Battle of Rhein's Way

Battle of Rhein's Way
Part of the Hrang Raid
Date	June 5322 A.E.
Location	Rhein's Way
Result	Decisive Jardin Victory
Belligerents
Jardin Republic	Error creating thumbnail: File missing Captain Hrang
Phoenix Republicans
Commanders and Leaders
Jacques Desmond	Error creating thumbnail: File missing Captain Hrang
Joachim Mornstein-Montfort
Units Involved
4th Fleet	Error creating thumbnail: File missing Kaos Lux
11th Guards Special Operations Flotilla
Strength
90 Ships	Error creating thumbnail: File missing Kaos Lux, 20 Gunships
6 Ships
Casualties & Losses
6,000+ Killed	1 Killed
1 Ship of the Wall	Kaos Lux Captured
4 Cruisers Foundered
1 Command Cruiser Foundered
9 Destroyers Foundered

The Battle of Rhein's Way was a joint Jardin-Phoenix Republican victory over the pirate Captain Hrang in the June of 5322 A.E. Striking from an undiscovered base in former League space the reaver circumvented Jardin frontier defenses and raided Riviera, a sector capital. In response the Republic hastily organized a scratch force of the deeply understrength Reserve 4th Fleet and the Phoenix Republican 11th Guards Flotilla under the command of then Rear Admiral Desmond.

Advanced elements of the Jardin force and the Kaos Lux met in an unexpected meeting engagement as they crossed the Rhein's Way. In the limited sensor horizon of the Starway the Kaos Lux was able to pierce the Jardin screen before any elements could raise an alarm. Captain Hrang stumbled directly upon the 4th Fleet's command battlegroup but after a fierce exchange of fire Commodore Joachim Mornstein-Montfort successfully rammed and boarded the pirate flagship.

Aftermath

The Jardin Navy was able to restore most of the stolen goods to the population of Riviera. 4th Fleet and 11th Guards Flotilla were feted by the media for their victory. JNS Cognée was referred for a Parliamentary Unit Citation by Rear Admiral Desmond.

The losses sustained by the 11th Guards Special Operations Flotilla in conjunction with the 4th fleet significantly increased the standing of the Phoenix Republicans in the public and paved the way for their integration into the Republic. Riviera in particular was willing to open its arms to the Phoenix Republicans, their families, and later immigrants from the extradition treaties with the Phoenix Empire. The close cooperation of Montfort and Desmond throughout the period also likely secured Montfort his post as commander of the Black Eagles following the turbulent elections of that year.

After a relatively short period in drydock the Kaos Lux was rechristened the Lux Res Publica and left under Phoenix Republican command for the time being. It would soon play a part in the Battle of XDeltaZero.

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