To understand the Clans, you must understand their history. Many of their traditions and actions, including the rationale for the recent invasion, spring from the last days of the Star League, the Amaris Coup and its immediate aftermath. Many in the Inner Sphere see these events as ancient history, the long ago fall of a golden age. To the Clans, the Star League and its fall are the reason for their existence and the driving force behind their way of life.

This document is an exact and detailed account about the Clans. Not only is it about their beginnings, it is about some of those never known secrets that have been hidden until now. The Clans are part of the Inner Sphere and they are here to stay. As Sun Tzu once said, "If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle." This is.....
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Rise of the Star League

Many in the Clans and the Inner Sphere look back on the Star League with rose tinted glasses. They view the Star League era as an age of peace and prosperity in which the various Inner Sphere states coexisted in harmony. People lived much longer than they do today, sustained by advanced medical technology and unrivaled standards of living. From the common present day perspective, the Star League was veritable Eden until the arrival of the serpent Amaris. The truth is less clear cut.

Ian Cameron, Director-General of the Terran Hegemony, founded the Star League in 2571 after eighteen years of arm twisting, threats and blackmail. Cameron was a consummato politician and diplomat who excelled as a peacemaker and mediator between the other Inner Sphere powers. One by one, he persuaded his fellow leaders to support his vision of a unified humanity, culminating in the 2569 Treaty of Vega. The signing of that document marked the Draconis Combine's decision to join the Star League, the last of the Inner Sphere realms to do so.

Almost immediately, the "peaceful" Star League found itself headed for war. Cameron's vision of a united humanity included the Periphery realms, which had declined to sign on. When economic sanctions failed to persuade them, the Star League issued an ultimatum: Join us or face war. The Periphery states chose the latter; the resulting Reunification War lasted for more than twenty years. This bloody clash cost more lives than the entire Age of War that had preceded the Star League's formation.

The Star League's victory brought all of humanity together under one government, but did little to quell human aggression. To give just one example, beginning in 2681 and continuing until about 2750, elements of the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery regularly engaged Star League troops in duels, often to the death. These encounters later became known as the First Hidden War. These skirmishes bear more than a passing resemblance to the Clan system of combat Trials.

The Star League did indeed bring peace and prosperity to billions of people throughout human occupied space, including the Periphery realms that had fought so hard to retain their independence. As the historical record shows, however, constant political intrigue kept that peace on the proverbial razor's edge. In retrospect, it was only a matter of time before the Star League succumbed to internal pressures.

By the early 28th century, support for the Star League in the Periphery had begun to wane, prompting a period of saber rattling and a renaissance in military technology. First Lord Jonathan Cameron, more than a little paranoid, predicted the fall of Terra to "strange coarse men"; to ward off this coming disaster, he expanded the SLDF to unprecedented size. meanwhile, the Draconis Combine and Federated Suns became embroiled in a bitter war that only ended when SLDF troops (including a young Aleksandr Kerensky) intervened. The SLDF could do nothing when the Free Worlds League collapsed into civil war, disputes within member states were beyond the Star League's jurisdiction. (Internal disputes within Clans are similarly beyond the reach of the Clans as a whole, once again, it is clear where Nicholas kerensky got his ideas.)

Time of Troubles

The beginning of the end came in 2751 when First Lord Simon Cameron died in a "tragic accident" on new Silesia. He was most likely assassinated, but no one knows for certain and it does not really matter. A regent was appointed for the eight year old heir, Richard Cameron, General Aleksandr Kerensky, overall commander of the SLDF. The Clans venerate Kerensky as a man of vision, but in truth he contributed greatly to the Star league's collapse. Perhaps Amaris never would have wheedled his way into a position of power had Kerensky had more time for young Richard. The Star League Council must also bear a share of the blame; they refused Kerensky's offer to step down from his military post in order to devote himself to the regency. With the League on the brink of war in the Periphery, the council saw Kerensky's military expertise as too valuable to lose. (This ill-fated decision is on more thing for which the Clans hate the Inner Sphere.)

