Bordering the ever growing United Federation of Planets, the Cardassian military became
convinced conflict with humanity and their allies was inevitable.
And so in 2347, they launched a sneak attack against Setlik III, in the mistaken belief
that the Federation was building up their forces in the area to attack the Union.
This then led to decades of war between the powers, ending in years of stalemate until
they signed the Armistice of 2367, then signing a formal treaty in 2370, marking a new demilitarized
border.
As a result of this treaty, several former Cardassian world were now under Federation
control, and similarly many former Federation planets were now part of Cardassian Union.
Feeling as though the Federation had abandoned these colonies, many turned to rebellion and
terrorism.
Using the harsh environment of the badlands as cover for their ships, the Maquis as they
came to be known, demanded their territories be freed.
The Federation, though officially on the side of the Cardassian Union in the conflict, had
many who sympathized with the rebels, with some even abandoning the Federation to join
the Maquis struggle.
In 2370 the Cardassian government attempted to stage a coup on Bajor, by supporting the
circle, an extremist Bajoran faction.
However they ultimately failed and were exposed.
The following year they signed the Bajoran Cardassian Treaty, establishing formal peace
and diplomatic relations between their governments.
By the late 24th century, the Cardassian Union was in a vulnerable position, having lost
much of their prestige and power throughout the past few decades.
However the greatest challenges were yet to face them, as all of the Alpha quadrant and
even the Beta Quadrant came under threat from a Gamma Quadrant power known as the Dominion.
When a wormhole was discovered near Bajor, leading to the far away space of the Gamma
Quadrant, many were eager to fly through, exploring the other side and even settling
colonies on newly discovered worlds.
However as the Bajorans and their allies spread deeper into the Gamma Quadrant, they came
into contact with the Dominion.
Ruled by changeling aliens able to assume many forms, the Founders were revered as gods
by the Vorta who administered their holdings, and Jem Hadar who fought their battles.
As war between the Alpha Quadrant powers and the Dominion became inevitable, a pre-emptive
attack was launched against the Founder homeworld in 2371.
This effort was organized by Enabran Tain, head of the espionage agency the Obsidian
Order, working with their counterparts in the Tal Shiar of the Romulan Star Empire.
However their secret project was infiltrated by a changeling agent, who encouraged this
effort, so the Dominion might trap their fleet, resulting in a crushing victory for the Gamma
Quadrant Forces at the Battle of the Omarion Nebula.
This devastating loss, caused the fall of the Obsidian Order, allowing for Military
Central Command to take full power within the Union.
Eventually a dissident movement grew, overthrowing Military leadership and establishing a Civilian
Government under the Detapa Council.
However as tensions continued to rise through the Alpha and Beta quadrants, Dominion covert
operations were able to manipulate the Klingons Empire into launching an unprovoked attack
against the Cardassian Union, justifying their actions by claiming that the recent change
in government was a Dominion plot to take control.
Despite their alliance, the Federation condemned their actions, and so Chancellor Gowron broke
off relations with the Federation leading to 2 brief but destructive conflicts from
2372-2373 known as the Klingon Cardassian War and Federation-Klingon War * Weakening
them significantly when they should be preparing for an invasion.
*Gul Dukat fall from power and one ship war Eventually they discovered that a changeling
infiltrator had taken the place of General Martok, who advised Gowron to go to war with
the Cardassian Union.
In 2373, with the Dominion armies preparing to enter the Alpha Quadrant, Gul Dukat, former
leader of the military made a backdoor deal to ally with the invasion force, in exchange
for being made Ruler of the Cardassian Union.
And so when the Dominion fleet came through the wormhole, they made their way to Cardassian
space, where they would stage their invasion.
Through this alliance, the Cardassians were reinvigorated and made an Alpha Quadrant superpower
once again.
The Maquis rebels of the badlands were quickly destroyed, while the Klingons were chased
back into their own space, restoring Cardassian territories completely.
When the Federation placed mines at the mouth of the wormhole, to prevent further reinforcements
from the gamma quadrant, the Dominion attacked, with the now Legate Dukat in charge of the
war effort, while the Vorta Weyoun oversaw his actions on behalf of the Founders.
Dukat and the Dominion-Cardassian forces successfully gained control of the Federation Space Station
Deep Space Nine* but found the computer system sabotaged and the mines extremely difficult
to dismantle.
Nevertheless the Dominion pressed the attack and began seeing major gains, bringing the
Federation-Klingon alliance to the brink of defeat.
However the allies realized it was only a matter of time before the mines were disarmed
and so rallied together and engaged in Operation Return, gathering a massive armada to retake
Deep Space Nine, and regain control of the wormhole.
Despite being greatly outnumbered, federation and Klingon forces were able to create an
opening in the enemy line, allowing the Captain Benjamin Sisko aboard the Defiant to make
his way through and enter the wormhole, where he negotiated with the powerful non corporeal
aliens that lived there, and had a mysterious but special bond with the planet Bajor and
individual Benjamin Sisko.
And so the aliens, worshipped as the Prophets by the Bajorans, agreed to interfere, causing
dominion reinforcements to vanish as they made through the wormhole.
Dukat and the Dominion were relying on those ships to help them achieve victory, and so
when they saw no reinforcements were coming, they quickly fled from the space station and
retreated with their forces to Cardassian space.
All except Dukat, who suffered a nervous breakdown after his second in command Damar shot and
killed his daughter Zayel who refused to leave the station with her father.
Damar was then made leader of the Cardassian Union, although he became a mere puppet of
the Dominion, with the Cardassian government losing all influence, making heavy sacrifices
in future conflicts and were even forced to accept territorial concessions to the Breen
Confederacy who joined the Dominion in the second half of the war.
Damar, at first simply drank to numb the pain of his people’s humiliation, but after reconnecting
with his old friend Dukat, came to realize that he had to act.
And so Damar led a formal rebellion, convincing many to join his cause.
And even reached out to the Federation and Bajor allying together against the dominion.
Unfortunately a traitor within the new rebellion revealed their location and the army was massacred.
Nevertheless Damar went on to lead a citizens revolution on Cardassia Prime itself, rallying
the population to overthrow their Dominion overlords.
This occurred at the same time the Federation-Klingons and now Romulan alliance launched a final
attack against Dominion forces in the Alpha Quadrant.
In the middle of the battle, Cardassian forces turned against the Dominion and so in retaliation,
the Founders ordered that the citizenry itself be wiped out on Cardassia Prime.
And while Damar died in the battle, his forces successfully captured a Changeling Founder,
allowing for the alliance to negotiate a formal surrender.
Despite the efforts to make Cardassia a vibrant power once more, the Dominion-Cardassian alliance
ended in defeat and utter devastation.
Having been on the front lines of battle, and enduring most of the collateral destruction,
by the end of the 24th century, the Cardassian Union was a shell of its former self, forced
to rebuild from the ashes of their fallen civilization.