Kathil Capellan March Militia

Kathil Capellan March Militia
Formed	2754
Nickname	"Duty, Honor, Loyalty"
Affiliation	Federated Suns
Parent Command	Capellan March Militia

History

Formation

In common with the other March Militias found across the Federated Suns, the Kathil Capellan March Militia or Kathil CMM was formed in 2754 as a result of the Preparedness Act enacted by First Prince Richard Davion in 2735. Richard established a formal training program aimed at increasing the general readiness level of the Armed Forces of the Federated Suns reserve forces and formalized the structure of the March Militias, bringing the planetary militias into a common structure.

Their homeworld is Kathil.

Richard established a system whereby each of the Marches within the Federated Suns conducted internal wargames every two years, with those wargames being inspired by the Martial Olympiad conducted by the Star League Defense Force every four years. Each March Militia was formed as an ad hoc brigade drawing on the winners from each planetary militia across each Combat Region. These ad hoc brigades then competed against each other at a March level to earn the title of "Best Prepared" March Militia within each of the three Marches.

The wargames proved to be very popular and by 2750 the prestige that was associated with the "Best Prepared" title inspired troops in every combat region to give their best effort, with some commands making plans years in advance to try and ensure that they were ready. After the close of the 2754 games First Prince John Davion activated all of the combat region commands as federal troops and formed them into the March Militias; while this move was controversial and provoked a flurry of judicial cases opposing the creation of the commands, it also added twenty BattleMech-equipped combat commands to the AFFS in a single stroke. Many of the planets that provided troops for the games were resentful of having their best militia troops pressed into federal service, and it would be 2763 before the last of the cases worked its way through the courts. With the final ruling going in favor of Prince John, he then moved to allay many of the fears expressed by the planets involved by laying down specific instructions that the March Militias wouldn't be deployed outside their home combat regions except under a small number of very rare and clearly-defined exceptions.

Firmly established, the Kathil CMM acted as a mobile reserve for the Kathil Combat Region and a staging ground through which planetary militia soldiers could move on into the AFFS, while retiring AFFS personnel moved into the March Militia to pass on their knowledge and experience. The Kathil CMM was one of four March Militia brigades founded within the Capellan March in 2754, with the other three being the Chesterton, New Syrtis and Royalston CMMs.

Border War

The Kathil CMM was actively involved in the 2760-2762 Border War that raged between the Capellan Confederation and the Federated Suns; all four Capellan March Militias fought during the war, which spanned across three of the Capellan March Combat Regions. The Kathil CMM saw less combat than two of its sister militias, the Chesterton and Royalston CMMs, and consequently was in better shape by the eve of the Amaris Civil War in 2765.

Second Succession War

On the 2nd of June 2828 the Chesterton Cuirassiers landed on Kathil as a part of Operation CELT, a CCAF offensive intended to recapture Chesterton. The Cuirassiers were led by Colonel Laurelli Liao, the future Capellan Chancellor and a canny field commander who had been trained from a young age in warfare. Stationed on Kathil at the time were the Twenty-seventh Avalon Hussars and the Kathil Capellan March Militia. The defenders outweighed the Cuirassiers, but Laurelli kept them off-balance by launching feints at both the General Motors factories and District City, which made it essential that the militia and the Twenty-seventh couldn't risk relocating to better positions. The conflict turned into an intricate, deadly dance that only ended when the Cuirassiers were ordered to withdraw on the 24th of June, following the news of the death of Chancellor Ilsa Liao. It was a testament to Laurelli's skills that the bulk of the damage taken by the Cuirassiers during the three weeks of battle was sustained not during her campaigning, but rather during the hasty withdrawal from Kathil.

Fourth Succession War

In 3029 the remains of the Kathil CMM and two other units were transformed into the 1st Kathil Uhlans, after fending off a heavy Capellan assault on Kathil.

Years later, a new Kathil CMM was founded.

FedCom Civil War

In 3062 fighting with the 8th FedCom RCT erupted. Both sides saw their respective chain of command as the legal one: the Kathil CMM followed the commands of Field Marshal George Hasek and the 8th FedCom followed direct orders from Katherine Steiner-Davion. As the 2nd NAIS Training Cadre was also attacked by the 8th FedCom, they joined with the Kathil CMM.

Both sides kept delivering reinforcements and the fighting kept on until the end of the FedCom Civil War in 3067. During the course of the conflict on Kathil, the CMM was combined into an ad hoc brigade with the remnants of several other commands, including the First Capellan Dragoons after they sustained heavy casualties and were rendered combat ineffective. At the war's end, the survivors of this combined brigade were finally absorbed into the Sixth Syrtis Fusiliers.

Officers

Rank	Name	Command
Commanding Officers of the Kathil Capellan March Militia
Major General	Edward Gashton	3025
Major General	Donald Sampreis	3062

Other officers

• Captain (later Major) David McCarthy, commanding Second Battalion.

Tactics

Spread among many planets the unit haven't time to train at a larger fighting force.

Composition History

2765

Kathil Capellan March Militia (Regiment/Regular/Reliable)

- One BattleMech regiment

- Two armor regiments

- Three infantry regiments

- One mobile artillery battalion

- Two aerospace wings, each of eighteen aerospace fighters

- The Kathil CMM was based on Kathil at this point in time.

2786 - 2821

Kathil Capellan March Militia (Regiment/Regular/Reliable)

- At this point in time the Militia was a medium-weight unit operating at full regimental strength, and was based on Kathil.In 2821 the unit was operating at just below half-strength.

2830

Kathil CMM (Regiment/Regular/Reliable)

Note: At this point in time the medium-weight unit was stationed on Kathil with an operational readiness of 86 percent.

2864

Kathil CMM (Regiment/Regular/Reliable)

Note: At this point in time the medium-weight unit was stationed on Kathil with an operational readiness of 56 percent.

3025

Kathil Capellan March Militia (Regiment/Green/Questionable)

• CO: Major General Edward Gashton

Note: At this point in time the unit was stationed on Kathil.

3062

Kathil Capellan March Militia (1 Regiment/Regular/Reliable)

• CO: Major General Donald Sampreis
  • First Battalion: Colonel Marsha Yori
  • Second Battalion: Major David McCarthy
  • Third Battalion: Major Karl Tarsk

Kathil CMM Aerospace Wing (1 Wing/Green/Reliable)

• CO: Major Jerald Northrup

Kathil CMM Armor Brigade (2 Regiments/Green/Reliable)

• CO: Leftenant General Chandra Lo

Kathil CMM Infantry Brigade (4 Regiments/Green/Reliable)

• CO: Major General Lars-Erik Gennady

Notes

• Field Report 2765: AFFS attributes the Preparedness Act of 2735 to both Richard Davion and Roger Davion. Because other sources indicate that Richard Davion was First Prince in 2735, and that Roger Davion died in 2703, the latter attribution is probably an error.

Bibliography

• Field Manual: Federated Suns
• Field Manual: Updates
• Field Report 2765: AFFS
• First Succession War (sourcebook)
• Flashpoint
• House Davion (The Federated Suns)
• Jihad Turning Points: New Avalon
• Second Succession War (sourcebook)
• Warrior: Coupé