Corporate Ministry
Encyclopedia
The Corporate Ministry was a stable in the World Wrestling Federation
in 1999 composed of members from both The Corporation
and the Ministry of Darkness
.
, trying to gain control of the Federation. To break Vince's spirits they began targeting his daughter Stephanie. Worried about his daughter, Vince shifted focus from his Corporation stable to Stephanie. With Vince occupied, his son Shane McMahon
gradually took over the leadership of the Corporation. On April 12, Shane kicked Vince, Pat Patterson and Gerald Brisco
out of the Corporation. His rationale was that there was no room in the Corporation for the old and that Vince no longer had his priorities straight. Shane then slapped his father, saying that the strong, ruthless man he knew was gone.
Heading into WrestleMania XV
, Vince McMahon had been feuding with Stone Cold Steve Austin
for an entire year. By this point, the Corporation was involved in the feud as well. The Rock lost his WWF Championship
to Austin at WrestleMania XV. He got a rematch at Backlash where Shane was the Special Guest Referee but lost that match as well. Since Shane had accidentally hit him with the championship belt near the end of the match, The Rock blamed him for the loss. They had a confrontation the following night on Raw
and The Rock was fired from The Corporation, but not before giving Shane a Rock Bottom.
At Backlash the Ministry kidnapped Stephanie. The Undertaker attempted to sacrifice her the following night but the sacrifice was disrupted by Stone Cold Steve Austin. Members of The Corporation had wanted to help Stephanie but Shane held them back.
On the following episode of Raw, a new faction formed to oppose the Corporate Ministry. Former Corporation members Mankind
, Ken Shamrock
, Big Show
and Test joined together to form The Union
. The Union members felt that they were being screwed over by the Corporation ever since Shane had taken control of it from his father. Wanting revenge on his son, Vince soon united with the Union as they fought with the Corporate Ministry.
match at Over the Edge
, putting The Undertaker against Steve Austin with Shane McMahon as The Undertaker's referee and Vince McMahon as Austin's referee. That night, Shane gave The Undertaker a quick 3-count for his third WWF Championship reign. That same night, The Rock defeated Triple H
via disqualification and The Union defeated The Acolytes, Viscera and Big Bossman in an elimination match. A week later, The Acolytes defeated X-Pac
and Kane to win the WWF Tag Team Championship.
Meanwhile, The Undertaker's claim since the Ministry of Darkness that he served a higher power was expanded upon, as a mysterious cloaked figure even more powerful than Undertaker was shown giving orders from behind the scenes. Eventually, The Undertaker decided to serve Austin up to this greater power, who revealed his identity to Austin while dressed in a black robe and a hood that hid his face from the live audience. On June 7, the identity of the higher power was revealed as Vince McMahon. The entire scheme had been a plot to destroy Steve Austin. After the unveiling, Linda
and Stephanie McMahon announced Austin as the new CEO of the WWF. They gave Austin control over 50% of the company, leaving Vince and Shane with 25% each. The Undertaker has stated that he considers the Corporate Ministry stable to be the low point of his "dark" era due to the diluting of power from himself to Vince McMahon.
With Austin now feuding with the McMahons, The Undertaker faced a new challenger, The Rock. After Rock beat The Undertaker and Triple H in a handicap match, The Undertaker faced The Rock at King of the Ring for the title. Undertaker won the match and retained the title thanks to a sealing run-in by Triple H. That same night, Vince and Shane defeated Austin in a ladder match
to win his 50% share of the company and regain full control of the WWF.
The following week, The Acolytes lost their Tag Team Championship to the Hardy Boyz
and The Undertaker lost his WWF Championship to Steve Austin. All three men got rematches at Fully Loaded. That night, Austin retained the WWF title in a First Blood Match by hitting The Undertaker with a television camera after an assist from X-Pac
. According to the stipulations of the match, Austin's victory meant that Vince McMahon could no longer appear on WWF TV. If Austin had lost, he would have been unable to wrestle for the WWF title ever again. Meanwhile, The Acolytes defeated the Hardy Boyz and their manager
Michael Hayes
to regain the Tag Team Championship and Triple H defeated The Rock in a leather strap match to become the number one contender for the WWF Title. Two weeks later, the Acolytes would lose the Tag Team Championship to X-Pac and Kane.
