War of Secession

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War of Secession
Date: 2020 CE - 2031 CE (End of Official Combat)
2020 CE - 2037 CE (Initiative Withdrawal)
Location: Sol System
Outcome: Initiative Victory
Aftermath: Quarantine of Sol System in 2037 CE
Combatants
The Initiative United Earth Forces
Commanders
Unknown Unknown
Strength
10x Templar-class Battleships
27x Swordsman-class Cruisers
29x Striker-class Destroyers
27x Archer-class Frigates
Initiative Expeditionary Force (IEF)
13x Washington-class Cruisers
5x Lincoln-class Destroyers
Casualties
3x Battleships
4x Cruisers
11x Frigates
5x Destroyers
Unknown Number of Ground Forces
Entire Space Force
Unknown Number of Ground Forces
Civilian Casualties: Unknown (Estimated Millions)
Similar Events
Followed By: Sovereign Colonies Conflict
The breaking of so great a thing should make
A greater crack: the round world
Should have shook lions into civil streets,
And citizens to their dens.
  — William Shakespeare

The War of Secession was a war between the united governments of Earth and the splinter faction known as The Initiative. The war is sometimes referred to as the "First Interstellar War".

Overview

The war began in the early summer of 2020 CE, when several governments detected and took action against Initiative transports lifting from the surface of Earth. In retaliation, the Initiative began targeting nearby military installations that had supported the attacks, using a variety of crude orbit-to-surface warheads, followed by a series of announcements to various governments around Earth that continued attacks would not be tolerated.

In response, several governments involved in the attacks began banding together, building a series of cruisers and destroyers to chase after the transports and harass them, though their efforts were hampered by political differences. A space arms race began, with the Initiative fielding a variety of crude but effective warships, designed to counter the United Earth Fleet, and to defend troop and colony transports. A series of bloody skirmishes in the orbit over Earth and Luna eventually culminated in one all-out orbital battle between the two forces, often called the Fall of Earth. The Initiative's warships, superior in both numbers and quality were on roughly even footing with the military space forces fielded by the United Earth Forces in terms of space combat experience, leading to a bloody battle, eventually leading to an Initiative victory.

Meanwhile, on the surface of the planet, the relatively untrained Initiative's ground forces made efforts to capture and recruit from a number of cities, using strategic bombardment from orbital warships to hold off advancing enemy forces. Eventually, with the threat of total destruction from above, and the newly constructed orbital network shooting down military aircraft, the governments capitulated. The Initiative began to recruit, under the terms of an uneasy ceasefire with the governments. Despite careful screening, commandos took control of one of the transports, leading to it's destruction by friendly forces.

Enraged by the death of innocent civilians and the crew of the transport, the Initiative began a series of retaliatory bombardments, effectively eradicating all the lines of supply and control on Earth, before evacuating the last of their forces and the last remaining volunteers. A series of ecological bombs, designed to disrupt Earth's natural ecosystems in order to render it largely uninhabitable were released, before the orbital defense grid was set to shoot down any unauthorized craft attempting to take off or land on Earth.

Known Battles

Deployed Forces

The Initiative

United Earth Forces

  • UEF Washington (CS1, Destroyed)
  • UEF London (CS2, Destroyed)
  • UEF Paris (CS3, Destroyed)
  • UEF Berlin (CS4, Destroyed)
  • UEF Moscow (CS5, Destroyed)
  • UEF Beijing (CS6, Destroyed)
  • UEF Tokyo (CS7, Destroyed)
  • UEF Ottawa (CS8, Destroyed)
  • UEF Warsaw (CS9, Destroyed)
  • UEF Sidney (CS10, Destroyed)
  • UEF Rome (CS11, Destroyed)
  • UEF Obama (DS1, Destroyed)
  • UEF Windsor (DS2, Destroyed)
  • UEF Putin (DS3, Destroyed)
  • UEF Mao (DS4, Destroyed)