Twelve Colonies
The Twelve Colonies of Man or Twelve Colonies of Kobol constitute the main human civilization in the fictional universe of the original 1978 science fiction film and television series Battlestar Galactica, and in the subsequent miniseries (2003) and series reimagining (2004).
The colonies
The Twelve Colonies were founded by settlers from Kobol, the birthplace of the human species. In the original series, the twelve tribes of humans settled on twelve different planets in the fictional Cyranus binary solar system. In the new series, it is unclear whether all the colonies were in one solar system, or located in multiple systems.
All Colonial planets were depopulated by the Cylons during The Destruction of the Twelve Colonies.
The names of the colonies are taken from the constellations of the Zodiac:
| Constellation | Name in the Original Series | Name in the 2003 Series |
|---|---|---|
| Aquarius | Aquaria | Aquaria |
| Aries | Aeries | Aerelon |
| Cancer | Orion | Canceron |
| Capricorn | Caprica | Caprica |
| Gemini | Gemoni | Gemenon |
| Leo | unrevealed | Leonis |
| Libra | Libron | Libran |
| Pisces | Picon | Picon |
| Sagittarius | Sagitaria | Sagittaron |
| Scorpio | Scorpia | Scorpia |
| Taurus | Tauron | Tauron |
| Virgo | Virgon | Virgon |
The producers of the original series felt "Cancer" had rather obvious negative connotations, and so they substituted the name "Orion" for that colony. Count Baltar in the original series was the ruler of Orion.
In the reimagined series, People of Gemenon are deeply religious and believe in the literal translation of the scriptures.
In the original series, the people of Picon spoke a different language to that of Caprica.
In the original series pilot (and novelization), Adama remarked that Sagitaria had "the best defense systems in the Colonies." In the reimagined series, Sagittaron was seen as a neglected and disenfranchised member of the colonies.
Relative locations
Executive producer Ron Moore has stated that as a nod to the original series, each of the Twelve Colonies is one of 12 planets in a single solar system.
In the Battlestar Galactica video game, published in 2003, just prior to the release of the reimagined series, the colonies were in one star system called "Cyrannus". The name "Cyrannus" was used in the original series episode "The Long Patrol", but was used by the character Starbuck as the name of the galaxy, not a single star system. As yet, the name "Cyrannus" has not been used in the reimagined series.
In the novelization of the pilot for the 1978 series, the Twelve Colonies are referred to as "The Twelve Colonies of the Three Suns."
Colonial government
1978 series
The Quorum of the Twelve (sometimes called the "Council of the Twelve") is the main governing body of the Twelve Colonies. There are twelve members, each representing one colony. There is a president of the Twelve Colonies, who acts as the head of state. There is also a Commander in Chief of the armed forces. The President and civilian government lead the Colonies, unless martial law is declared. After the death of President Adar and the death of the Quorum of the Twelve, the Colonial remnants, under the protection of the Battlestar Galactica were placed under martial law by Commander Adama, the last surviving member of the pre-Destruction Quorum. Count Baltar, a member of the Quorum who survived due to his treachery, was presumably stripped of his rank for his gross betrayal of humanity. The Quorum has the power to repeal martial law itself, but after a disastrous attempt at reestablishing civilian rule in the "rag-tag fleet," such matters were dropped for the present.
There is no death penalty, even for treason. The maximum punishment is life imprisonment. Officers of the court include 'Opposers' (prosecutors) and 'Advocates' (defense).
The Colonial military
The Colonial military is divided into three branches:
- The Colonial Navy is the first line of defence against Cylon invasion. This force of Battlestars and Vipers has held the Cylons at bay and can easily outwit superior Cylon numbers with human ingenuity.
- Colonial Warriors, renowned for their bravery and prowess in warfare in the Colonies and beyond, Warriors are the Viper pilots and ground troops of the Colonies.
- Colonial Security Forces are officers clad in black who form a catch-all police force, under the direct control of the Quorum of the Twelve. Their jurisdiction appears to cover both civilian and military police roles.
