Races and groups in the Babylon 5 universe

This article describes important peoples and groups from the universe of the science fiction television series Babylon 5 . In addition to the main series , the offshoot Crusade and the associated feature films, the descriptions are also based on other publications within the canon , such as novels or short stories.

The great peoples

Centauri

Home planet: Centauri Prime

Outwardly, the Centauri are very human-like, but have some anatomical differences, such as sexual organs in the form of tentacles and two hearts. The most striking feature of male Centauri is their upright hairstyle, while Centauri women are bald except for a long braid. At the head of the monarchist Centauri republic stood the sole ruling emperor, who was advised by an assembly of nobles, the Centaurum. The aristocratic families, in turn, competed permanently with each other for power and influence, formed temporary alliances, intrigued and did not shy away from assassinations. The Centauri had long had an expansive interstellar policy. At the height of their power, they ruled large parts of the known galaxy and held the home planet of their current archenemy, the Narn, for about 100 years. The Narn waged a partisan war against the occupiers and eventually forced them to retreat. This conflict, which lasted a total of 150 years, tied up the forces of the Centauri and initiated their decline as a great power. By the time Babylon 5 was completed, the Centauri Empire consisted of just a dozen worlds. They were the first alien species to come into contact with humans. The Centauri came under the influence of the shadows in 2260, which almost led to total annihilation, were among the founding peoples of the Interstellar Alliance and experienced another low point due to the infiltration by the Drakh. ^{P. 102 f. P. 108 f.}

People

Home planet: Earth

Humans were a relatively young interstellar power, but were already among the strongest and most influential races. They received the ability to travel interstellar in the middle of the 22nd century from the Centauri and from then on began to colonize the surrounding area. The most important colony arose shortly before on Mars, interstellar colonies followed, among others, Orion 7 and Proxima 3. The Earth Alliance waged a victorious war against the people of the Dilgar when they attacked the non-aligned worlds, and thus reached the first peak of their power and their influence. A momentous, unintended conflict with the Minbari ensued that brought humanity to the brink of annihilation. In response to this military disaster, the people were the main initiators of the Babylon project that resulted in the construction of the Babylon stations. Even after the Earth-Minbari War, the territory of the Earth Alliance comprised two dozen worlds. The Earth Alliance came under the influence of an Orwellian group in 2258 that cooperated with the Shadows, which eventually led to the Civil War in 2261. The Earth Alliance then joined the Interstellar Alliance. ^{P. 355 f.}

Minbari

Home planet: Minbar

The Minbari have a human-like stature, but are bald and have a strongly ossified back of the head. They belonged to the oldest space-traveling young races. The population was divided into three castes - workers, warriors and clergy - each of which had a different basic language: Lenn'a , Feek and Adronato . The Minbari 's supreme government was the Gray Council founded by Valen, which consisted of three members from each caste and was usually headed by the chief Minbari leader as the tenth member. The gray council resided on a special Minbari space cruiser. A devastating war broke out between humans and Minbari ten years before the start of the Babylon project, in which the Minbari later played a key role, when the humans opened fire on their first contact, mistakenly assuming that the Minbari wanted to attack them. Dukhat, probably the most respected leader of the Minbari after Valen, was killed, which led the Minbari to a holy war. Though vastly superior to the humans throughout the conflict and constantly on the offensive, the Minbari surrendered unexpectedly in the final battle. The reasons for this weren't revealed until years later. The Minbari fought the Shadows several times and are among the founding races of the Interstellar Alliance. ^{P. 496 f.}

