Domus Publica
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By all outward appearance the Galactic Empire is a monolithic despotate, a massive machine of dull conformity and statism. Nevertheless, the evidence of
the films and the Expanded Universe hint at a surprisingly diverse socio-political order, with a number of different and competing ideologies and power
blocs vying for control and influence. Research and analysis reveal that the Galactic Empire’s appearance is in fact a façade concealing an internal struggle
for dominance in the marketplace of ideas. These competing ideas range from fundamentals like liberalism versus statism and individualism versus
collectivism, to the ephemeral and insubstantial in’s and out’s of court politics and the Galactic Emperor’s favor. Because the evidence in many cases is
sparse or else vague and unclear, this article incorporates both canonical fact and author speculation in an attempt to give a better feel for the politics of the
Galactic Empire.
Because the Galactic Emperor spent most of his time in seclusion researching and meditating on the dark side of the Force, it is necessary that the day-to-
day management of his Empire be handled by someone else. Presumably this was the motivation for the establishment of the Imperial Ruling Council, a
sort of de facto regency council exercising the Imperial prerogatives on the absentee Galactic Emperor’s behalf; the Dark Empire Sourcebook states that
“major decisions made by ministers or advisors had to be personally ratified by his chosen servants,” a reference to the Imperial Assent being given by the
Ruling Council on his behalf. “The Emperor’s Pawns” indicates that Sarcev Quest was the first Ruling Councilman to be an agent of the dark side
hierarchy, and the Dark Empire Sourcebook expands on this, revealing that “before the Emperor’s defeat, many [dark side hierarchs] had been gathered
into the Imperial Ruling Council.” Based on this evidence, it is possible to conclude that the “Imperial Council” occasionally mentioned in connection with
the Galactic Emperor’s advisors aboard the second Death Star in Return of the Jedi is in fact the Ruling Council, seeing that two of those same dignitaries,
Janus Greejatus and Sim Aloo (the Galactic Emperor’s “senior political advisor”) are simultaneously identified as members of the “Imperial council [sic]”
and as dark side hierarchs by the Death Star II Expansion Set. It is seems a reasonable supposition to conclude from the evidence of the Death Star
Technical Companion, “Betrayal,” and the Dark Empire Sourcebook that Ars Dangor was president of the Ruling Council for a period before 35 rS, and
that he was briefly replaced by Grand Moff Trachta (“necessary to my operations here [on Imperial Center],” according to the Galactic Emperor himself)
in early 35 rS; after Trachta’s assassination, Sate Pestage, Grand Vizier of the Galactic Empire, likely assumed the presidency, occupying the position by
the time of the Battle of Hoth in 38 rS
It is noteworthy that all of the persons hitherto mentioned in connection with the Ruling Council (with the exception of Trachta’s conjectured presidency)
have been explicitly identified as members of the Galactic Emperor’s “Inner Circle,” which the scholars describe in the Star Wars Encyclopedia as “a group
of ministers and governors closest to the Emperor at the time of the Battle of Endor,” and starwars.com’s Ask the Lucasfilm Jedi Council: “Who are the
gentlemen with the Emperor?” describes as “Imperial dignitaries, or more sinisterly, the Emperor’s Inner Circle [...] Many of them are key officials in the
managing of the Imperial bureaucracy”; the latter source is the only one to explicitly identify any member of the Inner Circle by name, identifying the
Grand Vizier, Greejatus, Aloo, Dangor, and Kren Blista-Vanee as members of the Inner Circle. Dark Empire II adds that Nefta and Sa-Di were also
members of the Inner Circle, calling them two of the Galactic Emperor’s closest friends. It is likely that the Ruling Council is the official manifestation of
the unofficial but enormously powerful Inner Circle. Because the Ruling Council and the Inner Circle are tied closely to the Galactic Emperor’s authority,
it seems reasonable that these groups should be able to exercise ius intercessio — that is, interposing their veto (literally, “I forbid”) — against other
power blocs without being subject to any check in return.
The broadest categories possible to define within the Imperial system without encompassing the Galactic Empire as a whole are the Imperial State and the
member states of the Galactic Empire. In this context, it may be convenient to view any given two member states as completely separate and independent
polities — fully functioning members of the interstellar community, carrying on diplomatic relations and maintaining their own political systems,
economies, and colonial empires — which may or may not have official relations with one another, but both of which are allied permanently to the
Imperial State. Like any relationship between political organisms, the possibility exists for unilateral action by one partner to the benefit or detriment of
the other, or for cooperation between one partner and a third party to the exclusion of the other. This would naturally produce a shifting political
environment among the member states, each of which would have a vested interest in forming beneficial relationships with the Imperial State and with
other member states, occasionally to the detriment of another member state. Likewise, it would also mean that member states are capable of ‘ganging up’
on one another, forming temporary or lasting coalitions amongst themselves to advance their interests at the expense of opposing factions. It would also be
possible for the Imperial State to take advantage of the current political climate to apply direct force against a member state in a particularly
disadvantageous position. One supposes that this is what happened to such member states as Ralltiir and Chandrila; finding themselves politically
vulnerable, they were left to the Imperial State’s tender mercies.
