Davion Brigade of Guards

Davion Guards -Brigade logo.png
Davion Brigade of Guards
Formed ca. 2418[1]
Nickname Royal Brigade[1]
Affiliation Federated Suns
Parent Command AFFS

The Davion Brigade of Guards are the descendants of the personal bodyguard that Lucien Davion created to defend the President of the Federated Suns. Over time the Brigade evolved into a modern military unit and was eventually integrated into the AFFS. Today, the Royal Brigade serves as the elite of the Davion military, and though its soldiers were once drawn solely from New Avalon, they now come from all over the realm and their loyalty to House Davion ensures the unit's devotion is to the Federated Suns as a whole.[2]

History[edit]

Early History[edit]

The origin of the Davion Brigade of Guards lies in the personal house guard of the Davion family. Originally responsible for protecting members of the family, the unit took on wider responsibilities as the Federated Suns evolved. When Reynard Davion[1] was elected President in 2340[3] they were formally incorporated into the Federated Peacekeeping Forces and took on the responsibility of protecting the leader of the Federated Suns. Once Simon Davion[1] became the first to hold the title of First Prince in 2418[4] they were officially recognized as the Royal Brigade.[1]

Star League Era[edit]

The Davion Brigade of Guards continued to grow in importance as time passed, occupying a more and more prominent role in the Federated Suns military. Along with the First Avalon Hussars, they were the first Federated Suns military unit to field BattleMechs. Thanks to their prestigious reputation, the Brigade was able to draw on the best candidates for its manpower, often selecting the top of each academy class for assignment to the unit. When the Star League first formed, every brigade within the Armed Forces of the Federated Suns contributed manpower or complete units to the nascent Star League Defense Force - with the exception of the Brigade of Guards. Such was the Brigade's collective loyalty to the Federated Suns and to House Davion that none of the personnel within the Brigade were even approached to join the SLDF. When the Star League Council enacted the Council Edict of 2650, mandating the drawdown of each of the Great House's military, the Brigade was the only unit in the AFFS to escape untouched - not a single unit was deactivated.[1]

The Davion Brigade of Guards differed from similarly prestigious units maintained by other state militaries, however, as they were very often the first into battle in every campaign. During the Star League era the Brigade continued to enjoy access to the best recruits, the best equipment, and attracted many veterans mustering out from their time in the SLDF. By 2765, the Brigade was effectively the same size and strength of an SLDF Corps, a size which it had achieved even before the Reunification War. The Brigade was also the first of the Federated Suns 'Mech formations to convert to the combined arms school of warfare, with each regiment serving alongside new, permanently-attached armor, infantry, artillery and aerospace assets.[1] While the Brigade did occasionally have issues with personnel, which was normal for a unit of its size, the ethos its members maintained was to solve problems amongst themselves. It was thus the formation within the AFFS least likely to require action to be taken by the Judge Advocate during that era.[5]

Succession Wars[edit]

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FedCom Civil War[edit]

The entire Brigade being loyal to Victor Steiner-Davion, the Davion Brigade were involved in every phase and every major operation of the FedCom Civil War. Because of this they took tremendous casualties, particularly during the final battle on New Avalon, but were critical in winning the war for the Allies. Immediately after the Civil War almost all of its units were removed from the active duty rolls, but the brigade's position as the peak of the AFFS ensured that all but the Fourth and Fifth Guards were quickly rebuilt and restored to combat readiness by the time the Jihad broke out.[6]

Jihad[edit]

Of the Davion Guards units who survived the FedCom Civil War, two were completely destroyed by the Word of Blake during the Jihad while the rest of the units took heavy losses. The Davion Light Guards and Third Davion Guards were destroyed on New Avalon by Blakist forces. The First was damaged, but rebuilt quickly by drafting members of other units. The First then went on to participate in Operation SCOUR. The Second joined the First in facing the Word of Blake. After landing on Terra, more than 95% of the unit was destroyed by nuclear strikes fired by the defending Blakists. As of 3079 the Second remained on the rolls as an honor guard, but was little more than a company currently attached to the First Davion Guards.[7]

Republic era[edit]

Thanks to their elite position within the AFFS and the extreme sacrifice and dedication shown by them during the Jihad, the Davion Brigade was rebuilt in short order as full-sized RCTs rather than as smaller defensive LCTs sweeping across the Davion military. Even this composition varies from the pre-Jihad era, each RCT's BattleMech component reduced to a standard regiment but offset by a reinforced aerospace fighter wing and a complete regiment of battle armor. The brigade's units had ample opportunity to show off their new layout in the years directly following the fighting on Terra with two regiments taking part in Operation MATADOR with another helping to bolster the newly formed Periphery March's border regions.[8]

Officers[edit]

Rank Name Command
Commanding Officers of the Davion Brigade of Guards
Duchess Matilda Davion 2900s[9]
Duke Christopher Payne 2999 - 3013[10]
Field Marshal Ran Felsner 3026[11]
Marshal Bishop Sortek ??? - 3063[12][13]
Field Marshal Stephan Cooper 3063 - ???[6]
Field Marshal Dixon Zibler 3080[8]

Tactics[edit]

Different per unit.

Units of the Davion Brigade of Guards[edit]

The Davion Brigade of Guards are a large combined arms brigade consisting of almost sixty regiments.[2]

Color Scheme and Insignia[edit]

The Brigade of Guards use the Davion family colors for parades and ceremonial duties, royal blue on the left and right side, bright red in the front and back, and white spacing the blue and red panels.

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Field Report 2765: AFFS, p. 13: "Davion Brigade of Guards"
  2. 2.0 2.1 House Davion (The Federated Suns), p. 139 (PDF Version)
  3. Handbook: House Davion, p. 107: "Leaders of the Federated Suns"
  4. Handbook: House Davion, pp. 108–109: "Leaders of the Federated Suns"
  5. Field Report 2765: AFFS, p. 14: "Morale"
  6. 6.0 6.1 Field Manual: Updates, p. 129: "Federated Suns - Davion Brigade of Guards"
  7. Field Report: AFFS, p. 12
  8. 8.0 8.1 Field Manual: 3085, p. 60: "Federated Suns - Davion Brigade of Guards"
  9. House Davion (The Federated Suns), p. 183
  10. Field Manual: Federated Suns, p. 117
  11. House Davion (The Federated Suns), p. 189: "Ran Felsner"
  12. FedCom Civil War (sourcebook)
  13. Era Report: 3062

Bibliography[edit]