Ultramarines

The Ultramarines, originally known as the War-Born, were the XIII Legion of the original twenty Space Marine Legions. This loyalist Legion was later re-organized and divided into Chapters according to the Codex Astartes, with the only the foremost Chapter retaining the original title. Their Primarch is Roboute Guilliman, whose leadership, not to mention his authorship of the Codex Astartes, were instrumental in humanity's survival following the Horus Heresy. Because their Primarch wrote the text that defines a Space Marine Chapter, the Ultramarines follow this Codex strictly; The Ultramarines are possibly the most important Imperial organization on the Eastern Fringe. Roughly two thirds of all Space Marines can trace their origins to the Ultramarines, and many still revere Roboute Guilliman as their creator.

History

Early History

The Ultramarines, in the days before being reunited with their Primarch, were originally known as the XIII Legion. The legion was created towards the end of the Unification Wars, developed from Roboute Guilliman's gene-seed that was noted to be absent of mutation and with a high adaptability. The original recruits were drawn from from the sub-equatorial maglev clans of Panpocro, the war families of the Saragon Enclave, the Midafrik Hive Oligarchy and the anthropophagic tribes of the Caucasus Wastes. As varied in culture and origin as these groups were, they all had one factor in common; their violent and often bitter resistance to the later stages of Unification, a resistance broken ultimately in each case not by negotiated surrender but near annihilation, with in some situations little remaining save interned refugees and orphaned populations left by the savage conflicts which had brought these peoples to heel. The legion was created at such a late stage in the war that they have no recorded combat operations on Terra, instead being used for the first time for the liberation of the Solar System.^[38c] During the Early Great Crusade, the Legion became known as the War-Born, referring to their disparate Terran origins that were all nonetheless forged through war.^[38d]

They were one of the three Space Marine Legions to take part in the First Pacification of Luna, the first pitched battle of the Great Crusade.^[31] Another major early campaign of the legion was putting down the Osiris Rebellion. By 833.M30, the strength of the legion had risen to 33,000, but its morale and pride was harmed as a result of heavy losses during the Osiris Rebellion.^[38c]

The Youth of Roboute Guilliman

Like the other Primarchs, Roboute Guilliman was taken as an infant by the powers of Chaos, and removed to a far-flung world in an effort to prevent the coming Age of the Imperium. The infant Guilliman's capsule fell on Macragge, where it was discovered by a group of noblemen hunting in the forest. Inside the capsule they found a child, surrounded by a glowing aura. He was taken back to Konor, one of the two Consuls who governed Macragge, who adopted the infant as his son and named him Roboute.^[1a]

Roboute was a prodigy, growing fast in both body and intellect. By age ten, he had mastered every subject the wisest men of Macragge could teach him, and his insights into matters of history, philosophy, and science often stunned his elders. However, his greatest talents were as a military leader. These talents led his father to give him command of an expeditionary force to Illyrium, a mountainous region in the far north of Macragge, whose wild inhabitants had terrorized the civilised regions for years and successfully resisted every previous military campaign. Not only did Roboute fight a brilliant campaign but he also earned the respect of the wildmen who never again threatened the more civilised parts of Macragge. However, on his return to the capital Roboute found the city in chaos, as his father's co-Consul, Gallan, had attempted a coup. Gallan led a faction of Macragge's nobility who were used to enjoying their wealth and position at the expense of armies of slaves, and resented Konor's legislation favoring the common people, among whom he was immensely popular.^[1a]

Approaching the city, Roboute and his soldiers saw the city in chaos, being sacked by mobs of Gallan's men, while the Consul House was under siege. Roboute left his men to restore order to the city, while he rushed to the Consul House and lifted the siege, only to find his father close to death, surrounded by his loyal bodyguards. He had been mortally wounded by an assassin in Gallan's employ, and with his dying breath, told Roboute who was responsible.^[1a]

Roboute swiftly crushed the rebellion and, amid a wave of popular relief, assumed the title of sole Consul of Macragge. He set about punishing the treachery and carrying out his father's vision. Gallan and his co-conspirators were executed, and their lands and wealth were redistributed to the people. With superhuman energy, Roboute reorganized Macragge's entire social structure, creating a meritocracy where office and honours were given to the hard-working, rather than the wealthy and influential. Under his leadership, Macragge prospered as it never had before.^[1a]

The Arrival of the Emperor

While Roboute was prosecuting his war against the Illyrian rebels, The Emperor of Mankind and his armies had reached the neighboring planet of Espandor. It was there that the Emperor heard stories of the extraordinary son of Consul Konor, and realized that he had found one of the lost Primarchs. However, due to an unexpected warp storm, his ship was thrown far off course and by the time it reached Macragge, Roboute had been ruling for almost five years.^[1a]

When the Emperor reached Macragge, he found a world that was self sufficient, prosperous, with a strong and well-equipped military, and engaging in trade with nearby systems. Impressed, the Emperor assigned command of the Ultramarines Legion to Guilliman, and relocated the Legion's forward base to Macragge.^[1a]