Morgenröte

Morgenröte
Morgenröte (モルゲンレーテ社, Morugenrēte)
Data
Purpose	Weapons Manufacturer
Led by	Rondo Mina Sahaku
Allies	Orb Union
Miscellaneous
Manga	GSA

Morgenröte (German for "dawn") is a state-owned munitions company based in Orb Union that was introduced in the anime Mobile Suit Gundam SEED.

Overview

Morgenröte has its headquarters and development and manufacturing facilities located on Orb's Onogoro Island. The company also has another facility at the Orb-owned space colony of Heliopolis, and branches in various Earth Alliance countries.

History

Though part of the neutral nation of Orb, Morgenröte Inc. had secretly collaborated with the Earth Alliance's Atlantic Federation to develop a series of prototype mobile suits called G Weapons. While working on this G Project, Morgenröte stole information for its own development of mobile suits to defend Orb, resulting in the Astray Project. However, Morgenröte's actions did not come without consequences, as Orb lost its space colony of Heliopolis after a battle erupted there as a ZAFT commando team infiltrated and escaped with four of the five G Weapons. More esoteric technologies were later developed at Morgenröte under the aegis of the Sahaku twins and supervised by chief designer Erica Simmons, including energy-draining weaponry.

Despite not having obtained complete data on the G Weapons, enough was gathered for Morgenröte to continue development of the Astray project, culmination in the Orb Union's first mass produced mobile suit, the MBF-M1 M1 Astray. While the M1 Astray's technology was top of the line, the development of a Natural-use operating system was slow, and results were ineffective when compared to the performance of ZAFT mobile suits. In March, C.E. 71, the Earth Alliance battleship, the Archangel, was given sanctuary in Orb and in exchange for repairs, Morgenröte received the complete technical and combat data of the GAT-X105 Strike Gundam, and its pilot, Kira Yamato, successful developed a Natural-use operating system for the M1 Astray.

In June of C.E. 71, the Earth Alliance issued an ultimatum to the Orb Union - either join the Alliance or the nation would be taken by force. Uzumi Nara Athha refused the Alliance's demands, knowing that obtaining the technology developed by Morgenröte was part of their goal. At the climax of the Battle of Orb, Uzumi and the other Orb leaders sacrificed themselves to detonate Morgenröte Headquarters on Onogoro Island to prevent it from falling into the enemy's hands.

By C.E. 73, Morgenröte Headquarters had been rebuilt, and Murrue Ramius was working as an engineer at its shipbuilding department under the alias "Maria Bernes". By this time, Morgenröte had developed a new line of mobile suits for the Orb National Defense Force, including the transformable MVF-M11C Murasame, the successor of the M1 Astray.

Gallery

Morgenröte Headquarters

Morgenröte Headquarters self-destructing during the Battle of Orb

Morgenröte's facility in Heliopolis

Notes & Trivia

• The Morgenröte headquarters building seems to be based on concept art for the SNRI facility in Frontier I from Mobile Suit Gundam F91.

Appearances

Television Series

• Mobile Suit Gundam SEED
  • PHASE-01, False Peace
    • First Appearance
  • PHASE-02, Its Name: Gundam
  • PHASE-03, Collapsing Land
    • Mentioned only
  • PHASE-17, Cagalli Returns
    • Mentioned only
  • PHASE-24, War for Two
    • Mentioned only
  • PHASE-25, The Land of Peace
  • PHASE-27, Endless Rondo
  • PHASE-28, Kira
  • PHASE-29, The Turning Point
  • PHASE-33, Gathering Darkness
    • Flashback(s) Only
  • PHASE-37, Divine Thunder
  • PHASE-38, Decisive Fire
  • PHASE-39, Athrun
  • PHASE-40, Into the Dawn Skies
  • PHASE-41, Trembling World
    • Mentioned only
  • PHASE-49, The Final Light
    • Flashback(s) Only

Manga

• Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Astray
  • Chapter 1, RED & BLUE

References

Erica Simmons and Morgenroete Personnel File 01 (Official Gundam Fact File, Issue 37, Pg 27)

Erica Simmons and Morgenroete Personnel File 02 (Official Gundam Fact File, Issue 37, Pg 28)

Erica Simmons and Morgenroete Personnel File 03 (Gundam Perfect Files, Issue 6, Pg 19)

Erica Simmons and Morgenroete Personnel File 04 (Gundam Perfect Files, Issue 6, Pg 20)