the films and the Expanded Universe hint at a surprisingly diverse socio-political order, with a number of different and competing ideologies and power
blocs vying for control and influence. Research and analysis reveal that the Galactic Empire’s appearance is in fact a façade concealing an internal struggle
for dominance in the marketplace of ideas. These competing ideas range from fundamentals like liberalism versus statism and individualism versus
collectivism, to the ephemeral and insubstantial in’s and out’s of court politics and the Galactic Emperor’s favor. Because the evidence in many cases is
sparse or else vague and unclear, this article incorporates both canonical fact and author speculation in an attempt to give a better feel for the politics of the
Galactic Empire.
Because the Galactic Emperor spent most of his time in seclusion researching and meditating on the dark side of the Force, it is necessary that the day-to-
day management of his Empire be handled by someone else. Presumably this was the motivation for the establishment of the Imperial Ruling Council, a
sort of de facto regency council exercising the Imperial prerogatives on the absentee Galactic Emperor’s behalf; the Dark Empire Sourcebook states that
“major decisions made by ministers or advisors had to be personally ratified by his chosen servants,” a reference to the Imperial Assent being given by the
Ruling Council on his behalf. “The Emperor’s Pawns” indicates that Sarcev Quest was the first Ruling Councilman to be an agent of the dark side
hierarchy, and the Dark Empire Sourcebook expands on this, revealing that “before the Emperor’s defeat, many [dark side hierarchs] had been gathered
into the Imperial Ruling Council.” Based on this evidence, it is possible to conclude that the “Imperial Council” occasionally mentioned in connection with
the Galactic Emperor’s advisors aboard the second Death Star in Return of the Jedi is in fact the Ruling Council, seeing that two of those same dignitaries,
Janus Greejatus and Sim Aloo (the Galactic Emperor’s “senior political advisor”) are simultaneously identified as members of the “Imperial council [sic]”
and as dark side hierarchs by the Death Star II Expansion Set. It is seems a reasonable supposition to conclude from the evidence of the Death Star
Technical Companion, “Betrayal,” and the Dark Empire Sourcebook that Ars Dangor was president of the Ruling Council for a period before 35 rS, and
that he was briefly replaced by Grand Moff Trachta (“necessary to my operations here [on Imperial Center],” according to the Galactic Emperor himself)
in early 35 rS; after Trachta’s assassination, Sate Pestage, Grand Vizier of the Galactic Empire, likely assumed the presidency, occupying the position by
the time of the Battle of Hoth in 38 rS
It is noteworthy that all of the persons hitherto mentioned in connection with the Ruling Council (with the exception of Trachta’s conjectured presidency)
have been explicitly identified as members of the Galactic Emperor’s “Inner Circle,” which the scholars describe in the Star Wars Encyclopedia as “a group
of ministers and governors closest to the Emperor at the time of the Battle of Endor,” and starwars.com’s Ask the Lucasfilm Jedi Council: “Who are the
gentlemen with the Emperor?” describes as “Imperial dignitaries, or more sinisterly, the Emperor’s Inner Circle [...] Many of them are key officials in the
managing of the Imperial bureaucracy”; the latter source is the only one to explicitly identify any member of the Inner Circle by name, identifying the
Grand Vizier, Greejatus, Aloo, Dangor, and Kren Blista-Vanee as members of the Inner Circle. Dark Empire II adds that Nefta and Sa-Di were also
members of the Inner Circle, calling them two of the Galactic Emperor’s closest friends. It is likely that the Ruling Council is the official manifestation of
the unofficial but enormously powerful Inner Circle. Because the Ruling Council and the Inner Circle are tied closely to the Galactic Emperor’s authority,
it seems reasonable that these groups should be able to exercise ius intercessio — that is, interposing their veto (literally, “I forbid”) — against other
power blocs without being subject to any check in return.
