Third Colonization Wave
Name given by Imperial historians to a spate of unauthorized colonies set up by Vilani malcontents during the latter days of the First Imperium. By this time the Ziru Sirka had become moribund, wracked by frequent civil wars and economic recessions. Many Vilani were able to see what was going on, but most resigned themselves to enduring what could not be cured.
However, around -2450 a new philosophy spread to a number of worlds throughout the Imperium. Its origin was never traced and it had no formal name, but it could be summed up in the phrase "Let's get out from under!" Over the next century, several hundred expeditions set out secretly in defiance of long-standing Imperial edicts to carve out a new life far from the decaying 1st Imperium. The expeditions went in all directions, but the greatest number headed spinward to Deneb, Provence, and Tuglikki. A few even made it as far as Gvurrdon, Reft, and the Spinward Marches.
The pattern of development for 3rd Wave colonies was the same for more than 80% of them. All of them were established on H-prime or H-norm worlds. On practically all of them the colony was successfully established and prospered for a while. Eventually the lack of contact with a supplier of essential technology would cause the colony to lose some of its technology. A few managed to hang on to Industrial technology, but most slid all the way down to Pre-Industrial levels. At this point a few of the colonies died out, most decivilized, losing many of their traditional Vilani cultural traits in the process, and a very few managed to adapt to changing conditions and hang on to their culture.