Eridani Light Horse

Unit History

The Eridani Light Horse is one the largest and oldest mercenary units in the Inner Sphere. The unit a strong tradition and pre-dates the fall of the Star League.

Star League

The origins of the Eridani Light Horse can be traced to 2702 when the 3rd Regimental Combat Team (called an RCT) was formed. The unit consisted of four regiments - two Striker regiments and two Light Horse regiments. In 2749, the Commander of the 3rd RCT was assassinated by the Prince of Rasalhague. The unit immediately mobilized and occupied the major cities on all ten of the worlds in their district. When the Prince sent troops to the city of Eridani on Trondheim, the 3rd RCT repelled them easily. The unit received the nickname when a journalist, sympathetic to the 3rd RCT, reported that the RCT forces had scattered the Prince's forces "like spirited Eridani stallions chasing after fat, clumsy Luthien cows". After the humiliation, the Prince had no choice but to try and execute the assassins.

Following the death of the First Lordthe unit saw extensive action in the Periphery. However, once the unit learned of Stefan Amaris's treachery, the unit decided to act against the usurper. Colonel Bradley, the unit commander realized that direct assault against Amaris would not be possible, so he adopted a policy of raiding some of the weaker worlds near Terra to disrupt the usurper's defenses. The plans worked until the 19th Striker Regiment assaulted Amity. Unbeknownst the the Light Horse, a traitor had relayed information to Amaris and the regiment met three heavy regiments. The Light Horse regiment was completely destroyed in the ensuring battle. The Light Horse was able to avenge the loss of the 19th Striker with a series of vicious battles that eventually resulted in the liberation of Terra herself.

First and Second Succession Wars

In the chaos that followed the elimination of Amaris, the Light Horse returned the Rasalhague district awaiting orders from General Kerensky. The unit received the orders to join the other Star League Defense Forces in leaving the Inner Sphere. The unit felt an attachment to the area stronger than its loyalty to Kerensky and decided to remain - only a few lances of the RCT left with the other SLDF units. In fact, the 80th Heavy Cavalry Battalion, once commanded by Kerensky himself, took only thirty minutes to decide to stay.

On the day that Kerensky and the others departed, the members of the unit gathered and observed a moment of silence. They took down the flag of the Star League and lowered the Third Regimental Combat Team's standard to half-mast. Even through the Fourth Succession War, the unit maintained that tradition, requiring that one flag pole at the headquarters remain bare for the future Star League flag and the unit's flag stay at half-mast.

Following the Exodus, the Inner Sphere degraded as each of the five houses vied to be selected as First Lord. The unit tried to remain as independent as possible, but Minoru Kurita threatened to cut off all trade with the unit, forcing it into a mutual defense and nonaggression pact. When Minoru Kurita was slain in a failing campaign against the Federated Suns, Colonel Bradley realized they would have to deal with his psychotic son, Jinjiro Kurita. Jinjiro had avenged his father's death by massacring fifty million civilians on Kentares in what has been called the Kentares Massacre.

Upon learning of the massacre, the unit began to plan a move to more hospitable location. By June of 2798, most of the unit had started to move off-world. The 8th Recon and 50th Heavy Cavalry Battalions were awaiting the departure of their dependents from Sendai, when they learned that the administrator of the planet had taken the families hostage unless the 8th Recon and 50th Heavy Cavalry surrender and turn themselves over to him. The units refused and, when the deadline passed, the administrator had all of the hostages executed. Once the 8th Recon and 50th Heavy Cavalry found out, they immediately returned to Sendai. There, in a week-long campaign, the battalions hunted down and slaughtered every political officer and Draconis Combine 'Mech they could find. Support forces from the Combine appeared but, once they learned of the administrator's actions, they quickly withdrew. When the battalions reunited with the main Eridani Light Horse forces, the unit commanders tendered their resignations for acting without orders, but they were refused. Instead, Colonel Bradley made the two battalions responsible for the unit's dependents.

