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Lady Zarkan. I am Moff Octavian Grant, representative of the Galactic Empire. I have been instructed to bring your system into the wider Empire. I am hailing you now to offer you a truce, I know of your Human Supremacist views, you are a true patriot of our Race. For this, and your willingness to personally lead your forces into battle, you earn my respect. I am asking you now think of the bigger picture and stand down. The Separatist Alliance is dead, the Galactic Empire is the new force in the Galaxy. Mankind reigns supreme, which, as we both know, is our destiny. You could have a worthy place in our Empire as an Imperial Governoress. I plead with you not to waste your life and those of your subjects.
—Octavian Grant hailing Jane Zarkan prior to the battle
The Third Battle of Earth was a battle between the two planetary governments of Earth, the Confederate States of Earth and the Union of Earth States, and the powerful Galactic Empire. Confederate and Union forces tried to fight back, but the Imperial forces were too strong to be defeated and they took heavy damage. During the battle, Earth's ships were all eventually destroyed by Moff Octavian Grant's Imperial-class Star Destroyers, including President Jane Zarkan's flagship, the C.S.S Independence, killing her as the ship exploded.
The death of Jane Zarkan give Moff Grant little joy, rather it gave him feelings of sadness. Prior to the battle, Grant had appealed to Jane Zarkan to back down without a fight because he had come to respect her nobility, selflessness, her loyalty to the Human race, and her devotion to duty during his research on her prior to the campaign. Grant believed she could have been a good Imperial ruler, and lamented the fact she had chosen to throw her life away, in his opinion, though he commended her for dying with her honor intact.
For the third time in nearly 3 years a would-be oppressor has arrived to try and beat our quiet little backwater into submission! Now, let me give you a word of advice, take your ships, your men, and yourself, and leave our space! We will not bow to your oppressive and evil Empire! You have 5 minutes to comply, if you do not retreat then expect to be destroyed! We have faced your Republic predecessors twice before, and defeated them both times!
—Jane Zarkan in a hail to Moff Octavian Grant
Following the defeat of Earth's space forces the Imperials landed ground forces on Earth to conquer the planet. For the next few weeks they won victories against the local land forces, though many thousands of Earthling civilians were killed in the middle of urban battles.
Following the defeat of the Union of Earth States early in the battle the Empire reorganized the Union into the "Earth Empire", a puppet state of the Empire ruled by Governor William Crest, Crest was a staunchly anti-Confederate Union ultranationalist who advocated horrendous acts against the Confederacy during the Earth Civil War, and had personally ordered the destruction of Valley City and the murder of any civilians left within it during the Burning of Valley City. Following the victory of the Imperial forces over the Confederacy the eastern portion of the Confederacy was absorbed into the Earth Empire, whilst the western half went to the "Imperial Kingdom of Zarkania" under Elizabeth Zarkan.
Life in Governor Crest's puppet state was terrible for civilians, but was especially horrible for the ex-Confederates, Crest believed they still had to pay for seceding, and was especially harsh to them, many Confederates believed he was purposefully try to exterminate every last citizen of the Confederacy.
"William Crest", that name is hated and despised in the Confederacy with the passion of a million burning suns! That insane traitor is burning in Hell for eternity! His policies resulted in the deaths of nearly 50 million of our people! Why? Because he hated us! Every year every Confederate burns in effigy of that idiot, it gives us pleasure to know that he will burn forever!
—A Confederate being asked on his view of William Crest
Despite William Crest maintaining his loyalty, many Imperials lamented the fact that Jane Zarkan chose to sacrifice herself, believing that her governance would have been better. As the years dragged on, an increasing number of Imperials began to consider Crest a liability. An Imperial plan was put into place around the time of the Battle of Endor which would have seen Crest removed and "disposed" of, and a provisional military governorate put in place of his Earth Empire until a more suitable local Imperial ruler could be found. This plan was not able to put into effect, however, due to the resulting chaos of the Imperial defeat at Endor.
