Federated Suns

In the fictional BattleTech Universe, the Federated Suns is the Successor State ruled by House Davion. The Federated Suns is considered the military powerhouse of the five Successor States. In fact, one of the requirements for the title of First Prince of the Federated Suns is at least five years of service in the Armed Forces of the Federated Suns. Territorially, the Federated Suns is bordered by the Capellan Confederation and the Draconis Combine. Federated Suns spaces is divided into three 'Marches': the Capellan March, the Crucis March and the Draconis March. The capital world of the Federated Suns, New Avalon, is located in the Crucis March. The Federated Suns was formed in 2317, meaning it was the fourth of the Successor States to be formed after the withdrawal of the Terran Alliance from the colonies.

Politics of the Federated Suns
The Federated Suns could best be described as a monarchy, albeit one with constitutional limits placed on the monarch's powers. The First Prince is the leader of the Federated Suns and is the commander in chief of the Armed Forces of the Federated Suns, or AFFS. Officially, until the formation of the Federated Commonwealth, the High Council, a group of both democratic, hereditary, and other officials chosen by the leadership of the member-worlds of the Federated Suns, had presided over the nation. Since the reign of Prince Alexander the High Council has become a glorified, "rubber stamp" organization. The Privy Council is a group of the highest advisors to the First Prince and is extremely important in the running of the day-to-day affairs of the state. The Nobility of the Federated Suns, created during the reign of Prince Simon Davion, also hold positions of authority, but The Federated Suns has a weaker nobility than some of the other Successor States. The citizens of the realm also have several basic rights protected by Federated Suns law, which include freedom of speech and freedom of religion, and the ability to appeal to the central government in order to have unpopular or destructive noblemen removed from office.

Federated Suns Military
In terms of strength of arms, the Federated Suns is one of the most powerful nations in the Inner Sphere. The First Princes of House Davion have always been committed to the military of their realm and every Davion is required to serve in the armed forces in order to claim the title of First Prince. The Armed Forces of the Federated Suns is a highly disciplined, professional force that benefits greatly from technological advances from the New Avalon Institute of Science as well as the high degree of training its members receive.

Navy of the Federated Suns: Avalon-class: Lucien Davion, Melissa Davion, Simon Davion

Fox-class: Admiral Corrine Donnings, Admiral Michael Saille, Antrim, Brest, Bryceland, Indfatigable, Indomitable, Intrepid, Kathil, Murmansk, New Syrtis, Robinson

Religion in the Federated Suns
The Federated Suns is committed to allowing freedom of religion to its citizenry. During the First Succession wars when the Draconis Combine and Capellan Confederation were bearing down against House Davion's forces there was a wave of hatred against Asian residents of the realm and many Buddhist institutions were destroyed. Today however Buddhism is practiced freely throughout Davion Space. Judaism maintains a small but active presence in the Federated Suns and is centered in and around the world of Robinson. The closest thing to a persecuted faith in the Federated Suns is the Azami branch of Islam, which is distrusted by the Davion government due to the large and important Azami population in the Draconis Combine. The larger Sunni branch of Islam is completely accepted by the Federated Suns population. Hinduism is important a region in the Southern portion of Davion Space called the United Hindu Collective. It was formerly a sovereign state but later joined the Federated Suns. Protestant Christianity is the largest of all of the religious faiths of the Federated Suns. The Catholic branch of Christianity is also important although it is divided between those who owe loyalty to Rome and a split-off known as the New Avalon Catholic Church which is based around a misinterpretation of a communique from the Pope to the Cardinal of New Avalon.

Rulers of the Federated Suns
(Note: Julian Davion a descendant of Jackson Davion was selected by Harrison Sandoval-Steiner-Davion to replace his son, Caleb Hasek-Sandoval-Davion, as heir but met with his death before the order took effect.)

Foundation
The Federated Suns was the brainchild of the Davion Family, an influential noble family of the world of New Avalon. The father of the Federated Suns was Lucien Davion, a master politician and statesman. His brothers Louis, a scheming political genius and Charles, a military man, assisted him in forming an alliance of several worlds in the area for the purpose of common trade and defense. Soon the realm was growing exponentialy and eventually stretched into most of what is now known as the Crucis March. Originally the Federated Suns was a democracy led by the High Council a group of the leaders of all member-worlds led by a President who was charged with national defense. The Presidency gradually became a hereditary position of the Davion Family and soon the Davion dynasty was born.

