Colonial One
the presidential ship
Colonial One was a civilian passenger liner that became the official residence and workplace of the President of the United Colonies of Kobol after the Fall of the Twelve Colonies. Formerly Colonial Heavy 798, it served as the seat of the surviving government throughout the search for Earth.
Colonial One, formerly known as Colonial Heavy 798, was an Intersun Luxury Liners passenger liner of the Colonial Heavy 798-type. Following the Fall of the Twelve Colonies, it became the official residence and workplace of the President of the United Colonies of Kobol, serving as the seat of the surviving civilian government alongside Galactica's military command throughout the fleet's search for Earth.
The Fall and the birth of a presidency#
In the hours before the Fall, Colonial Heavy 798 departed Caprica City's Metrix Terminal bound for Galactica, carrying Secretary of Education Laura Roslin, the priestess Elosha, and representatives of the media. The bombing of Caprica coincided with the ship's return journey, and it, along with every other civilian vessel, was ordered to hold position in its space lane while combat raged.
As Colonial defeat became a serious possibility, Roslin took control of the ship and put it to emergency work as a mobile aid station. When Case Orange was enacted and the line of succession had collapsed, she was sworn in as President. The ship, rechristened Colonial One, became the administrative basis of a refugee fleet assembled with the help of Lieutenant Sharon "Boomer" Valerii. When the Cylons discovered the fleet, half its ships were left behind as every FTL-capable vessel obeyed Roslin's order to evacuate to Ragnar. After rendezvousing with Galactica, the fleet departed the system altogether in search of Earth.
The seat of government in exile#
Though Galactica coordinated military strategy, Colonial One was as much a Cylon target as any ship; five days after the attacks it was nearly destroyed by a missile. In the second month of the exodus a Galactica Marine unit boarded it when William Adama judged Roslin's orders to Lieutenant Kara "Starbuck" Thrace a threat to fleet security.
After the discovery and colonization of New Caprica, Colonial One landed on the surface and became the residence and office of President Gaius Baltar. During the following year's Cylon occupation it was commandeered as a joint Baltar-Cylon chamber. In the liberation and evacuation that followed, an armed force protecting Roslin recaptured the ship, which departed the colony with Baltar left behind.
Final service and fate#
With the loss of Cloud 9 just before colonization, Colonial One took on the additional role of hosting meetings of the Quorum of Twelve. Those meetings ended during the mutiny on Galactica, when Vice President Tom Zarek had a mutinous Marine unit massacre the delegates after they refused to legitimize the uprising. Colonial One was ultimately destroyed after the fleet reached the planet rechristened Earth; on Admiral Adama's orders, Galactica and the rest of the fleet were directed into its sun.
Frequently asked questions
- What is Colonial One?
- Colonial One was a civilian passenger liner that became the official residence and workplace of the President of the United Colonies of Kobol after the Fall of the Twelve Colonies. It was formerly known as Colonial Heavy 798, a Colonial Heavy 798-type liner operated by Intersun Luxury Liners.
- How did Colonial Heavy 798 become Colonial One?
- Colonial Heavy 798 was carrying Secretary of Education Laura Roslin when the Cylons attacked. As Colonial defeat became likely, Roslin took control of the ship, put it to work as a mobile aid station, and was sworn in as President once the line of succession collapsed, after which the ship was rechristened Colonial One.
- What role did Colonial One play in the fleet?
- Colonial One served as the seat of the surviving civilian government and the administrative heart of the refugee fleet throughout its search for Earth. It later hosted meetings of the Quorum of Twelve after the loss of Cloud 9.
- What happened to Colonial One on New Caprica?
- After the colonization of New Caprica, Colonial One landed on the surface and became the residence and office of President Gaius Baltar. During the Cylon occupation it was commandeered as a joint Baltar-Cylon chamber, and during the evacuation an armed force protecting Roslin recaptured it, leaving Baltar behind.
- What was the fate of Colonial One?
- Colonial One was destroyed after the fleet reached the planet rechristened Earth. On Admiral Adama's orders, Galactica and the rest of the fleet, including Colonial One, were directed into the sun.
Gallery
Images via Battlestar Wiki
Sources
- WikiColonial One — Battlestar Wiki entry
Spotted a factual error or a primary source we missed? Email a correction. Every flagged claim gets reviewed.
Related entries
Cloud 9
Cloud 9 was a luxury liner that survived the Fall of the Twelve Colonies and became an entertainment hub and meeting place for the Quorum of Twelve. It was destroyed by a thermonuclear blast over New Caprica, taking several other ships with it.
