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Old Republic era
This article is about the battle during the Hutt War. You may be looking for other uses of the name.


...it seems we may have made a blunder.Gorrbag the Hutt[src]

The Battle of Corellia was the second major battle of the Hutt War, taking place six months after the battle over Iridonia that sparked the war in 12,979 BBY. The battle, planned by both the Taung leadership and the Hutt Grand Council, was fought between the 4th Fleet of the Galactic Republic and the Taung forces of the Hutt Empire.

The battle began after the Taung brought a fleet to Corellia to raid the surface. They were faced with heavy defenses when they arrived, however, including ninety Republic defense ships, a number of fighters, and a mine field encircling the planet. Over Mandalore the Crusader's objections, Hutt Chairman Gorrbag ordered the Taung forces to retreat back to Nal Hutta, giving the Republic its first major victory in the war.

Despite his anger with Gorrbag over the retreat, which he made known to the Hutt, Mandalore used the loss as an opportunity to study the Republic strategy used against him, coming to the conclusion that they could only defeat his Taung forces with superior numbers. Mandalore tested this theory during the Battle of Concord Dawn months later, when he successfully claimed a victory of the Republic and Jedi forces during the battle.

History[]

Prelude[]

The war front has been quiet for some time now and it is most important that we continue the initiative, so you will see what I deem to be keeping the initiative, Hutt.Mandalore the Crusader to Gorrbag the Hutt before the battle[src]

In 12,979 BBY, after of years of tense diplomatic relations with the Hutt Empire following Galactic Republic expansion into the Mid Rim, the Hutt War broke out during a failed peace summit on Iridonia. The Republic forces retreated from the battle, giving the Hutts the first victory of the war.[1]

Traditionally, the Hutts had little interest in military conquest, though they recognized at the onset of war that, if they put aside their lack of interest, they had the potential to gain control of the Republic’s commerce and, therefore, control of the known galaxy's economy. To that end, the Hutts moved their fleet, one that rivaled the Republic's in strength and size, into the Mid Rim, where they made it clear that their goal was to take over the Republic's commerce and assert economic dominance over the galaxy.[4]

Six months later,[5] the Hutts, along with the Taung warriors that served the Hutt Empire,[6] put together plans to devastate Corellia. Gorrbag, the Hutt Chairman, chose the Taungs to lead the raid, as the Taungs were his superior soldiers. Mandalore the Crusader, the leader of the Taungs, informed Gorrbag after taking the assignment that it was important to regain initiative in the war effort, which had been quiet since the war began.[3]

The battle[]

Mandalore: “Retreat? Are you mad slug? This is a battle of fantastic proportions. The Republic has every advantage here and I have none. I am truly here to test my ability! I will not run! I can turn the Republic fleet soon, their minefield cannot be around the entire planet and must be wafer thin in places!
Gorrbag: “I do not care how many you can take down, you are no good to me or your warriors as a burnt corpse floating around in space. It is not a request, I am telling you to get your filthy Taung ridden ass back to Nal Hutta right now!
―Gorbagg orders Mandalore to retreat from the battle[src]

As the Taung forces exited hyperspace, Mandalore ordered that all fighter formations were to aim for speed and maneuverability, so the ships would fly far apart to make for unconventional Taung warfare; Mandalore’s goal was not to fight the defense forces but rather to raid and bombard Corellia in order to inflict as much damage to the surface as possible. The group carried with it one fighter carrier, which would release its fighters to fly towards the Corellian spaceport once the ships dropped out of hyperspace.[3]

Republic Admiral Wilhelm Gilbschwitz, commander of the 4th Republic Fleet, had been warned of an impending arrival of vessels when they were detected exiting hyperspace; as the vessels were coming from the direction of Hutt Space, Gilbschwitz anticipated a possible battle. The Admiral ordered eighty of his ninety ships into a v-shaped firing cordon consisting of three firing groups with his most powerful ships. A compliment of corvettes also acted as a picket line to stop ships from landing on the surface, and the planet was surrounded by a minefield. The Republic fleet transmitted the situation to Coruscant to warn the Republic High Command of the possible need for reinforcements.[3]

The Republic vessels immediately fired on the Taung ships once they were in range. The Republic aimed to cripple the Taung vessels, and the 4th Fleet destroyed a number of incoming fighters that were launched from the Taung cruiser. Not having expected such a large defense—though not disappointed either, as one of the goals of the raid was to test the Republic's ability to raise a fleet against an attack in the Core Worlds—Mandalore modified his plan and ordered his forces not to engage in a ground assault, but rather to take out the defense fleet first. He also moved his vessels out of range of torpedo assaults, but the orbital cannons surrounding Corellia were still able to fire on the Taung forces.[3]

Still in range of the guns, Mandalore sent his fighters to engage them in order to keep them occupied. The Taung carrier turned its side towards the guns; the shields took a hit and a number of the guns were damaged, though it allowed the carrier to launch more fighters to assault the orbital cannons. Concurrently, Admiral Gilbschwitz ordered the release of a number of his own fighters, positioning them on the far side of the minefield in the event that any Taung fighters attacking the cannons made it past the mines.[3]

The Taung fighters halted before the minefield and began firing on the mines, just as Chairman Gorrbag contacted Mandalore. Having been watching the battle unfold, Gorrbag admitted that they may have made a mistake in choosing to attack Corellia and ordered the Taung forces to retreat. Mandalore protested, wanting to test both his force’s abilities and the abilities of the Republic forces. Gorrbag, who was appearing via a hologram carried by a droid, opened a hatch on the droid, causing a blaster to be pointed at Mandalore and demanded that he comply.[3]

Conceding defeat, Mandalore ordered his forces back. A number of fighters continued firing on the mine field, but they also ultimately turned back. Several scout ships, however, remained behind to cover the escape of the main fleet, continuing to assault the mine field. The fleet jumped back into hyperspace to return to Nal Hutta, and the scout ships that remained behind were destroyed.[3]

Aftermath[]

Because of the retreat order, Mandalore was furious at the Hutt Chairman following the battle. During a conference on Nal Hutta with the Sontrebren Crew, in which both Gorrbag and Mandalore were in attendance, Gorrbag felt relieved that he sat behind a protective force field, knowing that there was a possibility Mandalore would try to attack him. Mandalore, however, supported the Chairman, but only out of necessity for the war effort.[7]

Despite the loss and his disagreement with Gorrbag, Mandalore used the encounter with the Republic to further study how the Republic fleet operated. He analyzed the strategies that were used against his forces and concluded that the only way the Republic was and would be able to stop him was if they had significantly higher numbers than he did.[7]

In the months that followed, Mandalore led his forces into battle with Republic and Jedi forces on Concord Dawn. In this engagement, his numbers were far greater than they were on Corellia, as he had learned what he could from his defeat at Corellia to ensure that his forces would be victorious over the Republic on the planet, which they were.[8]

Behind the scenes[]

The battle over Corellia was role-played on TheStarWarsRP.Com from July 21 to August 5, 2009, just after the beginning of the Hutt War timeline on July 15th; the Battle of Corellia was the first battle role-played during the timeline. The Taung side was commanded by Matthew Tarrant who role-played Mandalore with input from Phillip Black who role-played Gorrbag the Hutt. The Republic side was commanded by mrun0riginal, also named Will, who role-played Admiral Wilhelm Gilbschwitz.[3] Admiral Gilbschwitz was a one-shot character who was only used in the Battle of Corellia role-play.[9]

Sources[]

Notes and references[]

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