2003 Series
In the 2003 remake of Battlestar Galactica, the Colonial government is somewhat different. The government was established under the Articles of Colonization. There is a Presidency, and a "Political Cabinet" (which include the ministries of Defense and Education), with each ministry headed by a secretary. The Secretary of Education is the 43rd in the order of succession. There is a death penalty, and treason is punishable by it. Local government includes mayors, of whom President Adar was one before his first term as President of the Twelve Colonies. The Colonial Government appears to include some form of civil religion.
The Quorum of the Twelve (see Quorum of Twelve) does exist in the series (an interim one is established a month into the exodus) but its structure and purpose is different. The Quorum's sessions are presided by the President of the Twelve Colonies, who may cast a vote in case of a draw. Each Colony gets a single vote. The functions of the Quorum of Twelve include taking nominations for and electing the Vice President - whether this is common practice or an emergency attribution in the case of a vacant Vice Presidency is not known. Quorum members may run for the Vice Presidency, but must resign their Quorum seat if elected. Given that the Colonies used to be independent nations until a few decades before the Cylon Attack, the Quorum of Twelve is described as a mixture between the United States Senate and the UN Security Council.
In his blog, Battlestar Galactica's producer Ronald D. Moore has indicated that the Colonial government presumably included a larger, still unnamed representative body (most likely the People's Council mentioned in Lay Down Your Burdens, Part II) and an independent judiciary system, as well as another (also unnamed) religious body with an advisory function.
The differences in Colonial government in the 2003 remake stem from the fact that Cylons were created by Man as servants and soldiers, though there are no alien races. The production team has established that the Cylons were used as soldiers in wars between the Twelve Colonies. Indeed, while the Exodus from Kobol was 2,000 years before the final Cylon defeat of the Twelve Colonies in the TV series, the "Articles of Colonization" are stated as being only 52 years old (predating the First Cylon War--which was 40 years ago--by only 12 years). As such, the Colonial Government made up of the Presidency and the Quorum was meant to be less of a unified one as seen in the original series and more of an alliance of independent members, like NATO or the United Nations. This is evidenced by statements that different colonies had entirely different governments and laws; for example, Sagittaron was ruled by a corrupt military dictatorship. Further, it is stated that Sagittaron law allows a convict that has served their sentence to regain citizenship, implying that all of the colonies were not ruled by the same law.
Colonial Military
The Colonial military appears to be made of at least two branches.
- The Colonial Fleet, which operated a force of about 120 Battlestars and several support vessels. The Colonial Fleet was organized around "Battlestar Groups", such as Battlestar Group 75 (from which Galactica receives its BSG-75 designator). These groups were possibly composed of a single Battlestar protected and supported by smaller vessels, including, but not limited to, Viper and Raptor squadrons. The Colonial Fleet has a mixed Navy/Marine Corps rank system: Admiral; Commander; Colonel; Major; Captain; Lieutenant; Lieutenant, j(unior) g(rade); Ensign. Non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnel also have a mixed Navy/Marine Corps rank system, referred to as a "Naval-style rank system" by detailed by Ronald D. Moore (a former Marine Option Midshipman) in his blog: Master Chief Petty Officer, Chief Petty Officer, Petty Officer 1st and 2nd Class, Specialist, Deckhand and Recruit.
- The Colonial Marine Corps, a specialized ship-based ground force operating onboard the ships of the Colonial Fleet. Marines are used for strike actions and for security purposes such as repelling boardings and maintaining a ship's brig. The role the Marine Corps may have played in planetary defense is still not known, or even if there was a separate Colonial Army for that role. Marine non-commissioned and enlisted personnel use regular Marine rank titles; whether their officers use the same mixed rank structure as Colonial Fleet officers is not known, as no Marine officer has so far been shown.
Due to a lack of a police force within the fleet, both Naval and Marine personnel also serve as law enforcement officials as necessary. According to Ronald D. Moore's own podcast commentary for the episode "Kobol's Last Gleaming," the plainclothed Presidential Security Force is intentionally separate from the military, with its members culled from any and all surviving police officers within the fleet.