Greenhaven Gestapo

History

Originally raised in 2750 by Antilos Legos under the name Legos's Lancers, this mercenary battalion gained a new name "a few years later" during deployment in the city of Greenhaven on Novara: The local mayor called them the "Greenhaven Gestapo" for their vicious and authoritarian tactics, and Legos was amused enough to adopt the name for his unit, now a regiment in strength.

By the early 2760s Antilos Legos was serving as a military advisor to Rim Worlds Republic lord Stefan Amaris, and would remain something of a right-hand man for Amaris; the unscrupulous and violent Greenhaven Gestapo became a go-to unit for irregular operations, and was at the forefront of Operation APOTHEOSIS, the bloody Amaris Coup that seized control of the Star League. They were instrumental in seizing the Hegemony Government complex on Terra.

Among the numerous atrocities the Greenhaven Gestapo is said to have committed, one outstanding example is the sacking of the Vatican state on Terra and the murder of Pope Clement XXVII in 2770. Legos reportedly presided over the "trial" of the College of Cardinals himself and executed the pope when the Church was unable to pay Legos' stupendous ransom demands, then ordered his men to "have fun" with the Cardinals. Unimaginable horrors were inflicted upon the Cardinals and the people of Rome.

Named members of the Greenhaven Gestapo who were accused of war crimes include Bernard "Ogre" Critchley,, Alexis "Succubus" Adley, and Hans Mikkelsen.

Captain Bernard Critchly, who earned his nickname "Ogre" for his poor hygiene and brutal disposition, was known for having his portraits spray-painted on the Sistine Chapel. When protests followed, the Gestapo managed to control the first outbursts, but additional protests mounted in response to the Gestapo's ruthlessness. During one, Critchly blocked in 750 monks who were staging a hunger strike in John Paul II Square, and killed more than six hundred of them with his Rampage alone.

While the specific fate of the Greenhaven Gestapo as a unit is not spelled out, Antilos Legos died in a final battle outside Ferrara, Italy, on Terra on 24 March 2777 when the SLDF reconquered the planet. It is heavily implied that the Greenhaven Gestapo was shattered as a unit after a bitterly fought defensive campaign where they eventually succumbed to the SLDF army although Legos was reportedly unafraid to use terror tactics or strategic weapons. Captain Bernard Critchly disappeared after the war, neither the warrior nor his machine were ever reportedly seen again. Hans Mikkelsen survived to the end of the war and did hide in Italy, but in 11 October 2777 he was captured by SLDF soldiers in Rome and apparently executed by a member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith

Officers

Rank	Name	Command
Commanding Officers of Legos's Lancers
	Antilos Legos	2750
Commanding Officers of Greenhaven Gestapo
General	Antilos Legos	2777

Tactics

Unknown.

Composition History

Unknown.

Notes

• The "Gestapo" part of the unit's name was presumably meant to underscore the villainy of the unit, by referencing a Nazi Germany unit. However, what was apparently overlooked is that the original Gestapo (an abbrevation for Geheime Staatspolizei, "secret state police") was in reality neither a military nor a paramilitary force. When the Greenhaven Gestapo was fleshed out further in 2012, after having been just a footnote from the original 1988 The Star League sourcebook for 24 years, this was adressed as outlined above, i.e. by explaining it as a derogatory nickname that the unit later adopted.

Bibliography

• Hard Justice (in: Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 2, pp. 5-8)
• Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 1
• Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 2
• The Star League
• Technical Readout: Succession Wars