Editing Colonial Ministry of Defense

[[File:TRS - Hero - Adama with Admiralty.jpg|thumb|''[[Valkyrie]]''{{'|s}} commanding officer, Commander [[William Adama]], meeting with {{RDM|Colonial Fleet}} admiralty. Note the wall crest in the background {{TRS|Hero}}.]]
The '''Colonial Ministry of Defense''' was the branch of the [[Government|Colonial Government]] responsible for administering its military forces. As with the [[Caprican Ministry of Defense]] of [[42YR]], it successor was headquartered on {{RDM|Caprica}}, and overseen by various groups including the Admiralty, of which Admirals [[Peter Corman]] and [[Nagala]] were a part circa {{BCH|6}} to {{BCH|0}} respectfully.

Its scope of operations included the defense of the [[The Twelve Colonies of Kobol|Twelve Colonies]] from the [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylon]] threat, should they ever decide to return; and it conducted research and development into technologies that could improve the success in those missions. 

== Pre-Fall ==
An [[Armistice Officer]] from the Ministry was sent every year following the [[Cimtar Peace Accord]] (colloquially known as the Armistice) to the [[Armistice Station]] to maintain diplomatic relations with the [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylons]], beginning {{BCH|40}} up until the eve of the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]], becoming the first known casualty connected to that event {{TRS|Miniseries, Night 1}}.

[[Kendra Shaw]] was reassigned from a Ministry assignment to ''[[Pegasus (TRS)|Pegasus]]'' on the eve of the Fall {{TRS|Razor}}. 

Prior to the Fall, Commander [[William Adama]] of ''[[Valkyrie]]'' was assigned to clandestinely probe behind the [[Armistice Line]] circa {{BCH|6}}<ref name="hero_timeline_continuity_armistice" group="footnotes">While dialogue from "Hero" places these events at 1 BCH, this contradicts previously established dates about the time Adama and others served on ''Galactica''. See [[Hero#Analysis]] for a detailed explanation why ''Battlestar Wiki'' chooses to treat this as a continuity error.</ref>. Its failure results in the reassignment of key command personnel, including ''Valkyrie'' executive officer [[Saul Tigh]] to ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]'' {{TRS|Hero}}.

== The Fall ==
Dr. [[Gaius Baltar]] was a consultant for the Ministry and worked on the development of the [[Command Navigation Program]], which became an integral part of much of the [[Colonial Fleet (TRS)|Colonial Fleet]]'s systems. One of [[Caprica-Six|Baltar's lovers]], a contractor at the Ministry, assisted him with the CNP's programming circa {{BCH|2}}. 

On the day of the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]], this woman reveals to Baltar that she is a [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylon]] agent, [[Number Six|sixth]] out of 12 humanoid models, and that with the access she gained through Baltar, she was able to penetrate extremely sensitive assets such as the [[Colonial Defense Mainframe]]. In the course of fixing over half of Baltar's CNP programming algorithms, she secretly added [[backdoors]] into the program that would cripple the bulk of the Colonial Fleet and expose the Twelve Colonies to Cylon attack.

During the attack, the [[Colonial One Captain|captain]] of ''[[Colonial One|Colonial Heavy 798]]'' established contact with [[Jack]] at the Ministry, whom [[Laura Roslin]] was barely able to debrief prior to ''798'''s detection by the Cylons {{TRS|Miniseries, Night 1}}.

[[Amarak|Dr. Amarak]] also worked at the Ministry and was a colleague of Baltar. He is presumably killed when ''[[Galactica (TRS)|Galactica]]''{{'|s}} [[Combat Air Patrol|CAP]] destroys [[Olympic Carrier|''Olympic Carrier'']], if not earlier by Cylon hands {{TRS|33}}.

When a copy of Number Six appears on ''Galactica'' under the alias of [[Shelly Godfrey]], she pretends to be a systems analyst at the Ministry and the lover of Dr. Amarak {{TRS|Six Degrees of Separation}}. 

== Covert Operations Authorization ==

The Ministry of Defense maintained oversight of classified military operations beyond the [[Armistice Line]]. Admiral [[Peter Corman]], representing the Admiralty's interests, authorized the covert reconnaissance mission that Commander [[William Adama]] conducted approximately {{BCH|6}}<ref name="hero_timeline_continuity_armistice" group="footnotes" />  {{TRS|Hero}}.

The classified nature of these operations required the highest levels of Ministry approval, with Admiral Corman emphasizing to Adama that such opportunities to gather intelligence on potential [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylon]] activity were rare and carried severe consequences if discovered. The Ministry's authorization of cross-border reconnaissance missions demonstrated their growing concern about Cylon intentions during the Armistice period {{TRS|Hero}}.

[[File:MOD Patch.jpg|thumb|right|349x349px|[[Kendra Shaw]]'s Ministry of Defense patch {{TRS|Razor}}.]]

== Notes ==
*In the [[Miniseries]], Roslin refers to a Ministry of Civil Defense. It is unknown if this is a synonym for the Ministry of Defense or a separate ministry akin to the American [[w:United States Department of Homeland Security|Department of Homeland Security]].
*The patch's lower text, "Kobol HQ", is likely a continuity error based on early drafts of the Miniseries script, where {{RDM|Kobol}} itself was originally the single homeworld of the Twelve Colonies.

=== From Script to Screen ===

* The October 25, 2006 "Full Collated" version of the "[[Hero]]" script contains an extensive scene set in Admiral Corman's office within the Ministry of Defense, providing detailed environmental descriptions including sunshine and blue sky visible through picture-frame windows.<ref group="script" name="eick_hero_script_corman_ministry_office_environmental_descriptions">{{cite script|writer=David Eick|title=Hero|series=Battlestar Galactica|season_number=3|episode_number=7|production_code=307-03007|script_date=October 25, 2006|version=Full Collated|page=PDF page 14, script page 8}}</ref> This scene was omitted from the aired episode, which instead conveys the Ministry's role through dialogue and flashbacks.

* The screenplay depicts the Ministry's briefing procedures in greater detail, showing Admiral Corman's formal authorization process and the political context surrounding covert operations.<ref group="script" name="eick_hero_script_ministry_briefing_procedures_political_context">{{cite script|writer=David Eick|title=Hero|series=Battlestar Galactica|season_number=3|episode_number=7|production_code=307-03007|script_date=October 25, 2006|version=Full Collated|page=PDF page 14, script page 8}}</ref> The aired version streamlines this bureaucratic context while maintaining the essential plot elements.

== References ==

=== Footnotes ===
{{reflist|group=footnotes}}

=== Episodes ===
{{reflist|group=episodes}}

=== Script References ===
{{reflist|group=script}}

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[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Colonial]]
[[Category:Colonial Government]]
[[Category:Colonial Government (RDM)]]
[[Category:Colonial Society]]
[[Category:Colonial Society (RDM)]]
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