Klingon Civil War

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The Klingon Civil War was a conflict fought from late 2367 to early 2368 over the right to choose the next Chancellor of the Klingon High Council and de facto leader of the Klingon Empire. The war was fought between forces loyal to Gowron, the legally appointed candidate, and the supporters of the House of Duras, led by sisters Lursa and B'Etor. The war was a decisive victory for Gowron, but it was achieved only through indirect assistance from the United Federation of Planets in exposing covert Romulan assistance to the forces of the Duras family.

Background

Klingon Chancellor K'mpec


K'mpec, the longest-lived chancellor of the Empire, ruled with an iron fist and managed to keep peace within the Empire. As he grew older, his influence began to wane, and two opposing factions began to develop. The first faction, led by Gowron, favored the continuing alliance with the Federation, while the second faction, led by the Duras family, sought to establish a more independent and aggressive policy for the Empire. Duras had support from a large majority of the High Council, while Gowron's support came largely from political outsiders and military personnel.


Tensions came to a head in early 2367 with the sudden revelation that K'mpec was dying. He had been slowly poisoned by Veridium Six that had been introduced into his bloodwine. Because the killer had not shown his face to his victim, Klingon tradition considered the act to be without honor. Recognizing that corruption had taken hold in the Empire, K'mpec decided that he could not trust any Klingon with the task of choosing the next leader of the Empire. Therefore, he took the unheard-of action of selecting Jean-Luc Picard, a Human Starfleet officer, as the Arbiter of Succession.


Gowron requested that Picard ensure his installation as Chancellor, but Picard would not step outside the boundaries of Klingon law. He refused Gowron's request for assistance, and would only assure Gowron that he would respond to any challenges according to Klingon law.


War and Aftermath

Gowron's flagship was attacked, taking him by surprise and nearly destroying the ship in the process. The Captain of the assisting ship brought the support of three full fleet squadrons with him, which gave Gowron a fighting chance to resist his enemies. Emboldened by this support, Gowron chose to go through with his installation as Chancellor of the Klingon Empire. Although the majority of the Klingon fleet had not yet chosen sides in the conflict, Gowron was seriously outnumbered by the Duras' forces, who controlled at least seven squadrons and had amassed a large fleet. Over the next two weeks, Gowron's forces suffered three major defeats.


As far as the Federation was concerned, the Prime Directive dictated that the Federation remain neutral in the war. Despite this, it was pointed out that if other powers, such as the Romulans, were involved in the conflict, then it would become a concern for the Federation as a whole. Starfleet then blockaded the Klingon-Romulan border to prevent any ships from sending any further suspected support to the Duras family. With their connection to the Duras family exposed, the Romulans ordered their ships to retreat back to Romulan territory rather than risk a fight with both the Klingons and the Federation. Klingon support fell away from the Duras family as knowledge of their collaboration with the Romulans spread. In the final days of the war, Lursa and B'Etor Duras fled their base on Qo'noS as it was stormed by Gowron's forces.


Following his victory, Gowron proceeded to establish strict control over the Empire, and appointed an entirely new High Council membership. Lursa and B'Etor were finally killed in 2371, when their ship was destroyed by the Enterprise-D.