Editing Hanse Davion

{{Update Needed|[[Era Report: 3052]]|[[Measure of a Hero]]}}
{{Cleanup|reason=review needed|date=September 2023}}
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{{otheruses|the First Prince|other uses|Hanse Davion (disambiguation)}}

{{InfoBoxCharacter
| image               = Hanse Davion BTLegends.jpg
| caption             = Hanse Davion at his prime
| name                = Hanse Adriaan Davion
| birthdate           = [[2983]]<ref name=ER3052-65>''Era Report: 3052'', p. 65: "Hanse Davion Profile"</ref>
| died                = 17 June [[3052]]<ref name=LDc49>''Lost Destiny'', ch. 49</ref>
| othernames          = "The Fox"
| affiliation         = [[House Davion]]
| rank                = 
| title               = [[First Prince of the Federated Suns|First Prince]]<br/>[[Duke of New Avalon]]<ref>''BattleTech Third Edition'', p. 46: "House of Davion"</ref>
| position            = 
| profession          = Noble
| parents             = [[Andrew Davion]] (father)<br/>[[Jennifer Campbell]] (mother)
| siblings            = [[Marie Davion-St. Claire|Marie Davion]] (half-sister)<br/>[[Ian Davion]]
| spouse              = [[Dana Stephenson]] (fiancée)<ref name=Irr>''Irreplaceable''</ref><br/>[[Melissa Steiner]]
| children            = [[Joshua Steiner-Davion|Joshua]]<br/>[[Victor Steiner-Davion|Victor]]<br/>[[Katherine Steiner-Davion|Katherine]]<br/>[[Peter Steiner-Davion|Peter]]<br/>[[Yvonne Steiner-Davion|Yvonne]]<br/>[[Arthur Steiner-Davion|Arthur]]
}}
'''Hanse Adriaan Davion''' was the [[First Prince]] of the [[Federated Suns]] from [[3013]] until his death in 3052. He was the second child of Prince [[Andrew Davion]] and his wife [[Jennifer Campbell]]. He was known by his nickname of "The Fox" for his shrewd and cunning military and political strategies.<ref name=HDp179>''House Davion (The Federated Suns)'', p. 179</ref>

==History==
===Early life===
As the second child of the Prince, Hanse was expected to be a powerful individual, but never to inherit the throne. Because of this, he was freed from many of the pressures that faced his brother [[Ian Davion|Ian]]. Around [[2998]] Ian and Hanse visited [[Terra]], touring at least Rome. One of the many things Ian showed Hanse was the secret entrances to the tunnels the [[SLDF]] bored under the Vatican and the [[Tomb of Kerensky's Unknowns]] in the Pantheon.<ref>''The Gauntlet'' Descent, Part 1, pp. 12–13</ref> He attended [[Armed Forces of the Federated Suns#Albion Military Academy|Albion Military Academy]] and graduated with honors, earning him a spot in the [[Third Davion Guards]] [[RCT]]. Here he showed a penchant for unconventional tactics, often to the exclusion of more practiced maneuvers. It was only with experience that he discovered that traditional tactics have their place as well. Having risen to command the RCT's BattleMech regiment by 3011 he later served as military governor of the recently conquered New Aragon and held other important administrative positions.<ref name=HDp179/> Upon the death in battle of his brother, Ian, who was without issue, Hanse succeeded to the throne in 3013.

===Compromise===
Hanse proposed to [[Major]] [[Dana Stephenson]] of the [[Thirty-fourth Avalon Hussars]] at the Christmas ball in [[3013]], just before the start of the hard-fought [[Battle of Halstead Station]] in which he led from the front and fought together with his fiancée. When the Davion forces evacuated from the planet under heavy fire, her ''[[Enforcer]]'' was downed during their last stand at the pickup point and an enemy ''[[Awesome]]'' stepped on her cockpit in full view of Hanse's ''[[BattleMaster]]''. It took the combined efforts of [[Ardan Sortek]] and [[Ran Felsner]] to bring him out of his shock and bring him to retreat together with his forces.<ref name=Irr>''Irreplaceable''</ref>

Hanse Davion, the "Victor of Halstead Station," subsequently kept a small figurine in his office crafted from ferroglass salvaged from Dana's cockpit, modeled after a holographic image of the couple that Ran Felsner took on the Christmas ball of 3013 and containing the engagement ring in the base.<ref name=Irr/>

