Syrtis Fusiliers

Brigade Insignia of the Syrtis Fusiliers
Syrtis Fusiliers
Formed 2418
Nickname Pride and Prejudice
Affiliation Federated Suns
Parent Command AFFS

The Syrtis Fusiliers are the honor guard of the leader of the Capellan March. For that reason their fortunes have been tied to the Hasek family for years. The Hasek family is an ambitious and often scheming group of leaders that have commanded the Capellan March since the time of Prince Alexander Davion. The Syrtis Fusiliers are respected for their skill in combat but at times have been held in suspicion by an AFFS that questions their loyalty to the First Prince.

History[edit]

Early Years[edit]

The Fusiliers originated as the private army of the Hasek family, with its beginnings in the ad hoc force drawn from workers in the various mining and drilling operations owned by the Hasek family during the early history of New Syrtis. The Syrtis Fusiliers grew in prominence alongside the Haseks and New Syrtis, with the Fusiliers' remit expanding from being personal guards to the Hasek family to becoming the official guard of New Syrtis and one of the most important military forces within the Capellan March Principality.[1]

Davion Civil War[edit]

The bulk of the Syrtis Fusiliers supported Prince David Varnay and his wife Cassandra Davion loyally throughout the Davion Civil War, opposing first the combined forces of Laura Davion and Nikolai Rostov and then First Prince Alexander Davion. At the end of the war Prince Alexander offered an amnesty to the survivors from the brigade, and reintegrated the Syrtis Fusiliers into the Armed Forces of the Federated Suns, the restructured military that replaced the Federated Peacekeeping Forces as the state military of the Federated Suns.[1]

Alexander's clemency towards the Syrtis Fusiliers and his subsequent actions in rebuffing the attempt by Richard Varnay to seize control of the Capellan March cemented the Fusiliers' loyalty to New Avalon and the wider Federated Suns.[1]

The Star League[edit]

The Syrtis Fusiliers served the Federated Suns well in the two centuries following the Davion War, building up to a strength of ten full regiments prior to 2650. When the Star League council issued the Council Edict of 2650, sharply limiting the size of the military each Great House was allowed to maintain, the Fusiliers were left untouched and the brigade would remain ten regiments strong until shortly after the repeal of the Council Edict of 2650.[1]

The Edict was repealed in 2752[2] and in 2755 First Prince John Davion authorized an expansion of the Fusiliers that saw the brigade increase in strength from ten regiments to twenty by 2765,[1] although the new regiments were far more hostile in their attitude towards the nearby Capellan Confederation than the older, more established commands, a situation that led to a number of disciplinary incidents and issues.[3]

The Succession Wars[edit]

Despite frequent purges of anti-Davion elements since the brigade's absorption into the AFFS after the Davion Civil War, they have continually looked to the Duke of New Syrtis for direction, following the orders of New Avalon only if the Duke agrees with them. The Haseks' fanatical loyalty to the region and the defense of the Capellan March ensures the Fusiliers have a fanatical source of recruits from New Syrtis and its surrounding worlds while at the same time ensuring their loyalty to House Hasek.[4][5][6]

Third Succession War[edit]

At the request of Carl Davion in 2876 the AFFS created two crack lances almost totally from Warhammers, with some Riflemen support. These units functioned as heavy attack lances in several battles on the planets David and Mara against the DCMS.

The victorious units eventually became a part of the Syrtis Fusiliers, but many of the Warhammers had to be replaced with other 'Mech classes, due to losses and damage.[7]

The Dark Age[edit]

After the Jihad, the Syrtis Fusiliers (like the Robinson Rangers) were reorganized into a series of Light Combat Teams that focused on defensive operations. This allowed the Capellan March to put fighting forces back into the field much more quickly and over a larger area than the rebuilding of RCTs would have allowed. However this streamlining did not come without a price: Nathaniel Hasek opposed the reorganization plan until the Princess-Regent offered a squadron of Pocket WarShips to guard New Syrtis. Once these ships arrived the reorganization took place. In 3079 the Sixth Syrtis Fusiliers were the only unit near full Regimental Combat Team status.[8]

Demonstrating that their size hadn't affected their skills the Syrtis Fusiliers participated in Operation MATADOR taking several worlds. During this fighting Nathaniel Hasek was killed. Angela Hasek began supplying the units with officers and soldiers loyal to New Syrtis first and New Avalon second. The Princess-Regent responded by delivering supplies from outside the Capellan March, reminding the Fusiliers that they were part of the AFFS as a whole.[9]

