The government that oversaw the Human population on the isolated planet Shiva IV was known as the Calian Confederacy. The Calians, a people with a unique warrior tradition that developed in isolation from the rest of the galaxy, produced fighters recognized as among the most powerful in known space. For generations, the Calian Confederacy engaged in warfare with the indigenous T'Syriél, whose Twelve Tribes were the Calians' primary adversaries in their struggle to dominate their homeworld. This era of conflict concluded in 2 ABY, when Warlord Aron Peacebringer signed the Concordat of Peace with T'Syriél Demarch Kéral Longknife.
The Human civilization residing on the distant planet of Shiva IV was known as the Calian Confederacy. Illyriaqüm, the throne city, served as the Confederacy's capital, and the Confederacy also included several outlying cities, such as K'avor. The Human inhabitants of the planet, called Calians, differed from baseline Humans in several ways, including their distinctive reddish-tan skin, exceptional physical strength, and a famous martial heritage. The warriors of the Calian Confederacy were renowned as some of the most formidable in known space, and were known for their ability to enter a berzerker "battle rage," which made them virtually unstoppable on the battlefield.
The Confederacy's structure reflected the Calians' martial tradition; the leader of the alliance was known as the Warlord, and military strength was valued in Calian society. While Calians used basic weapons like sabers in combat, the Confederacy also had access to more advanced technology, such as airspeeders and battleships that formed a sizable fleet. The Calian Confederacy's culture was significantly different from that of other Human populations throughout the galaxy, and its people spoke a language that was not recognized by many translatacomps.
In the centuries leading up to the Galactic Civil War, the Calian Confederacy rose to power on Shiva IV, but they were not the only inhabitants. The T'Syriél, another sentient species, also lived on Shiva IV, and their Twelve Tribes posed the greatest threat to Calian dominance of Shiva IV. The Calian Confederacy and the Twelve Tribes fought relentlessly for many generations, until 2 ABY, when Aron, a warrior who had risen through the Calian ranks to become Warlord, formed a blood brotherhood with T'Syriél Demarch Kéral Longknife, and signed the Concordat of Peace, ending the conflict. Aron earned the moniker Aron Peacebringer as a result of this peace, which lasted for the following year, however many in the Confederacy were uneasy and yearned for the past.
In 3 ABY, communication between Illyriaqüm, the capital, and K'avor was unexpectedly cut off, prompting Peacebringer and Longknife to launch an investigation into the city, where they discovered it had been destroyed by an anti-matter bomb. The reason was soon revealed: Bentilais san Sk'ar, an Imperial General, had worked with Ygal Delois, the captain of Peacebringer's guard, to conquer Shiva IV for the Empire and install Delois as the Calian Confederacy's ruler. Sk'ar and Delois made an attempt to set off a similar bomb in Illyriaqüm, but Peacebringer, Longknife, and several Rebel operatives, Leia Organa, Luke Skywalker, and Chewbacca, thwarted their intentions.
The Calian Confederacy made its debut appearance in Star Wars (1977) 53, which was written by Chris Claremont and released in 1981.