(Mankind
and The Rock). The following week, they regained the belts in a Buried Alive match following interference from Triple H. Shortly afterwards, The Undertaker suffered a groin injury and left to rehabilitate.
To explain his absence, The Undertaker was indefinitely suspended by Vince McMahon after refusing to compete in a Tag Team title defense. The match also became a Dark Side Rules match, meaning that any of The Undertaker's followers could be involved. As a result, Mideon and Viscera teamed with Big Show, but they lost the titles to The Rock 'n' Sock Connection following interference from Kane. Also, a week after the Dark Side Rules match, Undertaker was supposed to face Triple H in a casket match as part of the Gauntlet that McMahon laid out for Triple H, so Mideon and Viscera took his place (with Shane making Triple H attempt to put both into a casket, which he was unsuccessful at doing) The Undertaker was also to be in the Six-Pack Challenge WWF Championship match at Unforgiven, but due to his injuries he was replaced by The British Bulldog
. By the time Undertaker returned at Judgment Day 2000 under a biker persona, the Ministry was a distant memory having been completely shelved.
As of 2011, only Triple H
, Vince McMahon
and The Undertaker are still employed by the WWE today as former members of the Corporate Ministry. Paul Bearer returned to WWE several times since the disbandment, with the latest taking place on the September 24, 2010 episode of WWE SmackDown, reuniting with the Undertaker.
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
in 1999 composed of members from both The Corporation
The Corporation (professional wrestling)
The Corporation was a heel stable in the late 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation .-History:The group was put together and led by WWF Chairman Vince McMahon in an attempt to secure control of the WWF and "crush the rebels" that were popping up on the WWF landscape...
and the Ministry of Darkness
Ministry of Darkness
The Ministry of Darkness was a professional wrestling stable in the World Wrestling Federation during the WWF Attitude Era of the late 1990s...
.
Background
Throughout early 1999, The Undertaker and his Ministry of Darkness had been feuding with WWF owner Vince McMahonVince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
, trying to gain control of the Federation. To break Vince's spirits they began targeting his daughter Stephanie. Worried about his daughter, Vince shifted focus from his Corporation stable to Stephanie. With Vince occupied, his son Shane McMahon
Shane McMahon
Shane Brandon McMahon is an American executive, currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of YOU On Demand. A former executive and professional wrestler for World Wrestling Entertainment , he is the son of WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon and former US Senate candidate Linda...
gradually took over the leadership of the Corporation. On April 12, Shane kicked Vince, Pat Patterson and Gerald Brisco
Gerald Brisco
Floyd Gerald "Jerry" Brisco is a former American professional wrestler, and prior to June, 2009, worked as a road agent for WWE on its Raw brand....
out of the Corporation. His rationale was that there was no room in the Corporation for the old and that Vince no longer had his priorities straight. Shane then slapped his father, saying that the strong, ruthless man he knew was gone.
Heading into WrestleMania XV
WrestleMania XV
WrestleMania XV was the fifteenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation , which took place on March 28, 1999 at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
, Vince McMahon had been feuding with Stone Cold Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
for an entire year. By this point, the Corporation was involved in the feud as well. The Rock lost his WWF Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
to Austin at WrestleMania XV. He got a rematch at Backlash where Shane was the Special Guest Referee but lost that match as well. Since Shane had accidentally hit him with the championship belt near the end of the match, The Rock blamed him for the loss. They had a confrontation the following night on Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
and The Rock was fired from The Corporation, but not before giving Shane a Rock Bottom.
At Backlash the Ministry kidnapped Stephanie. The Undertaker attempted to sacrifice her the following night but the sacrifice was disrupted by Stone Cold Steve Austin. Members of The Corporation had wanted to help Stephanie but Shane held them back.
