United Federation of Planets | |
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Universe | Star Trek |
In-universe information | |
Other name(s) |
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Type | Representative Republic |
Founded | 2161 |
Leader | Federation President |
Enemies |
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Capital and Branches |
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Currency | Federation Credit for external trade and capital transfers, majority of Federation member worlds operate without legal tender or currency |
Affiliation |
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In the fictional universe of Star Trek , the United Federation of Planets (UFP) is the interstellar government with which, as part of its space force Starfleet, most of the characters and starships of the franchise are affiliated. Commonly referred to as "the Federation", it was introduced in the original Star Trek television series. The survival, success, and growth of the Federation and its principles of freedom have become some of the Star Trek franchise's central themes.
The Federation is an organization of numerous planetary sovereignties, including Earth and Vulcan. The franchise focuses on Starfleet, the exploration and defense arm of the Federation, rather than the government. Viewers are rarely given details of the internal workings of the government; however, many episodes refer to the rules and laws that the Federation imposes on the characters and their adventures.
Early in the first season of Star Trek, Captain Kirk had said the Enterprise's authority came from the United Earth Space Probe Agency. [1] Bases visited in the series were labeled "Earth Outposts". [2] In August 1966, Gene L. Coon was hired by Gene Roddenberry as a writer for Star Trek. Actor William Shatner credits Coon with injecting the concepts of Starfleet, Starfleet Command and the United Federation of Planets into the show. [3] One of the first teleplays Coon was credited with was "A Taste of Armageddon", where an ambassador on the Enterprise is referred to as a Federation official.
Eventually, the series became an allegory for the current events of the 1960s counterculture, [4] placing great emphasis on an anti-war message and depicting the United Federation of Planets, a vast interstellar alliance founded on the enlightened principles of liberty, equality, justice, progress, and peaceful co-existence, as an idealistic version of the United Nations. [5]
The optimistic view of the future present in the Federation has been highlighted as unique among most science fiction, showing how "evolved" and "civilized" the future could conceivably be. [6] Much debate has centered on how the materialist application of a post-scarcity economy in the Federation is incompatible with its own idealist ethics. [7] It has been described, along with the series as a whole, as a vehicle to explore what it means to be human, as well as exploring mankind's efforts to build a better society. [8] Other writers have noted that Star Trek's Federation has the same logistical and philosophical difficulties of other utopian economic and political schemes that make it seem unrealistic. [9] However, Star Trek has brought up this idea of slavery or coerced service labor being necessary for its utopian society in "The Measure of a Man", where Captain Jean-Luc Picard successfully defends Data's right to resign from Starfleet in a trial of his sentience, which extends the right not to work to robots alongside all other sentient beings following the in-universe year 42523.7 (2365 AD.).
In 2020, Screen Rant noted the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "First Contact" for exploring the United Federation of Planets and how it sometimes struggles with contact with aliens. [10]
Like many things in Star Trek, episodes and films may reference entities or laws within the Federation, but viewers are never given a broad view of its inner workings. Many contemporary terms are assigned to the Federation, but parallels to current government bodies and their roles and responsibilities are pure speculation on the part of fans and critics. [11]
In the timeline of Star Trek, the Federation was founded in 2161, [12] after the events of Star Trek: Enterprise but before those of the other series in the franchise. Its founding members were Earth, Vulcan, Andoria, and Tellar. Over time it has expanded to include many more worlds through peaceful voluntary association. Some notable ones include Trill, Betazed, and Bolarus IX. References to the size of the Federation vary, with Captain Kirk stating in 2267 that humanity was on "a thousand planets and spreading out", [13] while Captain Picard referred to the Federation (in 2373) as being made up of "over one hundred and fifty" planets, spread across 8,000 light-years. [14] The Federation is a major galactic power, and at various times has been at war with other powers such as the Klingons, the Romulans and the Dominion. The Federation's space force is called Starfleet, and, although most of Star Trek depicts peaceful exploration of the galaxy, Starfleet is also capable of considerable military might. Section 31 is a paramilitary espionage agency, described by writer Ira Steven Behr as "...doing the nasty stuff that no one wants to think about.". [15]
The Federation is depicted as a democratic republic, led by a President based in Paris on Earth. [16] Presidential powers include issuing pardons [17] and declaring states of emergency. [18] This president is supported by a cabinet. [19] The Federation also has a supreme court [20] and a legislature, the Federation Council, with delegates from its various member worlds. [21] A constitution and a charter have both been referred to as founding documents of the Federation.
