Battle of Trautman's Star

The Battle of Trautman's Star was an armed engagement between the Royal Manticoran Navy's force under Commodore Edward Saganami and the pirate forces defending the Trautman's Star System.
== Prelude ==
The Silesian Confederacy was haunted by pirates, and Trautman's Star featured a particulary powerful pirate base of operations. The Royal Manticoran Navy, already suspecting that the criminal elements were supplied by a third party, moved in on the system to bring an end to the loss of cargo and lives Manticoran convoys suffered in the area. ()
== Order of battle ==
=== RMN ===
Commodore Saganami's battlecruiser force:
* HMS Nike, flagship, CO Commodore Edward Saganami
* HMS Agamemnon
* HMS Defiant †
* HMS Mars
* HMS Swiftsure, CO Captain Timmermansecond in command
* HMS Triumph †
* HMS Victorious
=== Pirates ===
* a battlecruiser division
* a heavy cruiser division
* a light cruiser element
* a destroyer element
== Course of battle ==
Commodore Saganami's forces engaged the enemy at Trautman's Star. A decisive fight ensued, in which thirteen pirate vessels were destroyed and another six taken as prizes.
However, the Manticoran's own casualties and damage were severe as well - HMS Defiant and HMS Triumph were destroyed, and Agamemnon, Mars, Swiftsure and Victorious suffered heavy damage.
In the end, the RMN gained full control of the system and destroyed all basing installations. ()
== Aftermath ==
Commodore Saganami's crew found some of the pirate vessels to be of recent Solarian construction, with substantially heavier armaments than most pirates carried. Data also indicated the involvement of both Manpower Incorporated and individuals at the highest level of the Silesian government. This information was reported back to Manticore.
HMS Victorious, Swiftsure, Mars, and Agamemnon were sent back home for repairs, with sufficient of their personnel being transferred to the other units of Saganami's command to fully crew each of the remaining vessels.
In light of the heavy casualties and the reduction of the squadron's strength, Saganami found it necessary to temporarily suspend offensive operations against already identified pirate bases and disperse his forces to provide escorts in the areas of greatest risk.
After Trautman's Star and the following Battle of Carson, the Star Kingdom of Manticore never again trusted the Silesian government and Navy with protecting its commerce. (, )
== References ==
Trautman's Star, Battle of