Formation
On April 29, the pilot episode of "Smackdown" , The Undertaker merged his Ministry of Darkness with Shane's Corporation to form the Corporate Ministry. The two groups united in order to fight their common foes Steve Austin, The Rock and Vince McMahon. The members of both factions seemingly forgot their past conflicts and worked together as a massive stable.On the following episode of Raw, a new faction formed to oppose the Corporate Ministry. Former Corporation members Mankind
Mick Foley
Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
, Ken Shamrock
Ken Shamrock
Kenneth Wayne Shamrock is an American mixed martial arts fighter, UFC Hall of Famer and professional wrestler...
, Big Show
Paul Wight
Paul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand....
and Test joined together to form The Union
The Union (professional wrestling)
The Union was a stable consisting of former Corporation members Ken Shamrock, The Big Show and Test, and their leader, Mankind...
. The Union members felt that they were being screwed over by the Corporation ever since Shane had taken control of it from his father. Wanting revenge on his son, Vince soon united with the Union as they fought with the Corporate Ministry.
The Corporate Ministry
As the Corporate Ministry's first act, Shane ordered a WWF ChampionshipWWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
match at Over the Edge
Over the Edge (1999)
Over The Edge was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation , which took place on May 23, 1999, at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri, USA...
, putting The Undertaker against Steve Austin with Shane McMahon as The Undertaker's referee and Vince McMahon as Austin's referee. That night, Shane gave The Undertaker a quick 3-count for his third WWF Championship reign. That same night, The Rock defeated Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
via disqualification and The Union defeated The Acolytes, Viscera and Big Bossman in an elimination match. A week later, The Acolytes defeated X-Pac
Sean Waltman
Sean Michael Waltman is an American professional wrestler currently signed with WWE in their developmental program. He wrestled there under the ring names 1–2–3 Kid and X-Pac off and on from 1993–2002, World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Syxx, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ...
and Kane to win the WWF Tag Team Championship.
Meanwhile, The Undertaker's claim since the Ministry of Darkness that he served a higher power was expanded upon, as a mysterious cloaked figure even more powerful than Undertaker was shown giving orders from behind the scenes. Eventually, The Undertaker decided to serve Austin up to this greater power, who revealed his identity to Austin while dressed in a black robe and a hood that hid his face from the live audience. On June 7, the identity of the higher power was revealed as Vince McMahon. The entire scheme had been a plot to destroy Steve Austin. After the unveiling, Linda
Linda McMahon
Linda Marie McMahon is an American professional wrestling magnate and politician. She is notable for her career developing WWE with her husband Vince McMahon. She was in the company from 1980 to 2009. During this time, WWE grew from a small regional business in New York to a large multinational...
and Stephanie McMahon announced Austin as the new CEO of the WWF. They gave Austin control over 50% of the company, leaving Vince and Shane with 25% each. The Undertaker has stated that he considers the Corporate Ministry stable to be the low point of his "dark" era due to the diluting of power from himself to Vince McMahon.
With Austin now feuding with the McMahons, The Undertaker faced a new challenger, The Rock. After Rock beat The Undertaker and Triple H in a handicap match, The Undertaker faced The Rock at King of the Ring for the title. Undertaker won the match and retained the title thanks to a sealing run-in by Triple H. That same night, Vince and Shane defeated Austin in a ladder match
Ladder match
A ladder match is a type of match in professional wrestling that is most commonly used to describe a match where an item is hung above the ring, and the winner is the contestant who climbs a ladder and retrieves the item...
to win his 50% share of the company and regain full control of the WWF.
The following week, The Acolytes lost their Tag Team Championship to the Hardy Boyz
Hardy Boyz
The Hardy Boyz are a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of real-life brothers Matt and Jeff Hardy...
and The Undertaker lost his WWF Championship to Steve Austin. All three men got rematches at Fully Loaded. That night, Austin retained the WWF title in a First Blood Match by hitting The Undertaker with a television camera after an assist from X-Pac
Sean Waltman
Sean Michael Waltman is an American professional wrestler currently signed with WWE in their developmental program. He wrestled there under the ring names 1–2–3 Kid and X-Pac off and on from 1993–2002, World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Syxx, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ...
