Michael Barlow
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Michael Barlow | |
|---|---|
| Personal | |
| Died | c. 2801[1] |
| Affiliation | Federated Suns |
| Profile | |
| Rank | Colonel[1] |
Michael Barlow was an officer in the Thirty-eighth Avalon Hussars during the First Succession War.[1]
History[edit]
Colonel Barlow, serving with the Thirty-eighth Avalon Hussars, found himself stationed on his homeworld of Cussar during the opening stages of the First Succession War. Barlow knew the world's mountainous terrain well and believed that only House Davion would treat the planet with the respect it deserved. When the Draconis Combine launched a major offensive against the Federated Suns in May 2787, virtually every border world between the Combine and the Federated Suns came under attack—including Cussar. Facing two BattleMech regiments and and another four regiments of conventional forces, Barlow and the Thirty-eighth Hussars found themselves severely outmatched against a determined foe.[1]
The Thirty-eighth Hussars fought valiantly for two weeks but reports of disasters and atrocities across the entire border began to seriously demoralize the unit's commanding officers. When word came that Field Marshal Grover Simons had been killed and the Federated Suns world of Clovis had been taken, the Hussars' commander Leftenant General Louis Santonio gave the order for the Thirty-eighth to retreat from Cussar. Barlow, refusing to abandon his homeworld and unable to convince Santonio to stay, remained on Cussar with the remaining survivors of his battalion.[1]
Taking his troops into the rugged Trinity Mountains, Barlow's men spent the next three years launching hit and run attacks while scavenging just enough parts and supplies to keep in fighting shape with the aid of Cussar natives. When their 'Mechs ultimately failed, Barlow's soldiers spent another decade fighting the Combine occupiers with small arms and captured Combine vehicles. When the last of Barlow's guerrillas were killed in 2801, they left behind a world inspired by their bravery and resistance, resulting in centuries of further insurgent activity against the Draconis Combine. Barlow's exploits lead to citizens on both sides of the border referring to Cussar as "Barlow's Folly" and the nickname became the Combine's official name for Cussar as time passed.[1]