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You hear about 2nd, 3rd and 4th founding chapters ect. For example, the Angels Sanguine are a 2nd Founding Blood angel chapter.

I was wondering, what does this mean?

Thanks in advance
Grimm

Chapters created using the geneseed of previous chapters.

The first chapters werent chapters but legions, from those was taken material and subsequent chapters were created.
Those were the second funding.

Then those in turn spawned more later chapters, that is 3:rd founding.
Etc.

Example: Imperial Fists were part of the first founding (VII legion). Fist founding were all Legions before the Horus Heresy and all of them had a Primarch (Rogal Dorn in the case of the IF). A chapter is a Space Marine group that is loyal to the Imperium and most of them follow the 1,000 Marine limit impossed after the HH.

Second founding chapters that came from the Imperial Fists include the Crimson Fists, the Black Templars, the Soul Drinkers and about a dozen others. These second founding chapters do not have there own Primarchs, they came from Rogal Dorn in this case but they still have their own Chapter Masters and are therefore independent of the IF and each other. The Marines of these chapters were not Imperial Fists they are more like cousins or even half-brothers to the IF. Read the Soul Drinkers Omnibus to see how distant they really are.

Third and fourth founding founding chapters are a little fuzzzy, I think they come from the origional first founding but at a later date then the second founding chapters. I can't remember anywhere that it comes right out and says that.

The first founding is the creation of the space marine legio.
20 of them.
The second founding happens after the Heresy, when the left over loyal primarchs decide to follow Gullymans suggestions and split their legions into chapters.
Every following founding is then a new creation of a space marine force, using the geneseed of a primarch.
As far is i know, were at anything over 20th founding in M42.
Not sure how regular these foundings were, but 10 millenia should point at one every 500 years...

A "founding" is when the High Lords of Terra decide that "moar spehss muhreens for the emprah" are needed, and they will decree it so. At this point, the Adeptus Mechanicus (I think?) gets to work making some new chapters, based on gene seed reserves, and gives them some equipment to start out. Usually a small cadre is broken off to from an existing chapter, to train the new chapter and form its HQ. For example a captain from the old chapter may become the new chapter's master.

These new chapters are always made from 1 gene seed per chapter. Mixing is heresy, and has only been attempted for the 13th and 21st foundings, which are considered "cursed." There have been 26 recorded foundings to date.

Part of this occurs when a chapter grow beyond the thousand marine limit imposed by that pesky ultramarine primarch. At which point a breakaway chapter is formed or some such. Not sure how they are "registered" with the system exactly.

It's been said, but I'll have a stab of making it simple to understannnn...

- Before the Heresy, the Emperor created 20 Space Marine Legions, and 20 Primarchs to lead them. This was the FIRST FOUNDING. These were the earliest forms of 'chapters' we all know and love - Blood Angels, Space Wolves, White Scars, as well as the now 'chaos' ones such as Iron Warriors, Emperor's Children etc.

- There were only 20 Legions, but each Legion was huge, tens or hundreds of thousands of marines and their equipment.

- As an aside, within some Legions, 'chapter' was a unit of organisation. So it went Legion > Chapter > Company > Squad. But that's not really important.

Now

- After the Heresy, it was realised that a Legion was too much power for one commander to wield, and so the eight remaining loyal Legions were split up into autonomous 'Chapters'. For example, the Imperial Fists Legion split into the Imperal Fists, Crimson Fists and Black Templars Chapters.

- The Chapter with the same name as the original retained the original homeworld and colors. The 'new' Chapters got a new homeworld and colors.

- This was the SECOND FOUNDING

- Note that this never happened to the Traitors, who are still organised in Legions. However, most of those Legions have, after ten thousand years, split into separate warbands.

So

- Each Chapter is required to send some gene-seed back to Mars every so often, to prove that it's pure.

- Whenever more Marines are needed, the High Lords authorise the Mechanicus to create some new Chapters using this gene-seed. They get new equipment, and a core of veterans from another chapter to train them.

- These foundings are THIRD FOUNDING and later...

- As a note, often these foundings are created with an aim in mind. For example, there may be a founding of twenty new Chapters whose job is to keep watch on the Eye of Terror, or something...


So, in conclusion

FIRST FOUNDING are the original twenty Legions, two of which are lost, eight of which are Traitor, and eight of which are now loyal Chapters. They are the oldest, the most respected, and each of them originally had a Primarch.

SECOND FOUNDING were the Chapters created when the remaining loyal legions were split up. They're quite well respected, and sorta had a Primarch, but not really. For example, the Crimson Fists venerate Rogal Dorn, Primarch of the Imperial Fists, because they used to BE Imperial Fists.

THIRD OR LATER FOUNDING are thought of as 'newer' Chapters who don't have as much weight. Technically, becuase all gene-seed can be traced back to before the heresy, they are descended from a Primarch, but they may not know who, or not venerate him, or not care.

Hope that's clear..