Battle of Narendra III

The Battle of Narendra III was the attack on the Klingon outpost on Narendra III by four Romulan warbirds and the subsequent defense of the outpost by the Federation Ambassador-class starship USS Enterprise-C in 2344. The conflict, though little known to Starfleet, had a major impact on interstellar politics in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants.

Romulan Assault

By the mid-24th century, relations between the Romulan Star Empire and the Klingon Empire had deteriorated significantly. The Romulans began to view the Klingons as barbaric savages, while their former allies saw them as cowardly and without honor. Treaties were abandoned, and the two powers grew to despise one another.

This "Cold War" of sorts reached the boiling point in 2344, when four Romulan warbirds decloaked and began an orbital bombardment of the Klingon settlement on Narendra III. The poorly-defended colony soon fell prey to the Romulans' surprise attack, and issued a distress call. (TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise")

Honorable Sacrifice

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USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-C)

Despite tensions between the Klingons and the Federation, the starship Enterprise-C intercepted the distress signal and proceeded to the Narendra system at maximum warp. By the time the vessel arrived at Narendra III, the Klingon outpost had been almost completely destroyed, and although the Enterprise was equipped with state-of-the-art weaponry and defenses, it was simply no match for the combined destructive power of four Romulan warbirds. Realizing that defeat was inevitable, the crew nevertheless led a valiant effort to protect the Klingons, engaging the warbirds in a fierce battle. After several long minutes of intense fighting, the Enterprise eventually succumbed to its wounds and was destroyed. (TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise")

In an alternate timeline, the detonation of a photon torpedo created a temporal rift, which threw the Enterprise-C 22 years into a future where the Federation and the Klingons were at war. Upon realizing that their defense of Narendra III would convince the Klingons that the Federation was "honorable," the ship returned to 2344 through the rift and the proper timeline was restored. (TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise")

Aftermath

Not all of the Enterprise-C crew were killed in battle. There were rumors of survivors taken prisoner by the Romulans, although there was no evidence of this until 2368 when Romulan Commander Sela confirmed that she was the daughter of Tasha Yar, who accompanied the Enterprise-C back to Narendra, was captured by the Romulans, and became the consort of a Romulan General. (TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise", "Redemption II")

The battle had significant political repercussions. With the Klingons disgusted by the Romulans' "cowardly tactics," the conflict effectively ended the Klingon-Romulan Alliance. It also drove the Klingons and the Federation much closer together, as the Klingons were impressed with the "honorable sacrifice" of the Enterprise-C and her crew. (TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise")