Reach, the most populous of the Inner Colonies and the UNSC's military headquarters prior to 2552.

TheInner Colonies were the firstworldsterraformed andcolonized by theUnified Earth Government, relieving the overpopulation pressure onEarth that resulted in theInterplanetary War in the 2160s. Collectively, Earth and the Inner Colonies are known as thecore worlds.^[1][2]

For a list of notable Inner Colonies, seehere.

History[edit]

Settling and formation[edit]

Main article:Domus Diaspora

The Inner Colonies consisted of the 210 worlds which were colonized during the UEG's first wave of colonial expansion between2362 and2390, starting with the launch of theOdyssey and its colonization of theEpsilon Eridani system. Although volunteers for the colonization programs were plentiful due to Earth's deteriorated conditions, interstellar travel was still highly expensive and, as a result, the settlers of the Inner Colonies were subjected to rigorous physical and mental screening. This also led to the Inner Colonies being viewed as humanity's elite. By 2390, 210 human-occupied worlds were in various stages of terraforming and colonisation,^[3] including planets, moons, and asteroids.^[4] As the UNSC began settling theOuter Colonies, the Inner Colonies, with their established social and economic infrastructures, became the political and economic basis of the UNSC, supplied with raw materials from the newer settlements. By2490,Reach, one of the first extrasolar colonies, had become the UNSC's military center.|^[3][5]

It is known that there was a war some time before the 26th century called theInner Colony Wars. Little is known about this conflict, except the fact that unrestricted news reports during the war caused "massive civil unrest" and threatened to "tear down Earth's culture".^[6]

Insurrection[edit]

Main article:Insurrection

During the Insurrection, numerous rebel movements sprang up on Inner Colonies such as Reach, initiating a wave ofterrorism that saw many colonies as the scene of numerous bombings and massacres. The UNSC placed the elimination of these movements as a top priority in restoring order to the UEG's most critically important worlds, leading to theSpartan-II program.

Casbah City being attacked by the Covenant.

Human-Covenant war[edit]

Main article:Human-Covenant war

During the Human-Covenant War, numerous ships were pulled from their positions in the Outer Colonies to defend the Inner Colonies. Old ships, such as theHalcyon-class light cruiserUNSCPillar of Autumn, were refitted and brought back into service to supplement the remaining defense forces. As well,UNSC Navybattle groups assigned to the Inner Colonies during this time made use of theGladius-class heavy corvettes.^[7]

After theBattle for Arcadia, the planet would provide needed foodstuffs for the Inner Colonies.^[8][9]

A period of the war known as theInner Colony Sieges began on June 1,2536,^[9] lasting all the way until the climactic battles in the latter half of2552.^[3][9][10] During this period, the war fell into a cyclic nature of human forces winning isolated battles on the ground, but taking huge losses in space. One by one, the Covenant began to exterminate the Inner Colonies.

At the beginning of theFall of Reach, a dozen Inner Colonies were bypassed by theCovenant fleet attacking Reach,^[11] and a number of Inner Colonies survived the war.^[12][13]

Post-Covenant war[edit]

Main article:Post-Covenant War conflicts

Created crisis[edit]

Main article:Created uprising

Government and politics[edit]

Economy[edit]

Kisvárda Metals was one of the largest mining and metal production conglomerates in the Inner Colonies.^[14]

Culture[edit]

Sources[edit]

• Human colonies

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