Life for ex-Confederates under the Imperial Kingdom of Zarkania was considerably better, as a Human-dominated nation the puppet regime was not treated too harshly by the Empire, especially since Elizabeth Zarkan willingly swore her allegiance to the Empire, seeing the Empire as protectors against William Crest, and sensing an opportunity to build a new ultranationalist future for the Zarkanian lands. Many former Confederates living within the Earth Empire attempted, and most succeeded, in crossing the border to the safety of the IKZ.
William Crest's gradual descent into insanity would only serve to further to increase the number of Imperials who considered the Imperial Kingdom of Zarkania to be the better puppet state, and the one who was destined to govern the entirety of Imperial Earth. A number of Imperial officers collaborated with Elizabeth Zarkan in order to strengthen her position as the legitimate ruler of Imperial Earth, they desired to see her be victorious against William Crest.
Their assistance typically gave the IKZ a leg-up over her Earth Empire rival, an example of this was in 13 BBY, when pro-Elizabeth Imperials successfully lobbied the Imperial Navy to allow the IKZ to maintain her own naval forces, resulting to the establishment of the "Imperial and Royal Navy", which grew to be of a respectable size for the navy of an Imperial puppet state, whilst William Crest's own Imperial Navy was not allowed to be anything more than a token force.
Legacy[]
The Imperials have gone. Now is the time to declare war on the so-called "Earth Empire" and liberate the eastern regions from Crest's murderous and insane rule. The feeble-minded starver of millions can look forward to spending the rest of his pitiful life within the cool stone walls of my dungeon!
—Elizabeth Zarkan calling for war with the Earth Empire, 4 ABY
The Imperials left Earth in 4 ABY, in the wake of hearing about the result of the Battle of Endor. Deciding that their force would be better spent serving whatever diminished form the Empire would take than staying on a backwater world on the Galactic Rim. However, One Imperial officer chose to stay behind, this was Colhen Robbill, who had served as an advisor to Elizabeth ever since the founding of the Imperial Kingdom in 18 BBY. He had formed a bond of loyalty to her and had been offered a position within her court.
Following the Imperial evacuation from Earth the Imperial Kingdom wasted no time in making war upon the Earth Empire during the Liberation of Earth. The Earth Empire had been massively weakened by the Great Earth Famine of the previous year, the famine was the result of Crest's insanity and paranoia. Crest believed that the people of the Earth Empire were conspiring with the IKZ against him, so he withheld their food and stockpiled it for his loyalists, despite the initial protests of his advisors, who were soon intimidated into silence when he started having advisors opposed to his policies executed as traitors and co-conspirators with the pro-Zarkanian underground.
As a result, millions started starving to death. By the end of 3 ABY the death toll had reached around 50 million, former Confederates still leaving in the Earth Empire were the hardest hit, practically leading to their extinction in the eastern part of Earth. The famine crushed what little morale the impoverished common people of the Earth Empire had left, something which would have a drastic effect on the events of the later war with Zarkania.
The Imperial & Royal Armed Forces streamed across their eastern border and into the devastated land of the Earth Empire, there they were met by despondent civilians who greeted them as heroes and as liberators. As the Land Forces pushed on, sweeping the Earth Empire forces before them, aid stations were set up by the Medical Corps to assist the civilians, and food shipments were brought in. This was part of a large humanitarian effort sponsored primarily by the IKZ to relieve the effects of the famine, which had a great effect in endearing the citizenry to the occupation forces, and encouraging further collaboration.
The more able-bodied of the citizens of the occupied regions established the Eastern Legions of Liberation - collaborationist legions who served with the western forces, the ELLs were a huge propaganda boon for the West, and greatly encouraged Eastern defections to their side. The Eastern Legions also fought with fearless zeal and fury against the Earth Empire, and were a highly useful asset.
Following the defeat of the Earth Empire Elizabeth had the States of the Earth Empire reorganized into temporary Governorates under military governors. This was a temporary measure to ensure optimal efficiency in the Great Reconstruction - the rebuilding of the east after the devastation of William Crest's rule and the subsequent Liberation.
