily due to his courage, strength, will, and loyalty to the King was Cecil able to succeed in achieving such a high rank at his young age. Cecil also always persevered, without backing down, to accomplish what he set out to do. However Cecil’s personality is unusually stoic, as he is a strong, serious individual, who tends to be recluse and shy around others, especially at social events, which he dislikes. However, he also has a noble and courageous heart, which could prove to be his greatest asset.
    At the beginning of the game Cecil and the Red Wings are sent by the king to Mysidia to take the Crystal of Water. This perplexes Cecil and chaffs at his sense of honor. He begins, for the first time in his life, to question the king's intentions and take a fresh look at why the king was so interested in having him master the dark sword and become a dark knight. In Cecil's view the dark knights and their mastery of the dark sword was to protect the realm and populous of Baron...not as a tool to expedite the plundering of non-belligerent nations. With Cecil's doubt in the command of his royal liege and adoptive father, we begin down the path that leads to the fantasy adventure of Final Fantasy IV.
 

History of the Dark Knights of Baron

Powerful Soldiers who use their stamina to summon the power of darkness:

   Currently the most elite caste of warriors within the army of Baron are the Dark Knights. It is they that most regular soldiers look up to and aspire to be. Only soldiers chosen by decree of King Baron may be allowed to join their ranks. Only a few men are chosen each year, they must not only be good soldiers but excellent swordsmen as well. The king also takes into account how the soldiers rely on one another and work as an effective unit. Being chosen requires that the soldier master the dark sword, and be able to wield it's dark power and channel this dark mana through his soul. Only after mastering that skill can the new recruit be permitted to fight in combat as a Dark Knight. Because of the high level of skill involved in becoming a Dark Knight they, together with the new Airships have become the commanding force for all of Baron's military.
 

Information About the Dark Swords:

Only the Dark Knights can wield the terrible power of the demon sword:

   Unlike regular broadswords, dark swords have a dark power embodied within. Usually those who have an innate ability to control Mana energy are good candidates. However if a person cannot control the dark power in the sword and tries to use one, he may become controlled by this power as it flows through his body, and may even succumb to it. If this happens he will then become accustomed to killing and destruction without thought, then finally become a  berserker who cannot tell friend from foe.
    To use the dark power of these swords, the dark knight summons his strength and calls on the dark mana power of the sword, which then absorbs some of the knight's vital force and it is released as waves of pure dark mana energy from the blade. The dark wave spreads over a wide area and those in its path are injured by it. The stronger the soul the stronger the wave of darkness will be...and the more dangerous - and painful - it is for the dark knight.