. According to the stipulations of the match, Austin's victory meant that Vince McMahon could no longer appear on WWF TV. If Austin had lost, he would have been unable to wrestle for the WWF title ever again. Meanwhile, The Acolytes defeated the Hardy Boyz and their manager
Manager (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
Michael Hayes
Michael Hayes (wrestler)
Michael Seitz is a retired American professional wrestler and former musician. Seitz is best known for leading The Fabulous Freebirds under the ring name Michael "P.S." Hayes and for his role as the announcer Dok Hendrix in the World Wrestling Federation...
to regain the Tag Team Championship and Triple H defeated The Rock in a leather strap match to become the number one contender for the WWF Title. Two weeks later, the Acolytes would lose the Tag Team Championship to X-Pac and Kane.
Dissolution
By the end of July, The Undertaker's relationship with the McMahon's had dissolved and The Corporate Ministry was substantially disbanded. The Undertaker went on to form a new tag-team with Big Show (The Unholy Alliance). Mideon and Viscera were included as his enforcers on occasion but at no point was the alliance referred as The Corporate Ministry or even The Ministry of Darkness. The duo captured the Tag Team Championships at SummerSlam from X-Pac and Kane. A week later, they lost the belts to the Rock 'n' Sock ConnectionRock 'n' Sock Connection
The Rock 'N' Sock Connection is a former professional wrestling tag team of The Rock and Mankind that wrestled in the World Wrestling Federation between 1999 and 2000 and briefly in 2004...
(Mankind
Mick Foley
Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
and The Rock). The following week, they regained the belts in a Buried Alive match following interference from Triple H. Shortly afterwards, The Undertaker suffered a groin injury and left to rehabilitate.
To explain his absence, The Undertaker was indefinitely suspended by Vince McMahon after refusing to compete in a Tag Team title defense. The match also became a Dark Side Rules match, meaning that any of The Undertaker's followers could be involved. As a result, Mideon and Viscera teamed with Big Show, but they lost the titles to The Rock 'n' Sock Connection following interference from Kane. Also, a week after the Dark Side Rules match, Undertaker was supposed to face Triple H in a casket match as part of the Gauntlet that McMahon laid out for Triple H, so Mideon and Viscera took his place (with Shane making Triple H attempt to put both into a casket, which he was unsuccessful at doing) The Undertaker was also to be in the Six-Pack Challenge WWF Championship match at Unforgiven, but due to his injuries he was replaced by The British Bulldog
Davey Boy Smith
Davey Boy Smith was a British professional wrestler, better known as "The British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith, who was born in Golborne in North West England, United Kingdom. Smith is known for his appearances with Stampede Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling...
. By the time Undertaker returned at Judgment Day 2000 under a biker persona, the Ministry was a distant memory having been completely shelved.
As of 2011, only Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
, Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
and The Undertaker are still employed by the WWE today as former members of the Corporate Ministry. Paul Bearer returned to WWE several times since the disbandment, with the latest taking place on the September 24, 2010 episode of WWE SmackDown, reuniting with the Undertaker.
Members
- Leaders
- The Undertaker
- Shane McMahonShane McMahonShane Brandon McMahon is an American executive, currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of YOU On Demand. A former executive and professional wrestler for World Wrestling Entertainment , he is the son of WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon and former US Senate candidate Linda...
- Triple HTriple HPaul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
- Vince McMahonVince McMahonVincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
- Managers
- Paul Bearer
- Chyna
- Wrestlers
- The AcolytesAcolytes Protection AgencyThe Acolytes Protection Agency , was a professional wrestling tag team that consisted of Bradshaw and Faarooq. They wrestled for the American promotion World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment between October 1998 and March 2004....
(BradshawJohn LayfieldJohn Charles Layfield is a former American professional wrestler, a former commentator/host for mixed martial arts promotion Vyper Fight League and financial analyst for Fox News...
and FaarooqRon SimmonsRonald "Ron" Simmons is an American semi-retired professional wrestler and retired American football player. He is recognised as being the first Black world heavyweight champion in professional wrestling and the first of only two African Americans to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship,...
