Har Harath was a male monarch who was the absolute ruler of three planets by the 23rd century. Harath was noted for his aggressive tendencies and bloody purges of his own people. At some point he had become seriously ill. When his own doctors were unable to treat him, his ministers appealed to the Federation for help. That help, in the form of the USS Enterprise, under the command of Captain Christopher Pike, arrived shortly afterwards. Pike felt that to save Harath's life might lead to an improvement in the relations between Harath and the Federation.