| Free Jaffa Nation | |
|---|---|
| File:Normal sg1 901 0289.jpg | |
| Political information | |
| Type of government |
Parliamentary Federal Republic |
| Founding document |
Declaration of a Free Jaffa Nation |
| Constitution |
Free Jaffa Constitution |
| Head of State |
Chancellor |
| Head of Government |
Chancellor |
| Commander-in-chief |
First Fleet Admiral |
| Executive branch |
Chancellor |
| Legislative branch |
Free Jaffa Senate |
| Judicial branch |
Regional courts |
| Societal information | |
| Capital | |
| Notable members |
Majority of Jaffa |
| Official language |
Goa'uld, Galactic (English) |
| Currency |
Naquadah |
| Historical information | |
| Formed from | |
| Date of establishment |
AD 2005 |
| Date of fragmentation |
AD 2006 |
| Date of reorganization |
AD 2008 |
- "We are attempting to build a whole new system of government that will span Jaffa worlds throughout the galaxy."
- —Teal'c
The Free Jaffa Nation is an interstellar government formed by independent Jaffa after the downfall of the Goa'uld System Lords, and a founding member of the Interstellar Alliance . It is largely considered the premiere military, economic, and cultural power in the Milky Way Galaxy, spanning hundreds of worlds and comprised of billions of people. Though the vast majority of its populace are Jaffa, there are a number of minority groups within the Nation, primarily humans. That said, there are some groups that refuse to join the new government and continue to operate against it.
A federal republic headquartered on Chulak , the Free Jaffa Senate is the powerful legislative body of the Nation, though it's overseen by an equally-influential Chancellor. Senators from the many diverse member worlds are largely aligned with either the Progressive or Traditionalist parties, with political views favoring more novel and archaic styles of government, respectively. Militarily, the Nation fields a vast fleet of ha'tak motherships inherited from their former masters, as well as ships of their own design such as the ha'tak'ko. By sheer numbers, these forces easily make the Free Jaffa the most powerful group operating in the galaxy, though they lack some of the technological advantages of their allies.
Despite its limitations, however, the Free Jaffa Nation has risen to a place of unquestioned dominance in galactic affairs, and has been a key ally in turning back both the Ori and Der'kal invasions.
History
Founding and fragmentation
Born from an underground resistance movement, the Free Jaffa Nation was established following the Battle of Dakara, which ended the reign of the Goa'uld in the Milky Way. Claiming the holy world of Dakara as their capital, the Jaffa rallied their planets into a loose coalition which would span most of the galaxy, making them the dominant player in interstellar affairs.
The new Nation inherited part of the fleets of the System Lords , partially filling the power vacuum left by their defeat. In an elaborate ceremony marking the official founding of the Nation, Teal'c and Bra'tac, who had been instrumental in the freeing of Jaffa, were knighted Bloodkin to all, the highest honor that can be bestowed on any citizen.
The Dakara Superweapon
The sprawling domain was initially ruled by the Jaffa High Council, on which votes were appropriated based on unconfirmed military assets, the nation is divided between at least two major political factions: the opposition progressives who support Teal'c and Master Bra'tac's vision of a representative democracy and the ruling traditionalists who support the military oligarchy with Gerak at the head of the High Council.
With the arrival of the Ori, things became difficult for the Jaffa Nation. Though initially committed to resisting the spread of Origin and its attendant Priors, as most Jaffa were horrified at the idea of worshipping false gods once more, many fell under the alluring sway of the Ori's message. However, Gerak was converted to Origin, becoming intent on making the false faith the official religion of all Jaffa, everywhere. It was soon made apparent that Gerak's choice threatened to unearth civil war, though, as the Progressives and even some of Gerak's fellow Traditionalists were opposed to this idea; even his most-trusted aide, Yat'Yir, had doubts. When at last he did see the light, Gerak chose to rebel against the Ori. [citation needed]
A resolution passed by the High Council mandated a referendum to determine whether the Nation would adopt a constitution based on Earth representative democracies. To the delight of the Progressives, the measure was passed, with elections to be held two months afterwards. Even with the societal progress, though, the Jaffa suffered greatly against the followers of the Ori, their ships being completely ineffective at stopping the recently arrived Ori battlecruisers. One of the first Jaffa worlds to fall to the Ori was Teal'c's home planet of Chulak, a vital symbol of revolution and freedom to his people. [citation needed]
The Jaffa leader Se'tak took matters into his own hands to deal with the Ori, planning to use the Dakara Superweapon. He targeted human worlds that had fallen to the enemy in order to wipe out the followers of Origin before they could be brought into the crusade. A Jaffa strike force aiding in this plan faced impediment by SG-1 and Adria, though, who killed the Jaffa attempting to take-over an Ori ship. Learning of the location of Dakara, Adria took her cruiser there and completely destroyed the Ancient superweapon, along with Se'tak and his loyal followers. SG-1 (beamed out by the Odyssey), General Landry and Bra'tac (who escaped through the Stargate to Earth) survived the devastation of Dakara but were the only known escapees. Many other Jaffa worlds bowed to the Ori after that, whether through fear or having actually been converted is unknown.
Several Jaffa worlds had willingly fallen into the hand of the Ori crusaders though small resistance movements still existed that gained intelligence on these enemies. Some groups, such as the Illac Renin, became devoted to the path the Ori showed them, though many more resisted it. In order to help stabilise the leadership of the Jaffa, a peaceful summit was called on the Jaffa world of Dar Eshkalon, but a deceptive strike killed many of it attendees. It was revealed that this was done by radical Jaffa who had embraced the Ori, and were led by a former First Prime known as Arkad. The cunning leader wished to steer the Jaffa's destiny firmly away from self-determination and into the waiting hands of the Ori. Furthermore, to gain the favor of his new masters, he attempted to stockpile weapons-grade naquadah to use against the Tau'ri but he was killed by Teal'c before he could accomplish his goal.
