We know that roughly thirty-five million people died in the Eugenics Wars, that North Africa was among the battlezones, and that Khan's empire encompassed Asia and the Middle East (and possibly North Africa as well). The conflict ended after a couple of years with Khan escaping into deep space. But are there any theories on what actually precipitated the war in the first place? After all, TOS "Space Seed" mentions that Khan was a relatively peaceful dictator until he was attacked, so he didn't start it. And who attacked him, rival Augments, or UN forces?
How did the Eugenics Wars start?
- Thread starter EJA
- Start date
The episode "Space Seed" basically says it all. First, Kirk establishes that a group of supposedly well-intentioned scientists created the supermen. Later, Spock says that they grew ambitious and took control of some 40 nations simultaneously in 1993, but then began to battle amongst themselves. He then establishes that they were finally defeated, with the whereabouts of some 80 of the supermen left undiscovered.
Probably the takeovers were relatively bloodless, or else they couldn't have been that rapid or simultaneous. The actual wars (Spock uses the plural at one point) may only have begun when the supermen began fighting each other. The final defeat may also have been a relatively small affair, a palace coup rather than a full-scale war, considering that there were only a handful of these supermen to begin with. But there seems to be no doubt that non-supermen ultimately defeated the supermen: the wording doesn't seem to allow for other interpretations.
What is not established is that Khan would have been the last to succumb; he may have fled long before the really nasty bits began. Nor is it clear that the defeated supermen would have been killed, or even forced to give up control of their nations. There is no evidence on whether nations, alliances or factions of non-supermen defeated the supermen, and no evidence on which nations, alliances or factions would have been involved. We don't know if the UN or the US was among the winners, losers or abstainers - although the first and third possibilities are likelier than the second in case of the US, since California looked peaceful and undefeated in 1996 when our VOY heroes visited it.
The extent of the wars is not mentioned, either. According to the episode dialogue, whole nations were being bombed out of existence at the time - but nothing indicates that the supermen or their enemies would have been the ones doing that. For all we know, the superman nations were exceptional havens of peace at the time, and the Eugenics Wars were welcome relief from the general warfighting of the 1990s. Spock speaks of "the era of your last so-called world war", and McCoy associates this era directly with "Eugenics Wars", but the two could be overlapping phenomena instead of the same phenomenon. The last world war, WWIII, apparently went on until the 2050s, so the idea of casualties suffered outside the scope of the Eugenics Wars is certainly valid; the division of casualties between the Eugenics Wars and the rest of the mess is debatable.
What does sound implausible is that the supermen would have operated out of the limelights, as Greg Cox tries to suggest. The simultaneous takeover of 40 nations just doesn't lend itself to that sort of interpretation...
Timo Saloniemi
Probably the takeovers were relatively bloodless, or else they couldn't have been that rapid or simultaneous. The actual wars (Spock uses the plural at one point) may only have begun when the supermen began fighting each other. The final defeat may also have been a relatively small affair, a palace coup rather than a full-scale war, considering that there were only a handful of these supermen to begin with. But there seems to be no doubt that non-supermen ultimately defeated the supermen: the wording doesn't seem to allow for other interpretations.
What is not established is that Khan would have been the last to succumb; he may have fled long before the really nasty bits began. Nor is it clear that the defeated supermen would have been killed, or even forced to give up control of their nations. There is no evidence on whether nations, alliances or factions of non-supermen defeated the supermen, and no evidence on which nations, alliances or factions would have been involved. We don't know if the UN or the US was among the winners, losers or abstainers - although the first and third possibilities are likelier than the second in case of the US, since California looked peaceful and undefeated in 1996 when our VOY heroes visited it.
The extent of the wars is not mentioned, either. According to the episode dialogue, whole nations were being bombed out of existence at the time - but nothing indicates that the supermen or their enemies would have been the ones doing that. For all we know, the superman nations were exceptional havens of peace at the time, and the Eugenics Wars were welcome relief from the general warfighting of the 1990s. Spock speaks of "the era of your last so-called world war", and McCoy associates this era directly with "Eugenics Wars", but the two could be overlapping phenomena instead of the same phenomenon. The last world war, WWIII, apparently went on until the 2050s, so the idea of casualties suffered outside the scope of the Eugenics Wars is certainly valid; the division of casualties between the Eugenics Wars and the rest of the mess is debatable.
What does sound implausible is that the supermen would have operated out of the limelights, as Greg Cox tries to suggest. The simultaneous takeover of 40 nations just doesn't lend itself to that sort of interpretation...
Timo Saloniemi
McCoy explicitly states in "Space Seed" that Khan was the last of the tyrants to be overthrown. This is further iterated in ENT "The Augments" when Malik says that Khan fled at the end of the great wars.
