1st Marik Auxiliary Corps

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First Marik Auxiliary Corps
Formed 2577
Disbanded 2588
Affiliation Star League
Parent Command SLDF Task Force Canopus

The First Marik Auxiliary Corps was one of a number of auxiliary formations formed by the various Inner Sphere nations to support Star League operations during the Reunification War. Unlike those forces the Free Worlds League Military gave up to the Star League to form a part of the nascent Star League Defense Force the First Marik Auxiliary Corps remained a discrete formation of comprised solely of FWLM regiments under the command of an FWLM officer - General Ian Marik for the bulk of the war - but the Corps as a whole were under the operational command of the overall SLDF commander of the SLDF Task Force Canopus. The First Marik Auxiliary Corps was one of a number of auxiliary corps formed to support SLDF operations in this manner, all of whom returned to their parent nation military organization at the end of the campaign they were assigned to.[1][2]

History[edit]

Formation[edit]

SLDF Task Force Canopus was built largely around the SLDF VII Corps, the largest of the SLDF corps to have formed by the beginning of the Reunification War and the only corps to be commanded by a member of a House military - Captain-General Marion Marik. With the Taurian Concordat chosen to be the first of the Periphery states to be annexed by the Star League, only VII Corps was assigned to the planned campaign against the Magistracy of Canopus. VII Corps was larger than any two or even three other SLDF corps, but the decision was made to further augment VII Corps through the addition of an auxiliary corps drawn from the FWLM. Although this auxiliary corps was technically only the same size as an SLDF reinforced division, consisting of twelve BattleMech regiments, it was given the designation of the First Marik Auxiliary Corps and placed under the command of General Ian Marik, son of Marion Marik. The two corps thereby formed SLDF Task Force Canopus.[3][4]

Reunification War[edit]

The First Marik Auxiliary Corps operated in conjunction with VII Corps throughout the campaign against the Magistracy of Canopus from 2577 to 2588. The major operations of the war were almost always conducted by a core of SLDF units based around at least one SLDF brigade, augmented by one or more auxiliary regiments from the First Marik. Often regiments within the First Marik would find themselves operating together for several years or for several campaigns in a row; the Second Oriente Hussars and Juggernaut worked together for the campaigns on Payvand, Gallis and Lindenmarle for example, while the First Defenders of Andurien and the Third Orloff Grenadiers fought together on Scheuerheck, Fanardir, Zathras and Canopus IV. Several regiments also often operated alongside the same SLDF brigade on multiple occasions.[5][6]

Units from the First Marik Auxiliary Corps were present on almost every campaign of the eleven year war; only a handful of worlds were captured solely by SLDF units, although only one world was captured solely by FWLM units - the border world of Zathras. The makeup of the First Marik Auxiliary Corps remained largely unchanged throughout the war, although the First and Second Fusiliers of Oriente brigades were replaced with the newly-raised Third and Fourth Fusiliers of Oriente brigades in 2581 when the SLDF was forced to begin operations against rebels in the Rim Worlds Republic and the more experienced First and Second Brigades were required to form part of the Second Marik Auxiliary Corps.[5][6]

Although the various FWLM regiments were used to operating with foreign forces, a legacy of the factional and federated nature of the Free Worlds League,[7] there remained a degree of tension within the corps. The Third Regulan Hussars in particular were determined to prove Regulan might, an abrasive attitude that interfered with operations alongside other FWLM regiments;[8] this attitude worsened when the Third Regulan Hussars weren't selected for the invasion of Canopus IV in 2584, largely due to the distance between the Hussars and Canopus as well as the lack of transport assets Task Force possessed, and led to problems in later years.[9] Despite these problems elements of the corps were present for the final battle of the campaign, with the Captain-General personally leading the First Marik Militia, Third Regulan Hussars and a regiment from the SLDF Sixty-third Royal Brigade against the last few battalions of the Magistracy Armed Forces on the outback world of Kossandra's Memory.[4][10]

Disbandment[edit]

Although the First Marik Auxiliary Corps served as an operational command for more than a decade, it was a temporary organization just like the other auxiliary formations and was disbanded at some point after the Reunification War.

Officers[edit]

Rank Name Command
Commanding Officers of the 1st Marik Auxiliary Corps
General Ian Marik 2577 - 2584[11]

Tactics[edit]

Different per Unit.

Composition History[edit]

References[edit]

  1. Historical: Reunification War, p. 33: "Additional War Preparations"
  2. Historical: Reunification War, p. 35: "Integration With The SLDF"
  3. Historical: Reunification War, p. 95: "SLDF Task Force Canopus"
  4. 4.0 4.1 Historical: Reunification War, p. 96: "The Canopian Campaign"
  5. 5.0 5.1 Historical: Reunification War, p. 148: "Magistracy Of Canopus Front (Jump-Off - 2582)"
  6. 6.0 6.1 Historical: Reunification War, p. 149: "Magistracy Of Canopus Front (2583-2588)"
  7. Historical: Reunification War, p. 37: "Integration With The SLDF"
  8. Historical: Reunification War, p. 183: "Free Worlds League"
  9. Historical: Reunification War, p. 38: "Third Regulan Hussars"
  10. Historical: Reunification War, p. 105: "Mopping Up (2584-2588)"
  11. Historical: Reunification War, p. 95: "First Marik Auxiliary Corps"

Bibliography[edit]