In 2765, the Periphery world of New Vandenburg erupted in rebellion, sparking off Periphery wide revolts. Only the Rim Worlds Republic stood aloof from the turmoil, ostensibly demonstrating Amaris' loyalty to the League. Kerensky was forced to commit the bulk of the SLDF to operations almost five hundred light years from Terra, little knowing that the entire New Vandenburg incident was one more trap engineered by Amaris.

On 27 December 2766, Stefan Amaris assassinated First Lord Richard Cameron and plunged the Star League into chaos. Naming himself Emperor, he claimed the Star League throne and suggested that Kerensky join him. Kerensky refused, then brought his Periphery campaign to a swift conclusion. After seizing Amaris' Rim Worlds Republic as a base of operations, he turned his efforts toward Terra.

The campaign to liberate the Terran Hegemony was a drawn out and bloody affair. It took ten years just to reach Terra; the fight to free the capital of the Hegemony and the Star League took another two and half years. The SLDF ultimately defeated Amaris' forces, but lost almost half its fighting strength in the process. The liberation of Terra cost a hundred million lives, left four hundred million wounded and a billion homeless. The Hegemony and the Star League were in ruins.

The Star League Council reconvened in 10 October, 2780. The Council Lords' only notable action was the appointment of Jerome Blake as Minister of Communications. Eight days later, the council stripped Kerensky of his position as Protector of the Star League and ordered the disbanding of the SLDF. Kerensky withdrew to the SLDF command post on New Earth to consider his next course of action.

General Aaron DeChevilier, a friend and close advisor, urged Kerensky to depose the Council Lords and name himself First Lord of the Star League. Kerensky refused, however, stating that he would remain loyal to the Star League as long as it existed. Before long, however, events rendered his loyalty moot. On 12 August, 2781, the Star League officially ceased to exist. Kerensky spent the next two years attempting to mediate between the five Successor States that had taken its place, working to resurrect the Star League. Kerensky finally abandoned his shuttle diplomacy in August of 2783, when recruiters from the Successor States began approaching SLDF units with job offers. These cynical machinations prompted Kerensky to enact a plan he had been considering for some time.

Exodus

Despite the commonly held belief among the Clans and in the Inner Sphere that Kerensky came up with the Exodus, the plan was actually cooperative effort with General DeChevilier. According to Nicholas Kerensky's diaries, which are still held by the Wolf Clan, Kerensky and DeChevilier discussed the matter in Nicholas' presence shortly after the liberation of Unity City in 2779. They knew that almost all of the Cameron heirs were dead, and suspected that the Great House Lords would not support any moves to rebuild the Star League. Aleksandr foresaw a future in which the Houses would pick over the carcass of the Terran Hegemony, and wished to avoid it. Half seriously, DeChevilier suggested that the SLDF head off into deep space to found their own colony, away from the wars that looked set to engulf known space. From this conversation was born the Exodus.

On 14 February, 2784, Kerensky outlined the plan to more than two hundred SLDF officers. The majority, almost eighty percent of the armed forces, opted to follow Kerensky into exile. Feverish preparations ensured over the next few months, until 8 July. On that day Kerensky issued the fateful one word command to the SLDF: Exodus.

The armed might of the Star League traveled to the rendezvous point at New Samarkand: thirty two BattleMech divisions (each containing nine regiments), seventy six infantry divisions, and sixty three independent regiments, a total of just over seven hundred line regiments. To put that figure into context for present day readers, the ComStar Battle group fielded was equivalent to 144 combined arms regiments. The allied force in the recent Operation Bulldog, widely cited as "the largest offensive operation of our time" involved roughly eighty five BattleMech regiments, with just under two hundred support regiments. The force that left with Kerensky was a fraction of the SLDF's pre New Vandenburg strength.