The unit relocated to the Free Worlds League where they were granted a place to stay while the details of a contract were negotiated. Colonel Bradley accepted the terms offered by the Free Worlds League and the unit stayed within the League throughout the First and Second Succession Wars, providing strong offensive capabilities to the League.

Third Succession War

When the Third Succession War flared in 2866, the Free Worlds League, pleased by the unit's performance to date, offered to improve the contract by offering access to League supply centers and titles to the officers. Many in the unit thought this a betrayal of the Star League ideals the unit held dear. The leader of the dissenters, Major Johnson, was unable to come to an agreement with Bronson and led all but a few officers and lances out to the Periphery. Colonel Bronson, meanwhile, moved his force just outside the borders of the League and began to recruit less desirable elements into his forces.

The core of the Eridani Light Horse moved to the Periphery and eventually had to resort to farming to meet their needs. A raid demonstrated in 2871 to the unit leaders how desperate they were and they decided to seek employment with a house, provided that the house would uphold the honor and integrity of the Star League. Now-Colonel Johnson was tasked with traveling to the Lyran Commonwealth to seek employment. The Archon agreed to all of the unit's terms, including a clause providing for control of a planet to house the unit's dependents. Sadly, the Colonel died while the unit moved from the Periphery to its new home of Karlsruh. Jennifer Dirkson, his successor, adopted the rank of Brevet General to show command of all three of the unit's regiments while also demonstrating a willingness to resign should the unit members feel she was acting in too mercenary of a manner.

The unit served admirably from 2872 to 2945, providing strong support against encroachment by the Draconis Combine.

Unit Notes

Unlike other mercenary units, which traditionally have two flag poles at their headquarters flying both the unit flag and the flag of their employer, the Eridani Light Horse have a standing contractual clause that allows them to keep one of the poles bare in memory of the dissolution of the Star League and the other to fly their own unit and regimental colors at half-mast.

Unit Disposition

71st Light Horse Regiment (The White Horse) - Colchester, Kestrel Combat Region, Crucis March - Veteran Experience 21st Striker Regiment (Winston's Moonrakers) - Colchester, Kestrel Combat Region, Crucis March - Veteran Experience 151st Light Horse Regiment (The Black Horse) - Colchester, Kestrel Combat Region, Crucis March - Veteran Experience

References

House Davion Book, pgs. 136, 146 - 1988, FASA Retrieved from "http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Template:InfoBoxMercUnit"

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External Links

Another version of the Eridani Light Horse was written. The information below provides information regarding that version.

LEGAL NOTICE: This version of the ELH Unit History was originally part of a scenario pack solicited for publication by then-President of FASA Sam Lewis. Written by Scott Malcomson, the work was never used until Fantasy Productions discovered that it had been leaked to the Internet, where it had become a fan favorite of ELH-related fansites. Without contacting Mr. Malcomson, FanPro then posted the work as the official history of the Eridani Light Horse in the ELH section of ClassicBattletech.com. When Mr. Malcomson found out, he contacted FanPro and an arrangement was made to allow the use of his material in exchange for an official Battletech writing credit. Its canonicity was, in effect, the price for its use.

This work stood as the definitive version of the ELH Unit History from 2001 - 2005, and then was updated with a new version by a new author. The author, however, had not known of the existing posted History and was not told by the editor that it existed. As such, the current CBT-site version is missing all of Malcomson's original, canon, material, and is thus incomplete.

CANON NOTICE: This work has been edited by the original author to account for changes in Battletech history that took place between the original 1993 solicitation and the current day. It is, in toto, the complete and full ELH Unit History, and cannot be found anywhere else online at this time. Note also that the current CBT version contains various canonical errors due to having been incompletely researched. These have been corrected herein.

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Note that the canonicity of this material has been challenged by some members of the CBT community, though there has been no official word one way or another.

PART ONE (2702 - 3050) http://roycalbeck.livejournal.com/13216.html

PART TWO (3050 - 3065)

http://roycalbeck.livejournal.com/13507.html