Shadow War and The Aftermath
As the Shadow War engulfed the galaxy, the council as a whole took a "wait and see" approach to the situation. In 2260, President Clark of Earth declared martial law on Earth, the colonies, and outposts. In response to this and other recent events, such as wars among members of the League of Non-Aligned Worlds and the fall of Narn, the Grey Council said, "The problems of others are not our concern."
Delenn was enraged when she heard of the council's response, and felt that the council's unwillingness to act was jeopardizing their chances of winning the war. Delenn defied the Council's refusal to see her and entered the Council's chamber. She denounced their cowardice, shamed them for abandoning their duty, shattered the Council's ceremonial staff, and broke the Council in accordance with Valen's prophecy. When Delenn walked out of the council chambers a few minutes later, five of the nine members went with her. It is not documented who remained behind; it is often assumed that these were the four members of the Warrior caste.
Once the council was broken, the Minbari people were focused on winning the Shadow War. The disagreements between the castes were put aside during the conflict.
After the war was over, a vacuum of power began to grow. The rift between the Religious and the Warriors continued to grow, and soon became a full blown crisis. On Minbar, in one city that sat on the edge of the southern polar cap, those of the warrior caste who lived in the city evicted the religious caste members from the city. Those Minbari were forced to walk across the polar region to another city, and many of them died from hunger and exposure. The warriors also stopped honoring agreements that the religious caste had made on behalf of the Minbari people with other species. Delenn became aware of the crisis, and returned home to Minbar.
Eventually the rift erupted into a brief civil war between the two castes. Delenn surrendered the Religious caste to the Warriors. She then went into the Starfire Wheel. This tool was used to choose leaders in the time before Valen. The Wheel directed energy into a circle. Eventually it would consume those who stood in the circle. Those who were not meant to lead would leave the circle before it consumed them, and the caste that the consumed candidate belonged to would assume rulership. The Warrior leader joined Delenn in the circle, but he could not stand the energy and jumped out. Delenn nearly died in the circle, but was saved by Neroon, who underwent a deathbed conversion to the Religious caste before the Wheel consumed him.
Read more about this topic: Grey Council
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