The broadest categories possible to define within the Imperial system without encompassing the Galactic Empire as a whole are the Imperial State and the
member states of the Galactic Empire. In this context, it may be convenient to view any given two member states as completely separate and independent
polities — fully functioning members of the interstellar community, carrying on diplomatic relations and maintaining their own political systems,
economies, and colonial empires — which may or may not have official relations with one another, but both of which are allied permanently to the
Imperial State. Like any relationship between political organisms, the possibility exists for unilateral action by one partner to the benefit or detriment of
the other, or for cooperation between one partner and a third party to the exclusion of the other. This would naturally produce a shifting political
environment among the member states, each of which would have a vested interest in forming beneficial relationships with the Imperial State and with
other member states, occasionally to the detriment of another member state. Likewise, it would also mean that member states are capable of ‘ganging up’
on one another, forming temporary or lasting coalitions amongst themselves to advance their interests at the expense of opposing factions. It would also be
possible for the Imperial State to take advantage of the current political climate to apply direct force against a member state in a particularly
disadvantageous position. One supposes that this is what happened to such member states as Ralltiir and Chandrila; finding themselves politically
vulnerable, they were left to the Imperial State’s tender mercies.
The Imperial State
The term ‘Imperial State’ comprehends the Privy Council, His Imperial Majesty’s Government, the Imperial Civil Service, the Imperial colonial
administration, and the Imperial Armed Forces; in other words, the Imperial State consists of those parts of the Empire which are tied by a direct chain of
authority directly to the Galactic Emperor without the interposition of authority by any of the member states. If, for example, a state official finds
himself or herself reporting to a representative of a member state in an administrative or operational capacity (i.e., not within the scope of Senatorial
oversight), then that official is not part of the Imperial State. It is obvious and necessary that a federal system such as the Empire’s should have a federal
government separate from that of the constituent polities. Although the Imperial State has never been clearly discussed as a single corporation by the
Expanded Universe, the very structure of the Galactic Empire is argument in itself for the Imperial State’s existence as the aggregate of the pan-Empire
aspects of the Imperial federation.
‘Privy Council’ is a term not found in the Expanded Universe, but is rather used herein to refer to the corporate body of the Galactic Emperor’s advisors.
Referred to in the majority of the Expanded Universe as “Imperial Advisors” (the unattested form ‘Privy Counsellor’ is preferred on this site), these
courtiers are among the most powerful beings in the entire Galactic Empire. The clearest source regarding their activities is the Imperial Sourcebook,
Second Edition which indicates that the Privy Council appoints the Galactic Empire’s governors (although “a few are just holo-approvals of candidates
the Emperor has chosen”) and that “a Moff reports to an advisor, with duplicate reports being sent directly to the Emperor.” There are hundreds of Privy
Counsellors, although the Galactic Emperor rarely travels or consults with more than a few dozens at any given time, and “each advisor has more enemies
than allies among the other advisors.” The Privy Counsellors “usually appoint the planetary governors, as well as some of the Moffs, and oversee the
political machinery of the Empire,” while some are “granted oversight of the administration of systems which are strongholds for one of his rivals” and
“advisors with weaker political bases are granted a greater degree of oversight than are strong advisors”; those not occupying positions as proconsuls or
state officers are sent on “missions to gather information or spread disinformation through appropriate channels.” Although it has not been stated to be
so, it is probable that the Advisory Committee on Military Affairs, mentioned in the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition is a committee of the Privy
Council; the same source is very clear that the Privy Council (along with COMPNOR) dominates the bureaucracy, and that the Privy Council or the High
Command can “seize control of sector group fleets at any time.”
The Privy Council is to a large degree synonymous with the Imperial court, and quite likely also with His Imperial Majesty’s Household (although HIM
Household has not be detailed in any of the known sources, analysis of the evidence from the Death Star Technical Companion and the Dark Empire
Sourcebook indicates that Ars Dangor and the Grand Vizier probably held the Household offices of Lord Chamberlain of the Household, HIM Private
Secretary, and Master of the Household, as well as the fifth Great Office of State, Lord Privy Seal). The politics within the Privy Council are intentionally
personality-based, rather than reflecting any fundamental differences in political theory or philosophy; the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition remarks
that “the advisors are allowed to play their competing interests off each other, often resulting in the bureaucracy’s various agencies working at cross-
purposes.” The nature of court politics encourages shifting alliances; a number of opposing factions exist and continually jockey for position, as seen in
the rivalries between Darth Vader and the House of Tagge (early issues of Star Wars), Grand Admiral Rufaan Tigellinus and Grand Moff Traeda
(“Tigellinus’ [sic] Star Rising in Imperial Court”), and Darth Vader and the Prince Xizor of Falleen (Shadows of the Empire). The Hero’s Guide mentions
that most noble houses still practice some form of dueling, and some court intrigues are known to have ended in the deaths of intrigants. Certainly one
such duel between Darth Vader and Orman, Baron Tagge, resulted in the Lord Tagge’s being “cursed to a lifetime of cyber-vision” after having been
blinded in a lightsaber duel, according to “Doom Mission!”
