Interplanetary Federation of Sol
A predecessor to the Sol Empire, this fledgling federation was miniscule in comparison - Only ever covering colonies within a single star system over the course of four hundred years. This nation formed even before the Varkesh had discovered the Human colony ship that seeded the foundations for the Terran Democracy, yet their government structure is almost identical - Elected leaders, laws enacted by vote and enforced by a committee of elected jurors and judges and a public police force. Had the Sons of Unity not torn this Federation asunder and formed their Empire, would the Interplanetary Federation of Sol have become the beacon of peace and unity the Sol Empire claims to be?
In the wake of the Third War, Human civilization as everyone knew it came to a sudden, fiery end. The planet Earth was ravaged with nuclear explosions and fire, and all contact with the surface was lost. The powers that had seen to the creation of the Mars colonies and International Space Station, now known as Nuntius Terrae, were no more. All that remained of Humanity was a relatively small group of colonists and researchers, and the colony ships that had left mere months ago. From the Mars colonies and orbital stations, a new Human nation was formed - One dedicating itself to peace, unity, and rebuilding. This new nation was known as the Interplanetary Federation of Sol (IFS) and made the Shin Chōfu colony on Mars its new capital.
Structure
Federal President
Main article: Sol Federal President
Federal Parliament
Main article: Sol Federal Parliament
Serving as a unicameral legislative branch, the federal Parliament of the IFS was responsible for the writing and amendment of federal laws and the IFS' constitution. Members of Parliament were elected every 8 years, with the same limit of 2 consecutive terms without a limit of total number of terms served for each individual as the Federal President. The number of Parliament representatives allotted to each colony varied throughout the lifespan of the Federation as the nation expanded from the Mars colonies to other planets and orbital stations, typically ranging from one to four with the 'core colonies' holding the higher count, and 'outer colonies' holding the lower.
History
Forming a new Federation
With the conclusion of the Third War, the various colonies on Mars and the researchers aboard the International Space Station found themselves without a proper government or leadership. For two years, not knowing what to do, these communities tried to continue their existence independently, but quickly found such a venture was not feasible. In the last months of 2037 AD, the three Mars colonies began negotiating the terms of forming a new Human nation amongst themselves and the heavily dependent ISS crew. On January 15, 2038, these negotiations were signed into a new constitution and the Interplanetary Federation of Sol was formed. Shin Chōfu, the largest of the three Mars colonies, was named the new Federation's capital and Hanako Jiang was elected as the first president.
The newly formed IFS declared the beginning of a new calendar era, marking January 1, 2036 AD as January 1, 1 PT. This meant the founding of the IFS occurred on January 15, 2 PT. The International Space Station also saw a change: With the previous 'nations' no longer existing, the station was renamed to the Nuntius Terrae, or 'Revenant of Earth'. Nuntius Terrae was gradually repurposed from a research station to an Earth observation station, then eventually to a city-station remaining in orbit over the next several years.
Federal Expansionism
One hundred and fifty years after the IFS was founded and the young nation had stabilized, the government began looking toward expanding itself into new horizons and colonizing other planets using technologies like those that allowed Mars to be colonized. This period of federal expansionism began with the growth of the nation's space faring fleets, construction of orbital stations over and between various planets, and eventually the construction of habitation domes or outright terraforming of planets and moons. The first new colony was built upon Earth's moon on October 3, 156 PT, and was named 'Luna'. Others slowly followed over the course of the Federation's lifetime as the nation continued to expand itself in territory, population, and internal political power.
Earth
As part of the Federation's expansionist efforts, the population's focus turned to Earth. It had been, at this stage, nearly two hundred years since the nuclear war and many were hopeful that the planet might be habitable again. An expeditionary team of researchers was formed, tasked with surveying the planet first from the orbital station Nuntius Terrae and, if deemed safe enough to do so, venture down to the planet's surface to determine the viability of re-colonizing the planet. This campaign, however, proved fruitless - Despite the good signs quoted by the lead researcher from the station, once the expedition reached the planet's surface they were forced to withdraw after only a few hours. Earth was declared inhospitable to human life and written off as a permanent loss as the Federation turned its attentions back to the other planets in the system.
Sol Civil War
As the expansionism campaign continued into the year 436 PT, the Federation began to feel the growing pains of a nation whose outer colonies were a number of month's travel away. Several of the more recent colonies, including Atlas Station in the asteroid belt began to feel they were under-represented in Parliament with most of the colonies only holding a single seat, while federal laws and regulations that imposed taxes and strict regulations on the colonies were passed. This growing unrest saw the formation of multiple activist and pirate groups along the frontier, including a group of highly vocal protestors led by Titus Young, Sr: The Sons of Unity. Federation officials attempted to keep the peace but found themselves at the mercy of the lengthy travel distances and growing pirate threat in the asteroid belt.
This growing unrest and tension in the outer colonies suddenly erupted into violence when, on February 25, 437 PT, a group of protestors aboard Atlas Station were fired on and killed by Federation peacekeeping officials. Nobody knows for sure what prompted the attack that became known as the Atlas Massacre, or even if it really was Federation peacekeepers who committed the act, but the Sons of Unity turned the victims into martyrs for their cause. The frontier colonies and stations banded together under Young's banner, and the group was even able to recruit members of the Federation's peace keeping and military forces that were appalled at the news of a civilian massacre on Atlas, providing them with a full fleet of combat-ready ships.
The conflict, now referred to as the Sol Civil War, lasted for only a year before the Sons of Unity stormed Nuntius Terrae and Shin Chōfu, killing the President and his staff, and declaring the IFS no more. Instead, the nation would begin anew under the flag of the Sol Empire, with the leader of the Sons of Unity declaring himself their new Emperor on February 8, 438 PT. Titus Young was received with great applause.
Territories
At the height of its expansion, the Interplanetary Federation of Sol controlled territory reaching out to Jupiter, beyond the Sol Asteroid Belt. This includes the colonies on Luna, Ceres, several mining 'towns' in the asteroid belt, and various stations in orbit of planetary bodies and within the belt itself.
Currency
At the time of its formation, the Federation's currency was in a state of flux - The credit card and debit system that used to exist from Earth was gone. Trade was handled through bartering and exchange of valuable resources such as water and food. Eventually, a new credit-based system came into existence and adopted the name 'Euros'. However, this system didn't catch on and instead the recently formed 'Federal Banking Institute' proposed a new standardized currency to the government: The Credit. This new form of currency was adopted, and has existed throughout much of the Federation's existence, even surviving into the reformation of the Sol Empire. The Sol Credit is still used today.
To never repeat the tragedies of Earth.
Barron
Holy goodness, this was an impressive read. I loved the story of a destroyed earth being the center of this big conflict. The sol Empire does sound intimidating. I really liked this!
Sierra Brown
You should see the Sol Empire article then that I submitted for last month's masters monthly :P
Sol Empire
One of several main powers in the Milky Way galaxy, the Sol Empire was formed from the shattered Interplanetary Federation of Sol following the Sol Civil War.