Battleship Cassard

CLASS: Charlemagne (Refit)

CREW: CLASSIFIED

ARMAMENT: CLASSIFIED

Beginning service as part of the Gallic Royal Navy fleet stationed in Languedoc prior to the Council's breakout, the Cassard was the sole standing warship after the battle had ended.

Found adrift and, at large, crippled by enemy fire, the Cassard had to undergo several years of maintenance and repairs to be once again put to active service. Although some of Gallia's best minds worked on the restoration of the warship, it was instead chosen to completely refit the internal systems, turning the Cassard into a Valor designed for long range engagements contrary to other Charlemagne-class vessels.

When Kusari invaded, the Cassard's baptism of fire came from the Yamaguchi, which, despite possessing a better-trained crew, was eventually pushed back through the efforts of the Defence Forces. This success was not lasting, as the battleship was sent to Burgundy, where it spent the remainder of the conflict.

With the Union's emblem flying high and above after the dissolution of the Confederacy, the Cassard was sent to Champagne, to protect what had once been Gallia's most quarrelsome system.

## News

Once a beacon of our national ingenuity, Metz was the site of the experimental Metz Mirror Array, more commonly known as the MMA project. The project was intended to assist the terraforming operations through a sophisticated array of orbital mirrors. The array would redirect additional sunlight onto the equatorial band of Metz, further raising local temperatures on the otherwise icy world.
Decried by its detractors as a "fool king's endeavour", the ambitious project never had the opportunity to prove its capabilities, as the nearly complete array fell victim to Kusari's invasion of Lorraine. With the array gone and supplies severed, the terraforming project and the biosphere it maintained collapsed during the occupation, leading to widespread famine across Metz. Unfortunately, in the wake of King Charles' gambit in Bretonia and the near complete destruction of Lorraine and Languedoc by Kusari forces, the Union government has declared the system a total loss and ordered a full evacuation of the planet.

Ageira disputed this finding in their own press release, calling EFL 'fantasists' and countering that their own scientists had narrowed the cause to a rare 'hypernova' stellar event that originated outside the Sirius sector. Both corporations claim that network-wide hardware safeguards have been implemented that would prevent a similar occurrence in the future. Independent researchers have sharply criticized the corporate announcements, accusing both of self-interested misdirection.
Professor Sophia Nagel from Heisenberg Research Station called EFL's accusation 'incoherent' and the hypernova explanation 'nonsense' that did not explain the characteristics of the 'Blackout Pulse'. Despite multiple different Pulse recordings being widely disseminated across the neural net, public efforts have so far failed to triangulate its source.

The Capitaine of the Epinal, Martin Charbonneau managed to send a last message to its forces in the very last minutes of the intense confrontation: "My crew and I have retreated enough. We have the chance to stop them and we'll seize it. Epinal, your hour has come, it is time to show everyone how a true Gallic soldier fights for his house. May our sacrifice not be vain. Longue vie à Gallia!"
Epinal was an honorable veteran of the Second Gallic War, having participated in many battles against the former Council in Champagne and Lorraine, where she remained since, before the Kusari invasion. The crew was highly disciplined and experienced and its loss will be greatly felt in the weeks to come. However, the Duchy forces, far from being demoralized by this event, clearly express their intentions to avenge their fallen brothers. The Defense Forces leadership in Burgundy say the morale among the crews is very high not just thanks to the heroic action of Epinal, but also due to the express arrival of the newly constructed battleship Hossegor, along with her escort ship Vaxoncourt, which have absorbed former Epinal escort Les Vosges into their cohort. The good fortune didn't stop as the legendary Cassard and her battlegroup arrived from Languedoc to reinforce the front. Outnumbered almost two to one in this theater, it is expected that Kusari will suffer a crushing defeat in the days to come.
In response to the heroic actions of Epinal throughout the Second Kusari-Gallic War, the Grand Duke Valentin Trintignant asked the Chancellery of the Gallic Rewards and Values for the honor of being the person to posthumously award La Légion des Valeurs Gauloises to the Capitaine of the Epinal and her crew, one of the highest decoration in Gallia.
Nevertheless, despite the optimism of the Defense Forces in Burgundy, the situation is worsening in Languedoc and the Parisian Assembly has refused to comment on the new offensive of Kusari in this sector for the moment. According to some deputies, the Assembly has been facing internal legitimacy issues since the recent redeployment of forces, with major factions losing confidence that the Assembly is willing to defend them.

