Just after the American Revolutionary War ended in 1783, the Kapelput family came to America.
They were wealthy Hungarian aristocrats immigrating to the newly forming United
States. They gravitated towards a particular settlement: Gotham. They anglicanized their
family name from Kapelput to Cobblepot, in an effort to acclimate to American culture better.
They kept their family crest, a penguin, as a reminder of their heritage. Being of nobility,
they were proud of their crest and of their family motto: “Deep waters are where penguins thrive.”
They quickly established themselves as figureheads in Gotham’s early development,
alongside the Wayne and Sionis families. Decades passed, and Gotham developed more and more.
The Cobblepots invested their wealth very wisely, helping fund business ventures, construction in
the city, and many other prospects. The Cobblepots were very trusting towards their friends;
they were very close with the Waynes, and cordial with the Sionis family. The Sionises were always
envious of the relationship between the Cobblepots and the Waynes. In 1838, Tucker Cobblepot was
born. He was a relatively short boy; his height remained this way throughout his life. The Waynes
had a child around his age, Thomas Wayne, and the two became fast friends over the years.
As the two grew into adulthood, and the American Civil War loomed ever closer, Thomas fell in
love with and married Martha Arkham. Tucker was overjoyed for his friend, and was best man at
his wedding. Not long after, Tucker met Esther Avery, another young socialite woman. The two
began a friendship that blossomed into romance. They were married in 1857, and within the first
year learned that they were expecting. They gave birth to Oswald Cobblepot in the summer of 1858.
Three years later, the Civil War hit. Thomas Wayne left to fight, but Tucker Cobblepot was deemed
unfit for service due to his physical stature. Tucker was heartbroken to see his friend leave
for war, unable to join the fight himself. While Thomas was gone, Martha Wayne gave birth to their
son, Bruce. After the Civil War, Thomas returned, grateful to be alive and home with his family.
Oswald and Bruce, like their fathers, became fast friends in their social circle.
Bruce endearingly called Oswald “Oz.” The two would make-believe that they
were going on grand adventures; pirate ships, knights and dragons, and other such things.
Oswald treasured Bruce’s friendship, and Bruce his, but then misfortune struck the Cobblepots.
Tucker Cobblepot, ever the investor, heard from Thomas Wayne of an investment opportunity.
An umbrella manufacturer was allegedly gaining popularity in Gotham,
and Tucker was himself a collector of umbrellas. He was not, unfortunately, a business-adept man.
He put a rather large investment into the manufacturer, only to see the business fail
miserably within a year. It drove Tucker into a depression to have lost such a large sum.
One day, he decided to go on a walk. Esther urged him to take an umbrella as it looked like it would
rain, but Tucker couldn’t stand the sight of the umbrellas. His failed investment irked him to
no end. He went on his walk, and sure enough, it began to rain. Within the following weeks, Tucker
Cobblepot contracted severe pneumonia and died. This tragedy struck the Cobblepots to the core.
Esther was completely heartbroken, and Oswald was in shock for a long time. The family’s
remaining finances began to dwindle steadily. The Waynes offered them assistance, but Oswald turned
it all down. He had been very close with his father. Oswald’s grief had turned to anger at
the Wayne family. In his mind, Thomas Wayne was responsible for his family’s financial plight,
as well as his father’s death. Thomas had brought the umbrella manufacturer to Tucker’s attention.
Oswald cut himself off from his friendship with Bruce and looked after his mother.
His anger at the Waynes kept him secluded. There was no way he could know that Richard Sionis,
the head of Sionis Steel Co., had been truly responsible. Sionis had tipped off Thomas
Wayne to the umbrella manufacturer, knowing full well of Tucker Cobblepot’s collection.
Richard Sionis had set out to ruin the Cobblepots, only to pin it on the Waynes.
As a gift to Oswald, his mother gave him his father’s favorite umbrella.
The rest of the collection - an assortment both whimsical and valuable - was pawned off for petty
cash. Tucker’s favorite umbrella had been one that had a penguin on the handle. Tucker had
liked to use it like a cane from time-to-time as a joke. Oswald kept that umbrella for the rest
of his life as a reminder to himself of what the Cobblepots had been before his father’s passing.
When the Waynes were murdered a few years later, he felt some satisfaction,
much to his own self-loathing. He considered reaching out to Bruce, but decided against it.
When he reached adulthood in 1878, Oswald set out on his own.
He left for Europe, wanting to clear his head and get away from Gotham. There are not many accounts
of where he went or what he did while in Europe, but when Oswald came back to Gotham in 1887,
he was a changed man. He had somehow regained some wealth that he chalked up to business ventures in
Europe. He wanted to bring his business to Gotham, and his business was as an umbrella manufacturer.
Oswald again became involved in the socialite circle in Gotham, gaining popularity among
them. Some of them remembered him, including Roman Sionis, who had inherited his father’s
steel company. Oswald also learned that Bruce had left Gotham a year after him.
Little did anyone know, Oswald was using his business as a front for weapons manufacturing.
It wasn’t conventional weaponry by any stretch of the word. Using inspiration from cane swords
and other such contrivances, Oswald tinkered with umbrellas and made an assortment of weapons from
them. He had bladed umbrellas, umbrellas with guns concealed inside them, and many
more. He had become obsessed with them due to his father’s former collection and failed investment.
Oswald wanted the instrument of the Cobblepots’ downfall to be what brought them back from ruin.
He would accomplish this, whether by legitimate business, or other more questionable means. There
were rumors that he had accumulated his fortune in Europe through robberies and criminal activity,
but nothing was ever pinned to him. Along with his obsession with umbrellas came a
fascination with birds. He was captivated by ornithology and was a keen birdwatcher.
Over the next couple years, Oswald began to establish himself more and more in
Gotham. His face became well-known by the city council and other business moguls.
Oswald propped himself up as a phoenix rising from the ashes of House Cobblepot. He cited his
family’s motto, stating that “Gotham has the deepest waters, and this penguin is thriving.”
Soon, in 1891, Bruce returned to Gotham. Oswald was still resentful towards the young Wayne, but
he knew better than to show it. He decided against continuing his distancing behavior towards Bruce,
instead seeking him out. The two rekindled some semblance of their old friendship, reminiscing
about the good old days. In spite of this, their friendship could never be what it once was.
Oswald saw Bruce more as another business opportunity. The next two years would be
very telling as to the man Oswald Cobblepot truly was. He would do anything and everything
to get what he wanted; everything to restore the House of Cobblepot to its former glory.