Cardassian Union
The Cardassian Union (also referred to as the Cardassian Empire or simply Cardassia) is the official governing body of the Cardassian people. In the past, the Cardassians were a peaceful and spiritual people, but because their planet was resource-poor, starvation and disease were rampant, and people died by the millions. With the rise of the military to power, new territories and technology were acquired by violence, at the cost of millions of lives sacrificed to the war effort. The Cardassian Union was regarded as one of the great powers in the Alpha Quadrant, until its collapse at the end of the Dominion War.
Government
Through their entire expansionist period, the Cardassian government was a military dictatorship called the Central Command. Although traditionally under the control of the Detapa Council, the civilian ruling body, both the Central Command and Obsidian Order intelligence agency often operated with virtual automony. The two agencies often vied with each other over governmental control and policies.
A civilian uprising to overthrow the Central Command restored power to the Detapa Council, but it remained influential in politics and society. When the Cardassians concluded their alliance with the Dominion, Cardassia became a virtual dictatorship, with Gul Dukat in command. With the conclusion of the Dominion War, a new civilian government came to power, but with most of its major infrastructure destroyed, Cardassia will spend decades recovering economically and spiritually from a defeat greater than any they had previously known.
Physiology
The Cardassians appear to have evolved from a creature with both reptilian and mammalian traits. Standing roughly 1.8 meters tall, Cardassians possess gray to grayish-green skin and shiny, black hair. Cardassians are barrel-chested and slightly heavier than Humans, a result of their planet's thick atmosphere and slightly higher gravity. Elongated vertebrae covered in scaly plate sections extend along their necks. Segmented brow ridges stretch down from the forehead and encircle their eyes, giving them a slightly "hooded" look reminiscent of a Terran cobra. An unsegmented ridge known as a chufa extends upward from the tip of the nose to a spoon-shaped protrusion in the center of the forehead.
