The Brotherhood

Si nous voulons atteindre la liberté et l'égalité, nous devons d'abord atteindre la fraternité.
(If we are to achieve Liberty and Equality, we must first achieve Brotherhood.)

— Louis Poincaré

The Brotherhood was a united military force and political organisation dedicated to the overthrowing of the People's Republic of Lordania, and the Unitarian Party. It contained numerous important resistance figures, including Governments-in-Exile, and military commanders. It was formed in 2268 after the People's Republic took control of the Lordanian Cluster, and began their purge of political dissidents, many of whom fled into exile at the edges of Unitarian territory, where the resistance lay hidden.
The Brotherhood was established on the planet Sirim, outside the Lordanian Cluster, by former political figures, most notably Nouveaulyon Senator, Jacques Garcin, Rear Admiral Mei Zhuang, Senator Cho Hyun-joo, and Commander Louis Poincaré. Understanding that the Brotherhood was incapable of standing in a direct fight with the PRL, it instead opted to support planetary resistances, creating governments, and helping important figures escape PRL retribution. It was only when the People's Republic were weak that they were able to attack directly.
For most of its existence, The Brotherhood was led by Jacques Garcin first from their flagship, the CV Respite, and then from a liberated Nouveaulyon. After the collapse of the People's Republic, the Brotherhood's purpose was more or less complete, and the group was divided into its political form, now called the Democratic League, led by Jacques Garcin until his death in 2283 and followed by Wil Griffith, and its military side, which remained as the Brotherhood and was led by Louis Poincaré until his disappearance in 2288, several days after the founding of the Confederate Systems of Lordania, in which the Brotherhood and the Democratic League were formally merged into a state.
The Brotherhood remains a significant part of Lordanian culture and history, with its influence felt on every planet in the system. The leaders of the Brotherhood have largely become figures of legend, with only Cho Hyun-joo still alive, and largely considered the founding mother of Yuklid. In Confederate space, the Brotherhood's symbolism has found its way into everyday life.

Structure

The Brotherhood was organised as a quasi-government. While its primary focus was the organisation of a capable military force and combatting the People's Republic, it recognised the need for a legitimate successor to the PRL, and the means to administer territory under their control. At the head of the Brotherhood was the Secretary-General, a role appointed by the Resistance Council. The Resistance Council was the collective leadership of the various governments-in-exile that the Brotherhood helped to establish. Equal in authority to the Council were the Commanders of the Brotherhood, the highest officials in the Brotherhood who oversaw various aspects of the organisation.
Jacques Garcin held the position of Secretary-General for the near-entirety of the Brotherhood's existence. Upon Garcin's death in 2283, the Resistance Council had become the Democratic League, and the Brotherhood became its military arm, with Louis Poincaré serving as Commander-in-Chief, until his disappearance in 2286. The Council elected Wil Griffith to the Secretary-General position following Garcin's death, and he oversaw the transition into the Confederate Systems of Lordania.

Resistance Council

The Resistance Council was formed in 2271 and served as the civilian political side of Brotherhood activities. It was instrumental in securing Brotherhood victory against the Unitarians, as it provided a sense of legitimacy for their operations on the various planets within the cluster. It was composed of former democratic politicians and influential figures, many of whom had fled the Unitarian Purges. These people made up the leadership of the various resistance groups across the Cluster. While the Brotherhood's policy was to create a unified government-in-exile on every planet, for logistical reasons this proved difficult, and so opted to offer a voice and support to local figures. The Council was well received by most systems, as it served to give a voice to the legitimate governments of the various planets of the Cluster, and to allow them to decide policy. Its primary purpose was to preserve democratic institutions, and to ensure greater unity and collaboration against the Unitarian threat. For example, the Tersten Government-in-Exile was part of the Resistance Council, and its President, Ronald Mayweather, is remembered for giving his famous 'No Rest For The Wicked' speech at the Resistance Council Congress in 2278.
To be a member of the Resistance Council and receive Brotherhood support, the organisation or government needed to; Be democratically elected, or uphold democratic values; Be thoroughly anti-Unitarian in principle, and allow no collaboration or concessions to them; Be prepared to commit to the interstellar resistance movement, and follow the directive of military leadership in total warfare.

Commanders of the Brotherhood

The Commanders of the Brotherhood were the four highest ranking officials of the Brotherhood, who handled the various aspects of the Resistance. These were:
Commander of the Press - Cho Hyun-joo
Handled relations with the various superpowers of human space, as well as propaganda efforts.
Commander of the Government - Wil Griffith
Handled the organising of the Resistance Council and government institutions.
Commander of the Revolution - Louis Poincaré
Handled the official ideology and doctrine of the Brotherhood, and guerilla/paramilitary operations.
Commander of the Forces - Mei Zhuang
Handled military affairs and commanded the Brotherhood Navy.
The Commanders held significant authority over the Brotherhood, and while they did not all agree ideologically, especially on future economic policies, they maintained significant unity in the face of Unitarian threats. It was only post-war that the leadership fractured and went their separate ways.

