Template:Battle The Bombardment of Belgor was an operation carried out by the Sword Confederacy in 3977 during the Hapan Civil War. The planet Belgor in the Arxian system, while strategically unimportant, was the homeworld of the Belgorian species which was vital to the Draconian Union's war effort. The 3rd Sword Assault Fleet penetrated the outer defences of the Arxian system and proceeded to bombard the lightly defended planet to smithereens, damaging the ecosystem beyond the possibility of restoration while also causing mass genocide. It remains one of the most controversial events of the Hapan Civil War.
Background
The Arxian System
The Arxian system had been discovered in 302 during the First Expansion Era, but was not settled by colonists until after the outbreak of the Hapan Civil War, in 3948. Previously it had symbolically been the territory of House Raqill which governed from Selab. The system was settled after an agreement between Princess Da'tan of the Draconian Union and Hapan and Alderaanian pilgrims. The initial agreement was that the pilgrims would settle on Arxian Major, Arxian Minor and the moon Sintral and establish an agricultural society which would provide supplies for the Draconian Armed Forces. Additionally, the pilgrims had to consent to being governed by House Tylger and some lesser nobility. The pilgrims agreed and established their outposts across the three planets.
The Belgorians
Belgor and its feline-like population had been known to the Hapan leadership but contact and diplomacy had previously been avoided as much as possible due to aggressiveness of the local species. The pilgrims were strictly forbidden from leaving the system or having any contact with the population of Belgor. However, as the war dragged on Regent Ci'hani saw the need for additional, preferably expendable, troops for the Draconian Armed Forces. Contact with the Belgorians was initiated in 3966 by Countess Zah'naria who had been governing the moon Sintral and its strategic military bases. The Countess was a skilled diplomat and managed to convince the Belgorians to commit their warriors to the Draconian war effort and also turn the planet over to the Draconian Union in exchange for numerous benefits for the locals.
House Zah'naria became the governing house of Belgor under the supervision of House Tylger and maintained good relations with the locals throughout the course of the war. Numerous light military installations were established on parts of the world that the Belgorians reserved for the nobility while hundreds of millions of members of the species went off to fight on the frontlines as assault troops.
Sword Confederacy Attack
Motivation For Attack
In 3977 it became clear to the leadership of the Sword Confederacy that the Draconian Union had a clear upper hand with the devotion of House Olanji's vast shipyards and other industrial facilities that produced millions of tons of military hardware every day for the Royal Draconian Order. In addition the armies of the Draconian Union had a seemingly unlimited supply of Charubah Cyborg troopers and Belgorian assault troops.
Princess Inaq gave her military commanders three options to choose from. An attack on the Charu Wheels shipyard facilities, an attack on the Anacalahad factories or an attack on any major Draconian army installation. All three options meant a major thrust in to Draconian territory, most likely with enormous causalities. Most of her command staff were willing to commit any forces to any such major operation, but eventually Countess Escalus of Terephon volunteered the 3rd Sword Assault Fleet for the operation. The Countess promised the Princess a swift and decisive military operation that would turn the tide of the war in their favour. It is still uncertain if the Princess knew exactly what the Countess had in mind.
The Attack
On May 26 the 3rd Sword Assault Fleet dropped out of hyperspace near Belgor, destroying the Duranian Defense Station with minimal losses. Broadcast satellites were left undamaged so that the leadership of the Draconian Union would be able to watch recordings of the incident. Approximately 340 cargo freighters carrying water and other vital supplies for the entrenched troops of the Reboam campaign were destroyed, seemingly at pure chance as they were manoeuvring to clear the planet's gravity well at the time.
The 8th Draconian Order which was normally stationed in the system had been split in two task forces. The primary task force was doing a patrol of the outskirts of the Orthwell system, intercepting freighters supplying the Sword Confederacy's efforts in the siege of XY322098. The secondary task force was on patrol in the Arxian system near the Corpal gas giant and consisted of older and slower ships. By the time they had been made aware of the attack and reached Belgor, most of the Sword fleet had left. Only a few shots were fired between the two fleets and only two frigates were lost.
The 3rd Sword Assault Fleet began with bombardment of numerous major cities and settlements on the planet in an effort to knock out communication on the planet. It then proceeded to concentrate bombardment on the Draconian outposts and fortresses while fires spread through the lush forests and grasslands of the planet. Countess Escalus gave the order to target numerous volcanic areas, causing massive eruptions across the planet. Lava consumed nearby areas in a raging inferno.
After approximately two hours of continuous fire, the Countess gave the order for her ships to clear the gravity well and jump back to the Hapes system.
Outcome
Approximately 2.2 billion Belgorians were killed in the attack and 80% of the sentients on the planet perished. However at the time of the attack, nearly 500 million Belgorians were offworld fighting for the Draconian Union. The Union went to great lengths to evacuate the survivors of the bombardment and refugee shelters were set up all across Arxian Minor and Arxian Major.
Offworld troops were enraged by what had happened and trigged an opposite effect of what the Sword Confederacy had wanted. Draconian troops fought harder than ever before and many Belgorians committed suicide attacks on Sword troops, carrying explosives on their body as they leaped in to the enemy's midst.
Draconian leadership decided to retaliate in a similar operation and attacked Terephon and Hapes Prime the year after and captured Countess Escalus in the process.
The planet became uninhabitable over time and most of the Belgorians adapted to living on other worlds of the Rim Worlds region.
