The Corellian Defense Force was one of the two organizations, along with the Corellian Security Force, tasked with the defense of the Corellian sector. The CDF was a military force while CorSec was rather law enforcement agency. The Corellian Defense Force was based in the CDF Headquarters in Coronet City, on Corellia, the sector capital.
The Corellian Defense Force had many branches as well as divisions, the main two being the Space Service and the CDF groundside. The CDF also included the Corellian Home Fleet, that defended the Corellian system, the Corellian militia, and the Corellian Customs.
The CDF was formally led by the ruler of the Corellian sector, initially the Governor-General, and later the Five World Prime Minister. Depending on the organization of the Corellian governments, supervision of the Defense Force was commonly delegated to a Minister of War or to a Minister of Defense. Within the CDF, the highest ranking officer was an admiral that held the title of Supreme Commander of the Corellian Defense Force. Along with various staff officers, all those political leaders and high-ranking officers formed the Corellian High Command.
One of the duty of the CDF, along with CorSec, was to guard the valuable Corellian Engineering Corporation shipyards.
In the three centuries that followed the dissolution of the Corellian empire, the Corellian Defense Force was led by the Diktat of Corellia who also held the title of Governor-General of the Corellian sector. During that period, the defense force built large warships to defend the sector against exterior threats. Like all big capital ships employed in the rich Core sectors of the Galactic Republic, they were fitted with a limited-range hyperdrive so as not to be involved in aggressive military actions.
During the Separatist Crisis, when the Military Creation Act underwent discussion in the Galactic Senate in 24 BBY, Diktat Shyla Merricope and Senator Garm Bel Iblis withdrew the Corellian sector from active participation in the Senate and enforced an isolationist policy towards the rest of the galaxy. It forbid the usage of Corellian military and security forces in any centralized Republic military, therefore preventing the deployment of the Corellian Defense Force during the upcoming Clone Wars.
After the Declaration of a New Order in 19 BBY, the Corellian sector became an Imperial client state loyal to Emperor Palpatine. Although the Corellian Diktat kept the title of Governor-General of the Corellian sector, his administration of the sector, including the control of the Corellian Defense Force, was overseen by the Imperial Grand Moff of the Corellian sector.
During the Galactic Civil War, the Diktat was bound to provide elements of the Corellian Defense Force to support Imperial armed forces against the Rebel Alliance. As the war intensified, Corellian military forces were repeatedly sent away to assist the Empire, leaving the Corellian sector poorly defended. Hence, piracy exploded in the sector. In turn, the Corellian Defense Force increasingly subcontracted civilians, such as independent spacers, to carry out various missions, including military assignments. In 1 ABY, a group of mercenaries allied with local smugglers deployed a surface-to-orbit turbolaser on Corellia. The soldiers used the weapon to fire at CDF customs vessels during smuggling runs. The Corellian Defense Force eventually localized the the turbolaser, disguised as an unobtrusive power station, and dispatched a civilian strike team to eliminate the criminals and destroy the weapon. The CDF preferred to use spacers rather than regular troops to reduce the chances for the enemies to discover that their position has been compromised. The same year, a bunch of smugglers stole a crate of ion beamers from the CDF Mobile Medical Unit 4-077 during a training exercise in the Corellian wilderness. Again, spacers were recruited by the Corellian Defense Force to deal with the criminals.
After the death of the Emperor at the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY, many Imperial loyalists fled the collapsing Empire to take refuge in the Imperial-friendly Corellian sector. They extensively joined the Space Service of the Corellian Defense Force. In 7 ABY, the Diktat dissolved the prestigious Corellian Security Force and created the Public Safety Service, an Imperialistic security force and political police tasked with protecting the Diktat's autocratic regime. Contrary to the CorSec that was fairly independent, the PSS was part of the CDF.
Sometime as early as 13 ABY, the Diktat's regime collapsed. The New Republic later gained control of the Corellian sector and appointed a Governor-General named Micamberlecto to rule the planet Corellia and the sector. The Governor-General became the new commander-in-chief of the Corellian Defense Force but the Corellian troops, in particular Imperial and Diktat loyalists, were reluctant to obey to a New Republic appointee.
