Editing Rura Penthe (section)

==History==

[[Image:Rura_Penthe_Skyline.jpg|thumb|right|A triple sunrise on Rura Penthe in 2293]]

Rura Penthe had been a penal colony of the Klingon Empire since at least the early 22nd century. Banishment to its submontane dilithium mines was one of the most feared punishments throughout the Klingon Empire and its enemies. It was said that almost no one survived more than a year in the mines.

In 2152, Earth Starfleet Captain Jonathan Archer and his former Klingon advocate Kolos were sentenced by a tribunal on Narendra III to labor on Rura Penthe (Archer for the remainder of his life and Kolos for a period of one year). However, Archer was soon rescued by his crew, whereas Kolos decided to stay. (ENT: "Judgment")

In 2293, Starfleet Captain James T. Kirk and Commander Leonard McCoy were sentenced to lifelong labor on Rura Penthe. They managed to escape after a few days, though it later emerged that their escape had been facilitated so that the Klingon guards could kill them in the attempt. The setup failed, however, as Kirk and McCoy were successfully beamed aboard the USS Enterprise-A after trekking across the glaciers to escape the magnetic shield, thanks to a tracking device that was placed on Kirk's shoulder by Spock just before Kirk and McCoy left the Enterprise to investigate the events that eventually led to their arrest. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country) 

In 2293 when Captain James T. Kirk and Doctor Leonard McCoy were imprisoned in Rura Penthe, it was stated that no one had ever escaped. Obviously this was not true, as Captain Jonathan Archer escaped in 2152, but it could be speculated that this was propaganda to discourage criminals from attempting to escape.

[[Category: Klingon Empire]][[Category: Locations]][[Category: Asteroids and Comets]]