3rd Regulan Hussars

(Redirected from Third Regulan Hussars)
Insignia of the Regulan Hussars
Third Regulan Hussars
Formed pre–Reunification War
Nickname The Soul Stealers[1]
Affiliation Free Worlds League
Parent Command Regulan Hussars


History[edit]

Reunification War[edit]

Formed before the Reunification War, the Third Regulan Hussars served as a part of the Marik Auxiliary Corps assigned to support the Star League Defense Force VII Corps during the invasion of the Magistracy of Canopus. VII Corps was the largest of the corps at the time, and was commanded by Captain-General Marion Marik; the Marik Auxiliary Corps was commanded by General Ian Marik, and while VII Corps took the lead on many of the planetary campaigns, elements of the Marik Auxiliary Corps were present on almost every campaign of the war between the Star League and the Magistracy. The Third Regulan Hussars were no exception to this, seeing service in no less than seven planetary conquests over the course of the eleven years of the war.[2][3][4]

Whereas the Free Worlds League Military units were generally regarded by the SLDF as being used to operating alongside foreign troops and therefore having a better mindset for operating within or alongside the multinational SLDF than the troops from many other nations, the Third Regulan Hussars were determined to prove Regulan might and displayed an abrasive attitude towards other FWLM units that would cause problems during the war, particularly during the campaign to capture the Canopian world of Candiear.[5][6]

Umka[edit]

The invasion of Umka by the VII Corps Fifty-sixth Brigade was the second combat action of the war against the Magistracy and began in August 2577. The Fifty-sixth Brigade were assigned both the Third Regulan Hussars and the Juggernaut regiment of the Stewart Dragoons as auxiliaries, with the Sixty-third Royal Brigade providing support. Despite outnumbering the defending garrison by a considerable margin, the strike force was forced to fight a three-month campaign as the defenders refused to surrender. The bulk of the defending force consisted of two battalions of troops from the 1st Canopian Light Horse, but even when these two battalions had been forced off-world the local irregulars continued to fight. The Fifty-sixth held the main industrial complexes and settlements on Umka easily, but as Umka was a water-rich world where the bulk of the landmasses were island chains the local garrison simply switched to guerrilla warfare, relocating rapidly from and around islands and archipelagos and forcing the Task Force troops to winkle out numerous small camps and groups across the world.[2][7]

Scheuerheck[edit]

The capture of Scheuerheck was relatively easy; one of three former Free Worlds League worlds which had defected to the Magistracy in the 2550s, all three were conquered through a display of overwhelming force and agile diplomacy by Captain-General Marik. The defenders of Scheuerheck effectively offered no resistance to the SLDF landings which saw the Fifty-sixth Brigade and the Third Regulan Hussars deploy together again, joined by the VII Corps' 401st Independent Regiment, the Second and Third Orloff Grenadiers and the 1st Defenders of Andurien. Within a very short period of time the planetary leader of Scheuerheck had not only surrendered but was actively petitioning for Scheuerheck to be readmitted into the Free Worlds League. The easy acquisition of three systems and their relatively peaceful incorporation back into the League was a propaganda coup for the Captain-General, and was used to great effect by her allies in the League Parliament.[2][8]

Bethonolog[edit]

The invasion of Bethonolog in 2578 was relatively easy, albeit unconventional. The VII Corps' Fifty-ninth Brigade landed ahead of the 60th Brigade and prepared to assault the Canopian positions on the planet, only to receive a message from the local militia Colonel stating that while he intended to resist the invasion, he wanted permission to wait until the 26th of December so that the people of Bethonolog could enjoy the various religious holidays falling at that time of year. General Mancini of the Fifty-ninth agreed on behalf of the invading forces (including the Second Orloff Grenadiers and Third Regulan Hussars), and sent the militia colonel a Christmas pudding as a gift; the Colonel reciprocated by sending General Mancini a bottle of local wine and a turkey. A week of half-hearted clashes between the militia and the Fifty-ninth began during the New Year period, satisfying the honor of both sides, and the Fifty-ninth took control of Bethonolog on the 9th of January 2579.[2][9]

Afarsin[edit]