The most notable of these figures is the former Marquise of Marseille, Renée Hennequin d'Avignon, who retreated from the Provence system during the Minarchy's uprising. d'Avignon, who records now show to have been the head of the Crown's spy network on Planet Marseille, possessed close ties to both the upper echelons of Royal Intelligence and high ranking Gallic nobility. The displaced Marquise claims to be acting under authority of King Charles XI himself, citing a letter of regency allegedly left in her care during the final days of the war.
While such a decree, if legitimate, would make the former Marquise Queen Regent of the Kingdom of Gallia, d'Avignon has rejected this title, instead fashioning herself Director-Regent. This is likely a calling to her position of Director within the GRI, which she rose to near the end of the war, as well as an attempt to garner favor with the unusually robust military demographic of the new state.
d'Avigon's first edict as Director-Regent of the Royal Enclave was to declare the authority of Grand Duke Trintignant null and void. She has also issued the immediate expediation of construction efforts on Planet Bordeaux, the Enclave's capital. Flooded with hundreds of millions people, primarily displaced nobility, servicemen, and Bretonian serfs, the incipient nation-state currently faces a great food and housing crisis. The Director-Regent has authorized the use of whatever means necessary to clear arable farmland and extract resources needed for the erection of more permanent housing in lieu of Bordeaux's tent cities.
Despite these challenges, the Royal Enclave refuses to surrender to Bretonia, and the three system state maintains a military disproportionately large to its small size. Analysts have surmised that the Enclave's position within the Hebrides is a tenable one, should they be able to resolve their present issues and avoid succumbing to civil unrest. The Enclave's fleet has shifted to a more defensive posture, and it appears that the only system outside their borders which they presently have a vested interest in is Dublin, where Enclave patrols have been seen engaging Bretonian forces on roughly equal footing. Elsewhere, the Enclave's military activies appear to be limited to smaller scale anti-shipping raids and hit and fade strikes on soft targets.
While it remains to be seen whether or not the Enclave will stand the test of time, it appears that if so, they could remain a thorn in Bretonia's side for years to come.

News from the Bretonian front is not much better. The fighting over New London remains fierce, and though the Bretonian blockade of the planet has been breached and preparations are underway to deploy Triumphs into New London's atmosphere, reports indicate the battle damaged or destroyed over 60%% of the material of those fleets and that the death toll is in the tens of thousands.
Front line forces are unable to retreat without risking total defeat at the hands of the Sirians. The Epinal, Rocroi, and Venissieux have been recalled to New Paris, but odds appear grim, and military analysts have thus far declined to comment on whether or not the ad hoc defense will be able to defend the capital. En masse evacuation from the Core Worlds has begun, with standing orders from the Crown for all loyal citizens to proceed to Bordeaux and Toulouse post-haste, where they will be provided for.
A GRI asset who asked that we did not disclose their identity has claimed that the King's transport, flying under civilian flag, came under fire from Maquis terrorists while en route to the Brittany jump corridor. Though the transport survived the attack, King Charles is allegedly comatose. Our source could not provide any further comment on the state of the King or who was heading the state in the absence of a monarch.

"My faithful subjects! We have stood by long enough while the ravenous remnants of the Alliance feasted upon the lands they have eyed for themselves from long before the landing! We know what they did to assure themselves domination, we know that they led Coalition forces to our sleeper launch site so that they may escape like the rats that they are, and take the best of this region for themselves. All their actions must have consequences! Starting from today, they will be running once again. They will run, or they will be included into the rightful control of House Gallia! Hail the reconquest!"
The crowd gathered at Ile du Palais cheered throughout the speech. The first Royal Navy units are expected to reach and pacify Tau-23 within days, officially marking the first step on the road to victory.

The Council leaders claim that their goal is to change the government of Gallia and overthrow the monarchy, in addition to breaking the isolation of Gallia from the rest of Sirius worlds. According to our today's expert Robert Broussard, Doctor of Economy and senior consultant of Solar Engineering and Ile-de-France Shipping, the Council never had an intention to overthrow the New Paris monarchy. "Our information on the Council agenda is mainly based on their own public announcements and press releases. Yet, New Paris is so far from the Gallic Border Worlds that the Council will not be able to overtake the Core Worlds by force, even if all Border Worlds fall under their supreme rule," - Broussard says, - "On New Paris and other prominent worlds of Gallia, public support for the warlike actions of the Council is relatively low, and the Council is aware that the chances to inspire revolts in the heart of our nation are very slim."
Independent analysts estimate black market operations in Gallia rising by 150%% during the last 30 years. At the same time, frequency of pirate attacks had risen twice in the Core Worlds, and more than three times in the Border Worlds. This unprecedented wave of piracy occured mainly because of the demand for various smuggled goods that the Council generates, and because of the overall chaos caused by the war. Royal Police was caught unprepared by this new dangerous tendency, unable to defend corporate and civilian shipments. The pirate groups are expected to grow even larger now that the path to Sirius was breached by the Council in Languedoc. Being able to take advantage of this new development, pirate groups like the Unione Corse, Gallic Brigands, and Maquis now plan their expansion into Sirius, searching for new markets and recruiting more pilots.
The Council supports those pirate groups almost openly, in return for their help against the Royal Navy. Sporadic raids of Brigands and Maquis never cause significant losses, but play a crucial role in delaying Navy operations against the Council. Almost every asteroid field and nebula in Gallia is now swarmed with ships of various unlawful groups. It remains unknown for how much longer the Council resistance will continue, but it is already evident that there are forces within the Council and within the pirate groups interested in using the war as a source of income. For the Council leadership, political struggle and the well being of their own people appears to be less important than gaining personal wealth and power. This is the reason why the Council would never support any peace negotiation initiatives.

## Rumors

*NOTE: Page generated on the 28/10/2023 at 17:59:45 UTC*