Galactica
Galactica was a Jupiter-class battlestar that served the Colonial Fleet from the Cylon War until the discovery of Earth. Never networked, it survived the Fall of the Twelve Colonies and shepherded the last fifty thousand humans across uncharted space before being scuttled into the sun.
Caprica
Caprica was a planet in the Cyrannus star system and the cultural, economic and military center of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol. Birthplace of the first Cylons, it became the capital of the United Colonies and was devastated in the Cylon assault that ended colonial civilization.
Cylon
The Cylons were a race of sentient machines created as military robots by Graystone Industries on Caprica. Built from research into artificial consciousness, they rebelled against their human masters, fought a decades long war, and forty years later returned to annihilate humanity.
Elosha
Elosha was a Colonial priest who swore in Laura Roslin as President during the Fall and became her spiritual guide as the Fleet sought Earth. She read Roslin's visions against the prophecies of Pythia, and even after her death on Kobol she returned to Roslin in vision.
Fall of the Twelve Colonies
The Fall of the Twelve Colonies, also called the Second Cylon War, was a single-day Cylon campaign of total annihilation against Colonial space. It wiped out almost the entire human population of over twenty nine billion and left barely fifty thousand survivors in a fleeing refugee fleet.
Mentioned in14 entries
Aaron Kelly
Captain Aaron Kelly was the Landing Signals Officer aboard the battlestar Galactica and third in its chain of command. He served through the fall of the Twelve Colonies, the occupation of New Caprica, and the trial of Gaius Baltar, during which he turned to terrorism before recoiling from a later mutiny.
Amarak
Dr. Amarak was a Colonial government scientist who worked on defense research alongside Gaius Baltar. He sought to warn President Roslin of a traitor in the fleet before dying aboard the Olympic Carrier.
Astral Queen
The Astral Queen was a luxury liner converted into a Colonial prison transport that survived the Fall of the Twelve Colonies. Control passed to its inmates, who rallied under Tom Zarek and made the ship a power base within the fleet.
Cloud 9
Cloud 9 was a luxury liner that survived the Fall of the Twelve Colonies and became an entertainment hub and meeting place for the Quorum of Twelve. It was destroyed by a thermonuclear blast over New Caprica, taking several other ships with it.
Daru Mozu
Daru Mozu was a civilian tylium refinery ship that escaped the Fall of the Twelve Colonies with the Galactica-led refugee fleet. Critical to the fleet's fuel supply, it survived a terrorist bombing before its refining facilities were lost, leaving Hitei Kan as the fleet's last refinery.
Fall of the Twelve Colonies
The Fall of the Twelve Colonies, also called the Second Cylon War, was a single-day Cylon campaign of total annihilation against Colonial space. It wiped out almost the entire human population of over twenty nine billion and left barely fifty thousand survivors in a fleeing refugee fleet.
Gemenon Liner 1701
Gemenon Liner 1701 was a civilian cruiser operated by Gemenon Liners and the namesake of her type. After the Fall she drifted powerless until Colonial One found her and her passengers were rescued.
Gina Inviere
Gina Inviere was the alias of a Number Six copy who infiltrated the battlestar Pegasus as a systems analyst, sabotaged it during the Fall, and after months of captivity assassinated Admiral Cain before destroying the liner Cloud Nine.
Hitei Kan
Hitei Kan was a Daru Mozu-type tylium refinery ship that escaped the Fall of the Twelve Colonies and became vital to the fuel supply of the refugee fleet led by Galactica.
Laura Roslin
Laura Roslin was Secretary of Education for the Twelve Colonies who became President after the Cylon attack killed everyone above her in the line of succession. Many in the Fleet came to see her as the dying leader of prophecy, destined to guide humanity to a promised land she would not live to enter.
Number Eight
Number Eight was one of the seven surviving Humanoid Cylon models, replicated into millions of copies that typically went by the name Sharon. Marked by affection, naivety, and a propensity for fickleness, the Eights produced both the sleeper agent Boomer and the loyal Athena.
Prometheus: civilian freighter and black market hub
Prometheus was a civilian cargo ship that survived the Fall of the Twelve Colonies and joined the Galactica-led fleet. For a time it served as the fleet's black market hub, where illicit goods of every kind could be bought and sold.
+ 2 more
Get new articles in your inbox
No spam. New lore drops, canon conflicts, and deep dives only when they’re worth reading.
Some links on Lore Fortress are affiliate links. If you buy through them we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.