United Federation of Planets/History/24th Century: Difference between revisions

The 24th century saw a return to the crises of the early 23rd with the Cardassian Wars between 2347 and 2370, a war with the Tholians between 2353 and 2360, and a nearly fatal Borg incursion in 2367. The Federation also dealt with a Romulan-Klingon border war from 2344 to 2352, a Klingon civil war in 2367-68, and an outbreak of smuggling and piracy that resulted in first contact with the Ferengi in 2364. Finally, tensions with the Romulans had risen to new heights with incidents throughout the 2360s. Through it all, the Federation weathered these threats by holding dear to its guiding principles of peace, honesty and virtue. Yet the Federation would face new challenges in the years to come, putting its capabilities and resolve to perhaps the greatest test of all.

Once again, in 2373, the Borg attacked Earth, taking the battle to Earth’s past. By traveling back in time, the Borg hoped to prevent Zefram Cochrane’s first warp flight, which had resulted in first contact with the Vulcans. Preventing the alliance of worlds that would become the United Federation of Planets would have fundamentally erased all resistance to the Borg in the 24th century. The crew of the USS ''Enterprise''-E thwarted the Borg operation, but a new menace, from an unexpected quarter, did more to threaten the existence of the Federation – and the entire Alpha Quadrant – than any previous adversary.

The Cardassian occupation of Bajor was coming to an end, which pleased the Bajorans but infuriated most Cardassians. The Bajoran Resistance movement was no longer needed, but the Maquis, a group of dissident Federation citizens not happy with the concessions the Federation made in their treaty with the Cardassians, continued to operate in the Bajor Sector. The Federation was invited by the Bajorans to help rebuild their planet after the occupation.

The discovery of a stable wormhole in the Denorios Belt in the Bajoran system was heralded as an opportunity to explore the distant Gamma Quadrant, and foster good will with whatever new civilizations were encountered. Quickly, rumors of the Dominion, a mysterious empire of ruthless shape-changers on the other side of the Bajoran wormhole, began to surface. By 2370, Dominion soldiers attacked and destroyed the USS ''Odyssey'', to punctuate demands that the Federation cease all traffic through the wormhole. Exploration continued, but the situation deteriorated. In 2371, the Starfleet vessel USS ''Voyager'' was sent to track down a Maquis resistance cell and disappeared in the Badlands, a region of space populated by plasma storms.

The civilian-led government on Cardassia fell to military uprising, leading to the rise of the Central Command. The Klingons, suspicious of Dominion involvement, attacked the Cardassian Union, and withdrew from their alliance with the Federation in 2372 after the Federation failed to support the move, resulting in the brief but bloody Federation-Klingon War from 2372-2373.

In 2373, Gul Dukat seized control of the Cardassian Union and allied with the Dominion as its first Alpha Quadrant member, and the Dominion declared war against the Federation, attacking both colonies and member worlds. The Romulans remained behind their borders, content to remain uninvolved rather than react to this threat to the entire quadrant after having signed a nonaggression pact with the Dominion.

===The Dominion War===

In the opening months of the war, the Federation and its allies suffered heavy losses, with hundreds of ships lost in major engagements. In 2374, the Allied forces launched an attack on Dominion forces in the Bajoran system to retake Deep Space 9 known as Operation Return. A Dominion fleet of almost 3000 ships were coming to reinforce the Dominions position, but the Prophets, a race of non-corporeal beings inhabiting the wormhole, destroyed the relief fleet, and the tide of war turned, towards the success of the allies.

Though the Dominion forces retreated to Cardassian space, they continued their heavy assault on the allies, and conquered and occupied Betazed, a key Federation member world. However, soon after, a Romulan senator was killed in an apparent assassination by the Dominion to prevent the Dominion's secret plan to invade the Romulan Star Empire from reaching light. In response, the Romulans declared war against the Dominion and joined the Federation and Klingon Empire, united the three storied rivals into an unprecedented alliance.

Numerous victories scored were short lived in celebration as the Dominion revealed new ally of her own, the Breen. The Breen energy weapons were devastating Starfleet vessels, and the Klingons, whose vessels seemed to be immune, could not hold off the Dominion by themselves. The Breen even attacked Earth and caused severe damage to Starfleet Headquarters.

However, the Federation Alliance, aided by the Cardassian Resistance, were able to shift the tide of war back into their favor. A final assault on Cardassia Prime was launched and the Dominion founder was persuaded to surrender. The war was over, but the devastation it left behind and its repercussions would be felt for decades to come.