Narn

Home planet: Narn

The Narn are similar in size and stature to humans, but stronger and have a heavily pigmented, leathery skin. Until the Centauri occupied their homeworld in the 22nd century, the Narn were a peaceful agrarian society. In a 100-year occupation, the Centauri plundered and enslaved the Narn homeworld. The Narn put up bitter resistance until the Centauri finally withdrew after a 150-year conflict. Driven by the need for vengeance, the Narn used captured and abandoned Centauri technology and became conquerors themselves, who gradually expanded. The Narn regime was militaristic, the highest government body was the Kha'Ri, a council of the most important leaders and military. The Narn soon rose to be one of the most powerful races in the galaxy, constantly preparing for the inevitable war with the Centauri. This war broke out in 2259 and ended with the defeat of the Narn, who were again subjugated by the Centauri until 2261. The Narn joined the Interstellar Alliance after their liberation. ^{P. 539 f. P. 545}

League of Non-Aligned Worlds

The League of Non-Aligned Worlds (originally League of Non-Aligned Worlds ) was formed after the Dilgar War as an economic and military amalgamation of various extraterrestrial governments, but was more of a loose confederation. In the council of Babylon 5 she received a common vote, equivalent to a single vote of the great nations. Internal conflicts, which were later provoked by the shadows, brought the league to the brink of disintegration. The League reunited in 2260 under the leadership of Captain John Sheridan and its members were all among the founding peoples of the Interstellar Alliance. ^{P. 437 f.}

Members of the League of Non-Aligned Worlds included:

• Abbai
• Brakiri
• Drazi
• Gaim
• Grome
• Hurr
• Hyach
• Iksha
• Llort
• Markab (practically extinct due to an epidemic)
• Onteen
• Pak'ma'ra
• Veree
• Yolu

The very first

“Very first” is a collective term for peoples who developed a long time ago and have accordingly advanced technology. They explored space, built empires, and also taught younger peoples who discovered them. Most of the Very First had long since left the galaxy by the time of the Babylon Project. In addition to the Shadows and Vorlons, there were at least five other very first species left, but they had completely withdrawn and had little interest in the rest of the races. They only sided with the younger races in the final war against Shadows and Vorlons and then also left the galaxy. ^{P. 269 f.}

shadow

Home planet: Z'ha'dum

The shadows are an insect-like, highly developed species with a deep black body surface and have the ability to make themselves invisible. In their view, progress is best made by initiating chaos and conflict, whereby only the strongest survive and grow stronger. This ideology embroiled her in a long conflict with the Vorlons. In the last war, about 1000 years before the Babylon stations were built, the Shadows were defeated by the Vorlons and their allies. Ever since then, they have waited for an opportunity to regain their former strength, covertly rebuilding their forces, and destabilizing the galaxy through intrigue and hidden alliances. In 2260 there was a decisive exchange of blows with the younger races, the Great War, at the end of which the shadows left the galaxy. ^{P. 662 f.}

Vorlons

Home planet: Vorlon

Vorlons no longer have a fixed physical form and usually keep themselves covered from other species by wearing protective suits. Like all the very first, they are highly developed and far superior to the younger races. The Vorlons fought a millennia-long conflict with their arch-rival, the Shadows. The reason for this were different philosophies in dealing with the younger peoples. Unlike the Shadows, who sought development through Chaos, the Vorlons believed that it took absolute discipline and submission to a higher goal (and its commands) to evolve. They manipulated the DNA of younger races, creating telepaths as a weapon against the shadows. Several major wars were fought, but the aim was never to destroy the enemy, only to reduce his influence. The final confrontation came in the 23rd century during the Great War, when the younger peoples resisted the constant manipulation and forced shadows like Vorlons to confront. The Vorlons, like the Shadows, left the galaxy following this conflict. ^{P. 785 ff.}

Other peoples

Drakh

Home planet: Z'ha'dum, later Centauri Prime

The Drakh lived with them on Z'ha'dum as the shadows' henchmen. After the shadows retreated and their homeworld was destroyed, the Drakh withdrew to Centauri Prime for some time, exercising secret control over the local government and embroiling the Centauri in a war against the Interstellar Alliance to isolate the Centauri and im Connection to use. Eventually they could be driven from the Centauri homeworld. The Drakh were also responsible for contaminating the earth with a virus. ^{P. 202 ff.}

