Free Jaffa Nation
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In the fictional Stargate universe, the Free Jaffa Nation is one of the premiere galactic powers established by the success of the Jaffa Resistance.
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| Free Jaffa Nation | |
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| Species | Jaffa |
| Homeworld | Dakara |
| Governing body | Jaffa High Council (Military Oligarchy); as of "Stronghold", could be replaced by a representative democracy. Head of Government: Gerak (deceased); Teal'c has suggested Master Bra'tac as a replacement. |
| Alliances as of season 10 | Tau'ri, Tok'ra |
| Prior Alliances | None; served the Goa'uld |
| Key episodes | Stargate (unnamed) "Children of the Gods" (named) (first appearance) |
Contents |
[edit] Geography
The Jaffa Nation is composed of the former dominions of the System Lords, which consist of a vast number of planets across the galaxy. As a result, the Jaffa live in varied environments: some Jaffa planets are desert, like Kallana and to a lesser extent Dakara, others are temperate, like Chulak; others are tropical.
[edit] History
[edit] Modification and Enslavement
Jaffa were originally slaves to the Goa'uld, the former dominant galactic power.
The Jaffa were originally humans brought from Earth, bred and possibly genetically engineered for strength and eventually for reliance on Goa'uld symbiotes. It is said that the enslavement of all Jaffa originated at the Temple of Dakara, where the Jaffa were first implanted with Goa'uld symbiotes and given their strength. Dakara is the ultimate holy ground and symbol of enslavement and freedom (for it is the last place they were free before rebelling) for the Jaffa.
[edit] The Jaffa Rebellion
The Jaffa Nation is the product of years of resistance; the uprising of the Sodan in about 3000 BC marks the first stirring of revolt among the Jaffa. Gerak's father apparently died for the cause of Jaffa freedom at the Battle of Sazak-Sur on Chulak ("The Fourth Horseman, Part 2"). However the modern Jaffa rebellion only began when Teal'c defected to the Tau'ri and joined SG-1.
Following Teal'c's defection, and the defection of his mentor Master Bra'tac, the Jaffa Resistance grew swiftly, forming into a coalition of guerrilla-style freedom fighters.
The movement culminated with the attack on Dakara. The success of the battle proved the weakness and fallibility of the Goa'uld and marked the beginning of the ultimate success of the Jaffa Resistance. With the destruction of the Goa'uld by the Replicators and the defeat of the Replicators by the Dakara Superweapon the Jaffa began the process of forming a nation.
[edit] The Founding of the Jaffa Nation
The Jaffa Resistance and the destruction of the System Lords gave birth to the Free Jaffa Nation, with the planet Dakara as its new capital. The new nation immediately became a major power, inheriting 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 Jaffa Nation, Teal'c and Bra'tac were knighted Bloodkin to all Jaffa, the highest honour that can be bestowed on any Jaffa.
The nation 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.
[edit] Period of Religious Division
With the arrival of the Ori, things began to become difficult for the Jaffa Nation. The nation was initially committed to resisting the spread of Origin and its attendant Priors; most Jaffa were horrified at the idea of worshipping false gods once more, as the resistance of the Jaffa of Kallana showed ("Beachhead").
However, Gerak was converted to Origin and as a result the Ori gained a powerful ally in the form of the Jaffa loyal to them. However, Gerak's choice threatened to split the Jaffa with civil war as the progressives and even some of Gerak's fellow traditionalists were opposed to this idea; even Gerak's aide Yat'Yir had doubts. In the end, however, Gerak chose to rebel against the Ori by curing the SGC personnel, a decision that ended up killing him, the result of a biological kill switch within him.
[edit] The Present Day
The future of the Free Jaffa Nation is unknown, but a resolution passed by the High Council mandated a referendum to determine whether the nation would adopt a constitution based on Earth representative democracies.
Currently, the Jaffa have been suffering greatly against the followers of the Ori with their ships being almost completely ineffective at stopping the recently arrived Ori battlecruisers. One of the first Jaffa worlds to fall to the Ori was Teal'cs home planet of Chulak.
Recently, the Jaffa leader Se'tak had taken matters into his own hands to deal with the Ori. This was done with the Dakara Superweapon which, infact, was not destroyed. This weapon was used to target Ori worlds to wipe out the followers of Origin. The first targeted world was a human planet which possessed an Ori battlecruiser that had landed. A Jaffa strike force arrived on the ship to commandeer it, in the hopes of gaining enough warships to challenge the Ori more effectively. The strike force faced competition in the form of SG-1 and Adria, who was the only survivor on the planet. She killed those Jaffa that challenged her and learnt of the weapons location and set course for the homeworld of Dakara. Dakara had been evacuvated at this point and Se'tak attempted to use the weapon again on the Ori ship which did not affect it (as Adria was immune to the radiation of the weapon). Adria targeted the Dakara device and destroyed it, along with Se'tak and his loyal followers.