Secretary-General

The Secretary-General of the Brotherhood was the supreme authority of the organization and Commander-in-Chief of the military. The position was considered very undemocratic, given that it could override the authority of the Resistance Council. However, Garcin never used his power of veto, and used the role to further anti-unitarian action in the Cluster, and his position as former political leader in the First Republic to act as Head of State. After Garcin's death, Wil Griffith was appointed to the role, who continued the reforms led by Garcin, now termed Garcinism. This marked a notable shift in Brotherhood politics. Griffith became the Secretary-General of the Democratic League, the political arm of the Brotherhood, and Poincaré became the Commander-in-Chief of the Brotherhood, the pseudo-military arm of the Democratic League. It was a complicated relationship that ended in 2276 with Poincaré's disappearance, and the founding of the Confederate Systems.

History

Prelude

What started as targeted political smears and vague threats by members of the Unitarian Party became actual threats and assassination attempts almost immediately after the Election of '60. But only once the People's Republic itself was created, in 2265, that it began gearing itself towards a series of purges against political and military figures that were either moderate or opposed to Unitarian views. This culminated in the Purge of '66, a failed attempt on the lives of numerous influential sitting political figures, including rising Yuklidean senator Cho Hyun-joo, and veteran Nouveaulyon senator Jacques Garcin. With Garcin's help, many were able to escape this attempt on their life, and flee underground. However, once there, it became extremely difficult to unify and coordinate against the greater threat, with many feeling resistance was entirely impossible. However, some felt otherwise.

Early Years

Louis Poincaré and Jacques Garcin had always been close friends, even when separated by lightyears. They remained in close contact despite being forced into hiding. On Cinu, Poincaré would fight alongside influential figures of the Cinuan Resistance, where he began to formulate much of the ideas that would influence the Brotherhood to come. Their chance came when they were contacted by Mei Zhuang, an admiral of the Lordanian Navy and keen to defect from the Unitarians. It was thanks to her that Poincaré was able to flee Cinu and arrive on Indus.
On Indus, Poincaré and Zhuang were able to meet face to face, and convinced several dockworkers at the Indus Shipyards to join them on a daring heist: To steal the unfinished Lordanian carrier, the CV Respite. Remarkably, their plan worked, and the Respite became the first, and primary vessel in the Brotherhood Navy.
Meanwhile, Jacques Garcin had found himself stuck on a ship, with nowhere to go, or to hide. With the help of a sympathetic pilot, Arthur Parker, the two were able to flee Unitarian pursuit, and end up on Yuklid V, where they joined with Wil Griffith to thwart an assassination attempt on Hyun-joo. Together, they learned of the theft of the CV Respite by Poincaré and Zhuang, and set off to rendezvous. Now together for the first time, the Brotherhood was founded in deep space, on-board their stolen flagship, in 2268.
Together, they worked in the shadows to further the goals of the Brotherhood, and by 2275 had amassed enough numbers and ships to operate in Lordanian space. As a pan-ethnic revolutionary force, it conducted various covert operations against the Unitarians. As well as its own goals, the Brotherhood worked closely with planetary factions to oversee and prepare a large scale revolution. It favoured establishing a government-in-exile for planetary bodies.

Lordanian Revolution

The Lordanian Revolution did not begin on the same day across every planet. The first official act of the Revolution is now largely considered to be the storming of the Kikwit Arsenal on Nouveaulyon, in 2276. While the storming of the Arsenal was bad, the PRL responded harshly, even deploying their reserve fleet from the important shipbuilding yards of Indus. Sensing weakness, the Brotherhood were able to infiltrate the shipyards and decommission them, preventing the vital maintenance of damaged ships. One after another, the dominoes set up by the Brotherhood over the past decade began to tumble, with the bombing of the Tersten Parliament, killing many military figures in 2277. Then on Cinu, a retaliation to numerous human rights abuses soon spread into a wildfire. With the PRL's fleet divided, the Brotherhood were able to pilot a ship into a path with the Senate on Lordania. The ensuing disaster destroyed a large part of New Ares, including the Senate. Most of the PRL's leading figures were unable to escape the destruction. The state collapsed soon after, leaving most of the planets open to re-establish themselves as independent. This began the period of Interregnum.

Interregnum

During the Interregnum, the Brotherhood was concerned with liberating as many planets as possible, and ensuring swift justice on the Unitarians. This, amongst other things, led to the military blockade of Yuklid, which eventually caused Cho Hyun-joo to quit the Brotherhood in disgust, forming the initial rift between the two sides that would grow to become the rift dividing the Lordanian Cluster in two.

Dissolusion

The Brotherhood was eventually disbanded when its members and leaders became the Confederate Systems of Lordania, which is considered its direct successor. While much of the Brotherhood's forces were absorbed into the Confederation, there remains many rumours and tales of a 'lost fleet' in hiding.

Disbandment

Following the creation of the Second Lordanian Republic, the Democratic League and the Brotherhood convened to found the Confederate Systems, with the Democratic League becoming the Confederate's political arm, and the Brotherhood becoming its military.

DISBANDED/DISSOLVED

2265 - 2288

Type

Secret, Military

Successor Organization

• Confederate Systems of Lordania

Leader Title

Secretary-General of the Brotherhood

Head of State

Jacques Garcin

Head of Government

Jacques Garcin

Government System

Meritocracy

Parent Organization

Confederate Systems of Lordania

Notable Members

• Jacques Garcin
• Louis Poincaré
• Marian Tessier
• Wil Griffith