Afarsin was an agrarian world of little strategic importance and which hadn't merited a MAF garrison so far during the war, but its location as one of the most anti-spinward worlds in the Magistracy made it a stepping stone to other worlds, particularly those lightly defended worlds in the Canopian outback. The SLDF moved in force to capture the world in April 2583, deploying the Fifty-fifth Brigade along with the Third Regulan Hussars, the Fourth Marik Militia, the Second Oriente Hussars and the Second Orloff Grenadiers. The assembled strike force captured the world quickly, and the Regulan Hussars would be deployed alongside the Fourth Militia in their next campaign.[3][10][11]

Marantha[edit]

In comparison to the previous battles the Third Regulan Hussars had fought since the Reunification War began, Marantha was by far the toughest fight yet. In addition to the Hussars, the strike force used against Marantha in 2584 consisted of the VII Corps' Fifty-sixth Brigade, who the Third Hussars were fighting alongside for the third time, and the Fourth Marik Militia. This time, the Third Hussars would face more than just a detachment from the elite 1st Canopian Light Horse — the entire regiment was stationed on Marantha, as were the mercenary unit Mieselsen's Marauders. Both Canopian units bitterly contested the invasion of Marantha, and when the 1st Light Horse finally retreated from the planet the Marauders had already fought until the unit had been effectively been destroyed.[3][12][13]

The deployment to conquer Marantha instead of being called forward to fight in the invasion of the Magistracy capital world of Canopus IV rankled with the Regulans, who felt they'd been slighted by the Captain-General; the resulting tension within the unit and between the Regulans and other FWLM units as a result would reach boiling point the next year.[14]

Candiear[edit]

By the time the SLDF task force moved against Candiear in 2585, the ultimate fate of the campaign was already certain, but the remaining MAF units continued to resist. VII Corps dropped an ad hoc division of troops consisting of the combined forces of the Fifty-sixth Brigade, the Sixty-first Royal Brigade and the Sixty-second Royal Brigade on Candiear. Augmenting the SLDF troops were the Third Regulan Hussars, alongside the Second Oriente Hussars and the Second Orloff Grenadiers. Although the defenders were heavily outnumbered, some of the best units in the MAF were on Candiear; the SLDF troops had to face both the Second and Fourth Canopian Light Horse as well as Buquoy's Bandits. Although the SLDF strike force outnumbered the Canopian regiments, they couldn't pin them down and destroy them, and all three regiments escaped to fight again on other worlds.[3][12][13]

The campaign was marred by the bitter argument that erupted between Colonel Anupan Shah, CO of the Third Regulan Hussars, and Westy McDowell, the Second Oriente Hussars' CO, regarding the performance of their respective regiments. The war of words was a direct consequence of the general feeling amongst the Third Regulan Hussars that they had been slighted by not being selected for the assault on Canopus the year before, and resulted in the Captain-General smoothing the Regulan's feathers by assigning them to the assault on Kossandra's Memory, the final battle of the Canopian campaign.[14]

Kossandra's Memory[edit]

Settled shortly before the outbreak of the war by the MAF for use as a redoubt and base of operations should Canopus IV fall, the outback world of Kossandra's Memory was the site of the final battle between the SLDF task force and the Magistracy Armed Forces. The MAF had managed to keep the existence of Kossandra's Memory secret for much of the war although it hadn't been able to evacuate the Magestrix to the world when Canopus fell in 2584; when Captain-General Marion Marik finally invaded in 2588 the Second Canopian Light Horse and Buquoy's Bandits were the only surviving major MAF units and were both present. Numbering just a few mismatched battalions, the MAF units still contested the landing, fighting under the command of Colonel Adam Buquoy himself; Marik landed the First Marik Militia, the Third Regulan Hussars and the Sixty-second Royal Brigade on Kossandra's Memory and led them personally into battle.[13][3][12]

Marik used three regiments drawn from those who had landed in her assault against Buquoy's positions, and while Buquoy tried to trick Marik into making rash attacks that he could capitalize on, the Captain-General kept her cool and used her superior numbers to grind the Canopian forces down. With the last of the Magistracy forces finally defeated after eleven years of campaigning, the war between the Magistracy and the Star League finally ended when Marik accepted Buquoy's surrender with a firm handshake.[13]

Star League Era[edit]

The Regulan Hussars fell under suspicion during the war between Gerald Marik and House Selaj, the ruling family of the Principality of Regulus, following the assassination of Captain-General Terrence Marik in 2678.[1] The war finally ended in 2680, but not before the three regiments of Regulan Hussars had fought a delaying action on Hellos Minor and Harmony against six federal regiments to allow several members of House Selaj to escape into exile. The Regulan Hussars fought after a personal visit by Rajneesh Selaj, in which he protested his innocence, and as a consequence of the Hussars' experiences the brigade would remain wary of putting faith in politicians for centuries afterwards.[15]