Several planets are shown to desire Federation membership. Joining the Federation is a complicated process, and requires meeting various criteria. Disqualifying criteria include caste-based discrimination [22] and violations of sentient rights. [23] A single, unified government is not required for admission, but is desirable. [24] Most Starfleet personnel are Federation citizens. Non-citizens can join Starfleet, but the process is more difficult, [25] as with all non-Federation races.
The Federation's counterpart in the Mirror Universe is the Terran Empire, a human-dominated authoritarian state which has formed an empire by conquest.
In the Short Treks episode "Calypso", taking place at an unknown time in the distant future, the character of Craft refers to the "V'draysh". Little is said about the V'draysh, except that it is at war with Alcor IV, and that the V'draysh people are searching for artifacts from ancient human history. The writer of this episode, Michael Chabon, stated that the name "V'draysh" is intended to be a syncope for the word "Federation". [26]
In the 32nd century setting of the third season of Star Trek: Discovery , the Federation had undergone a near-total collapse precipitated by "The Burn", a galaxy-wide disaster. This shrunk the Federation from a peak of 350 worlds to just 38, notably excluding both Earth and Ni'Var (formerly known as Vulcan). During the fourth season, the Federation is in the process of rebuilding itself; Starfleet Academy is reopened, new shipbuilding facilities are commissioned, and many former member worlds such as Trill, Ni'Var and Earth rejoin.
In non-canon sources like the original 1975 Star Trek Star Fleet Technical Manual , Johnson's Worlds of the Federation , and roleplaying games, the Federation's five founding members were Earth (or Terra), Vulcan, Tellar, Andor, and Alpha Centauri. Some non-canon works assert that founding member Alpha Centauri is home to a human race (transplanted by the Preservers from classical third-century BC Greece) known as, variously, Centaurans, Centaurians, or Centauri.
The 1980-to-2188 historical guide Star Trek Spaceflight Chronology posits the Federation as being incorporated at 'the first Babel Interplanetary Conference' in 2087.
In books such as the Star Trek Star Fleet Technical Manual and the novel Articles of the Federation, the Federation's founding document is the Articles of Federation.
Star Trek: The Animated Series (TAS) is an American animated science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry. It originally aired simply under the title Star Trek, subtitled Created by Gene Roddenberry, on Saturday mornings from September 8, 1973 to October 12, 1974 on NBC, spanning 22 episodes over two seasons. The second series in the Star Trek franchise, it features mostly the same characters as Star Trek: The Original Series. Set in the 23rd century, the series follows the further adventures of the Starship USS Enterprise as it explores the galaxy.
The Romulans are an extraterrestrial race in the American science fiction franchise Star Trek. Their adopted home world is Romulus, and within the same star system they have settled a sister planet Remus. Their original home world, Vulcan, was renamed Ni'Var later in canon. They first appeared in the series Star Trek (1966–1969). They have appeared in most subsequent Star Trek releases, including The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, Enterprise, Discovery, Picard, Strange New Worlds, and Lower Decks. They appear in the Star Trek feature films Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989), Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991), Star Trek: Nemesis (2002) and Star Trek (2009). They also appear in various other spin-off media, including books, comics, toys and games.
Starfleet is a fictional organization in the Star Trek media franchise. Within this fictional universe, Starfleet is a uniformed space force maintained by the United Federation of Planets as the principal means for conducting deep space exploration, research, defense, peacekeeping, and diplomacy. While most of Starfleet's members are human and it has been headquartered on Earth, hundreds of other species are also represented. Most of the franchise's protagonists are Starfleet commissioned officers.
Vulcans, sometimes referred to as Vulcanians, are a fictional extraterrestrial humanoid species in the Star Trek media franchise. They are noted for their strict adherence to logic and reason and suppression of emotion. Known for their pronounced eyebrows and pointed ears, they originate from the fictional planet Vulcan. In the Star Trek universe, they were the first extraterrestrial species to make contact with humans.
Spock is a fictional character in the Star Trek media franchise. He first appeared in the original Star Trek series serving aboard the starship USS Enterprise as science officer and first officer and later as commanding officer of the vessel. Spock's mixed human–Vulcan heritage serves as an important plot element in many of the character's appearances. Along with Captain James T. Kirk and Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy, he is one of the three central characters in the original Star Trek series and its films. After retiring from active duty in Starfleet, Spock served as a Federation ambassador, and later became involved in the ill-fated attempt to save Romulus from a supernova, leading him to live out the rest of his life in a parallel universe.
Christopher Pike is a fictional character in the Star Trek science fiction franchise. He is the immediate predecessor to James T. Kirk as captain of the starship USS Enterprise.
Jonathan Archer is a fictional character in the Star Trek franchise. He is one of the protagonists of the television series Star Trek: Enterprise, where he was portrayed by Scott Bakula.