It is not clear how precisely the Privy Council interacts with the other organs of the Imperial State. The fact that the Privy Council appoints a number of
senior state officials tends to identify it with executive authority; it is possible that the Galactic Empire uses a semi-presidential system with the Privy
Council collectively holding the executive power, appointing a government and senior Imperial State officers like ambassadors, judges, and senior colonial
administrators, all subject to Senate advice and consent. If this is the case, then one would expect situations of political cohabitation to be possible, where
the government might include actual opponents of the dominant faction within the Privy Council at the time. Unfortunately, this remains speculative, as
the matter has never been explored by the Expanded Universe. What is known is that politics at court inevitably entangle those peripherally involved, the
Moffs and governors appointed by the Privy Council. In contrast, the Grand Moff Governors of the Imperial State’s Oversectors are appointed directly
by the Galactic Emperor (or, presumably, by the Ruling Council in his name; vide Wilhuff Tarkin’s promotion by Ars Dangor in the Death Star Technical
Companion) and do not report to the Privy Council. Therefore, it seems clear that the Privy Council does not enjoy the ability to assume operational
command and control of Oversector Commands at a moment’s notice, an important counterbalance to the court’s power.
‘His Imperial Majesty’s Government’ refers to the principal executive apparatus of the Imperial State, the Government. There is disappointingly little
information about this organization; its membership, its authority, and its means of appointment are left to one’s own suppositions and conjectures, and
one suspects the heavy involvement of the Privy Council. Although never seen and rarely mentioned, its existence can be deduced from the handful of
extant references. In “The Rebel Opposition,” Governor Norquest commented that he had political connections whom he expected to elevate him to “an
ambassador, or perhaps a Cabinet minister,” which is in itself an explicit reference to HIM Government; the Dark Empire Sourcebook also makes
repeated reference to “ministers” in the Imperial ruling class after the Battle of Endor in 39 rS, closely associated with the machinations of powerful Privy
Counsellors like Ars Dangor. It is worth noting that both of the senior officials mentioned by name in connection with a ministry in the Han Solo and the
Corporate Sector Sourcebook were the Lord Ritor and the Lady Chawkroft, but whether this is indicative of an aristocratic tendency in the Imperial State
or simply coincidence is unclear; the same source indicates that Ministerial turnover can be quite rapid (and occasionally fatal), and that personnel who do
not adapt to new Ministers are “reassigned” (the Lady Chawkroft’s own use of quotations).
The Imperial Ministries mentioned by the Expanded Universe as of yet are:
The precise nature of the massive Imperial Civil Service has never been examined in the Expanded Universe, except the Imperial Sourcebook, Second
Edition’s claim that “the Imperial bureaucracy runs each Imperial agency, which has authority over a specific subject matter throughout the galaxy”; Moff
Governors “are responsible for administering the sector-wide bureaucracy, which must answer both to the local Moff and the Imperial bureaucracy.”
Aside from this broad description, the only information about the bureaucracy is usually the name of a given organ and a general description of its function
(if that). Some of the known organs of the Imperial bureaucracy include: the Imperial Department of Resources (Splinter of the Mind’s Eye), the Bureau of
Revenue (Galaxy Guide 8: Scouts) and the Imperial Taxation Bureau (The Far Orbit Project), the Bureau of Science and Travel (Rebellion Era
Sourcebook), the Imperial Species Identification Bureau (“The Evacuation of Jatee”), the Imperial Survey Corps (Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition),
the Imperial Exploratory Division (“Seoul Searching”), the Imperial Colonization Board (The Truce at Bakura Sourcebook), the Imperial Board of Culture
(Galaxy Guide 9: Fragments from the Rim), the Imperial Propaganda Bureau (Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, Second Edition), the Imperial Board of
Foodstuffs and Consumables (“The Free-Trader’s Guide to Sevarcos”), the Imperial Substance Control Authority (The Abduction of Crying Dawn
Singer), the Imperial Science Division (Galaxy of Fear: Army of Terror), the Bureau of Punishments (Children of the Jedi), the School of Torturers (id.),
and the Imperial Office of Criminal Investigations (Galaxy Guide 9: Fragments from the Rim).
Generally speaking, it is likely that these would fall under the direction of responsible ministers in HIM Government, such as the Bureau of Revenue and
the Taxation Bureau belonging to the Finance portfolio, while the Board of Culture and the Propaganda Bureau would likely belong to a Culture or
Information portfolio. Although little of these organizations has been seen, it is quite likely that there is an elaborate hierarchy in place within the Imperial
State, consisting of career civil servants of varying ranks (Tapani Sector Instant Adventures mentions the existence of an “Imperial Civil Service uniform”).