Jonathan Archer's great, great grandfather fought in North Africa during the conflict, so there's little doubt that at least the US was involved. But if the wars were fought mainly in Africa and Asia, as seems to be implied, how would the Western powers have become involved in the first place? They would only have done this if they were directly threatened, and Khan wouldn't have been the one to attack them because as McCoy went on to say: "There were no wars [under his regime] until he was attacked." So why would the Western powers declare war on Khan if he had not harmed them? It seems more likely they would have sought an alliance with him against the more aggressive Augments.
Jonathan Archer's great, great grandfather fought in North Africa during the conflict, so there's little doubt that at least the US was involved. But if the wars were fought mainly in Africa and Asia, as seems to be implied, how would the Western powers have become involved in the first place? They would only have done this if they were directly threatened, and Khan wouldn't have been the one to attack them because as McCoy went on to say: "There were no wars [under his regime] until he was attacked." So why would the Western powers declare war on Khan if he had not harmed them? It seems more likely they would have sought an alliance with him against the more aggressive Augments.
Oops, right!
Why? Americans have fought in basically all the wars of late, with or without the involvement of the United States in said conflicts; there were many US nationals fighting for the Nazis in WWII, for example. (In reverse, Germans were the strongback of the US armed forces... Although few actual German nationals fought in the US Army at that time.)
The elder Archer could have participated in UN operations, been a mercenary, or been a citizen of Portugal for all we know.
Because they would have been as dependent on African and Asian resources as they have always been, for as long as the West has existed as a geopolitical entity?
Even if they weren't, the exact same logic could apply as with the invasion of Afghanistan: the superman khanates may have supported operations directed against the West, or may have been suspected of doing so, or of planning to do so. Or they may simply have been a good target for having an otherwise necessary war.
Agreed, though, that it's equally possible that the nations we today might think of as the "good guys" could have been staunch Khan supporters. After all, Khan was Kirk's hero as much as he was McGivers', even if the two expressed their appreciation a bit differently. But that makes one wonder, since if Khan was the last superman to be ousted, then non-supermen apparently defeated Khan specifically. So essentially, some group of non-supermen defeated the West and remained triumphant thereafter... Yet the West doesn't appear particularly defeated in 1996.
Timo Saloniemi
Of course, the real reason 1996 California was untouched by the Eugenics Wars was because they wanted to show the real 1996 California and not the altered history Trek had established before. If they HAD mentioned or shown the Wars then the common viewer would be like "WTF? What Eugenics Wars?"
Well, they already made a big issue of the fact that there was this timeline-messing Chronowerx thing helmed by Henry Starling there, pushing all sorts of future technologies. Why not beef that up with headlines like "Artemis VI returns from Mars - 'Just as boring as last five times' Says Commander Carter" and "Pop Star Widow Freezes Wrong Body" and "Scotland signs peace with Iceland" and "Massive Jam at Antigravbeltway" and "Khan Still Missing! No New Developments! Read All On P. 16!"?
Timo Saloniemi
Timo Saloniemi
The best answer to this question is the Andrew Niccol film Gattaca. Colonel Green massacred as many as he could while Vincent was orbiting Saturn with Sean Geoffrey Christopher.
But, in seriousness, I think the unfairness of a Gattaca-type society was probably what triggered a revolt of the six billion humans against probably several hundred million Augments, scattered across the globe, and in dominant economic and social positions in "40 nations" in Europe, Japan, China, India, and America.
But, in seriousness, I think the unfairness of a Gattaca-type society was probably what triggered a revolt of the six billion humans against probably several hundred million Augments, scattered across the globe, and in dominant economic and social positions in "40 nations" in Europe, Japan, China, India, and America.
I thought the episode did a pretty good job of explaining it all.
Of course.
But, if we want to rationalize it, not every part of the Earth would have been visibly devastated by a global war. Heck, America managed to get through two world wars without being trashed. If you had visited California is 1943, you would not have seen any bombed-out buildings or battlefields . . . .
heh. a teensy bit disengenuous of you, Mr. Cox.
I will state for the record a very excellent account of the Eugenics wars is chronicled by none other than Mr. Cox and I consider the trilogy a must read for all ST fans interested in filling in the gaps between our times and Zefrem Cochrane's historic flight.
I will state for the record a very excellent account of the Eugenics wars is chronicled by none other than Mr. Cox and I consider the trilogy a must read for all ST fans interested in filling in the gaps between our times and Zefrem Cochrane's historic flight.
Well, yeah, but only because the only intercontinental weapons the Axis had were flea bombers flown from special submarines and weather balloons with incendiary bombs attached.
my interpertation in my fan-fic was that Khan overthrew the Indian government as several other augments overthrew the governments of other Asian, African and Central American nations and that Khan tried to unify them, with some success. He then got over ambitious and attacked the central asian republics, got into Kazakstan and then got his ass kicked when the Russians came in. He also launched an invasion of Australia which saw limited success. Meanwhile, the EU and NATO were fighting Augments in Yugloslavia, Somalia was a mess between the Habr Gedir and an Augment trying to seize power, one Augment got Libya before a joint US-Egyptian force kicked him out and installed the heir of the King Gadaffi deposed. Central America was a mess between rival Augments and rival nations fighting them, with the US aiding Mexico which was suffering Augment cross-border attacks.