When the Marik Civil War erupted the Regulan Hussars sided with Captain-General Elise Marik rather than her brother, Oliver Marik, and remained loyal to Elise and her son Bertram throughout the conflict despite the Hussars having been initially hit hard by the various forced retirements and purges instigated during the witch hunts conducted both by Elise Marik and her father before her. The Hussars' loyal support regained them the support and respect of Betram and the rest of House Marik; Bertram rewarded the Hussars accordingly, with the Hussars receiving quantities of the latest equipment from production lines in the Marik Commonwealth.[1] Bertram also instigated the practice of ennobling the senior commanders within the Hussars down to the battalion commanders and awarded the Hussars a ten-thousand-acre estate in perpetuity.[15]

The Third remained vocally supportive of the Captain-General throughout the remainder of the Star League era; with the Principality's borders being largely secure, the Third and the other regiments of the Hussars were known to deploy outside the boundaries of the Principality despite being a provincial force. These deployments were usually either to engage in wargames and exercises with other regiments for training purposes, or to reinforce federal forces. The Star League Intelligence Command was wary of the Third, given its reputation as the most belligerent of the Hussars regiments, and as late as 2765 was predicting that it was only a matter of time before the Third began harassing Star League Defense Force troops.[1]

Officers[edit]

Rank Name Command
Commanding Officers of the 3rd Regulan Hussars
Colonel Anupan Shah [14][16]

Composition History[edit]

2765[edit]

Third Regulan Hussars (Regiment/Regular/Reliable)[17]

- At this point in time the First was stationed on Alta.[17]

2786–2821[edit]

3rd Regulan Hussars (Regiment/Regular/Reliable) [18]

Note: At this point in time the heavy-weight unit was stationed on Alta. In 2821 the command was reduced to 29 of its strength and was deployed at Bondurant. [18]

2830[edit]

3rd Regulan Hussars (Regiment/Veteran/Reliable) [19]

Note: At this point in time the medium-weight unit was stationed on Bondurant with an operational readiness of 53 percent. [19]

2864[edit]

3rd Regulan Hussars (Regiment/Elite/Fanatical) [19]

Note: At this point in time the medium-weight unit was stationed on Bondurant with an operational readiness of 33 percent. [19]

Notes[edit]

  • Special rules for the 3rd Regulan Hussars can be found in Historical: Reunification War, p. 183.

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Field Report 2765: FWLM, p. 16: "Regulan Hussars"
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Historical: Reunification War, p. 148: "Magistracy Of Canopus Front(Jump-Off – 2582)"
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Historical: Reunification War, p. 149: "Magistracy Of Canopus Front (2583–2588)"
  4. Historical: Reunification War, p. 95: "SLDF Task Force Canopus"
  5. Historical: Reunification War, p. 183, "Free Worlds League"
  6. Historical: Reunification War, pp. 37–38: "Integration With The SLDF"
  7. Historical: Reunification War, p. 97: "Umka (August–October 2577)"
  8. Historical: Reunification War, p. 100: "Ruschegg, Payvand and Scheuerheck (August–October 2577)"
  9. Historical: Reunification War, p. 101: "Eleusis, Obrenovac and Bethonolog (March 2579–January 2580)"
  10. Historical: Reunification War, p. 150: "Magistracy Of Canopus Front(Jump-Off – 2582)"
  11. Historical: Reunification War, p. 102: "Afarsin, Adherlwin, Megarez and Nobel (March–April 2583)"
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 Historical: Reunification War, p. 151: "Magistracy Of Canopus Front (2583–2588)"
  13. 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Historical: Reunification War, p. 105: "Mopping Up (2584–2588)"
  14. 14.0 14.1 14.2 Historical: Reunification War, p. 38: "Third Regulan Hussars"
  15. 15.0 15.1 House Marik (The Free Worlds League), p. 103: "Regulan Hussars"
  16. Catalyst Game Labs "Ask The Writer Forum, 26th Jan 2012, "Historical: Reunification War - the Third Regulan Hussars"
  17. 17.0 17.1 Field Report 2765: FWLM, p. 16: "Regimental Status"
  18. 18.0 18.1 First Succession War, p. 138
  19. 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 Second Succession War, p. 98

Bibliography[edit]