The First Extrasolar War was a war fought between the United Colonial Nations (UCN), supported by the Interplanetary Strategic Alliance (ISA), and the Helghan Administration in the early 23rd century. The war resulted in a UCN-ISA victory, and the Helghan Administration losing the rights to rule over the planet Vekta. The aftermath of the war had long lasting repercussions that would led to a second major war over a century later.
Prelude[]
In the late 22nd century, the Helghan Corporation more or less held a highly lucrative monopoly over the vital worlds of industrial Helghan and luxurious Vekta in the Alpha Centauri system because of UCN colonial grants. This allowed the corporation to tax all ships going through the system, on top of the considerable income from trade and re-fueling.[1] After the Helghan Corporation had stockpiled a significant tax-surplus, they offered the UCN to buy the Alpha Centauri system outright, foregoing their yearly tithes to Earth in return for a singular large payment. While the UCN would have refused the offer, their shortage of funds in their costly colonial endeavors resulted in a majority voting in favor of selling the star system in 2155. A large payment up front, combined with negotiable fees, and with no costs, was too tempting for the UCN to refuse.[1]
Now in full control over Alpha Centauri, the Helghan Corporation was free to tax and invest in their colonies. As a result, economic and industrial growth took place in both Vekta and Helghan. On Helghan, the automated refineries were expanded and developed, and their orbital shipyard became the largest orbital structure outside the Terran system.[1] Being a hub system connecting Earth to her colonies, the Helghan Administration charged for every ship that traveled through the Helghan system, effectively placing a tariff upon all space trade.[1] The ships coming from Helghan were exempted from being charged with a "residence permit," which encouraged some shipping companies to relocate to Alpha Centauri.[1]
Over time, the UCN grew concerned of Helghan's increasing domination over star travel and trade, areas which were previously under UCN control. The UCN was also frustrated by the wealth that the Helghan were gaining from colonial endeavors that the UCN had underwritten.[1] As a result, the UCN levied stricter control and tariffs on all space traffic, and heavily taxed the colonies than ever before. With the funds that these taxations provided, the UCN expanded the UCA, specifically the UCA Navy, which received the majority of the budget and used it to develop large scale troop transports and heavy cruisers, designed to smash the ISA fleets of the outer colonies and invade them by force.[1] The regulations also rescinded some of the privileges that the Helghan Administration obtained from the Helghan/Vektan purchase; specifically its right to a large home fleet and tariffs on shipping.[1] The Helghan Administration strongly refused to follow the new regulations, but agreed to high-level talks on a compromise. The wealthy of Vekta, and the powerful companies in orbit around Helghan, however, pushed the Helghan Administration not to budge on the issues of tariffs or self-defense.[1]
The UCA Navy is dispatched to Alpha Centauri.
The negotiations, however, ultimately failed to bring a mutually satisfactory resolution. The UCN demanded absolute compliance from the Helghan Administration, and the Helghan Administration responded by formally seceding from the UCN in 2199.[1] The UCN initially considered retaliation by enforcing a trade embargo on Helghan, but this was deemed counterproductive, as the Helghan could simply prevent trade ships carrying colonial resources from reaching Earth.[1] Instead, the UCN Senate made the decision to send the UCA Navy to the Helghan system, to seize control of the navigation points between the colonies and Earth, protecting the flow of colonial trade to Earth that would also allow a blockade of Helghan.[1] With the worsening situation, the Helghan Administration attempted to co-opt and then expel the ISA forces from Vekta and Helghan.
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The ISA Navy and ISA Marines responded with lethal force, resulting in skirmishes breaking out on both worlds.[1] While the Helghan have the advantage in numbers, their forces were inexperienced, poorly equipped and trained, enabling ISA forces to escape the initial fighting and conducted hit-and-run operations from hidden bases.[1]
The War[]
UCA ships over planet Helghan.
The UCA Navy which was dispatched to secure navigational points arrived in 2201.[1] They linked up with the local ISA Navy ships and quickly moved to secure the navigational points. The main force of the fleet headed to planet Helghan to blockade it.[1] In a desperate attempt to block the UCA Navy, the Helghan Administration assembled their custom fleets and sent them out to engage the UCA Navy. The UCA Navy Cruisers proved untouchable by the Helghan vessels, resulting in the fleet action becoming a massacre. Almost the entire Helghan fleet was destroyed or disabled.[1] During the fighting, the massive orbital structure was destroyed under mysterious circumstances. Both the UCA and Helgan blamed one another for its destruction. The UCA claimed that the staff of the structure fled down to Helghan, sabotaging it to prevent it falling into the hands of the UCA. In contrast, the Helghan Administration claimed that the UCA Navy fired on the station deliberately. While the truth of the matter has never been never resolved, the Helghan Authority declared war on the UCN.[1]
After securing Helghan's orbit, the UCA Navy chose not to invade Helghan itself, as they deemed it to be a waste of resources and lives. Instead, they left a picket fleet to watch the planet while the fleet pushed on to Vekta.[1] The combined ISA and UCA forces arrived around Vekta and quickly subdued the remnants of the Helghan Customs Service in orbit. Though the Helghan Administration threatened to fight to the last man, they soon yielded after a demonstration of UCA orbital bombardment. The Helghan Administration was disbanded, with all senior civil servants as well as any executives of the Helghan Corporation being arrested. However, many had escaped into hiding.[1]
Aftermath[]
UCA troops detain Helghan Corporation soldiers.
After news of the UCA's victory reached Earth, the UCN Senate turned over Vekta to direct ISA rule in order to monitor the Helghan corporate-affiliated population to prevent future unrest after determining the Helghan are too unruly to settle comfortably within the UCN. A broken Helghan Administration could do nothing but accept UCN's conditions.[1] Colony ships with loyal UCN civilians were sent from Earth to expand the Vektan colony. The harsh punishment on the Helghan also left an unspoken warning to the other colonies: to never dare challenge the UCN's rights to regulate and tax space shipping.[1]
The Helghan Exodus
More than a year after the war, tensions soon rose between the UCN minority and Helghan majority on Vekta as Helghan extremists began a terrorist campaign in an attempt to make the occupation too expensive for the ISA. Despite the majority of Vektan-based Helghans wanting to live out their lives peacefully, sufficient extremists assisted the guerrilla movement, enabling it to flourish. Bombings, ambushes and shootings against the UCN minority became more common.[1] In turn, the ISA administration enacted very harsh, draconian punishments on the Helghan population. Eventually, in desperation, the Helghan chose to resettle on planet Helghan and join those who went there. The ISA Governor General accepted their permission of resettlement, and millions of disaffected Helghan departed Vekta on rebuilt colony ships in what became known as the Helghan Exodus.[1]
Because neither the ISA nor the UCN wanted to foot the bill for establishing the Helghan colony, they left the Helghan on their own merits. To legitimize the operation, the UCN formally recognized the Helghan Administration as a sovereign nation, declaring planet Helghan to be their territory in perpetuity. Even so, it would remain subject to ISA blockades and restrictions until diplomatic relations became normalized.[1] As a result, the Helghan colonists endured over more than a century of hardships and deaths on the harsh planet, leading them and later their descendants (the Helghast) to greatly resent the UCN and the ISA, whom they saw them as oppressors and imperialists who stole their independence and original home planet.[2]
Such resentment would later culminate into the rise to power of Scolar Visari, who overthrew the Helghan Administration through a coup d'état in 2347 and established the autocratic Helghan Empire in his place. Visari's ultranationalistic and irredentist views eventually led to the invasion of Vekta and the start of the Second Extrasolar War.