===Prince===
After the Halstead Station raid during which his forces had obtained thousands of books, marking it a success despite his personal loss, he founded the [[New Avalon Institute of Science]], the first new college of science in the [[Inner Sphere]] in centuries. In [[3022]], he signed the [[Federated Suns]]-[[Lyran Commonwealth]] Alliance, or [[Federated Commonwealth|FedCom Accords]], with [[Katrina Steiner]], laying the foundation for the union of the [[Federated Suns]] with the [[Lyran Commonwealth]] and his marriage to Katrina's daughter, [[Melissa Steiner|Melissa]].{{cn}}

His marriage plans, and the Federated Commonwealth alliance, were nearly ended in the days preceding the wedding ceremony. Rogue elements of the [[Roman Catholic Church]] and [[ComStar]]—to include [[Myndo Waterly]]—had created a child that was the result of DNA surreptitiously gathered from Hanse and Katrina at the treaty signing on Terra. Originally this child's parentage was to have been confirmed by the [[Hanse Davion (False)|double of Hanse]] which Liao had made in the 3025 [[Operation DOPPELGANGER]]. This would have undoubtedly worsened Davion-Steiner relations, perhaps to the point of a succession crisis war. The plot was foiled by Ardan and the child, [[Joshua Steiner-Davion|Joshua]], was secreted away somewhere in the Inner Sphere never to be told of his real identity. It is likely few aside from Hanse and Ardan knew anything about this, perhaps to include Katrina and Melissa Steiner.<ref>''The Gauntlet''</ref>

Hanse married [[Melissa Steiner]] on 20 August [[3028]], at a ceremony on [[Terra]]. During the marriage ceremony, he announced the [[Fourth Succession War]], and conquered much of the [[Capellan Confederation]]. During the course of the war, he and his Intelligence minster Quintus Allard ordered a series of deadly espionage operations against various powers to ensure the war swung their way,<ref>''Warrior: Coupé'', pp. 131–134: Hanse briefs his top military staff on reports of a Federated Suns–funded FWL insurgency and the deliberate destruction of the mostly traitorous, [[5th Syrtis Fusiliers]]</ref> including tricking Michael Hasek-Davion to reveal his leaking of classified materials to [[Maximilian Liao|Chancellor Liao]].<ref>''Warrior: Riposte'', p. 292: Hanse Davion receives word of Michael Hasek-Davion's secret departure for Sian</ref>

By the same year, when the planet [[Northwind]] fell under the attack of the Combine, Hanse killed two birds with one shot by brokering the [[Northwind Agreement]], recruiting the mercenary group [[Northwind Highlanders]].<ref>''Northwind Highlanders'', pp. 9, 24: "Homecoming" and "Situation"</ref>

On the 10 September [[3029]], while on New Avalon, Hanse spotted a DropShip heading for the NAIS—which confused him slightly given that, to his knowledge, no shipments of matériel had been scheduled for that evening. Calling the spaceport, he was shocked to discover the DropShip was transmitting the IFF of the ''Camelot''—as that DropShip, known only to a very few people, was in fact on its way to Tharkad with his wife Melissa. The ship could only be an impostor. Ordering tactical command to scramble aerospace fighters and close down all airspace over Avalon City, he at once headed for the 'Mech bays. With the [[First Davion Guards]] offworld on [[Kawich]] and the battalion of the Davion Heavy Guards normally also assigned to the palace offworld with their Regiment on [[New Aragon]], Avalon City had in fact been left only lightly defended. Both enthusiastic about being able to finally make a direct and personal contribution to the war as well as enraged by the attack itself, Hanse Davion mounted his ''[[BattleMaster]]'' and moved out at best speed for the NAIS.{{cn}}

Arriving on the scene, he found he was facing no less a unit than House Liao's [[Death Commandos]]. Undaunted, he engaged, destroying first a ''[[Panther]]'' then backhanding a ''[[Marauder]]'' onto its back. Frantic calls of alarm at the unexpected appearance of the assault 'Mech in their midst brought in additional Death Commando forces, with Hanse then in rapid succession destroying a ''[[Griffin]]'' with a punch to its cockpit (which destroyed his PPC in the process) and a [[Locust]] with his medium lasers. Making use of his 'Mech's more unique features, he discarded his PPC and ripped the arm from the downed ''Marauder'', then flung himself straight into the middle of the confused enemy forces at hand-to-hand range, the enemy unable to fire upon him without risk of hitting each other. He shoulder charged a jumping ''[[Stinger]]'' which spun out of control and killed its pilot on crash landing, then used his improvised club to, in quick succession, cripple a ''[[Centurion (BattleMech)|Centurion]]'' and a ''[[Cicada]]'' before almost literally flattening a ''[[Scorpion]]''. At this point, additional Davion Forces in [[Team Banzai]] arrived and started to engage the Death Commandos. Fighting on, Hanse and Team Banzai successfully defeated the 'Mech unit (who fought to the death, ensuring they were not taken alive), as NAIS security managed to fight off the infantry attempting to attack the facility, now robbed of their 'Mech support. In the weeks ahead, it would be discovered that these could not have been the Death Commandos, the ''real'' Death Commandos were in fact busy facing down Morgan Hasek-Davion on Kathil at that exact same time. Soon enough, the Prince would (correctly) come to suspect that this had been some kind of covert ComStar attack force and Hanse would mark ComStar as perhaps his greatest enemy from this point forward.{{cn}}

