Damar

Corat Damar was an officer of the Cardassian Guard who served under Gul Dukat. His fortunes rose and fell with Dukat's, and following Dukat's mental breakdown after the Federation's Operation Return offensive, Damar assumed his place as leader of the Cardassian Union. Eventually he rebelled, leading Cardassian forces against their Dominion "allies," and was killed just as he was about to achieve his objectives.


 * The first name "Corat"--transliterated Corăt in the Sigils and Unions Ilojan transliteration system--is seen in the licensed Pocket Book novels, as well as a number of fan continuities, but was never established in canon.

First officer of the Groumall
Then-Glinn Damar was first seen by allied forces serving on the Groumall, the Cardassian freighter Dukat commanded after being demoted in disgrace for rescuing (and acknowledging) his illegitimate half-Bajoran daughter, Tora Ziyal. When the Klingons refused to return colonies seized during the Klingon-Cardassian War, and neither the Federation nor the Union's government were willing to press the issue, Dukat and Damar used the Groumall for their own raids against the Klingons, eventually seizing a Klingon Bird-of-Prey. 

First officer of Terok Nor
Unable to dislodge the Klingons on their own, Dukat unilaterally negotiated Cardassia's entry into the Dominion and appointed Damar his adjutant and second-in-command. In this capacity, Damar served as first officer of Terok Nor (Deep Space Nine). Early on, Damar harbored seeds of distrust for the Dominion, even submitting a memorandum to Dukat suggesting that should the Jem'Hadar begin to run out of ketracel white, that the remaining supplies be poisoned. This secret memo was "lost" (discovered by the Terok Nor resistance) and left where the Jem'Hadar could find it, causing a fight at Quark's. 

Though this caused temporary disfavor with Dukat, Damar soon hit on a way to bring down the self-replicating minefield preventing Jem'Hadar reinforcements from coming through the wormhole. Dukat rewarded him with a promotion to gul. What Dukat wasn't aware of was that in a kanar-fogged moment of poor judgment, Damar leaked the plan to Quark, who from there tipped off the resistance movement and Starfleet as a result. 

When allied forces stormed the station in Operation Return, Damar discovered that Dukat's daughter, Ziyal, had aided the Terok Nor resistance movement and killed her for what he saw as her treason. This devastated Dukat and plunged him into madness. When his former commander could not be dislodged from his late daughter's side, Damar evacuated the remaining Cardassian forces, leaving Dukat behind. 

Leader of Cardassia
Until he was forced into leadership by the loss of Dukat, Damar had appeared content to serve under the man he regarded as a mentor. When leadership was suddenly thrust upon him--albeit under the Vorta Weyoun, Damar reacted quite poorly to the pressure and attempted to drown his discontent with kanar and women. This further diminished Damar's ability to stand up to Weyoun, and the Dominion representative began to blame the Cardassians for the lack of progress in the war.

Cardassian status declined even further with the incorporation of the Breen into the Dominion. This--and the slaughter of the Eleventh Order in the Septimus Massacre--finally pushed Damar beyond what he could tolerate. Damar assumed personal responsibility for his debauchery and the consequences his increasing apathy had had in his people, which he soon admitted to in a secret missive to Gul Akellen Macet and other commanders. He, along with Gul Rusot, actively rebelled. (,, Star Trek: Sigils and Unions--The Thirteenth Order)

Rebel leader
Damar and Rusot's initial strategy was a straightforward military assault against the Rondac III cloning facilities--an attack that, while successful, destroyed half of the forces sent against it. Realizing he had little idea how to lead a guerilla force, Damar turned to the Federation for assistance. They sent Kira Nerys, Odo, and Elim Garak. Though there was much friction between Damar's men and the Federation representatives--especially Kira, Damar held firm, even to the point of killing his friend Rusot when he threatened the Bajoran colonel's life. 

One of Kira's first recommendations was that the resistance cells split up and minimize contact with each other. This even led to a few groups such as the Thirteenth Order operating with total autonomy, never apprising the leadership of their actions. Unfortunately, some ties, however small, remained between most other cells; therefore their secrecy did not save the majority of the rebel forces from being destroyed when Gul Revok betrayed the movement to the Dominion. (, The Thirteenth Order)

Damar escaped the destruction along with Kira, Odo, and Garak. Severely dispirited by the blow, Damar considered giving up until Kira made him realize he'd become something of a living legend to the Cardassian people: his reappearance could spark a massive popular uprising. Sure enough, when Damar emerged from hiding, the Cardassian populace struck back against the Dominion. This came at a grave price, however--the Dominion retaliated by blasting Lakarian City to ashes, leaving no survivors. 

This latest horror only further galvanized the Cardassian people. The rebel movement led one final assault against Dominion Headquarters. In this attack, Damar was killed. Still his comrades fought on and succeeded in the cause for which he died: the freedom of Cardassia. 

Character and relationships
Damar was never a man for subtlety, and his tendency to say exactly what he thought, both in writing and speech, sometimes landed him in trouble. In particular, he never minced words when it came to his dislike for Bajorans and Jem'Hadar. As rebel leader, however, he came to terms with his lack of subtlety as a weakness, and swallowed his pride to seek the help of a former Bajoran resistance member.

Damar's wife and son were executed by the Dominion shortly after he began his rebellion. Though he had engaged in numerous affairs during his time as leader of Cardassia, this loss shook Damar terribly and ultimately strengthened his resolve to continue fighting the Dominion. 

Memorable quotes
"I became a mere shadow of myself and I tried to drown my personal failures in empty pleasures...and worst, I let our entire race suffer for it. I may never be able to make up for what I have done, in the eyes of the Cardassian people, or even yours. Nonetheless I must try to make amends."

- Excerpt from Damar's written communique Gul Macet, who would soon attack Rondac III. The Thirteenth Order

"I call upon Cardassians everywhere. Resist. Resist today. Resist tomorrow. Resist till the last Dominion soldier has been driven from our soil!"

- Damar exhorts Cardassia to rebellion (DS9: "The Changing Face of Evil")

"FOR CARDASSIA!"

- Numerous times as an anti-Dominion rebel