Calderon Guard
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Template:InfoBoxStateUnit The Calderon Guard formed the core of the Calderon Protectorate military.
Contents
History
Founding
The Calderon Guard was founded in 3072 and was officially a brigade, but each of the three regiments established with the founding of the Guard started from very humble beginnings and grew at the same rate. The avowed purpose of the Calderon Guard was to curtail the increase in pirate raids against the Calderon Protectorate since the beginning of the Jihad.[1]
The Jihad
By 3075 each of the regiments within the Guard had reached only a single mixed, reinforced company in strength; much of the equipment being supplied to the Guard had been acquired outside the Calderon Protectorate and smuggled in via various routes. Some of the equipment even originated as far away as the Federated Suns and the Magistracy of Canopus; speculation was that while the Federated Suns industries supplying the material were intending for the Protectorate forces to counterbalance the push into Federated Suns space by the Taurian Concordat, the material being supplied through the Magistracy actually originated with various Free Worlds League companies. It was also considered likely that sympathetic elements within the Concordat had been providing supplies, up until the combination of the asteroid strikes at the heart of the Concordat and a devastating campaign by FedSuns mercenaries that targetted the Taurian industrial base choked off the supply.[1]
The largest problem facing the Guard by the middle of the Jihad was a singular lack of manpower; each regiment within the Guard needed a supply of skilled, vetted, recruits, but the Protectorate lacked any formal military training establishment, and much of the Protectorate consisted of either mining outposts or agrarian settlements. The bulk of the manpower recruited into the Guard actually consisted of Concordat expatriates, and the number of expatriates dwindled sharply as the Jihad went on. This situation was unlikely to improve until after the construction of the New Hope Military University, which wasn't predicted to begin training its first class until 3079.[1]
One of those involved in assisting with the expansion of the various Guard regiments was Talia Martens, Captain of the "First" Prey's Divisionals and mother of the Protector-designate, Erik Martens-Calderon.[2] Despite the troubles the Guard was experiencing in reaching full strength the Calderon Protectorate Force made a great deal of noise about the rising strength of the brigade - a measure apparently intended to dissuade both pirates and the Taurian leadership from attacking the Protectorate. Pirate attacks on the Protectorate actually dropped in the wake of the asteroid bombardment of Taurus, but Baron Cham Kithrong continued to direct resources into allowing the Guard to expand.[1]
By 3079 the Guard had reached approximately one-fifth of full size - still far from the intended strength, but a notable achievement given the reduction in size of its Taurian counterparts. It was still considered likely to be years before the Guard reached full strength, but the CPF was diligent in ensuring that the regiments grew at an equal pace, ensuring that there could be no charges of favoritism in how the various regiments were treated.[3]
Dark Age
The Guards were garrisoned across the worlds of Diik, Gaul and Marknick during the early years of the Dark Age and continued to grow in size, reaching between forty-five and fifty percent of full strength by 3085.[4] The units within the Guard continued to train and operate as combined-arms formations, with one senior officer - the Colonel commanding the First Calderon Guard - being demoted to Brigadier and replaced in 3083 for failing to follow the established combat doctrine for the Guard and taking unnecessary casualties in the field as a result.[5]
By 3145 the Guard units were able to expand to nearly their full strength. The First was actually slightly overstrength, while the Third was the smallest, at 85% of its nominal size. Despite this, they were still deployed across the Calderon Protectorate.[6]
Officers
The Calderon Guard didn't have a brigade-level commanding officer;[4] instead, it appears that the brigade reported directly to Marshal Cham Kithrong and his aide, Comptroller Lena Maly.
Units of the Calderon Guard
Color Scheme and Unit Insignia
The Second Calderon Guard are noted as wearing dark brown dress uniforms in 3085;[5] it hasn't been confirmed if this was the standard pattern for the Calderon Guard or if it was unique to the second.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Masters & Minions: The StarCorps Dossiers, p. 193, "Calderon Guard"
- ↑ Masters & Minions: The StarCorps Dossiers, p. 188, "Talia Martens"
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Field Report: Periphery, p. 13, "Calderon Protectorate"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Field Manual: 3085, p. 151, "Calderon Guard"
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Field Manual: 3085, p. 145, "Calderon Guard Brigade
- ↑ Field Manual: 3145, pp. 198, 203, "Calderon Protectorate"