23^rd Century

Starfleet, the scientific and military organization of the United Federation of Planets (the Federation), had been charged with, since its' founding (integration) in 2161, "to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before."   To perform this task, Starfleet built space vessels that could travel great distances.  One particular class of space vessel built by Starfleet was the Constitution class.

   One of these vessels, registered with Starfleet as NCC-1701, was commissioned USS Enterprise. Between 2245 and 2269, Enterprise have three different commanding officers: Robert April (2245-50), Christopher Pike (2251-56, 2257-63), and James T. Kirk (2264-69).   Captain Kirk gave the Enterprise name recognition and placed it in the history books during his first five year mission as captain.   The ship's adventures and encounters included the crossing of the Romulan Neutral Zone, time travel to mid-20th Century Earth, and the "Doomsday Machine" encounter in star system L-374.  Also, Enterprise became the first Federation starship to cross the galactic barrier. On that trip, Enterprise had been commandeered by the Kelvans, who were from the Andromeda Galaxy. They modified the ship's warp engines to exceed Warp 14. Another one of the ship's adventures in 2267, Enterprise is on the front lines of a very brief war with the Klingons in the Organian System.   The Organians prevent the war and establish the Federation-Klingon (Organian) Neutral Zone.

  Between 2269 and 2271, Enterprise received an extensive refit, placing it in the forefront of the Federation fleet. An unknown cloud of great power entered Federation space in 2271, while Enterprise was still in drydock. To encounter the phenomenon before it reached Earth, Admiral Kirk took a reduction in rank to captain, in order to command the Enterprise to intercept the threat to Earth. It was determined that the V'Ger phenomenon was actually the NASA probe Voyager 6. Two of the ships officers, Commander Willard Decker and Lt. Ilia, were considered missing after the incident. Captain Kirk would command the Enterprise during another five year mission. Upon the ship's return in 2276, the ship's first officer, a Vulcan named Spock, was promoted to captain and became an instructor at Starfleet Academy. Under his command, Enterprise was a training vessel for the academy. During a routine inspection of the ship nine years later, Admiral Kirk received a message from the mother of his child, Dr. Carol Marcus. This message lead to an encounter with one of Kirk's old nemesis, Khan Noonien Singh. The encounter left the Enterprise heavily damaged and Spock dead. Prior to his death in Engineering, Spock was able to transfer his katra, or soul, to the ship's Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Leonard McCoy.

  Upon returning home to Earth, Adm. Kirk was met by Spock's father and Vulcan Ambassador, Sarek. This meeting lead to Adm. Kirk's theft of the Enterprise from Spacedock to retrieve the body of Captain Spock. At the newly formed Genesis planet in the Mutara sector, Enterprise, and its very small crew, encountered a small Klingon scout ship with an ambitious commander.  This encounter lead to the death of Kirk's son, Dr. David Marcus, and the destruction of the Enterprise. As the Genesis planet tore itself apart, Kirk and the Klingon commander fought in hand-to-hand combat with Kirk winning. He and his company left the Mutara Sector for Vulcan, just as Genesis was destroying itself, with Spock's body on the Klingon ship. On Vulcan, Spock's katra was transferred from McCoy to Spock's body, leading to his"rebirth". With the loss of the original Enterprise, Adm. Kirk and his crew left from Vulcan, after a three month exile, to face trail on Earth for "eight violations of Starfleet regulations". While on route to Earth in their stolen Klingon vessel, an interstellar probe visited Earth, causing environmental havoc. Kirk's crew, along with a restored Spock, would save Earth by going back in time to 1986.

  The crew returned to their own time with two humpback whales which answered the "call" of the probe, saving Earth.  Due to the crew's selfless deed, the Federation Council (ruling body of the Federation) dismissed seven of the charges against Kirk and his crew.  The sole charge of disobeying a superior officer was only against Adm. Kirk.   His punishment was reduction in rank to captain, thus allowing him to command a starship again. By the end of 2286, He and his crew were assigned to another Constitution class, reregistered as NCC-1701-A and re-commissioned as Enterprise. Shortly after the shakedown cruise of the Enterprise-A, she was sent to the "Planet of Galactic Peace", Nimbus III, to free hostages from unknown persons.  The assault team, lead by Kirk, was captured in the only settlement on the planet.  The leader of the group was a Vulcan named Sybok.  Kirk, with most of his command crew, returned to the Enterprise with Sybok and the former hostages (now Sybok followers) via a shuttlecraft, which nearly missed a torpedo from a Klingon vessel.  Sybok hijacked the Enterprise by "freeing" the minds of Helm officer, Commander Hikaru Sulu, communications officer Commander Uhura, and Security Chief Commander Pavel Chekov.  While the ship warped to the center of the galaxy to find the planet Sha-Ka-Ree; Kirk, Spock and Dr. McCoy were placed in the brig.  They eventually escaped with the assistance of the Chief Engineer, Capt. Montgomery Scott.   The Enterprise passed through the "Great Barrier" unharmed and reached the center. Sybok, learned to be Spock's half brother, is killed during the encounter with a supernatural being on the planet, which was destroyed by the Klingon vessel that attacked the shuttle and Enterprise at Nimbus III. Enterprise and the Klingon vessel return home to their respective spaces.

  In 2293, Kirk and his crew minus Sulu, were thrown into intergalactic politics after the destruction of the Klingon moon Praxis.   Enterprise was ordered to escort Gorkon, Chancellor of the Klingon High Council, and his staff to Earth for peace negotiations.   En route, the chancellor's ship, Kronos1, was fired upon and damaged.  Aboard the vessel the chancellor and members of his staff were assassinated.   After transporting over to Kronos1, Kirk and McCoy were arrested and tried for the assassination of the chancellor.  Instead of being sentenced to death, they were sent to the "...dilithium mines of the penal asteroid of Rura Pethe. There to spend the rest of your natural lives".  Rura Pethe was "known throughout the galaxy as the aliens' graveyard".  After escaping the penal colony and being picked up by the Enterprise, it was determined that members of Starfleet Command and the Klingon High Command were conspiring together to prevent peace.  It was also determined that the Klingons had a vessel that could fire torpedoes while it was cloaked.  With assistance from Captain Hikaru Sulu, commander of the USS Excelsior (NCC-2000), on the location of the peace conference, the Enterprise warped to Camp Khitomer, near the Romulan border, to prevent another assassination. Upon arrival, the Enterprise was attacked by the "fire while cloaked" Klingon vessel.  The ship suffered heavy damage, including a hull breach.  Enterprise would eventually return to Earth, not for repairs, but to be decommissioned.

  Later that same year, Starfleet commissioned and launched an Excelsior-class Enterprise, making this the third vessel to bear that name.  John Harriman was her commanding officer.  On the ship's maiden voyage.  Captains James T. Kirk, Montgomery Scott and Commander Pavel Chekov of the 1^st and 2^nd Enterprise were on board.   During the voyage, Enterprise-B received a distress signal from the Lakul, an El-Aurian refugee vessel. It and another similar vessel were caught in a energy ribbon.  This energy ribbon destroyed both vessels but not before the Enterprise saved 47 passengers from the Lakul.   Enterprise herself was caught in the ribbon and was severely damaged by the ribbon.  Captain James T. Kirk was presumed killed saving the ship from destruction.  [Enterprise would go on to serve Starfleet with distinction, charting over 142 star systems and making first contact with 17 civilizations (Sternbach).]