Master Bra'tac survived the devastation of Dakara however there are now fears that without the homeworld that was taken from the Goa'uld the Jaffa will fracture even more and the freedom they worked so hard for may have been for nothing. It has also been learnt that there are many other Jaffa worlds that have bowed down to the Ori; either through fear or having actually been converted is unknown.
[edit] Government and Politics
[edit] The Jaffa High Council
The Jaffa High Council was the ruling body of the Free Jaffa Nation from approximately March 2005 through February 2006. Votes were appropriated on the Council based on unconfirmed military assets of the various coalitions represented. Many of the councillors are the former leaders of the Jaffa Resistance.
[edit] Factions of the Council
The Jaffa High 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. In "Ex Deus Machina", it is revealed that the former followers of Yu tend to be traditionalists.
The most vocal and committed progressives seem to be the former servants of Apophis, and to a lesser extent those of Moloc. A likely explanation is that these Jaffa were among the first to be freed by the rebellion (for Apophis Jaffa, it had been four years; for Moloc's women Jaffa it had been longer), and hence might be more willing to experiment.
Some known councillors include:
- Gerak (Deceased) - Former Head of the Council and of the ruling Traditionalist/Conservative faction.
- Yat'Yir, Gerak's aide and successor as head of the Traditionalists.
- Teal'c - Leader of the Progressive opposition.
- Master Bra'tac - allied with the Progressives.
- Ka'lel - a Hak'tyl who appears to be moderately Progressive.
- The former First Prime of Moloc was a member of the anti-Origin party after Gerak's conversion.
- Maz'rai - a former Apophis servant, native of Chulak, and a progressive who committed suicide by symbiote removal to undo Ba'al's brainwashing.
- Se'tak - 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 Earth believing that the Jaffa should remain independent and free from alien influence. He was killed when Adria's battlecruiser targeted the Dakaran superweapon and destroyed it.
[edit] The Future of Jaffa Government
The death of Gerak was a serious blow to the Traditionalists. Progressives gained momentum and the question of democracy was not one of if but when and how quickly. Near the end of the ninth season, a referendum passed to introduce representative democracy instead of the oligarchic High Council. They were meant to be held two months later, but apparently the war against the Ori has postponed further development, and especially with the destruction of Dakara, the Jaffa have fallen apart into warring splinter groups.
[edit] Military
The Jaffa are a warrior culture, and the original nature of the Jaffa High Council reveals as much. The Jaffa have inherited the System Lords' military system. The Jaffa armies are equipped with staff weapons, and the Jaffa space fleet consists of Ha'tak motherships, Al'kesh bombers, Tel'tak cargo ships, and Death Gliders.
[edit] Administrative Divisions
Little is known, other than that planets seem to be joined in coalitions loosely along the lines of former service to a particular System Lord.
[edit] Economy
The Jaffa worlds that have been seen seem to be mainly agrarian or at the very least pre-industrial. Exceptions include the undoubtedly urban planet Delmak, the former home of Sokar and later a center of the power of Apophis; and the capital planet Dakara which is apparently planned with the same intention as Washington, D.C.: to be an elegant capital for a large new nation. [citation needed]
[edit] Culture
The Jaffa are a warrior culture, with an emphasis on honor and strength. The lives of men are governed by a complex code of honor; insults are often implications of weakness, as exemplified by the double meaning of the word khek as both "death" and "weakness". Women are also trained as warriors and are also expected to be able to hold their own in a fair fight. However traditionally women were tasked to defend their homes while their men were away at war.
The Jaffa generally have given up worship of the Goa'uld and are religiously undecided though there have been Jaffa who still serve Goa'uld, these were mostly those that served Ba'al. The vast majority do seek Ascension.
[edit] See also
| Alien races in the Stargate universe | Edit | |
| Four Great Races | Ancients, Asgard, Furling, Nox |
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| Humans | Tau'ri, Tollan, Aschen, Genii, Athosians, Prior, Jaffa: Sodan, Free Jaffa, Hak'tyl | |
| Goa'uld | System Lords, Tok'ra, Kull Warrior | |
| Other | Asurans, Iratus bug, Ori, R-75, Re'ol, Re'tu, Replicator, "Spirits", Unas, Wraith | |
| Topics in Stargate | ||
| Story of Stargate | Stargate, Stargate SG-1 (episodes), Stargate Atlantis (episodes), Stargate Infinity (episodes), Literature, Comics |
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| Stargate Universe | Alien Races, Planets, Technology, Characters, The SGC, SG-1, SG Team, Atlantis, The Stargate, Ascension | |
| Factions in Stargate | Tau'ri, Jaffa Resistance, Tok'ra, Asgard, Ancients Goa'uld, Jaffa, System Lords, Replicators, Ori, Wraith, Lucian Alliance, The Trust, NID, IOA |
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