Education Conflict

"The level of arrogant stupidity displayed is completely unacceptable, and cannot be allowed to continue. We have tried all other options. A forceable education programme is the only course of action left to us, whatever form it might take.
I am truly sorry it has come to this, that they should be so unwilling to accept what we offer in friendship and continue their brutal and barbaric ways. I am sorry that they live so much in the shadow of their own ignorance that they cannot see what we have already sacrificed for them. I am sorry that a forceable education programme may very well be the only thing that can pierce the thick shells of their idiocy.
They only have themselves to blame."

— Extract from the "Forceable Education Programme" speech
Given by the Right Honourable Duke of Kipklippip

Background

Unity (as it is now known) is a planet within The Aspiration System and is now part of the Peacekeeper Territories. However, in the centuries leading up to the Peacekeepers arrival on Unity, a bitter war broke out between the two sapient species on the planet: the Brugen and the Nebrug.
As the Brugen are far more open and amenable to adding their records, this account may be mildly biased in their favour.

The War

Planning & Prelude

The Brugen had lived for a millennia, blissfully unaware of the Nebrug who occupied the oceans of Unity as well as an archipelago of almost 1,000 small islands in the far south of the planet. There were tales of strange ocean creatures, but as they didn't spend much time under the ocean or on the southern islands, these stories were dismissed as fiction.
In 1674 PT, the first meeting between a Nebrug and a Brugen took place on land, and a shakey alliance was formed. The Brugen were in the midst of the Age of Illumination, and we were fascinated with learning about the world around them. When they discovered that the Nebrug were far less technologically or sociologically advanced, they took pity on them and sent many of their best people to scout out the islands and to help teach the Nebrug how to do things better.
These attempts were mostly ignored and dismissed by the Nebrug who showed no interest in learning the Brugen's more advanced ways but seemed determined to stop the Brugen from building on the islands which would have made a delightful holiday destination.
Finally, in 1726 PT, the Brugen government agreed that enough was enough and the Right Honourable Duke of Kipklippip gave a speech to the nation which became known as the "Forceful Education Programme" speech. It was this which galvanised the Brugen into action.

Engagements

Engaging the Nebrug in any kind of civilised combat was impossible from the start. When faced with a challenge of any kind, the Nebrug simply swam underwater. They were able to remain submerged far longer than the Brugen could and this posed a real blocker for a sophisticated military interaction.
The strategy, therefore, was broken up into, predominantly, a bombing campaign, with three very specific aims. All three had a clear educational bent, and gave the war its name.

Demonstrate
Fragility

Much of the Nebrug infrastructure was far more fragile and required more maintenance than the more modern Brugen structures. Bombing and destroying these buildings, both proved their fragility and gave the Nebrug a good reason to build newer, more modern versions.

Disrupt
Traditions

Many of the Nebrug traditions flew in the face of good taste and logic. Destroying the places where these traditions were held and finding ways to disrupt those participating would discourage such poor behaviour and teach a valuable lesson about decency.

Create
Unrest

Although the Nebrug were mostly ambiguous about who their leaders were, it stood to reason that they had them. Therefore, causing death and upset to the Nebrug citizens would prompt them to call for an end to the war by whatever means necessary, and their leaders would listen.

Bombing campaigns generally lasted between four to five years and were usually followed by a five to ten year rest period, during which the Nebrug were given the opportunity to see the error of their ways. When they invariably failed to do so, another bombing campaign would commence.

Rebels

In spite of all the generous opportunities to change given to them by the Brugen, some Nebrug decided to fight back and created their own small guerrilla teams, which appeared unconnected from the illusive Nebrug leadership. These rebels proved their ignorance by destroying several major Brugen landmarks in a period between 1813 PT and 1829 PT which is known as the Tourist Torment, as it caused a planet-wide drop in the tourist trade which didn't recover until the 1920s PT.

Arrival of the Peacekeepers

In 1902 PT, the first Peackeepers arrived, and provided the Brugen with knowledge of a vast universe beyond their planet. They ceased engaging with the Nebrug, preferring instead to focus on what could be achieved with this new intergalactic connection.

The Aftermath

As a result of the conflict, Brugen and Nebrug are naturally wary of each other and mostly avoid stepping into each other's territories.
It was discovered after the conflict that the actions of the Brugen had caused the loss of thousands of years of Nebrug history. This is obviously very sad, and while the Brugen have not apologised for their very justified actions, they have offered to provide the Nebrug with an account of their own history if that would help. Over 2,500 years later, the Nebrug are yet to respond.
A retrospective account of the conflict, written by a Nebrug, called Age of Destruction has been discovered and added to Peacekeeper H'Spe's collection, but it is sorely lacking in detail, is prone to exaggeration and has been described as overly emotive.

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Related Articles

Species	Brugen, Nebrug, Pachian
Organisations	Peacekeeper Alliance, Peacekeeper Diplomacy
Locations	Peacekeeper Territories, The Aspiration System, Unity
Prose	Age of Destruction

Conflict Type

War

Battlefield Type

Planetary

Start Date

1726 PT

Ending Date

1902 PT

Location

Unity

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