) - Big BossmanRay TraylorRay Walter Traylor, Jr. was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his appearances with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Big Boss Man and World Championship Wrestling under various ring names, most notably Big Bubba Rogers.-Early years:Traylor, a prison guard in...
- The Mean Street Posse (Joey AbsJason ArhndtJason Ahrndt is a professional wrestler best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation as part of the three man team known as the Mean Street Posse, where he was known as Joey Abs...
, Pete GasPeter GasperinoPeter Gasparino is an American former professional wrestler, better known simply as Pete Gas from his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation.-Professional wrestling career:...
and RodneyRodney LeinhardtRodney Leinhardt is an American professional wrestler, better known simply as Rodney from his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation. He is currently working on the independent circuit as RodRageous.-Career:Leinhardt trained under Tom Prichard and debuted in 1998...
) - MideonDennis KnightDennis Knight is a retired American professional wrestler best known for his appearances with World Wrestling Entertainment as Phineas I. Godwinn and Mideon.-Career:...
- VisceraNelson Frazier, Jr.Nelson Frazier, Jr. is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring names Mabel, Viscera, Big Daddy V, and King V. He is best known for his work with World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment...
- The Acolytes
In wrestling
- Entrance themesMusic in professional wrestlingMusic in professional wrestling serves a variety of purposes. The most common uses of music in professional wrestling is that of the entrance theme, a song or piece of instrumental music which plays as a performer approaches the ring...
- World Wrestling Federation/EntertainmentWorld Wrestling EntertainmentWorld Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
- "Corporate Ministry" by Peter Bursuker (1999), a dark repriseRepriseReprise is a fundamental device in the history of art. In literature, a reprise consists of the rewriting of another work; in music, a reprise is the repetition or reiteration of the opening material later in a composition as occurs in the recapitulation of sonata form, though—originally in the...
of Vince McMahon's theme, "No Chance In Hell" (which was previously the theme of the Corporation).
- "Corporate Ministry" by Peter Bursuker (1999), a dark reprise
- World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment
Championships and accomplishments
- WWF ChampionshipWWE ChampionshipThe WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
(1 time) – The Undertaker - WWF Tag Team Championship (2 times) – The Acolytes
- WWF European ChampionshipWWE European ChampionshipThe WWE European Championship was a professional wrestling championship competed for in World Wrestling Entertainment. A coveted singles title of the late 1990s and early 2000s, it was held by superstars such as Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Kurt Angle, Chris Jericho, Owen Hart, Eddie Guerrero, and was...
(2 times) – Shane McMahon (1), Mideon (1) - WWF Hardcore ChampionshipWWE Hardcore ChampionshipThe World Wrestling Entertainment Hardcore Championship is a hardcore wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and is contested under "hardcore" rules, meaning there is no disqualifications, no countouts, and pin falls could be counted anywhere...
(1 time) – Big Boss Man
See also
- The Corporation (professional wrestling)The Corporation (professional wrestling)The Corporation was a heel stable in the late 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation .-History:The group was put together and led by WWF Chairman Vince McMahon in an attempt to secure control of the WWF and "crush the rebels" that were popping up on the WWF landscape...
- McMahon-Helmsley FactionMcMahon-Helmsley FactionThe McMahon-Helmsley Faction was a large heel stable in the World Wrestling Federation which was founded in late 1999, had mostly faded away by early 2001 and finally ended in mid-2002...
- Ministry of DarknessMinistry of DarknessThe Ministry of Darkness was a professional wrestling stable in the World Wrestling Federation during the WWF Attitude Era of the late 1990s...
External links
- WWE.com (Official Website of World Wrestling Entertainment)
- Mr. McMahon's WWE Profile
- The Undertaker's WWE Profile
- Triple H's WWE Profile
- John "Bradshaw" Layfield's WWE Profile
- Ron "Faarooq" Simmons' WWE Profile
- Edge's WWE Profile
- Christian's WWE Profile
- PercyPringle.com (Official Website of Paul Bearer)