However, given their critical value to the Federated Suns and later, Commonwealth, Hanse could not act directly against ComStar, instead fighting a shadow war with Primus Myndo Waterly and ROM up until her death in 3052. His next target would instead be that which he had held the longest grudge against; in [[3039]], he turned the might of the united armies of the [[Federated Commonwealth]] against the [[Draconis Combine]]. His [[War of 3039|assaults]], however, were undermined by [[ComStar]]'s covert aid to the [[DCMS]] and a strategically brilliant counterattack, directed by [[Theodore Kurita]] that led to the loss of critical logistical centers, most notably the [[BattleMech]] factories on the planet [[Quentin]]. This counterattack had been a pure bluff, with the DCMS stretched to breaking point to pull it off, with the AFFS and LCAF needing only to hold their nerve and continue the war to win. Hanse however blinked first and called off the attack after the showing of unexpected strength. Publicly, Hanse claimed victory in the [[War of 3039]], as the conflict became known. Indeed, he had succeeded in recapturing several worlds that had been lost to [[House Kurita]] in the [[First Succession War]], and in fact took more worlds than he lost. Privately, however, he admitted that he had been strategically beaten and showed a genuine respect for [[Theodore Kurita]]. As Hanse would later explain to his son Victor just before his first deployment as an AFFC officer, up until Theodore had come of age the DCMS had ultimately been predictable, hemmed in Takashi's rigidity and traditionalism. Theodore, however, had managed to get a significant amount of the DCMS to act in a much more dangerously flexible way and while the strategic balance of power remained with the Federated Commonwealth, Hanse simply didn't consider crushing the Combine worth the cost that Theodore would demand of him. And accordingly, between 3040 and 3050, there was very little activity beyond minor raiding on the Combine-FedCom border.{{cn}}

And then came the [[Clans]].{{cn}}

===Détente===
In [[3050]], Hanse again directed the Federated Commonwealth in battle, this time against the [[Clan Invasion]]. Later, he took part in the [[Outreach]] summit that led to a détente among the [[Successor States]].

His respect for [[Theodore Kurita]], combined with strategic considerations, lead him to order the [[Kell Hounds]] and [[Wolf's Dragoons]] to [[Luthien]], capital of the [[Draconis Combine]], to bolster the world's defenses against the Clan assault. The [[Battle of Luthien (3052)|Battle of Luthien]] ended in defeat for [[Clan Smoke Jaguar]] and [[Clan Nova Cat]] and saved the command integrity of the [[DCMS]]. That it was Hanse that ensured the survival of the Federated Suns' most hated enemy speaks tantamount to his visionary political and strategic acumen.

===Death===
On 17 June [[3052]], Victor Steiner-Davion returned from his mission to rescue Hohiro Kurita on Teniente. Together with Galen Cox he immediately went to see his father. Hanse Davion had received a priority message on a holodisk an hour earlier, and Victor and Galen found it played in an endless loop. In it, [[Sun-Tzu Liao]] referred to (and mimicked) the taunting holodisk that Hanse's agent Justin Xiang Allard had left behind at the height of the Fourth Succession War; Sun-Tzu retaliated by announcing his engagement to [[Isis Marik]] and thereby his realm's implied alliance with the [[Free Worlds League]]. Having suffered a heart attack while watching the message, Hanse Davion died in his son Victor's arms.<ref name=LDc49/>

