Caladan/XD

Caladan was the third planet orbiting the star Delta Pavonis. It was a lush oceanic world, and the ancestral home of House Atreides for twenty-six generations, prior to their relocation to the planet Arrakis in 10191 AG Rain also appeared to be a common feature of the planet's meteorology. The land was also broken by rivers and mountains. The planet hosted a diverse and complex underwater ecosystem, and presumably an equally rich and complex biology of the land.

Geography
Much of the planet's surface was oceans and seas, and the land areas were divided into 3 small continents. The Western Continent is where most of the people and industry of the planet were located, as well as the planet's capital, Cala City. Cala City was also home to the world's main spaceport, and the city also boasted the House Atreides' Castle Caladan, which was built alongside a great river overlooking orchards and Mount Syubi.

The Eastern Continent was much smaller, and had little non-Caladan primitive population. The Abbey of the Sisters in Isolation was located on the Eastern land mass. The Southern Continent was home to many fine Caladanian wines that were transported throughout the Empire, as well as Atreides Landing, another spaceport.

Around the Butlerian Jihad
Caladan was one of the planets that the Zensunni Wanderers visited, and a band of them was stranded there, and remained one of the Unallied Planets. Near Caladan, a machine fleet destroyed Ulf Harkonnen's ship and his son, Piers Harkonnen, crashed on the planet, stranded for the rest of his life.

In the next years, machine marauders harassed the vicinity, not far from where Ulf Harkonnen had been killed. Around 205 BG refugees from the Synchronized Worlds fled to Caladan and Serena Butler with a relief team visited the planet.

During the Butlerian Jihad and although still an Unallied world, the planet hosted shrines of Manion the Innocent claiming to possess hair from the boy. Caladanian representatives pled for help to Salusa Secundus, announcing that the fishing settlements would form a loose planetary government which was to the interest of the League of Nobles. Vorian Atreides established an observation outpost.

Vorians sons with Leronica Tergiet were the ancestors of the House Atreides when the League of Nobles evolved into the Landsraad, which would rule the planet for the following generations.

During the Atreides
Caladan was the birthplace of both of Duke Leto Atreides I's sons, both Victor Atreides and Paul Atreides, and most of Paul's ancestors that had been heads of House Atreides and rulers of the planet.

In 10191 AG House Atreides was ordered to relinquish the fief of Caladan, which had been the family's home for more than 10,000 years. Instead, they were to take control of the fief of Arrakis, which had previously been managed by House Harkonnen, the ancient Atreides enemy.

After the Atreides moved to Arrakis, Count Hasimir Fenring was named Siridar-Absentia of Caladan. However, when House Atreides ascended to the Golden Lion Throne in 10193 AG following the Arrakis Revolt, Caladan once again came under the direct rule of the Atreides, and Paul installed Prince Xidd Orlaq from Ecaz as temporary ruler there.

After Paul had been Emperor for a year, he and Jessica made a trip back to Caladan to be welcomed as the new ruler of the Known Universe. As Paul visited Cala City, and was to visit the memorial Statues of Paulus Atreides, [his grandfather], and Victor Atreides, [his half-brother], he was told of the Fremen capture of Kaitain. As Paul cut his trip to Caladan short, he realized that he had become Emperor, and was no longer just a Duke.

Jessica as Duchess
He installed his mother, Jessica, as Duchess of the water world; and she stayed and guided the planet. A year later, in 10,198 AG, Jessica returned to Arrakis to visit Paul, and happened to arrive on Dune on the same heighliner as Gurney Halleck. The two returned to Caladan a few weeks later as good friends, and Jessica continued her just rule.

A few months later, Paul uncovered a plot to destroy much of Caladan, which originated with the rebel Earl Memnon Thorvald, and his forces being transported by the Guild Navigator Beric. Thorvald planned to attack the water world with an immense force of allied houses, decimate Cala City; and if not kill, take Jessica and Gurney hostage. Paul discovered the attack while in a deep prescience trance, and the entire plot was foiled. Paul notified Jessica of the averted attack, and she read the proclamation of Paul's protection to an eager Caladanian populace.