Based on the example of the old Republic, one would expect bureaux to be headed by directors and further divisions within bureaux by sub-directors, yet
one finds that the head of the Bureau of Punishments — presumably falling under the jurisdiction of the Procurator of Justice, the Galactic Empire’s chief
executioner in The Crystal Star — is titled “President” instead. One rank known to exist within this bureaucratic hierarchy is that of supervisor, such as
Supervisor Gurdun in “Therefore I Am: The Tale of IG-88,” who successively oversaw the Phlutdroid Project, the development of the Viper probot, and
the procurement and delivery of the computer core for the second Death Star Project. Another rank to exist within the hierarchy is that of minor, such as
Gurdun’s aide, Minor Relsted (subsequently promoted to supervisor when Gurdun vacated his old office to accept assignment to the second Death Star
Project).
The bureaucracy is one of the most obvious places to find in-fighting and jockeying for position. In the novelization of Return of the Jedi, the Galactic
Emperor reflects that he encounters the dark side every day “from traitorous lieutenants who betrayed their superiors for favors; from weak-principled
functionaries who gave him the secrets of local star systems’ governments; from greedy landlords, and sadistic gangsters, and power-hungry politicians.”
Indeed, the Dark Empire Sourcebook reveals that the Galactic Emperor encouraged the backstabbing and rivalries within the Imperial State. In the case of
much of the bureaucracy, the overlapping responsibilities of different organs — e.g., the Imperial Survey Corps and the Imperial Exploratory Division, or
the Bureau of Revenue and the Taxation Bureau — probably creates a constantly shifting environment of secretarial warfare; the multiplicity of superior
authorities — HIM Government, the Senate, the Privy Council, and even COMPNOR — makes it possible for any number of factions to develop within
the bureaucracy; the additional threat of redundancy or loss of funding to a rival agency creates a perverse influence within the civil service (the ‘failure’ to
expend one’s entire budget is often taken as a sign that one’s agency simply does not need so much funding, resulting in the deliberate wasting of money
and resources in order to prevent budgetary cuts). However, it is likely that most politicking within the bureaucracy will be esoteric and relatively
unimportant, as the bureaucracy essentially lacks any large degree of policy-making power (at best, the Civil Service can obfuscate policies created by
HIM Government, the Privy Council, or the Senate, consigning such policies to the ‘death of a thousand paper cuts’).
The Imperial colonial administration refers to the part of the Imperial State responsible for the government of those territories belonging to the Galactic
Empire but not to any particular member state. The majority of the college of Moffs is employed in the colonial administration as Sector Governors,
Regional Governors, and Oversector Governors, administering the government of the Galactic Empire’s Sectors, Regions, and Oversectors (see “Rattling
the Saber” for further discussion of the nature of these echelons and their relationships with the Imperial Armed Forces). Subordinate to the Moff
Governor of each Sector are the governors, who directly administer the Galactic Empire’s vast collection of colonies, territories, and protectorates;
governors are civilian agents of the Imperial State and do not have operational control of Naval forces operating within their jurisdictions, according to the
Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition. The same source indicates that governors receive their instructions from the Diplomatic Service and from the
responsible Moff Governor; in the event of a conflict between the two, the Moff Governor’s policies take precedence. Presumably the governors were
also obliged to report to the Senate in some fashion, or else Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin’s comment in A New Hope that “the Regional Governors will now
have direct control” would make little sense. There are a handful of other officers junior in rank to a governor; this includes prefects, who are apparently
responsible for the government of individual planets, such as Prefect Gerom on Namore in Heroes and Rogues, and also sub-prefects, seen in Galaxy
Guide 10: Bounty Hunters and Galaxy Guide 11: Criminal Organizations. One supposes that sub-prefects perhaps represent the interests of the Imperial
State on worlds without a substantial Imperial presence. There also exists the office of supervisor, perhaps related to the bureaucratic office, as Splinter of
the Mind’s Eye shows that Imperial Army’s officer in charge on Circarpous V in 35 rS was Captain-Supervisor Grammel (whom Governor Bin Essada
promised to make a “colonel-supervisor” if he were to successfully capture the Princess Leia of Alderaan). Prefects, sub-prefects, and supervisors fall
under the jurisdiction of governors, indicating that governors’ jurisdictions can include more than one star system.
It should be noted that the dignity of Moff is not synonymous with the office of Sector Governor. There are in fact Sector Governors who are not Moffs,
and also Moffs who are not Sector Governors (e.g., neither Sector Governor Paro Lanto from Galaxy Guide 4: Alien Races nor Sector Governor Nardix
from “Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM” was a Moff, while Moff Kadir from “Betrayal” was Commander of Imperial Center
Security, not a Sector Governor). The Rebellion Era Sourcebook explains that ordinary Sector Governors are elected (it does not explain how or by
whom), and that Moff Governors are appointed by the Galactic Emperor and the Privy Council. There exists also an office of “Governor General,” such
as the Governor General of the Bright Jewel Cluster mentioned in Geonosis and the Outer Rim Worlds, which office was subsequently upgraded to Grand
Moff Governor of Bright Jewel Oversector. The significance of the “general” modifier is unclear; perhaps a Governor General administers a Region rather
than a Sector, or perhaps the office is appointed directly by the Senate rather than by the Privy Council? It could be that the Governor General is the non-
Grand Moff governor at the Regional level, counterpart to the non-Moff Sector Governor. Unfortunately evidence is insufficient to make any comfortable
conclusions at the present time.