During the Capellan Confederation's assault of the Federated Suns, the Syrtis Fusiliers lost their strategic command structure. This forced each unit of the Fusiliers to fight as an independent unit. Though this worked in some cases, the sheer number of Capellan units they faced forced the entire brigade back into the Federated Suns. As of 3145, no coherent command structure existed for the Fusiliers.[10]

Officers[edit]

Rank Name Command
Commanding Officers of the Syrtis Fusiliers
Duke Michael Hasek-Davion 3013[4] - 3029[11]
Duke Morgan Hasek-Davion 3029 - 3056[5]
Marshal Nathaniel Hasek 3056[5] - 3067[12]
Field Marshal Nathaniel Hasek 3067[12] - 3080[13]
Marshal Serena Thompson-Hasek 3080[13]

Tactics[edit]

Different per Unit.

Composition History[edit]

2765 - 20 commands[14]
2786 - 20 commands[15]
2821 - 18 commands[15] (2 commands destroyed during First Succession War[15])
2830 - 18 commands[16]
2864 - 13 commands[16] (5 commands destroyed during Second Succession War[16])

Units of the Syrtis Fusiliers[edit]

Notes[edit]

  • The 1st Fusiliers were reconstituted in 3079.[8]
  • The 2nd Fusiliers was active during the Victoria War.
  • The 7th Fusiliers was active during the Dark Age era.
  • The Eleventh Syrtis Fusiliers was formed between 2755 and 2765.[1]
  • The Twelfth Fusiliers was formed between 2755 and 2765.[1]
  • The Thirteenth Fusiliers was formed between 2755 and 2765.[1]
  • The Fourteenth Fusiliers was formed between 2755 and 2765.[1]
  • The Fifteenth Fusiliers was formed between 2755 and 2765.[1]
  • The Sixteenth Fusiliers was formed between 2755 and 2765.[1]
  • The Seventeenth Fusiliers was formed between 2755 and 2765.[1]
  • The Eighteenth Fusiliers was formed between 2755 and 2765.[1]
  • The Nineteenth Fusiliers was formed between 2755 and 2765.[1]
  • The Twentieth Fusiliers was formed between 2755 and 2765.[1]

Color Scheme and Uniforms[edit]

The brigade fields its vehicles with a standard dark-green color scheme.[4][5] Due to their independent streak, they were known to use regimental flashes instead of the Federated Suns insignia.[4] In the Succession Wars, MechWarriors of the Syrtis Fusiliers wore a light green cooling vest and shorts, sporting their regimental patch in lieu of the Federated Suns crest, while their infantry wore greenish-tan shirts and boots, with matching Davion-green pants and jerkin.[4] Succession Wars era Syrtis Fusiliers infantry personnel mocked helmets as being cowardly and usually opted to wear a green field cover instead. Like their MechWarriors, their BattleMechs, and their vehicles, infantry of that era wore their regimental insignia rather than the Federated Sunburst.[4] By the time of the FedCom Civil War, this attitude had changed, but, independent as ever, the Syrtis Fusiliers this time refused to wear the crest of the Federated Commonwealth, preferring the Federated Sunburst[5]

Unit Insignia[edit]

References[edit]

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 1.25 1.26 1.27 1.28 Field Report 2765: AFFS, p. 18: "Syrtis Fusiliers"
  2. Field Report 2765: AFFS, p. 3: "Strategic Update"
  3. Field Report 2765: AFFS, p. 19: "Morale"
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 House Davion (The Federated Suns): "Unit Descriptions - Syrtis Fusiliers"
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Field Manual: Federated Suns, p. 104: "Syrtis Fusiliers - Pride and Prejudice"
  6. Handbook: House Davion, p. 126: "Armed Forces of the Federated Suns - Point of the Sword - Syrtis Fusiliers"
  7. Technical Readout: 3025, p. 96 "Warhammer"
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 Field Report: AFFS, p. 15
  9. Field Manual: 3085, p. 63
  10. Field Manual: 3145, p. 78
  11. Warrior: Riposte, p. 298
  12. 12.0 12.1 Field Manual: Updates, p. 132
  13. 13.0 13.1 Field Manual: 3085, p. 63: "Capellan March Brigade"
  14. Field Report 2765: AFFS, p. 19
  15. 15.0 15.1 15.2 First Succession War, p. 135
  16. 16.0 16.1 16.2 Second Succession War, p. 95

Bibliography[edit]