Chesterton Reserves

Brigade Insignia of the Chesterton Reserves
Chesterton Reserves
Formed 2832[1]
Previous Designation(s) Chesterton Regulars
Affiliation Capellan Confederation;
Tikonov Grand Union (previous);
Chesterton Trade League (previous)
Parent Command Capellan Confederation Armed Forces


Defenders of the Chesterton Commonality until its capture by the Federated Suns, the Chesterton Reserves were primarily assigned to bolster of the Davion border along the Tikonov Commonality and was almost completely destroyed during the Fourth Succession War, only Kingston's Legionnaires and Sung's Cuirassiers, now known as Kingston's Rangers and Sung's Rangers still exist but with the reorganization of CCAF they were moved to the Victoria Commonality Rangers and the brigade was disbanded.


History[edit]

Chesterton Army[edit]

The Chesterton Army was the name for the military forces of the Chesterton Trade League,[2] a state formed in the declining years of the Terran Alliance.[3] The Chesterton Army continued to exist during the early alliance between the Chesterton Trade League and the Tikonov Union, but was reorganized when the two states merged to form the Tikonov Grand Union[2] in 2243.[4][5] The Chesterton Army included such notable units as the Chesterton Cavalry, the Chesterton Cuirassiers[2] and, presumably, the Arcadian Cuirassiers, prior to the Cuirassiers homeworld of Demeter being conquered by the Federated Suns.[6]

Chesterton Regulars[edit]

Age of War[edit]

As a part of the formation of the Tikonov Grand Union the Chesterton Army were restructured to form the new Chesterton Regulars brigade. In addition to absorbing those regular units such as the Chesterton Cavalry and Chesterton Cuirassiers, the Tikonov Grand Union also established a new formation, the Chesterton Border Guards. Raised from various militia units within the Chesterton worlds, the Border Guards never really raised their skill level much past that of their militia predecessors; a distinctly second-tier unit within the Chesterton Regulars,[2] the Chesterton Border Guards would survive the Tikonov Grand Union and the formation of the Capellan Confederation - barely - but in 2388 the surviving remnants of the Border Guards were merged together to form the Ariana Fusiliers.[7]

The Chesterton Regulars took part in many campaigns aimed at recapturing Chesterton, the former capital of the Chesterton Trade League, during the Age of War; the campaigns took a heavy toll on the brigade, and most of the Regulars were destroyed for relatively little gain. The Regulars did manage to capture Chesterton twice, but both times they were unable to hold it for less than a year before Federated Suns troops retook the planet. The various campaigns invariably became brutal slugfests, and by the Reunification War the only surviving units of the Regulars were two of the Chesterton Cavalry regiments, the Third and Eighth, the Cuirassiers and the Ariana Fusiliers.[2]

Star League Era[edit]

The Chesterton Regulars remained four regiments strong during the bulk of the Star League era, but after the Council Edict of 2650 was repealed by the Star League in 2572 the Capellan Confederation Armed Forces began expanding rapidly, as did the militaries of the other Great Houses. Between 2572 and 2765 the Regulars gained two new regiments, the Ariana Grenadiers and Tristram's Avengers. The Regulars had spent much of the Star League era as garrison forces, but as the secret wars and hidden conflicts between the Great Houses began to escalate in the mid-twenty-eighth century the Regulars began to rapidly gain combat experience. In particular, the two-year border war that erupted after a terror attack on Demeter honed the Regular's combat edge, and despite an uneasy peace being negotiated between the Capellan Confederation and Federated Suns the Regulars were champing at the bit, ready for open warfare to start again.[2] In the years between the Amaris Coup and the beginning of the First Succession War the Regulars added another new regiment to the brigade, Shadrack's Shadowhawks, and during the War three regiments of Chesterton Voltigeurs would be added to the brigade.[8]

Chesterton Reserves[edit]

In 2832 the newly reconstituted Chesterton Reserves engaged House Davion as they attacked Tikonov. The brigade faced up against the 2nd Ceti Hussars using Vindicators and rebuilt Davion Marauders and barely blunted Federated Suns attacks on this world.[1] The newly formed 23rd Chesterton Reserves was noted as one featured regiments to field the Vindicator in what be known as the First Battle of Tikonov.[9]

In 2987 House Davion sporadically attacked Tikonov over the course of several months and the reserves battled in vain to keep the aggressors from taking the planet. Only when Chancellor Tormax Liao sent the last of the Capellan Armed Forces' intact reserve forces where they able to hold the Davion world of Lee and gain relief from the pressure of constant attack.

Fourth Succession War[edit]

Most of the units were based out of both Tikonov and Chesterton districts prior to the Fourth Succession War and suffered almost complete devastation by war's end. Only the Kingston's Legionnaires and Sung's Cuirassiers managed to survive as fighting units.[10] The last of the Chesterton Reserves were assigned to the newly formed Victoria Commonality Rangers Brigade when Victoria Commonality was formed.[11]

Officers[edit]

Year Rank Name
Commanding Officers of the Chesterton Army
Commanding Officers of the Chesterton Regulars
Commanding Officers of the Chesterton Reserves
3050 Colonel William McKinson

Tactics[edit]

Different per Unit.

Units of the Chesterton Reserves[edit]

2765[edit]

2786[edit]

2821[edit]

3025[edit]

3050[edit]

Color Scheme and Insignia[edit]

Each regiment has its own paint scheme.

Brigade Note[edit]

There is no information prior to when the Chesterton Reserves were reconstituted. Thus the unit "creation" date listed is when it was reconstituted.

Gallery[edit]

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 House Liao (the Capellan Confederation), p. 48: "Second Succession War - Newly reconstituted Chesterton Reserves defended against Davion attack"
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Field Report 2765: CCAF, p. 10: "Chesterton Regulars"
  3. House Liao (The Capellan Confederation), p. 20
  4. House Liao (The Capellan Confederation), p. 10: "The Other Shoe"
  5. Handbook: House Liao, p. 12: "Timeline: Capellan Zone"
  6. Field Report 2765: AFFS, p. 11: "Arcadian Cuirassiers"
  7. House Liao (The Capellan Confederation), p. 82: "1st Ariana Fusiliers"
  8. 8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 8.10 8.11 8.12 8.13 8.14 8.15 8.16 8.17 First Succession War, p. 135: "Capellan Confederation Armed Forces (CCAF) - Deployment Table"
  9. Technical Readout: 3025, p. 52: Vindicator - "23rd Chesterton Reserves noted being featured as part defense of Tikonov
  10. 20 Year Update, p. 62
  11. Field Manual: Capellan Confederation, p. 83
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 Field Report 2765: CCAF, p. 10
  13. 13.0 13.1 20 Year Update, pp. 62–63: "Capellan Confederation Armed Forces (CCAF)"

Bibliography[edit]