Beaumont Doctrine

The Beaumont Doctrine is a national security policy that sets out guidelines for the evaluation of a strategic target world for its habitation value and the disposition of military response in proportion to that value. In brief, it proposes a gradual escalation of response to a world on the basis of its habitability, such that worlds that are readily habitable by humans should be spared mass devastation, and worlds that are not readily capable of human habitation may be subject to mass devastation, with varying levels in between.
The doctrine was developed out of a planning meeting of the Imperial General Staff in 2671, and was initially proposed by then-Lt General Céleste Beaumont, for whom it is named. The policy had precedent in established military strategy for occupying worlds in war, and strategies for dealing with defended worlds with different habitation environments. However, it was the Beaumont Doctrine that formed a coherent, written policy for evaluating worlds with a consistent standard for habitation value, as well as the prescribed response.
The policy was originally formed as part of the planning for the Vryst Campaign of 2672, as it was estimated that most vryst-held worlds were barren and not readily inhabitable for humans. However, as Terran and allied forces in the Galactic Confederation began offensive operations in the FIGN states in 2673, the Beaumont Doctrine was employed operationally and, in the Battle of Liberalis, tactically.