The Age of War
The Age of War came to the Federated Suns due to a crisis within the little known state of Muscegon. Muscegon was a world ruled by a tyrant that had built a small empire of five worlds. The Muscegon Supremacy, as this collection was known had joined the Federated Suns. However due to the horrorific regime of the Muscegon dictatorship two of its colony worlds seceeded and turned to what would later emerge into the Capellan Confederation for help. The Federated Suns was forced to raise an army to combat the secession as per its promise to provide for Muscegon's defense and soon there was warfare all across the Federation-Capellan border. Meanwhile things were not well in the Davion Household. Two deranged twins, Edward and Edmund Davion had assumed the leadership of the Federation and were running the nation into the ground with their extravagance and foolish decisions. A conspiracy of High Council members planned on assisinating Edward (the only remaining twin,) and disbanding the office of President. This would have rendered the war against the Capellans as good as lost without centralized military leadership.

The potential crisis between the High Council and the First Prince was averted when Simon Davion, a cousin of the twins assassinated Edward in the High Council building. Simon Davion, just days after the murder proposed a compromise whereby the Federated Suns was to be divided into Five Marches each supported by a Nobility, (Although both hereditary and elected.) Surprisingly after much debate the High Council surprisingly chose to accept Simon's proposal, thus making him the First Prince (amongst the four other Princes the Crucis March leader was known as the First Prince.) For nearly a hundred years Simon's compromise kept the peace in the Federated Suns until William Davion died leaving behind his widow and infant son, Alexander.

Meanwhile the Varnay family, the leader of the Capellan March which had long had aspirations towards the office of First Prince and had married into young Alexander's aunt Cassandra both jockeyed for the leadership of the Federated Suns. It was eventually agreed that five regents would rule the Federated Suns. For ten years the members of the Regency struggled amongst themselves each in the end forgetting about Prince Alexander, whom although the rightful heir to the First Princedom was increasingly disregarded by the Regents who now looked towards the leadership of the Federated Suns for themselves. Meanwhile Prince Alexander had come of age and demanded that he be rightfully placed on the thrown. For years afterwards there was a passionate struggle between Prince Alexander and those who would assume the thrown for themselves and in the end all were defeated and finally the Federated Suns was united under the rightul heir of House Davion.

The Star League Era
When the Cameron family began its attempt to unite humanity into a, "Star League," the Federated Suns was very friendly towards the notion. Prince Alexander felt that his government, in the wake of a long Civil War would do well to focus on domestic prosperity and not on warfare. Therefore it surprised no one when, in 2567 the Federated Suns joined the Star League, (Becoming the Fourth Member State.) The Star League Years were relatively quiet with the Federated Suns working with the Star League to insure for a reign of peace and prosperity that lasted for hundreds of years. The sole exception in this reign of peace were the Reunification Wars, a series of conflicts fought between the Federated Suns and the Periphery State which the Star League attempted to force into joining the League. Although the wars cost many lives they were fought light years away from the average resident of the Federated Suns and had little effect on their day to day lives. Once the Star League achieved its inevetable victory there was a period of peace unknown in the history of Human affairs as mankind devoted itself to science and the colonization of new worlds.

The Fourth Succession War
The Fourth Succession War began immediately after the marriage of Hanse Davion and Melissa Steiner. After the marriage ceremony Hanse Davion announced that as a wedding gift he was to present his wife with "The Capellan Confederation". What resulted was the largest offensive in recent memory as Davion troops poured across the border and assaulted world after world of the surprised and quickly demoralized Capellan Confederation. On top of the outright military attack the Federated Suns also attempted to subvert the Capellan Confederation from within by encouraging the rebellion of disaffected populations within the Confederation. As a result the leader of the Capellan Military, a native of the world of Tikonov, agreed to betray his Capellan masters and join the Federated Suns by creating a puppet nation known as the Tikonov Free Republic. A more successful nation to secede from the Confederation was the St. Ives Compact. The offensive itself was extremely successful and resulted in the totally absorption of a large portion of the Confederation as the new Sarna March. On the Draconis Combine front the Fourth Succession War was less successful, although the Draconis Combine failed to take any strategically significant planets from the Federated Suns.

The Federated Commonwealth
During the 3024-29 period, there was a secret pact formed between the Federated Suns and the Lyran Commonwealth between Hanse Davion and Katrina Steiner for Hanse Davion to marry Katrina Steiner's 16 year old daughter, Melissa Arthur Steiner. In the 3056 The Federated Commonwealth was officially formed, although it had been unofficially formed almost 30 years ago.