===Legacy===
Hanse married [[Melissa Steiner]] in [[3028]] at a ceremony on [[Terra]]. Their union produced five children: [[Victor Steiner-Davion|Victor]], [[Peter Steiner-Davion|Peter]], [[Katherine Steiner-Davion|Katherine]], [[Yvonne Steiner-Davion|Yvonne]], and [[Arthur Steiner-Davion|Arthur]]. This dynasty would become one of the dominant political forces of the next century. All Hanse's children but Arthur would sit on the throne of a Great House at some point, as would Hanse's grandson Prince [[Harrison Davion|Harrison]], great-grandson Prince [[Caleb Hasek-Sandoval-Davion|Caleb]] and great-granddaughter Archon [[Trillian Steiner|Trillian]]. [[Alaric Ward]] was created using the genes of Victor and Katherine, combined with [[Vladimir Ward]], and it would ironically be a Clan warrior, not the leader of a united Federated Commonwealth as Hanse envisioned, who would be the Steiner-Davion to proclaim himself First Lord.

Hanse's son Peter named [[Hanse Steiner-Davion|his only son]] in memory of his father.

==BattleMech==
For most of his career, Hanse Davion piloted a [[BattleMaster|BLR-1G ''BattleMaster'']]. He used this most famously to prove his identity with [[Ardan Sortek]]'s help when [[Maximilian Liao]] tried to replace him with an impostor. He named the 'Mech ''Cadmus'', but later he renamed it ''Dana'', probably for his lost love. After Hanse's death, ''Cadmus/Dana'' wasn't used by Victor Davion: he preferred other machines, and wanted to escape from his father's shadow, so the 'Mech was made the centerpiece of a war memorial on the grounds of the [[NAIS]]. Heavily damaged during a Blakist bombardment of New Avalon in the [[Word of Blake Jihad]], ''Dana'' was piloted to a safe place and served as the personal ride of several mid-ranking Davion officers, until it was destroyed during the climactic Blakist assault in [[3073]], which temporarily secured the Suns capital. However, the Blakists didn't know what they had, and after New Avalon's liberation, ''Dana''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s remains were found in a salvage warehouse in [[3074]]. Lovingly restored, ''Dana'' again served as a museum piece, until the Kuritan occupation of New Avalon after the [[Battle of New Avalon (3146)|Battle of New Avalon]] in 3146. The Kuritans destroyed any Davion monument, but reports indicate than they didn't do so with ''Dana''. The Kuritan commander had the storied 'Mech shipped back to [[Luthien]] as a prize.<ref>''Battletech Legends'' p. 35</ref>

==Behind the Scenes==
In [[MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries#Legend of the Kestrel Lancers|''MechWarrior 5: Legend of the Kestrel Lancers'']], Hanse Davion was voiced by [[Lou Lambert]].<ref name=MW5Mc>''MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries'', closing credits</ref>

In [[MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries#The Dragon.27s Gambit|''MechWarrior 5: The Dragon's Gambit'']], Hanse Davion was voiced by [[Daeron Katz]].<ref name=MW5Mc/>

==Notes==
* When he was 28, Hanse received the title of "Marksman," the [[MechWarrior (pilot)|MechWarrior]] equivalent of an Ace.
* In a likely error, page eight of ''[[House Davion (The Federated Suns)]]'' depicts a young Hanse Davion as a [[Lance#Lance|lance]] commander at the Battle of Banton Hill in [[2998]]. This would place Davion's age at only 14 or 15 (based upon his birth year of [[2983]]) when the "picture" was taken, yet Davion appears to be much older than this.

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Hanse Davion HDTFS p6.jpg|Hanse Davion in 2998 from ''[[House Davion (The Federated Suns)|House Davion]]''
Hanse Davion HDTFS p177.jpg|Hanse Davion in 3025 from ''House Davion''
Hanse Davion 25YAF.jpg|Hanse Davion from ''[[25 Years of Art and Fiction]]''
Hanse Davion BTLegends.jpg|Hanse Davion from ''[[BattleTech: Legends|BT:Legends]]''
Hanse_Davion(2)_HWo3039.jpg|Hanse Davion in 3039 from ''[[Historical: War of 3039|War of 3039]]''
Hanse Davion HWo3039.jpg|Hanse Davion at age 56 in 3039 from ''War of 3039''
Hanse Davion ER3052.jpg|Hanse Davion at age 67 in 3050 from ''[[Era Report: 3052|ER:3052]]''
Hanse Davion 20YU.jpg|Hanse Davion at age 67 in 3050 from ''[[20 Year Update]]''
BattleMaster (Dana) BTLegends.jpg|Hanse's [[BattleMaster|BLR-1G ''BattleMaster'' "''Dana''"]] (formerly ''Cadmus'') from ''[[BattleTech: Legends|BT:Legends]]''
</gallery>

