Editing Martok (section)

===Background===
Little backstory is given regarding the early life of Martok, except for a brief history sketched by himself in the ''Deep Space Nine'' episode "[[Once More Unto the Breach (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)|Once More Unto the Breach]]". It is known that he was born into a [[Klingon]] house (The House of Martok) that was not part of the aristocracy and was raised in the Ket'ha lowlands on the Klingon homeworld of Qo'noS. This area is considered a wasteland by the Klingons.

His family had been reputable soldiers and had loyally served the empire for 15 generations, although not as officers. It had long been the wish of his father Urthog to have young Martok become an officer, so he enlisted the aid of officers he had earned the respect of and eventually was able to get one to sponsor his son's application to the Klingon academy. Believing its approval was a mere formality, the application was submitted to the Oversight Committee but was rejected by one member, [[Kor (Star Trek)|Kor]], due to the elitist views of the legendary Klingon warrior regarding the honor and prestige of the "great houses". With a rejection on his record from such a legendary officer, Martok could no longer even serve as a common soldier. He opted to serve, regardless, and spent five years as a civilian laborer on General ShiVang's flagship. During his service, the General's ship came under surprise attack by a Romulan vessel. When the Romulans attempted to board the ship, Martok took up arms and helped repel the attackers, earning a [[battlefield commission]] from Shi'Vang for his skill and bravery; unfortunately, the honour was soured for Martok by the fact his father had died some years earlier and couldn't share in his son's glory, causing Martok to hold a lifelong grudge against Kor.  Martok earned the rank of Lieutenant after the Battle of Tcha'voth, which earned him a spot as tactical officer aboard the Klingon Cruiser ''Gothspar'', captained by Kultan (ST:DS9 Books: ''The Left Hand of Destiny''). At Martok's introduction to the series, he had attained the rank of General.