Jessica did not leave again until seven years later, when they secretly left after Paul's "death", and disappearance into the desert. She and Halleck returned soon thereafter, and she did not leave again for eight years, when she desired to meet her young grandchildren on Arrakis.

After Paul's Jihad spread throughout the Imperium, many people desired to pilgrimage to Caladan as part of a holy quest to retrace Atreides travels through history. However, due to the Lady Jessica's insistence, Caladan was spared from the pilgrimage trail, and the subsequent thronging hordes. During that time, the Caladani people, under the initial direction of Gurney Halleck, spent much of their time and energy removing the remnants of Harkonnen rule from planet Giedi Prime, renaming it as Gammu.

During the Time of Kralizec
In the 5000 years between the events of the Arrakis Revolt and the time the Lost Ones returned from The Scattering, Caladan's name was shortened to Dan, and all things pertaining to Dan were known as Danian.

During the advent of Kralizec, the Enhanced Face Dancer Khrone became aware through the Face Dancer Myriad of the Emperor's Blade in a temple dedicated to Emperor Muad'Dib on the far side of the water world. To confirm the integrity of the cellular material on the knife, Khrone brought the Tleilaxu Scribe Uxtal to the temple, and murdered the Blade's keeper, the Cult of Sheeana priestess Ardeth. The duo then took the blade with Paul's DNA on it, and created a Ghola of the former Atreides in Bandalong on Tleilax, named Paolo. During the time of Paolo's gestation and toddler years, Khrone re-built all of the important structures of Paul Atreides youth, when it came time to trigger Paolo's memories.

As Paolo reached the age of training a few years later, Dan became the headquarters of the Enhanced Face Dancer Khrone's Ultimate Kwisatz Haderach campaign. Khrone had Castle Caladan re-built in exactly the same spot as it was thousands of years earlier, and had the gholas of Vladimir Harkonnen and Paolo transferred there to complete their specific training. Instead of Paolo - the ghola of Paul Atreides - being raised in a nurturing and caring environment as the original did under Duke Leto, Paolo was raised to be cruel and power-hungry. When Paolo reached the age of eleven, he and the re-bron incarnation of Vladimir were transferred to Synchrony to complete their instructions.

A year later, after the Day of Kralizec throughout the Known Universe, the gholas of Jessica Atreides and Dr Wellington Yueh made Dan their permanent home, and lived in the re-built Castle, as they awaited the birth of Jessica's, Leto I ghola.

Economy and Culture
Caladan maintained a large agricultural industry. Under the Atreides, the planet's economy flourished through orchards (some of which were part of the Atreides family holdings), as well as exports of pundi rice and fine wines. Since much of the planet was ocean, a significant amount of trade on the planet was based on fishing. Indeed, fishing was such a large industry on Caladan that it became ingrained into the culture of its people. Any view of the sea from the coastline would frequently be dotted with fishing trawlers.

Governance and Military
The Great House of Atreides ruled all aspects of Caladan and maintained it as a Duchy and siridar fief under the Imperium. The Atreides ruled Caladan through dominance of both the sea and the air, while maintaining a regular standing army that was fiercely loyal. However, shortly before leaving for Arrakis, the Atreides had managed to train a small, elite force that was comparable in ability to the Imperial Sardaukar forces.

Behind the Scenes
The original Dune novels by Frank Herbert specify Caladan as the birthplace of Paul Atreides. The Prelude to Dune novels by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson instead specify Kaitain as his birthplace. Anderson and the younger Herbert explain this discrepancy by saying Kaitain was actually Paul's place of birth, but that he was moved to Caladan right afterwards, and that his official naming ceremony took place on Caladan.

Appearances

 * Dune - First appearance
 * Children of Dune - Mentioned only
 * Heretics of Dune - Mentioned only; renamed "Dan"
 * Chapterhouse: Dune - Mentioned only
 * Dune: House Atreides
 * Dune: House Harkonnen
 * Dune: House Corrino
 * Hunters of Dune
 * Sandworms of Dune
 * Paul of Dune
 * The Winds of Dune
 * Dune (1984 film)
 * Dune (2021 film)