During the First Corellian Insurrection in 18 ABY, most of the ground-based units of the Corellian Defense Force remained loyal to the Governor-General whereas the CDF Space Service massively betrayed the New Republic. At the beginning of the Corellian Insurrection, the majority of the Corellian space forces defected with their vessels, including capital ships, to the Sacorrian Triad. Later, during the takeover of Corellia by Thrackan Sal-Solo's Human League, many CDF troops died trying to protect Governor-General Micamberlecto. Meanwhile, the few remaining CDF space forces in the Corellian system had joined Thrackan Sal-Solo. The New Republic eventually defeated the Sacorrian Triad that was responsible for the conflict at the Battle of Centerpoint Station. There, the New Republic navy annihilated the Sacorrian fleet, including the treacherous CDF elements.
Near the end of the Galactic Civil War, vessels of the Corellian Defense Force served in the Combined Defense Forces of the New Republic under Corellian General Bel Iblis.
About a decade later, after the end of the Yuuzhan Vong War, the Galactic Alliance abolished the position of Governor-General to permit the Corellians to implement their own political regime. Command of the Corellian Defense Force was given to the Prime Minister of the Five Worlds, the elected executive of the Corellian system. However, tensions soon arose between the Corellians and the galactic government. Prior to 40 ABY, a secret fleet of Corellian Dreadnaught was constructed in the Kiris Asteroid Cluster without the approval of the Galactic Alliance in order to augment the existing Defense Forces. When the Second Galactic Civil War finally erupted between the Galactic Alliance and the Five Worlds, the Corellian Defense Force was thrown into the battle. In the first stage of the war, the CDF, and more particularly the Corellian Home Fleet, was highly summoned since the blockaded Corellia was the hotspot of the conflict. This period of extreme tensions was responsible for severe political instability on Corellia, leading to high turnover among the Corellian Supreme Commanders. Admiral Vara Karathas was replaced by Admiral Wedge Antilles, later replaced by Admiral Genna Delpin. Some time later, the war escalated and other worlds joined Corellia in the conflict, forming the Confederation. Military command of the CDF was transferred from the Corellian Supreme Commander to the newly appointed Supreme Commander of the Confederation military. Thereafter, Corellian Defense Force elements were deployed throughout the galaxy alongside other Confederation forces to fight against the Galactic Alliance. The CDF fought at the Battle of Hapes, at the Battle of Gilatter VIII, at the Battle of Kuat, at the Battle of Kashyyyk and at the Second Battle of Roche. Eventually, the Second Galactic Civil War ended with the death of Darth Caedus in 41 ABY during the Battle of Uroro Station.
Members of the Corellian Defense Force wore different kinds of outfits such as the Type III "Berethron" Personal Modular Armor, the TX-3 combat flight suit, or the Nomad greatcoat Corona Footwear Company was responsible for providing boots to the CDF.
One prestigious Corellian award, the Corellian Bloodstripes, was rewarded by the Corellian government to its most heroic citizens, usually to members of the Corellian Military.
The CDF used various types of starships, mostly manufactured by the Corellian Engineering Corporation. The capital ships included corvettes (such as the CR90 corvette and the CR92a Assassin-class corvette), gunships, frigates (including assault frigates), cruiser, Star Defenders (such as the Strident-class Star Defender), battle cruisers, and dreadnaughts. Smaller vessels encompassed patrol boats (such as the Pocket Patrol Boat) and transports (such as the CR-20 troop carrier). Starfighter models included the Light Attack Fighter Model 250, the Heavy/Light Attack Fighter 500, the CL-1c Lancet interceptor, the X-TIE Fighter, the Corellian attack fighter and the YT-5100 Shriek-class bomber.
In addition, the CDF used ancient models of Imperial starships decades after the end of the Galactic Civil War such as TIE series fighters, A-9 Vigilance interceptors, A-10 interceptors, I-7 Howlrunners, EF76 Nebulon-B escort frigates, Carrack-class light cruisers and Victory-class Star Destroyers.
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