Nyota Uhura, or simply Uhura, is a fictional character in the Star Trek franchise. In the original television series, the character was portrayed by Nichelle Nichols, who reprised the role for the first six Star Trek feature films. A younger Uhura is portrayed by Celia Rose Gooding in the 2022 prequel series Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, while an alternate timeline version of Uhura has been portrayed by actress Zoe Saldaña in the feature films Star Trek (2009), Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), and Star Trek Beyond (2016).
Pavel Andreievich Chekov is a fictional character in the Star Trek universe.
Zefram Cochrane is a fictional character in the Star Trek universe. Created by writer Gene L. Coon, the character first appeared in the 1967 Star Trek episode "Metamorphosis", in which he was played by Glenn Corbett. James Cromwell later played Cochrane in the 1996 feature film Star Trek: First Contact, the 2001 Star Trek: Enterprise pilot, "Broken Bow", and the 2022 Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 3 premiere episode, "Grounded". Footage of Cromwell from Star Trek: First Contact was used in the Enterprise episode "In a Mirror, Darkly Part I".
Andorians are a fictional race of humanoid extraterrestrials in the American science fiction franchise Star Trek. They were created by writer D. C. Fontana. Within the Star Trek narrative, they are native to the blue icy Class M moon, Andoria. Distinctive traits of Andorians include their blue/green skin, a pair of cranial antennae, and white hair.
Christine Chapel is a fictional character who appears in all three seasons of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: The Original Series, as well as Star Trek: The Animated Series and the films Star Trek: The Motion Picture and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Portrayed by Majel Barrett, she was the ship's nurse on board the Starfleet starship USS Enterprise. A younger version of Chapel appears in the 2022 series Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, portrayed by Jess Bush.
"Coming of Age" is the nineteenth episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation. It first aired in broadcast syndication on March 14, 1988. Sandy Fries originally wrote the episode, but Hannah Louise Shearer performed an uncredited re-write. It is the only episode of the series directed by Mike Vejar, who went on to direct episodes of Deep Space Nine, Voyager and Enterprise.
"The Neutral Zone" is the season finale of the first season of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation, originally aired within the United States on May 16, 1988, in broadcast syndication. The episode originated as a story submission purchased by Paramount written by Deborah McIntyre and Mona Clee, and was turned into a teleplay by Maurice Hurley. Because of the 1988 Writers Guild of America strike, Hurley created the script in a day and a half, and the timescale forced the abandonment of both the idea of a two-part episode and of the first appearance of the Borg, which was delayed until the following season episode "Q Who".
This article discusses the fictional timeline of the Star Trek franchise. The franchise is primarily set in the future, ranging from the mid-22nd century to the late 24th century, with the third season of Star Trek: Discovery jumping forward to the 32nd century. However the franchise has also outlined a fictional future history of Earth prior to this, and, primarily through time travel plots, explored both past and further-future settings.
"The Infinite Vulcan" is the seventh episode of the first season of the American animated science fiction television series Star Trek: The Animated Series. It first aired on NBC on October 20, 1973, and was written by Original Series cast member Walter Koenig. It was the actor's only involvement in the series, as he had not been hired to voice Pavel Chekov in the animated version due to budgetary limitations. With "The Infinite Vulcan", Koenig became the first member of the Star Trek cast to write an episode for the franchise. As with the rest of the first season, the episode was directed by Hal Sutherland.
"Metamorphosis" is the ninth episode of the second season of the American science fiction television series Star Trek. Written by Gene L. Coon and directed by Ralph Senensky, it was first broadcast on November 10, 1967.
"The Omega Glory" is the twenty-third episode of the second season of the American science fiction television series Star Trek. Written by Gene Roddenberry and directed by Vincent McEveety, it was first broadcast March 1, 1968. In the episode, Captain Kirk must find the cure to a deadly disease and put an end to another Starfleet captain's cultural interference. The story was one of three outlines submitted for selection as the second pilot of Star Trek, the others being "Mudd's Women" and "Where No Man Has Gone Before".
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Star Trek:
Star Trek: The God Thing is an unproduced film script written by Star Trek series creator Gene Roddenberry. Following the success of Star Trek in broadcast syndication during the early 1970s, Paramount Pictures sought to produce a feature film based on the property. The film's plot follows the Enterprise crew after the events of The Original Series: when an alien entity declares itself God and begins travel to Earth, Admiral James T. Kirk reunites the crew, who send it back to its own dimension. Roddenberry completed the story on June 30, 1976, but Paramount rejected the script for reasons Roddenberry attributed to the religious views of company executives. Story elements were used in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.