The opportunity for variation and conflict within the colonial administration is greater than in the bureaucracy in some ways and lesser in others. In the
first place, the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition indicates that Moff Governors “frequently remold the local bureaucracies, including the sector-wide
government, planetary governments (through governors) and even more localized governments, making them more ‘agreeable’ to the Moff’s personal
objectives while still adhering to Imperial standards.” In the second place, the hierarchical nature of the system means that a Moff Governor has a far
greater degree of power and authority than a governor, who in turn has greater power and authority than a prefect, and so on. The hitherto cited example
of Bin Essada promising to promote Grammel is an example of this obvious, straightforward relationship. However, the very nature of institutional
politics makes it possible for perverse relationships to develop; consider, for example, if a governor is protégé to a particularly powerful Senator or Privy
Counsellor, it is possible that the responsible Moff Governor will be unable to assert his or her nominal authority without politically endangering his or
her own position (Tarkin’s comment on the dissolution of the Senate requires that there be negative repercussions associated with attempts to exert direct
Imperial control over the territories while the Senate was in session). Furthermore, there is the known tendency of Moff Governors to rule as virtual
dictators, rivaling one another and quite likely even waging quiet war on one another (“Soldiers of the Empire!” indicates that it was quite common for
Imperial leaders to use their elite Imperial Guards units to assassinate other leaders). Furthermore, because they are chosen for their offices by the Privy
Council, Moff Governors are known to become entangled in the politicking at court, and all the repercussions known to result therefrom. Although
political maneuvering within the colonial administration may not be as subtle or widespread as in the bureaucracy, it is rather likelier to involve the
outright use of violence and assassination, with the tools of force readily available to the players.
The Imperial Armed Forces consist of the Imperial Army, the Imperial Navy, the Imperial Marines (“Pax Empirica – The Wookiee Annihilation”), and
Imperial Intelligence (Death Star Technical Companion). It seems that the branches are ultimately organized under a single overarching authority, the
Imperial High Command, which appears to be the supreme headquarters responsible for overall administration, direction, command, and control of the
entire military/naval complex. Unfortunately, the High Command has not been detailed by any source, having been mentioned in passing only by the
Rebellion Era Sourcebook, TIE Fighter: The Stele Chronicles, and Galactic Battlegrounds: Clone Campaigns; the latter source indicates that the High
Command is located on Imperial Center. The Mandalorian Armor identifies Darth Vader’s policies with those of the High Command, which implies that
Vader may have become Supreme Commander after the Battle of Yavin (one supposes that Admiral Terrinald Screed may have been a previous Supreme
Commander); this is consistent with the substantial increase in Vader’s power within the Imperial State following the destruction of the first Death Star in
35 rS, seeing him rise from a glorified errand boy to commander of an enormous fleet, defeating a number of potential rivals for the Galactic Emperor’s
favor (it is noteworthy that two of these rivals, the Lord Tagge and the Prince Xizor, were killed as a result of Vader’s machinations). It is not clear if the
High Command is responsible to HIM Government or even to the Privy Council. Imperial Intelligence is said by the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition
to report directly to the Galactic Emperor as well as to the members of the college of Moffs, and the same source indicates that the High Command can
assume direct control of Sector-based assets; its status as one of the four services comprising the Imperial Armed Forces may imply that the other three
also answer directly to the Galactic Emperor and to the college of Moffs.
A large part of the Armed Forces are deployed on a Sectorial basis and are subject to the operational command and control of Sector Governors and
Oversector Governors (see “Rattling the Saber” ). In addition to these ordinary forces, there are a handful of other organs of the massive military/naval
complex. The Imperial Department of Military Research has been seen in the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition, Cracken’s Threat Dossier, The
Essential Guide to Weapons and Technology, and The Essential Guide to Droids; what relationship this organization has with Section Nineteen and
“Warthan’s wizards” mentioned by Tyrant’s Test and Agents of Chaos II: Jedi Eclipse is unknown, although they appear to share the same function of
advanced projects research and development; the DMR submitted a report on recent projects to the Advisory Committee on Military Affairs in the
Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition (the report was intercepted by rebel agents and included in a briefing on the Imperial State to the leadership of the
rebel Alliance to Restore the Republic). The Imperial Biological Weapons Division (which often operated under the front-name of the Imperial Biological
Welfare Division), appeared in Galaxy of Fear: Planet Plague, and may have been a division of the DMR. The Imperial Safeguards Division, evidently a
joint-service unit, is responsible for ensuring the physical safety of the Galactic Emperor, according to The Star Wars Sourcebook, Second Edition (his
personal bodyguard, the Imperial Royal Guard, is nevertheless a formation of the Imperial Marines).