Carried by 1,349 JumpShips, the fleet comprised over five thousand DropShips. A fleet of more than four hundred WarShips provided security. In all two million troops and almost four million dependents went on the Exodus out of known space. On 5 November, the massed fleet jumped toward the Periphery, leaping into the unknown and disappearing from the ken of the Inner Sphere.

The lumbering fleet made slow progress through the Periphery. WarShips and scout JumpShips operated in advance of the main body, along its flanks, and behind it to discourage pursuit. Several vessels were lost to mechanical failures and jump accidents; others simply disappeared. Picket vessels hunted for worlds from which the fleet could resupply, the sheer size of the operation made rationing a part of daily life. At first, people accepted the hardships of the journey, after all, the great Kerensky was leading them to a better life. As time passed, however, dissent grew, culminating in open rebellion.

On 19 August 2785, a nine-ship group centered on the Texas-class WarShip Prinz Eugen (which now servers as a floating prison around Strana Mechty) mutinied against Kerensky's command and declared its intention to return to the Inner Sphere. Kerensky responded with brutal efficiency, ordering Elizabeth Hazen, later one of the founders of Clan Jade Falcon, to recapture the rebels. In a daring assault, Kerensky's troops took control of the Prinz Eugen, prompting the others to surrender. to discourage any further seeds of rebellion, Kerensky ordered the execution of all rebel officers above the rank of captain.

This draconian action did little to quell anxiety among the travelers, however. Rumors began to circulate that General Kerensky had no firm destination in mind, and the entire Exodus hovered at the brink of collapse. Kerensky responded by issuing General Order 137. This document, now an ingrained part of Clan culture, justified his actions and spurred the people on. Its message became the core of the Hidden Hope Doctrine: that the Inner Sphere would collapse in chaos, and that the SLDF would one day redeem it. The people of the Exodus must stand apart in order to survive, so that their descendants could one day return to lead the Inner Sphere back to the ideals of the Star League.

Clan Culture formed around the Hidden Hope Doctrine, which has since been used to justify almost every permutation of Clan society and policy. By declaring that one day the descendants of the SLDF would return to the Inner Sphere, Aleksandr Kerensky could not possibly have known what he had set into motion.

The Clans

From here you will find the out about each clan and their status. Gone from the active list are those Clans that have either been destroyed, abjured or absorbed. Each Clan is unique and have very different views of their pasts, the present and the future. One thing for sure, the Inner Sphere can not relax even though the "Great Trial of Refusal" was won by the New Star League Defense Force. The Clans still want Terra and in their minds they will justify their actions by whatever means they can to return and take it.

Clan Glossary of Terms

The language of the Clans is based on what is known of Star League Standard English, but they have added many words to their culture. Some were adapted by the Kerenskys from the Russian language and military terminology. All these words represent the Kerenskys' efforts to express concepts they felt were lacking from Star League Standard English. The following link shows the list that includes terms used by the warrior caste and other useful explanations of Clan concepts. This list is not exhaustive, and does not reflect the many differences in terminology existing between the various clans.

The Voice of Kerensky

Aleksandr Kerensky never intended the "Star League in Exile" to stay in the Pentagon worlds forever. With an eventual return to the Inner Sphere in mind, on 9 September, 2786, he broadcast a message toward the planets he had left behind. Known to the Clans as the Voice of Kerensky, this message would travel at lightspeed back to the Inner Sphere. It would arrive at the edge of the Periphery roughly 770 years after its broadcast (the Clan worlds being that far from the Inner Sphere-Periphery boundary). in approximately 3550.

The Clans that Nicholas Kerensky created chose to return barely 260 years after the general's transmission, long before the message could reach the Inner Sphere to reveal the survival of the Star League's descendants. By coincidence, however, Task Force Serpent, the New Star League force sent out to assault the Clan world of Huntress, encountered the Voice in early 3060.