HISTORY:
Churchwell's Hussars (later renamed Churchwell's Seculars) are a group of malcontents that absconded with a significant portion of the 3rd Regulan Hussar's fighting forces in the late Succession War period. After being left to languish in endless garrison duty in their province, shortly before the war of 3039 began, they "liberated" a great deal of mechs, weapons, and disgruntled veterans, before setting off under the guidance of Major Miles Churchwell.
To escape reprisal (though it still found them later in the form of the 1st Free Worlds Guards), they first sought contracts in the Federated Suns, assuming the provincial nature of the Regulans would keep any pursuers from trailing them long. They accepted contracts from most the other House militaries save for Liao, whom the commander had a deep resentment for. A few punishing setbacks within the Draconis Combine soon found them crawling back for employment by the FWL, however.
Upon return to the Free Worlds, they were set upon by their former masters. Insisting Churchwell's Hussars return the stolen military material, Parliament elicited the services of a portion of the 1st Free Worlds Guard to bring the "loose dogs" to heel. They offered the Hussars a lucrative contract as an enticing carrot before they followed with the stick.
A major conflict erupted, pitting the former countrymen against one another. 3 Battlemech companies of Hussars were lost, but in a surprise twist, the last two remaining Hussar companies pushed through the thickest fighting to the Free Worlds Guard dropsite. They managed to capture the Overlord-class dropship, ransoming their passage out of the FWL in exchange for leaving the vessel unharmed.
Once safely back on the new "Mercenary Star" Outreach, the Hussars sued for the breach-of-contract, with Comstar mediating the affair, and due to the FWLs close ties with Comstar, they opted to fulfill the payment of the contract in order to avoid upsetting their new bedfellows.
The exorbitant payment was enough for Churchwell to secure the purchase and operation of his very own Overlord-class dropship... which he chose to name "Hubris' Folly" in reference to the actions of his former leaders in the FWL. The irony of owning an Overlord much like the one used to barter their freedom was not lost upon him.
The mercenary outfit secured several garrison contracts in the Federated Commonwealth, squaring off against minor periphery raids, but seeing no major military action until the invasion of the clans.
In the so-called "Second Wave" of the invasion, FedCom and DC strategists were desperate for any military bolstering they could muster, and thus Churchwell and his outfit were contracted to try and slow the advance by instigating conflict on worlds already conquered by the clans. The three companies of Battlemechs, now bolstered with armor, artillery, and conventional infantry, launched a guerilla campaign against Clan Smoke Jaguar on the planet Rockland III.
The red mesas of Rockland III would cost the Hussars 84 percent of their fighting effectiveness, as they continually harassed the occupying 10th Garrison Cluster, vandalizing and deconstructing a number of the monuments erected to honor the Jaguars. For 5 grueling years, the operation wore on, seeing the company cut off from support and left for dead.
When Operation Bulldog finally arrived to liberate the planet in 3057, the years of clandestine warfare had weakened the garrison enough that they put up little fight, forcing the Jaguars to cede the field of battle and withdraw. By this time. Churchwell had barely a quarter of his functional Battlemechs, hardly enough to fill two lances. Many of the battlemechs were so damaged from the years of undersupply that they were sold for scrap, but Comstar chose to reward their efforts with a small selection of refit Clan mechs left behind by the garrison's hasty withdrawal. This supplemented the luxurious payment from the Combine, allowing the unit to reform its First Company and continue operations. They went on to assist Operation Bulldog in a limited capacity, utilizing the refit and repair facilities of the new SLDF to rebuild forces as they went along, cobbling together a single company of Battlemechs for the effort.
Miles Churchwell passed in 3063 from a sudden stroke. His eldest son Julius assumed command of the outfit in his stead. At the wake, a former friend of Miles still in the employ of the Regulan Hussars, attempted to bury the hatchet, and offered to garner the outfit an extended contract back in their home province. Julius reluctantly agreed, and for the next several years the unit trained and garrisoned Regulan worlds along with the Regulan Hussars.
When the Jihad began to boil over, the unit was renamed into Churchwell's Seculars as a statement (and to differentiate them from Hussar command), and they joined the Hussars in their efforts against the Blakists.
Things took a dark turn when the Hussars began to use tactical nuclear weapons, a strategy that Julius vehemently opposed. Further strife was developed by the ongoing border warfare with the Duchy of Oriente, in which the Hussars would regularly oppress the civilian populations with a casual disregard for collateral damage or human suffering.
The Seculars now find themselves caught between loyalty to their countrymen and their morality.
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