Fringian Civil Wars
3359AD to 3400AD. An ongoing series of conflicts between conservative Traditionalist elements of the Second Confederation, and Expansionists, proponents of the widespread dispersal of humanity.
Description / Specifications[edit]
The conflict was marked by uneasy armistices broken by prolonged episodes of open warfare, but it is best-known for the Vilani Scare. Ultimately the wars ended in the Expansionists favour.
History & Background / Dossier[edit]
The core of Expansionist territory was around Scybria (2012 Halcyon), whilst the Traditionalist heartlands were around Tal Varisa (0911 Far Home). The first and the second wars (both 3359AD–3364AD) occurred simultaneously and consisted of confused campaigns by each faction to secure and consolidate their respective positions. The third war (3364AD–3367AD) was the first major engagement between the two sides. It began with a Traditionalist attack into Halcyon sector and culminated in an overwhelming defeat for the Traditionalists, largely due to incompetent command.
The Expansionist victory gave that faction time to build their defenses and organise their forces. The defeat, however, toppled the Traditionalist leadership and propelled the Redoubt Party to power. They culled the hereditary culture of the Confederation, replacing politicians, civil servants, officials, and the majority of the officer corps with Party loyalists. Many senior figures fled, a move that enraged the downtrodden and restricted masses.
The Redoubt Party used the long armistice and the complex peace negotiations following the third war to reorganise their armed forces, and gained support by offering the prospect of social and physical mobility for the masses. The fourth war (3371–3375AD) was begun on a pretext and recaptured much of the territory lost on the Far Home side of the Rissa Gateway. It earned the Redoubt Party even broader popular support.
The fifth, sixth, and seventh wars (3378AD–3385AD, 3388AD–3393AD, and 3395AD–3398AD respectively) were largely campaigns of attrition, with some of the heaviest fighting taking place around the Halcyon side of the Rissa Gateway region. In each war the more populous and industrialised Traditionalists launched an attack, gradually gained the upper hand, and then forced another armistice.
The Traditionalist victories came at an appalling cost in lives and equipment. The shocking numbers of casualties and the lack of domestic social change sparked increased unrest within the home territories. The increasingly authoritarian Redoubt Party instituted martial law, strict curfews, restrictive policies, and actively suppressed opponents.
At the opening of the eighth war in 3398AD the exhausted Expansionists, in a desperate last bid for victory, initiated the Vilani Scare. The overwhelming success of the mission helped to bring about the fall of the Redoubt Party and the collapse of Traditionalist front-line military formations. However, the battle-weary Expansionist forces struggled to exploit the situation.
In 3400AD hostilities came to an end. Though they were able “liberate” and guarantee the independence of the entire Rissa Gateway region, the Expansionists could do little more than act as observers and peacekeepers during the traumatic events of the Dissolution.
References & Contributors / Sources[edit]
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- Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master Scout Emeritus Adie Alegoric Stewart of the IISS
- Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master of Sophontology Maksim-Smelchak of the Ministry of Science