UFP - Cardassia first contact?

[jkp1187]

Was a date ever given for this anywhere, by anyone? Thanks in advance

[Capt. K. Vaughn]

I think there was but for the life of me I cannot recall it and I may be mistaking this with when the wars actually started. I'll see if I can find it tomorrow when I have more time.

Regards,
CKV.

[Phoenix]

I far as I could ever find there is no canon date given for either Cardassian first contact, or the subsequent war(s).

[redwood973]

Nothing is given in concret, but a few things that could be of use:

("The Wounded" [TNG]): Miles O'Brien serving aboard the Rutledge responds to the Cardassian massacre at Setlik III in 2347.

("Unification, Part I" [TNG]): In 2366 an uneasy truce ends a bitter, extended conflict between Cardassia and the UFP (apparently negotiated by Ambassadors Sarek and Spock).

("Chain of Command" [TNG]): Historic peace treaty establishes a fragile armistice in 2367.

I had gotten the impression that the Setlik incident had been toward the beginning, if not the begining, of the Cardassian/UFP war which resulted in stalemant in 2350 or 2351; resulting in a cold war which did not end until the truce of 2366 and finally ended by the treaty of 2367. Why I think that I can't say for sure. I can't find any notes I had taken on the subject.

This kinda the situation of the Koreas right now. War, stalemate, truce, and cold war. The only change would be the Cardsassians added an actual peace treaty to that.

[Capt. K. Vaughn]

I think the Setlik incident was the beginning of the war but I still have not had the time to check my books...so that will be later.

Regards,
CKV.

[Evan van Eyk]

In the LUG books it says first contact was made in 2335.

the incident at Setlik III was indeed the beginning of the UFP/ Cardassian Warm but it did not end until 2369 - until the Cardis left Bajor. However the war was never a full scale campaign like the Dominion War, it was more a state of "not peace". UFP forces never invaded Cardassian territory and the cardis did only attack in skirmishes.

[Owen E Oulton]

UFP/ Cardassian War . . . did not end until 2369 - until the Cardis left Bajor.

No, not really - canon (i.e. onscreen) evidence is that the UFP/Cardassian War was over in 2366. That was established quite firmly in The Wounded - it's the MacGuffin of the episode, to put it in Hitchcockian terms. The Occupation of Bajor was an entirely separate issue, the only UFP involvement being that the UFP was asked by the Bajoran Provisional Government to operate Terek Nor on their behalf.

[jkp1187]

UFP/ Cardassian War . . . did not end until 2369 - until the Cardis left Bajor.

No, not really - canon (i.e. onscreen) evidence is that the UFP/Cardassian War was over in 2366. That was established quite firmly in The Wounded - it's the MacGuffin of the episode, to put it in Hitchcockian terms. The Occupation of Bajor was an entirely separate issue, the only UFP involvement being that the UFP was asked by the Bajoran Provisional Government to operate Terek Nor on their behalf.

Yes, and Captain Jellicoe was responsible for negotiating that treaty.

Okay, no firm date on first contact, then...excellent! I have a free hand.

[Imagus]

Coming in a little late on this one, but it's of relevance to my own interests at the moment... If you use the Star Charts volume, I reckon it might be quite early!

I'm looking at the book, trying to figure out the extent of exploration and the Federation in the movie period, and, as you may be aware, the Union is very close to Sector 001. In fact, Talos (The Cage - first contact 2236) lies just beyond Cardasssian space, and Betazed (joined the UFP in 2273 according to the book), Capella (2267) and Risa (2249) are right next to the future DMZ. Cait (putative home of M'ress from the Animated Series) and Tholian space are both quite a ways beyond the Union.

IMO it's a little unlikely that Starfleet were unaware of a large interstellar power around these dates, so I'd put first contact at around 2220-2250. It is entirely possible that the first hundred years or so were peaceful, and the Union was not considered a threat to Federation interests.

However, it is possible that Starfleet inadvertantly went right around the edge of the region - after all, there are only so many ships exploring, so there's still room for manoeuvre

[Poolshark]

The excellent LUGTrek Netbook "The Cardassians" has first contact as 2289.....I am not sure how canon that is, but if the research is as good as the rest of the book, I am tempted to take it as written.

Cheers

Tas

[jkp1187]

Link?

[Capt. K. Vaughn]

http://www.coldnorth.com/memoryicon/netbook/netbook.htm

The war ended in 2366 but the events of "The Wounded" apparently turned things hostile again and did not settle down again until the second treaty was negotiated in 2369.

Regards,
CKV.

[Imagus]

The excellent LUGTrek Netbook "The Cardassians" has first contact as 2289.....I am not sure how canon that is, but if the research is as good as the rest of the book, I am tempted to take it as written.

Nice to know you liked it

I'm sure the rest of the gang will appreciate it too...

The date is definitely not canon, but I think it makes as much sense as any other. I still think that on any of the official maps, the Union is far too close to the centre of the Federation for it to be as late as some people think.

[Silverstreak]

The maps have to be wrong. The Cardassian DMZ border was so far away from the core of the Federation, that was what made the Domion war so difficult for the Founders to have Earth, Vulcan, Andor, etc... attacked.

I always go by the fact that the borders are misrepresented, they would have to be. There is no way the Federation would have gone so far without first contact with the Cardassians.

Even Star Trek Starcharts, while an excellent book, places it too close to the core of the Federation.

[jkp1187]

The maps have to be wrong.

Oh, tosh...there's no "wrong" or "right" in the Star Trek Universe, there's only what's convenient for any given writer at any given moment.

Admittedly, I'm trying to keep things as consistent as possible in my RPG, but that often means choosing between various contradictory sources, all of which have as much right to be called "Star Trek" as anything else.