administration, and the Imperial Armed Forces; in other words, the Imperial State consists of those parts of the Empire which are tied by a direct chain of
authority directly to the Galactic Emperor without the interposition of authority by any of the member states. If, for example, a state official finds
himself or herself reporting to a representative of a member state in an administrative or operational capacity (i.e., not within the scope of Senatorial
oversight), then that official is not part of the Imperial State. It is obvious and necessary that a federal system such as the Empire’s should have a federal
government separate from that of the constituent polities. Although the Imperial State has never been clearly discussed as a single corporation by the
Expanded Universe, the very structure of the Galactic Empire is argument in itself for the Imperial State’s existence as the aggregate of the pan-Empire
aspects of the Imperial federation.
‘Privy Council’ is a term not found in the Expanded Universe, but is rather used herein to refer to the corporate body of the Galactic Emperor’s advisors.
Referred to in the majority of the Expanded Universe as “Imperial Advisors” (the unattested form ‘Privy Counsellor’ is preferred on this site), these
courtiers are among the most powerful beings in the entire Galactic Empire. The clearest source regarding their activities is the Imperial Sourcebook,
Second Edition which indicates that the Privy Council appoints the Galactic Empire’s governors (although “a few are just holo-approvals of candidates
the Emperor has chosen”) and that “a Moff reports to an advisor, with duplicate reports being sent directly to the Emperor.” There are hundreds of Privy
Counsellors, although the Galactic Emperor rarely travels or consults with more than a few dozens at any given time, and “each advisor has more enemies
than allies among the other advisors.” The Privy Counsellors “usually appoint the planetary governors, as well as some of the Moffs, and oversee the
political machinery of the Empire,” while some are “granted oversight of the administration of systems which are strongholds for one of his rivals” and
“advisors with weaker political bases are granted a greater degree of oversight than are strong advisors”; those not occupying positions as proconsuls or
state officers are sent on “missions to gather information or spread disinformation through appropriate channels.” Although it has not been stated to be
so, it is probable that the Advisory Committee on Military Affairs, mentioned in the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition is a committee of the Privy
Council; the same source is very clear that the Privy Council (along with COMPNOR) dominates the bureaucracy, and that the Privy Council or the High
Command can “seize control of sector group fleets at any time.”
The Privy Council is to a large degree synonymous with the Imperial court, and quite likely also with His Imperial Majesty’s Household (although HIM
Household has not be detailed in any of the known sources, analysis of the evidence from the Death Star Technical Companion and the Dark Empire
Sourcebook indicates that Ars Dangor and the Grand Vizier probably held the Household offices of Lord Chamberlain of the Household, HIM Private
Secretary, and Master of the Household, as well as the fifth Great Office of State, Lord Privy Seal). The politics within the Privy Council are intentionally
personality-based, rather than reflecting any fundamental differences in political theory or philosophy; the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition remarks
that “the advisors are allowed to play their competing interests off each other, often resulting in the bureaucracy’s various agencies working at cross-
purposes.” The nature of court politics encourages shifting alliances; a number of opposing factions exist and continually jockey for position, as seen in
the rivalries between Darth Vader and the House of Tagge (early issues of Star Wars), Grand Admiral Rufaan Tigellinus and Grand Moff Traeda
(“Tigellinus’ [sic] Star Rising in Imperial Court”), and Darth Vader and the Prince Xizor of Falleen (Shadows of the Empire). The Hero’s Guide mentions
that most noble houses still practice some form of dueling, and some court intrigues are known to have ended in the deaths of intrigants. Certainly one
such duel between Darth Vader and Orman, Baron Tagge, resulted in the Lord Tagge’s being “cursed to a lifetime of cyber-vision” after having been
blinded in a lightsaber duel, according to “Doom Mission!”
