Capital Defence Force
The Capital Defence Force (中軍, trjung-kwljen) is a statutory term for a part of the modern Themiclesian Army, historically a standing force that defended the capital city of Kien-k'ang and its vicinity. While structurally similar to the forces that were raised in all prefectures, the CDF was always in combat formation and placed in various defensive positions around the Inner Administrative Region (內史). In modern use, the CDF is no longer an operationally-independent part of the Army, though the designation is still used for troops stationed within the IAR.
History
Like much of the early Themiclesian military establishment, it is accepted that the CDF originated as a direct imitation of the Menghean institution of the same name. The very first Marshal of the Capital () was appointed in the 3rd century, though it is unclear exactly how large his forces were. On the one hand, since the CDF was the IAR's analogue to prefectural militias, it seems plausible that the CDF was not only staffed, but possibly the largest of all prefectures' militias; on the other hand, the paucity of historical records mentioning the CDF, especially when stationed in the capital city, suggests that it only played a minor role before the Sungs Dynasty (421–492). It is probable the CDF relied upon the same system of fixed "military households" for forcible recruitment, and its members had no liberty to leave its ranks.
At the arrival of the Meng monarchy in 542, prefectural militias were strengthened at the expense of the landed aristocracy's private, armed retainers. In 571, an edict was issued to "reinforce the capital city" by quadrupling the staffing quotas in the CDF. This edict was soon remitted due to financial problems and the complaints of the residents of the IAR, to only doubling its quota. During the Mrangs Dynasty, the CDF was first described as a standing force, having several garrisons around the capital city; this is corroborated by the issuing of salaries to soldiers in coinage rather than grain tokens. In the following centuries, the CDF sometimes possessed an expeditionary character—they were recorded as having participated in battles in Maverica and areas then not under Themiclesian control. Surprisingly, the militias of nearby prefectures were not mobilized, and the CDF would have marched hundreds or thousands of miles to the battlefield.
In the Battle of Clarkestown, the CDF along with the militias of several other prefectures were annihilated by a coalition of Hemithean natives. It was soon rebuilt starting in 904, when the country's finances permitted it. In the 14th century, the CDF bore the brunt of the siege of Kien-k'ang by Yi dynasty Menghe forces. The 10,000-strong force secured the city for a year and seven months, before the government decided to send envoys to negotiate terms of peace with the invading general. One of the reasons why prefectural militias did not appear to aid the defence was that the Yi cavalry surrounded the city so rapidly, messages for reinforcements were yet unsent as the siege began. Lacking instructions, prefectural magistrates did not dare mobilize their militias.
The CDF were heavily reformed following the protracted yet ruinous defeat in Maverica in 1796. Outdated branches, such as chariots, were not carried over during the reforms, in which the CDF was often the epicentre of the introduction of new regulations and tactics. While the CDF often received new equipment ahead of other units, this is not to be understood as favourtism; most Army workshops were located in the IAR, and in testing it was more convenient to equip the CDF due to proximity. During this era, the distinction between the CDF and prefectural militias progressively blurred, as the latter gradually professionalized, and both adopted a more modern reserves system. The CDF as an operationally-independent organization disappeared in 1935, when the last of its units were deployed to halt the Menghean incursion in the Pan-Septentrion War.
Structure
Specializations
The CDF, at inception, was divided into six corps according to specialization:
- Infantry (壘)
- Cavalry (騎)
- Chariot (車)
- Crossbowmen (弩)
- Longbowmen (射)
Three more were added, after the arrival of the Menghean monarchy in 542:
- Signals (都)
- Light Cavalry (輕騎)
- Engineers (寺工)
At the introduction of firearms in the 16th century, it seems various units adopted it at different times, though no new branch was added, specific to its use. By the 18th century, it is known that the Crossbowmen branch had been completely reliant on firearms for some time, though some of its tactics show influence from previous centuries. The Longbowmen branch usually fought in concert with Cavalry, and it seems likely that they were firearm-equipped during this era as well. The Infantry branch also used firearms, though they were known to retain melée weapons as sidearms into the 19th century. The Chariot branch specialized into horse-drawn artillery well before the modern period, but the chariots themselves waned as a close-combat branch fairly early. They survived as far as the 1800s due to their prestige and function as guards for senior officers.
Mixed formations
The above-mentioned specializations possessed independent leadership, and thus it is possible to speak of the "cavalry corps", etc. as a unit. However, it is also known the CDF had floating officers who normally did not lead any single branch. These are later streamlined into the "Left Capital Brigade" and "Right Capital Brigade", both of which apparently possessed a mixture of units in the branches above. Historically, it is not unusual for only a single specialization to be deployed, or for several branches, under their respective leadership. Yet mixed formations were also built from portions of all or some of these branches. The precise cause for choosing one paradigm over the other is unclear.
Civilian functions
The CDF historically acted as a back-up to the police forces under the direction of country magistrates. For this purpose, small detachments could be deployed legally without prior permission from the Council of Correspondence, but normally its assent was sought before any deployment. Until recently, the IAR's borders were strictly secured by the CDF against the import of any firearms and other weapons; historically, this was meant to prevent the formation of armed mobs that may threaten the security of the densely-populated region. In other regions, households were permitted to keep certain weapons for defence against wild animals and hunting parties.
Relationship with other formations
With the Royal Guards
In the concentric model of the defence of the monarch, the CDF was seen as the outermost layer of security.
With the Army
Prior to the PSW, the modern Themiclesian Army did not exist as a unified body; rather, the "Army" referred to several organizations that were under the direction of the Secretary of State for War and his ministry. After the modernization programmes of the 19th century, the CDF shared a considerable portion of its non-combat branches with the Themiclesian Army, so much so the term was sometimes used inclusively of the CDF, even though they were statutorily separate. This is due to the expansion of the Army bureaucracy in the central government, which subsumed the logistical functions of prefectural governments; the unification of the bureaucracy preceded and induced the unification of combat formations under a single headquarters, which only occurred well into the PSW.