Soul hunter

Home planet: Unknown

Nothing is known about the origins of the soul hunters. You have the gift of anticipating the death of living beings. Believing that the soul ends in death, they made it their business to preserve the souls of important figures from other peoples. Because this practice was inconsistent with the beliefs of other species, the soul hunters were outsiders feared by many. ^{P. 697}

Dilgar

Home planet: Omelos

The Dilgar were an aggressive species that raided the non-aligned sectors between 2230 and 2232, committing numerous war crimes, including medical experiments. When the Earth Alliance stepped into the conflict, they were eventually thrown back on their home system. There the species was practically wiped out when its sun exploded. ^{P. 190}

Important groupings and alliances

Earth Alliance

The Earth Alliance was the government of the earth and its colonies. It was formed around 2087 as a union of independent nations after the third world war. After humankind received the technology for hyperspace travel from the Centauri, their territory expanded considerably. In about 2230, Earth Forces defeated the Dilgar who had invaded the League of Non-Aligned Worlds space. The Earth Alliance was able to expand its power until the devastating war against the Minbari brought mankind to the abyss. But the alliance quickly recovered and eventually took the initiative to create the Babylon Project. Further challenges were the uprising of the Mars colony, the dictatorship under President Clark, the resulting civil war against Sheridan and the contamination of the earth by the Drakh. As a member of the Interstellar Alliance, the Earth Alliance came to an end in a nuclear civil war about 700 years after it was founded. ^{P. 226 ff.}

Interstellar Alliance

The Interstellar Alliance was founded in 2261 by Delenn, G'Kar, Londo Mollari and some ambassadors from the League of Non-Aligned Worlds. John Sheridan was named its first president after unifying the peoples against the shadows. When it was founded, the Centauri, Minbari, Narn and the peoples of the League of Non-Aligned Worlds joined. The Earth Alliance followed a little later. The Rangers' armed forces were now under the government of the Interstellar Alliance and served to secure peace. The alliance faced major challenges in its early stages. But she survived both the crisis with the telepath colony on Babylon 5 and the temporary departure of the Centauri manipulated by the Drakh. Even a million years later, the alliance still existed. ^{P. 371 f.}

Psi Corps

The symbol of the Psi-Corps: The Greek letter Psi

The Psi-Corps was an organization founded in 2161 with a mandate to register, teach, train, and monitor people with telepathic skills. People with however developed telepathic abilities had to either join the corps by law or take lifelong medication with severe side effects to suppress their abilities. Particularly capable members were trained to become so-called psi police officers who took care of the security of the corps, kept telepaths under control and hunted down "renegade" telepaths. The action of the Psi police was brutal; the corps demanded unconditional obedience. In an effort to produce ever stronger telepaths and to increase their numbers in general, the Corps eventually developed fascist traits and embarked on regular breeding programs. People without telepathic skills were increasingly viewed as inferior and expendable as the Corps secretly prepared to take power. The Psi Corps leadership was closely allied with President Clark and collaborated with the Shadows by delivering renegade telepaths who incorporated the Shadows into their ships as living machines. In 2262, psi policeman Alfred Bester took action against the renegade telepath colony on Babylon 5, which resulted in a bloodbath. This ushered in the rise of a resistance movement led by Lyta Alexander. The following telepath crisis and the war of the telepaths led to the dissolution of the corps around 2265. In its place came the "Office for the Integration of Telepaths" (in the original Bureau of Telepath Integration ), which was supposed to overcome the differences between telepaths and "normal" people. ^{P. 594 f.}