==Quotes==
{{Quote|''I, Hanse Davion, rightful heir and successor to my brother, do accept from His Most Honored Chairman Elder, Cardinal Diego Lavera, the Unfinished Book and the Scepter of State as symbols of my rights and responsibilities toward all the peoples of the Federated Suns. God bless the freedom-loving people of the Federated Suns.''|From the official Coronation Speech of Hanse Davion, Prince of the Federated Suns, [[3013]]<ref name="HD(TFS)p113">''House Davion (The Federated Suns)'', p. 113: "Religion"</ref>}}

{{Quote|''I've no delusions about my [[Michael Hasek-Davion|brother-in-law]]. If my [[Ian Davion|brother]] was known as the Hound, and I'm the Fox, then the [[Michael Hasek-Davion|Duke of New Syrtis]] is the Weasel darting through the underbrush, looking to take advantage.''|From Hanse Davion's private journals, [[3013]]<ref>''House Davion (The Federated Suns)'', p. 95</ref>}}

{{Quote|''An Alliance is a delicate thing, but I think ours will live beyond us. The day will come when our people will view our two states as a [[Federated Commonwealth|single realm]] with a single desire for peace.''|Hanse Davion to [[Archon]] [[Katrina Steiner]], [[3022]]<ref>''House Davion (The Federated Suns)'', p. 98</ref>}}

{{Quote|''I'm still pretty young, but I've seen enough action to kill any heroic feelings I had toward combat and war. For me, knowing that I have to send men and women into combat is the dirtiest job I can think of.''|Hanse Davion, [[3023]]<ref>''House Davion (The Federated Suns)'', p. 97</ref>}}

{{Quote|''Look, we may have pushed him back a bit in recent years, but don't you ever assume we've weakened him. He is the dragon on which his realm is based; scales for skin, flame for breath, leathery wings to fly, and all the more dangerous coiled like we have him now.''|Prince Davion to the Ambassador from the [[Lyran Commonwealth]], [[3025]]<ref name="HK(TDC)p89">''House Kurita (The Draconis Combine)'', p. 89: "Recent Developments"</ref>}}

{{Quote|''Wife, in honor of our marriage, in addition to this morsel I give you a vast prize. '''My love, I give you the Capellan Confederation!'''"''|Hanse Davion to [[Melissa Steiner-Davion]] at their wedding reception on [[Terra]], also sparking the [[Fourth Succession War]], August 20, [[3028]]<ref>''MechWarrior, Third Edition'', p. 161 "Fourth Succession War"</ref>}}

{{Quote|''The operation to neutralize the threat of the Draconis Combine has developed contrary to our predications and with the assault by DCMS troops into the Draconis March we must suspend further offensive operations until said threat can be neutralized.''|Prince Hanse Davion's Recall Order<ref name="H:Wo3039p130">''Historical: War of 3039'', p. 130: "Aftermath"</ref>}}

{{Quote|''The loss of my son, albeit a tragedy for me, would not mean one jot more or less than the loss of any highly trained soldier of the Federated Commonwealth. The life of every man or woman serving in the AFFC is precious, but forfeit to protect what we are.  More important, they themselves believe it is our right to exist free from outside tyranny.|From a private communique authored by First Prince Hanse Davion and Archon Melissa Steiner-Davion during the height of the Trell I invasion by Clan Jade Falcon<ref name=JFS25>''Jade Falcon Sourcebook'', p. 25: "Trell I"</ref>}}

==References==
<references/>

==Bibliography==
{{div col|colwidth=25em}}
* ''[[20 Year Update]]''
* ''[[BattleTech: Legends]]''
* ''[[Blood Legacy]]'' (novel)
* ''[[The Gauntlet]]'' (novella)
* ''[[Historical: War of 3039]]''
* ''[[House Davion (The Federated Suns)]]''
* ''[[Irreplaceable]]'' (short story)
* ''[[Jade Falcon Sourcebook]]''
* ''[[Lethal Heritage]]'' (novel)
* ''[[Lost Destiny]]'' (novel)
* ''[[MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries]]'' (video game)
* ''[[Warrior: Coupé]]'' (novel)
* ''[[Warrior: En Garde]]'' (novel)
* ''[[Warrior: Riposte]]'' (novel)
{{div col end}}

[[Category:Federated Suns Characters|Davion, Hanse]]
[[Category:First Princes]]
[[Category:Notable BattleMaster Pilots|Davion, Hanse]]