Martian Revolution

"The citizens of Mars were - are - our friends. Attacking the cities my men once called home, opening fires on ships we once called our own. It was haunting, and I never want something like it to happen again."

- Rear Admiral Anthony Sinclair, The Solar Flare interview, March 2099

The Martian Revolution was a civil war fought between the United Nations of Earth and the Martian Commonwealth from 2088 to 2095. It was the first proper interplanetary war fought by the Sol Defence Corps, and featured the heavy usage of counterintelligence, special operations, and propaganda on both sides of the war.

Memos from the CAM Governor Jeanette Tatham were leaked to the public in 2087. These memos revealed plans for Earth to receive a majority of Martian government-subsidised exports, leading to the sentiment that Earth had been exploiting Martian labour and resources for its own gain rather than for the advancement of the Mars economy. This drove interplanetary tensions to an all-time high and eventually led to the demanded dismissal of Governor Tatham, which the Assembly legislation had denied.

In outrage, political activist Mark Spencer-Kauffman rallies the Martian people, telling them about how Earth asked for everything and gave them an empty, red planet. While he was met with severe opposition from both Earth and Mars, he managed to gain the popular support of the Martian population and even convinced several groups on Earth to support his movements. Spencer-Kauffman later had parts of the CAM government break away and establish the Martian Commonwealth, an independent government of Mars that quickly gained the support of several provincial governments. In spite of this, it was unrecognised by the UN.

With the upper hand in both propaganda and public opinion, the newly-formed Commonwealth's militia had managed to convert several trade and supply ships to warfighting vessels and quickly gained the support and control of Martian shipyards, briefly including the then-independent Stratford Shipyards, and churning out new ships under the Commonwealth navy.

The war is widely believed to have been won with unconventional warfare tactics employed by the United Nations following their increasing levels of defeat in the early war days; the formation of the Sol Intelligence Service and, later, SDC's formation of NAVSOC greatly turned the war in Earth's favour with its superior doctrine and training compared to the Commonwealth's brute strength.

The Commonwealth was defeated in October 2095 at the Battle of Schiaparelli culminating in a UN victory and the placement of Mars under Peacekeeper occupation. This was combined with the reestablishment of the Colonial Administration of Mars (CAM), now fully under UN control and possessing little to no independent exercising of its own.

Background
Following the official start of Mars' colonisation in 2053, the UN sought the creation of a political entity to manage and administrate the development of Martian colonies planetwide. The Colonial Administration of Mars was created, with a central Governor appointed to serve as the body's chief executive. The CAM's duties were to act as a quasi-government and liaison to the UN with the goal of advancing Martian development.

Most of the mining corporations who settled on Mars had their roots on Earth, and frequently exported their resources away from Martian soil before government incentives encouraged the companies to instead sell raw material to developing Martian industry, particularly in the Tharsis district.