Following the retaking of Jaffa worlds and the defeat of the Ori, the Nation was reunified on Chulak, under the direction of Master Bra'tac. The Progressives and Traditionalists continued to spar, but the more-moderate Mid'cha party helped to finally bring about peace on the political field, if no other.
Jaffa High Council
The Palace of Apophis, which now houses the Jaffa Senate
The Jaffa High Council was the ruling body of the Free Jaffa Nation before their shift to democratic forms of government. Votes were appropriated on the Council based on unconfirmed military assets of the various coalitions represented. Many of the councillors were the former leaders of the Jaffa Resistance, usually haveing been First Primes before that. The Council was divided between Traditionalists, favoring old-style government based on military strength, and Progressives, favoring some form of republic. The Traditionalist faction was led by Gerak and Yat'Yir, both former servants of Montu. It has been revealed that the former followers of the System Lord Yu tend to be Traditionalists. [citation needed]
Before its dissolution, the Council included:
- Bra'tac (Deceased) - Leader of the Progressive opposition.
- Gerak (Deceased) - Former Head of the Council and of the ruling Traditionalist faction.
- Ka'lel - a Hak'tyl who appears to be moderately Progressive.
- Maz'rai (Deceased) - a former Apophis servant, native of Chulak, and a progressive who committed suicide by symbiote removal to undo Ba'al's brainwashing.
- Rak'nor is a former leader of the Jaffa Resistance and now serves as Teal'c's proxy on the Jaffa High Council.
- Se'tak (Deceased) - a Jaffa leader who came into power after Geraks death, he advocated a more harsh policy of dealing with the Ori through the use of the Dakara device. He was hostile towards the Tau'ri believing that the Jaffa should remain independent and free from alien influence. He was killed when Adria's battlecruiser targeted the Dakara superweapon and destroyed it.
- Teal'c - Former leader of the Progressive opposition.
- The former First Prime of Moloc was a member of the anti-Origin party after Gerak's conversion.
- U'kin - a member of the Jaffa High Council.
- Yat'Yir - Gerak's aide and successor as head of the Traditionalists.
Shift to Republic
Following Se'tak's death on Dakara, Bra'tac took on the mantle of leader of the Nation, immediately advocating for a switch for democratic ideals and processes. He dissolved the High Council and instituted a Senatorial body in which member worlds had two representatives each but votes based on their respective populations. This move was widely approved by the Jaffa people as a whole, and dozens more planets applied for membership that had before been reluctant to give up their autonomy to a centralized government.
Knowing he would need assistance in this endeavor, now-Chancellor Bra'tac appointed Teal'c to the position of Prime Minister, which forced the younger warrior to resign from his place on SG-1. Many other prominent members of the Jaffa Resistance were likewise elevated, especially those who had favored Progressive ideals in the days of the Ori Crusade. Several other major reforms would follow, all of which aimed at increasing the self-sufficiency of the Jaffa as a people and improving their technology past that of the Goa'uld, authorizing projects such as the development of the Hak'tyl-class cruisers. Though far older than most citizens of the Nation, Bra'tac was a modernizing figure in the galaxy, and his methods were welcomed by one and all across the galaxy.
Unfortunately, that age and its wisdom turned against the Chancellor a year later, and Bra'tac suffered a stroke which would prevent him from continuing his role as leader. Instead, Teal'c ascended to the seat, becoming the recognized ruler of over ten billion sentients. Unlike his mentor, he would appoint various Traditionalists and members of the Mid'cha party to his administration as well as Progressives, and leaned heavily on those who had not directly served in the Resistance. His giving of the Supreme Commander role to Admiral Kitel shocked many, but the young warrior would later prove himself invaluable in his tactical brilliance.
The Der'kal Invasion
When the Der'kal invaded the Milky Way, the Jaffa were one of the races that made first contact in orbit over P9X-335. Following the destruction of Zanous Garrin's forces in the area, the battered Alliance fleet was forced to engage the alien arrivals, and was subsequently devastated by their superior firepower. Only a single ship escaped the carnage to warn the galaxy, and the Jaffa were forced onto the defensive.
For the first year of the war, the Nation held its own, though it continually lost territory to the seemingly-endless armada of enemy ships. Their first true test of the conflict came when the aliens set their sights on the fortress world of Ankgor, launching the largest single campaign of the war effort at the time. The Alliance would repel the enemy at that battle, but less than six months later, the Der'kal would return and finish what they had begun, flattening the planet's defenses and razing its surface of all signs of high civilization as retribution for the Trust's use of the Agent One virus.
With the aliens continuing to close on the galactic core, the Free Jaffa were more and more relied upon to be the military backbone of the galaxy's defense, but their victories have been few and far between.
Worlds under Free Jaffa control
There are hundreds of worlds under the jurisdiction of the Nation, but major ones include:
Role in the Alliance of Great Races
The Free Jaffa Nation is a founding member of the renewed Alliance of Great Races, alongside the Tau'ri, Tok'ra, Hebridanians, and Nox. As such, the Jaffa now find themselves in an even-larger role in galactic affairs, particularly aspects of military engagements; as the largest power in the new Alliance, it is often Free Jaffa fleets that are sent to fend off hostile forces.
Befitting their new status, the Jaffa maintain a councilor on the Alliance High Council, and as such have a larger say in interstellar matters than most other races or groups.