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- For the primary universe counterpart, see Andorian.
In the mirror universe, the Andorians were a subject species of the Terran Empire and native to the planet Andor.
History[]
Early history[]
The Andorians attribute the entirety of their modern cultural identity to Krotus, their legendary conqueror, who brought all the disparate cultures of the frozen world of Andor under his iron rule sometime in the 13th century. The Andorians of centuries past vainly named themselves the Andorian Star Empire, a military state forged centuries before they had even achieved space travel.
By the early 22nd century, the Andorians, determined to carry the legacy of Krotus to the stars, had spread beyond their homeworld to establish about a dozen colony worlds, as well as conquer the more primitive natives of Menk II. It was in 2137 that the Andorian Star Empire came into contact with Terrans. The resulting war, fueled by Andorian certainty that they were destined to rule the galaxy, was a costly exercise for the Terran Empire, as the powerful Andorian ships repelled wave after wave of Imperial assault. Ultimately, the Andorians were simply out-numbered and short on the resources necessary for extended warfare, and they found themselves in a humiliating war of attrition. Worn down to nothing, the proud blue warriors admitted defeat, their morale crushed and their cities starving.
However, once pacified, the Andorians were given client status whereby they were expected to offer service to the empire in return for their continued existence. For decades, the Andorians were grudgingly servile, and displaced their fury by becoming shock troops in the Empire's ground wars and occupations. However, a younger generation fanned the embers of the spirit nearly extinguished by the war. (Decipher RPG module: Through a Glass, Darkly)
In 2155, General Thy'lek Shran went so far as to conquer the inhabitants of Beta III on behalf of Empress Hoshi Sato. It was following the conquest of Beta III that the Empress made Shran her official consort as a means to consolidate her power and bring unity to the empire. Andorians were to be elevated to status equal to that of Terrans within the empire. The Empress even had a binary clone created using DNA from herself and Shran. Nevertheless, Shran chose to betray the Empress and had her sent into exile on Deneva, then appointing himself "Lord and Protector of the Realm" and the essential leader of the empire. For his betrayal, the Empress would turn to the Vulcans as humanity's new allies within the empire. When Sato returned to power, she had Shran executed for his crimes. (ENT - Mirror Universe novel: Age of the Empress)
Vassals of the Terran Empire[]
In 2186, during a time of Imperial instability, the Endilev clan led a bloody uprising in a desperate bid for Andorian independence. Striking coup after coup using little more than scavenged ships, antique weapons and the clan’s signature form of drunken-style hand fighting, their early success was shocking. In the end, however, they were still no match for the empire. Stephane Louvin rallied the forces needed to do the job, and their utter defeat at his hands was turned into an instrument in his own bid for the throne, allowing him to become emperor.
What developed next surprised even Louvin. The Andorians couldn't survive the shame of a second crushing defeat, so they refused to indulge in shame at all. A religious and philosophical renaissance resulted in the fusion of the popular Terionist religion with the teachings of the latter-day prophetess Umarin. The new faith made loyal citizens of the Andorians, who, en masse and over the course of only a few years, embraced the belief that the Human emperor was the reincarnated embodiment of Krotus. They repented, feeling that they had been foolish to deny their destiny by fighting the ruler that they should have been serving all along.
Louvin, amused, put this new development to use when dealing with the newly-discovered Klingons in 2218. Offering the Klingons the role of favored slaves and guards galled the proud Andorians seriously. When it became necessary to extinguish the Klingons once and for all, the Andorians were the most eagerly aggressive attackers, swearing their lives to Starfleet for the first time in history, and slaughtering fourteen Klingons for every Andorian lost. They were determined that they would be the favored warriors, rather than the "upstart" Klingons. Louvin, smart enough to reward and cultivate Andorian passion, but hardly willing to keep them literally at his side, elevated Andoria to vassal status.
The Andorians would continue to serve the empire loyally, confident in the knowledge that they were the instruments of their ancient conqueror, bringing such worlds as Bajor to surrender in 2255.
The rise of the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance would do much to punish the Andorians for their past sins. Just as the Tellarites, the Alliance found the Andorians to be difficult and aggressive. So much so, that they were openly attacked and reduced to only a few hundred thousand by the 2360s and 2370s. (Decipher RPG module: Through a Glass, Darkly)