Rangers / Anla-shok

The Anla-shok were an order founded by Valen in the 13th century. He was supposed to unite the military forces of the Minbari in the first war against the Shadows. After the war was won, the Anla-Shok lost much of its importance. That didn't change until 2259, when Jeffrey Sinclair became ambassador to Minbar and took over the reign of the order. He opened the Anla-shok to people who referred to the order as "Rangers" and trained numerous new recruits. When Sinclair finally traveled back in time and became Valen, Delenn took on the role of "Entil-zha", the leader of the Rangers. Their forces formed the backbone of Sheridan's "Army of Light" in the Shadow War; with which the Anla-shok helped defeat the Shadows a second time. They also supported Sheridan during the Earth Civil War against Clark. With the establishment of the Interstellar Alliance in 2261, the Rangers took on the role of its central armed force. From now on, members of other races could also join the rangers. In 2279 Delenn became President of the Interstellar Alliance and Sheridan took over the post of Entil-zha. His successor was Susan Ivanova two years later. After the devastating nuclear civil war on Earth in the 28th century, the Rangers helped rebuild. Even a million years later, the order was still active. ^{P. 30 f.}

Ministry of Peace and Nightwatch

The Ministry of Peace, also called "MiniPax" was founded in 2259 under President Clark and served to oversee the Nightwatch program. Its goal was to suppress undesirable views and opinions from the government's point of view and gradually create an Orwellian security apparatus. For this purpose, members were also recruited within the Earth Forces, especially among the security forces who were supposed to officially protect the Earth Alliance from potentially dangerous ideas. Nightwatch members wore a special armband, were supposed to be generally vigilant and present everywhere and ultimately denounce anyone who was critical of the earth government. In 2260, Nightwatch members tried to take control of Babylon 5 as part of Clark's martial law, but Sheridan and Zack Allan prevented this. ^{P. 506 p. 555 f.}

Raiders

The Raiders were interstellar pirates who first appeared around 2253 and raided Earth Alliance flight routes. With small short-range hunters they captured the cargo from cargo ships. Later the Raiders had a mothership with hyperspace jump drive and were able to open up new areas for their raids until it was destroyed by a shadow ship in 2258. Even at the time of the Interstellar Alliance, the raiders were still active. ^{P. 607 f.}

Technomage

In the 13th century the Shadows tried to create a new weapon for the fight against the Vorlons by experimenting with implants on the Taratimude people, which confer special abilities. However, the Taratimude could not control this technology and soon wiped each other out. A survivor eventually founded the Order of Technomages to preserve other species that were manipulated by the Shadows in the same way, and to ensure responsible use of the Shadow technology. The highly developed skills of technomages appeared to outsiders like magic. Those who wanted to join the order received the implants as part of a painful procedure that could not be reversed. Various species dominated the order over time; in the 23rd century it was mostly people. Up until that time, technomages withdrew more and more from the affairs of other races, and their numbers fell sharply. In 2259, the members sought a secret hiding place to avoid the renewed war against the shadows. Even after the shadows disappeared, the technomages stayed there for several years. ^{P. 727 ff.}

literature

• Jason Davis: Babylon 5 Encyclopedia . 1st edition. Publishing 180, 2017, ISBN 978-0-9821005-9-2 .
• David Bassom: Stories Facts Backgrounds. Based on the TV series by J. Michael Straczinsky. vgs Verlagsgesellschaft, Cologne 1st edition 1996. ISBN 3-8025-2414-4 .
• David Bassom: Babylon 5. The A to Z Guide. Random House Inc., New York London, 1997. ISBN 0-440-22385-7 .
• Andy Lane: The Babylon File. Virgin Books, London 1997. ISBN 0-7535-0049-3 .
• Andy Lane: The Babylon File (Vol.2). The Definitive Unauthorized Guide to J Michael Stracsynski's Babylon 5. Virgin Books, London 1999. ISBN 0-7535-0233-X .

See also

• Figures in the Babylon 5 universe

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r} Jason Davis: Babylon 5 Encyclopedia . 1st edition. Publishing 180, 2017, ISBN 978-0-9821005-9-2 .