So could Khan have been attacked by another Augment dictator, they started fighting one another and devastating whole regions of their territories, this got the attention of the US and Europe who decided to put an end to the conflict by removing the Augments from power? Maybe the indigenous, non-Augment populations of those Augment-dominated nations called on the UN for aid?
Since we're on the subject of Khan and the Eugenics Wars, any idea just how much territory Khan's empire covered? Spock says in "Space Seed" that he ruled Asia and the Middle East. This is only my personal theory, one that I may well revise at some point, but I conjecture that the Khanate stretched out from India as far as Indonesia in Southeast Asia, covered the Middle East up to the borders of Turkey and Armenia, into North Africa as far as Libya, and Afghanistan in the northern part of Asia.
I would suspect not much more than India and Pakistan, with interests or occupation forces perhaps in the unstable, Augment-hating but still oil-rich Islamic Middle East. Countries with major Augment populations in prominent political positions were probably ruled indirectly, or even through an official supranational body, by a cosmopolitan society of thousands of political elites, representing tens of millions Augments, whose interests were not those of nationality. Khan Noonien Singh would have been at or near the apex of this pile of superhumans.
They probably had very close ties to Augment communities throughout the world, and attempts to defend those communities against increasing genetic-lamer animosity, aggression, and persecution, particularly in the religious, anti-genegineering United States, is my idea for the trigger that led to nuclear war.
The U.S. might have hit key sites (with nuclear weapons?) with the goal of killing as many Augments as possible, and destroying the Augies' ability to coordinate and resist, instead of taking out the enemy nations as a whole, counting on the possibly-oppressed normo population to welcome liberation. (We always expect that, and we are often disappointed.
)
I suppose the lingering resentment toward the collateral damage caused by Americans (and American nukes?) might have been a root cause of World War III, obviating the need to consoldiate the two wars.
Somebody had to bomb those whole populations out of existence, and it wasn't Khan who started it, unless Kirk is a complete jackass. "We found Hitler's brain? Well, let's get him fixed up with an android body or something--he was, after all, the best of Nazis."
They probably had very close ties to Augment communities throughout the world, and attempts to defend those communities against increasing genetic-lamer animosity, aggression, and persecution, particularly in the religious, anti-genegineering United States, is my idea for the trigger that led to nuclear war.
The U.S. might have hit key sites (with nuclear weapons?) with the goal of killing as many Augments as possible, and destroying the Augies' ability to coordinate and resist, instead of taking out the enemy nations as a whole, counting on the possibly-oppressed normo population to welcome liberation. (We always expect that, and we are often disappointed.
)I suppose the lingering resentment toward the collateral damage caused by Americans (and American nukes?) might have been a root cause of World War III, obviating the need to consoldiate the two wars.
Somebody had to bomb those whole populations out of existence, and it wasn't Khan who started it, unless Kirk is a complete jackass. "We found Hitler's brain? Well, let's get him fixed up with an android body or something--he was, after all, the best of Nazis."
One Augment leader was a huge Yankees fan and another was a Red Sox fan. It all just went out of control from that point. 
My view is that Khan held power over India, Pakistan, North Africa, Southeast Asia, China and Japan. The Eugenics Wars began with the supermen but ended when the most powerful ordinary people rose up. In the wake of this, the remaining augments went underground forming Al Qaeda. By the time the West dealt with Al Qaeda, the other countries had formed their own political alliance, the Eastern Coalition, and then WWIII breaks out.
How would Khan have gained power over China? Eighty million Japanese with tanks, bombers, and atrocities galore couldn't conquer or even subdue China at the lowest point in its modern history. I don't see why Chinese supermen, even if they could have seized power, would voluntarily abdicate that power to some Augment from the Punjab or possibly Mexico City.
There were 400 million then, and they didn't have nukes or modern armed forces. They are 1.3 billion now, plus many nukes and modern(ish) armed forces, and the border twain it and India is the most defensible in the world.
They may have looked to Khan for leadership, in the same vein that Japan "looked for leadership" from Germany--i.e., the vague notion that "we're in it together, sort of, but we'd better hold off on attacking the Soviet Union, but thanks for declaring war on the United States and also for the fighter engine designs."
There were 400 million then, and they didn't have nukes or modern armed forces. They are 1.3 billion now, plus many nukes and modern(ish) armed forces, and the border twain it and India is the most defensible in the world.
They may have looked to Khan for leadership, in the same vein that Japan "looked for leadership" from Germany--i.e., the vague notion that "we're in it together, sort of, but we'd better hold off on attacking the Soviet Union, but thanks for declaring war on the United States and also for the fighter engine designs."
