JEAN-LUC PICARD

"I'd be delighted to offer any advice I have on understanding women. When I have some, I'll let

you know."

- Picard

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Jean-Luc Picard was a celebrated and well-respected Starfleet officer who served during the latter half of

the 24th century.

The highlights of his career are his positions as commanding officer of the following Federation starships: first, the Stargazer, followed by the USS Enterprise-D, and then the USS Enterprise-E.

In these roles, Picard not only witnessed the major turning points of recent galactic history, but played a key role in them also, from making first contact as captain of the Federation's flagship with no fewer than 27 alien species, including the Ferengi and the Borg, as well as becoming the chief contact point with the Q Continuum, to serving as Arbiter of Succession, choosing the former leader of the Klingon Empire, Chancellor Gowron, and exposing the Romulan Star Empire as backers of his chief rivals, later aiding an underground movement of dissidents to gain a toehold on the Romulan homeworld.

He continued to serve as captain of the Enterprise-E, the sixth starship to bear the name, until

at least 2379.

Jean-Luc Picard was born in La Barre, France on Earth on July 13, 2305. He and his brother, Robert, spent their childhood tending to their family vineyards with their father, Maurice. Concerned about the preservation of their familial values, Maurice and his wife, Yvette, educated their sons in the ancient traditions, avoiding in particular any superfluous technologies. As a young boy, Jean-Luc watched his grandfather slowly lose his mind.

As a child, Jean-Luc dreamed of adventure and exploration. He was fond of starships, of which he liked to build models. Moreover, he was captivated by the Phoenix, the first Human warp-capable starship, which he admired several times at the Smithsonian Institution. Like his nephew René, Jean-Luc wrote a ribbon-winning report on starships.

Jean-Luc caused "quite a stir" by leaving his family's generational vineyard and applying to Starfleet Academy. Although he failed to gain entry on his first attempt, Picard succeeded in his second attempt in 2323. He subsequently became one of the most outstanding cadets in his class.

Picard's career at the Academy was difficult, at best – years later, Picard would credit Academy groundskeeper Boothby with helping him develop a mature attitude. Among Picard's friends at the Academy were Donald Varley, Cortin Zweller, Marta Batanides, and an acquaintance called "A.F.", whom he blamed for his failed semester of Organic Chemistry and whose initials Picard carved into Boothby's prized elm.

  Peter David's Star Trek novels say another Academy classmate of Picard's was Morgan Korsmo, who was later killed fighting the Borg just before the start of the Star Trek: New Frontier novels. The Starfleet Corps of Engineers eBook series says Captain David Gold was an upperclassman that Picard beat in the Academy marathon.

At the Academy, Picard developed an interest in archaeology. His professor, Richard Galen, encouraged him to continue in this field, but Picard ultimately refused his offer of becoming an archaeologist.

Picard also excelled in sports. He won the Starfleet Academy marathon in April 2323 on Danula II, becoming the first freshman to win the race. During a wrestling match, Picard caught a Ligonian with a reverse body lift and pinned him down in the first fourteen seconds.

During his sophomore year, Picard was assigned to training on Morikin VII where he had his first encounter with Nausicaans, who had an outpost on a nearby asteroid.

Shortly upon graduation in 2327, Picard's promising career nearly ended abruptly during a layover at Starbase Earhart. During a bar brawl over a rigged game of dom-jot, he was stabbed through the heart by a Nausicaan, and had to undergo emergency surgery to replace his heart. He later related to Wesley Crusher that he laughed after looking down to see the knife protruding through his chest. This event helped him realize how fragile life could be, and thus made him more willing to take risks and make his mark on the universe, which he only realized when Q proposed him to change this event in 2369.

As a junior officer, Picard was the closest of friends with Walker Keel, and also became friends with Jack Crusher and his fiancée, Beverly Howard.

As a young lieutenant, Picard attended the wedding of Sarek's son where he briefly met Sarek and Spock for the first and only time before the 2360s.

Picard was assigned as a flight controller aboard the USS Stargazer (NCC-2893). In 2333, as a lieutenant commander, he assumed command of the vessel when the captain was killed on the bridge. Starfleet awarded Picard a promotion to the post of captain, making him one of the youngest Starfleet officers ever to attain the position. Picard remained in command of the Stargazer for twenty-two years.

In 2354, Picard was on an away mission when he saved the life of one team member at the expense of another; Jack Crusher was lost in the line of duty. Picard met with Crusher's widow, Beverly, on Starbase 32 to present the body; it was one of Wesley Crusher's earliest memories.

In 2355, the Stargazer was seriously damaged in a battle with an unknown enemy vessel, later discovered to be a Ferengi ship. Picard managed to destroy the enemy vessel using the Stargazer's warp engines in a unique tactical maneuver (later named the "Picard Maneuver"), but was forced to abandon the Stargazer. His actions during the battle were called into question by Starfleet prosecutor Phillipa Louvois, but he was exonerated by the inquiry board and was later awarded with the Grankite Order of Tactics (Class of Excellence) for the development of the Picard Maneuver. The encounter with the Ferengi vessel, later known as the Battle of Maxia, would come back to haunt Picard. DaiMon Bok, whose son was killed during the battle, would twice try to exact revenge on Picard.

In 2364, Picard was assigned command of the newly-commissioned Galaxy-class starship USS Enterprise-D, the most prestigious captaincy in Starfleet. He commanded the ship for seven years, participating in many important missions. Among these were the defeat of the Borg invasions of 2366 and 2369, and his command of the fleet which blockaded the Klingon-Romulan border during the Klingon Civil War.

In 2371, the USS Enterprise-D was lost over Veridian III, with the vessel's primary hull crash-landing on the planet's surface. There were no fatalities, and most of the ship's senior crew was reassigned to the USS Enterprise-E, the sixth Federation starship to bear the name. Picard was installed as commanding officer, and after a one-year shakedown cruise, the new Enterprise was nearly lost when the senior staff had decided to sacrifice the ship in order to save Earth's future by preventing the onboard Borg from changing history. Fortunately, the crew was able to repel the Borg's attempt without having to destroy the Enterprise.

Two years later, in 2375, Picard ordered the Enterprise-E to the Ba'ku homeworld in the Briar Patch when it appeared that his operations officer, Lieutenant Commander Data, had malfunctioned and assaulted members of the research team there. Picard was able to capture Data and uncovered a plot by Admiral Matthew Dougherty and some in the Federation Council to relocate the Ba'ku against their will. Picard rebelled against Dougherty, bringing word of his actions to the public.

Picard continued in command of the Enterprise through 2379, when the ship was sent to Romulus after the coup by Praetor Shinzon. Shinzon was a clone of Picard created by a former Romulan government – they intended to replace the captain with a spy of their own. Following a change of government, the plan was abandoned and Shinzon was sent to Remus to die. Instead, he prospered, becoming a highly successful leader during the Dominion War. Shinzon used a thalaron radiation weapon to eradicate the Romulan Senate and had planned to do the same to Earth. He needed Picard in order to repair faults in his own genetic makeup.

In a pitched battle between the Enterprise and Shinzon's flagship, the Scimitar, Picard was eventually able to board the enemy ship and eliminate Shinzon. Picard's life was saved by Data, who transported his captain back to the Enterprise before sacrificing his own life to destroy the Scimitar by firing on the thalaron weapon with a hand phaser, thereby also saving the over 800 men and women aboard the Enterprise.

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From: Memory Alpha

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