It is not clear how precisely the Privy Council interacts with the other organs of the Imperial State. The fact that the Privy Council appoints a number of
senior state officials tends to identify it with executive authority; it is possible that the Galactic Empire uses a semi-presidential system with the Privy
Council collectively holding the executive power, appointing a government and senior Imperial State officers like ambassadors, judges, and senior colonial
administrators, all subject to Senate advice and consent. If this is the case, then one would expect situations of political cohabitation to be possible, where
the government might include actual opponents of the dominant faction within the Privy Council at the time. Unfortunately, this remains speculative, as
the matter has never been explored by the Expanded Universe. What is known is that politics at court inevitably entangle those peripherally involved, the
Moffs and governors appointed by the Privy Council. In contrast, the Grand Moff Governors of the Imperial State’s Oversectors are appointed directly
by the Galactic Emperor (or, presumably, by the Ruling Council in his name; vide Wilhuff Tarkin’s promotion by Ars Dangor in the Death Star Technical
Companion) and do not report to the Privy Council. Therefore, it seems clear that the Privy Council does not enjoy the ability to assume operational
command and control of Oversector Commands at a moment’s notice, an important counterbalance to the court’s power.
‘His Imperial Majesty’s Government’ refers to the principal executive apparatus of the Imperial State, the Government. There is disappointingly little
information about this organization; its membership, its authority, and its means of appointment are left to one’s own suppositions and conjectures, and
one suspects the heavy involvement of the Privy Council. Although never seen and rarely mentioned, its existence can be deduced from the handful of
extant references. In “The Rebel Opposition,” Governor Norquest commented that he had political connections whom he expected to elevate him to “an
ambassador, or perhaps a Cabinet minister,” which is in itself an explicit reference to HIM Government; the Dark Empire Sourcebook also makes
repeated reference to “ministers” in the Imperial ruling class after the Battle of Endor in 39 rS, closely associated with the machinations of powerful Privy
Counsellors like Ars Dangor. It is worth noting that both of the senior officials mentioned by name in connection with a ministry in the Han Solo and the
Corporate Sector Sourcebook were the Lord Ritor and the Lady Chawkroft, but whether this is indicative of an aristocratic tendency in the Imperial State
or simply coincidence is unclear; the same source indicates that Ministerial turnover can be quite rapid (and occasionally fatal), and that personnel who do
not adapt to new Ministers are “reassigned” (the Lady Chawkroft’s own use of quotations).
The Imperial Ministries mentioned by the Expanded Universe as of yet are:
- The Imperial Space Ministry, responsible for promulgation and enforcement of regulations on starship safety and spaceworthiness, and also
categorization of spaceports by facilities and amenities (Galaxy Guide 6: Tramp Freighters); - The Imperial Ministry of Intergalactic Transit, responsible for monitoring and licensing the interstellar transport of substances and commodities
(“The Free-Trader’s Guide to Sevarcos”); - The Imperial Correctional Facilities Ministry, which negotiated with the Security Division, Corporate Sector Authority, regarding the possible
adoption of the Stars’ End penal facility design for general use throughout the Galactic Empire (Han Solo and the Corporate Sector Sourcebook); - The Imperial Ministry of Energy, which funneled research and development funding into the second Death Star Project via its subsidiary Imperial
Energy Systems (The Official Star Wars Adventure Journal No. 6); - The Imperial Ministry of Land Management, into whose headquarters the Privy Counsellor Fendrilon Koozar’s speeder crashed after he was
poisoned by Black Sun (Shadows of the Empire Sourcebook); - The Imperial Ministry of Security, responsible for safeguarding “the welfare, property and livelihood” of Imperial citizens, over whose
operations the Privy Counsellor Bregius Golthan was given a supervisory role by the Galactic Emperor (“Imperial Advisor Golthan Leaves
Court”); and - The Imperial Ministry of Finance, responsible for oversight of the Imperial State’s finances and management of its assets (“The Path to
Nowhere”).
The precise nature of the massive Imperial Civil Service has never been examined in the Expanded Universe, except the Imperial Sourcebook, Second
Edition’s claim that “the Imperial bureaucracy runs each Imperial agency, which has authority over a specific subject matter throughout the galaxy”; Moff
Governors “are responsible for administering the sector-wide bureaucracy, which must answer both to the local Moff and the Imperial bureaucracy.”
Aside from this broad description, the only information about the bureaucracy is usually the name of a given organ and a general description of its function
(if that). Some of the known organs of the Imperial bureaucracy include: the Imperial Department of Resources (Splinter of the Mind’s Eye), the Bureau of
Revenue (Galaxy Guide 8: Scouts) and the Imperial Taxation Bureau (The Far Orbit Project), the Bureau of Science and Travel (Rebellion Era
Sourcebook), the Imperial Species Identification Bureau (“The Evacuation of Jatee”), the Imperial Survey Corps (Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition),
the Imperial Exploratory Division (“Seoul Searching”), the Imperial Colonization Board (The Truce at Bakura Sourcebook), the Imperial Board of Culture
(Galaxy Guide 9: Fragments from the Rim), the Imperial Propaganda Bureau (Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, Second Edition), the Imperial Board of
Foodstuffs and Consumables (“The Free-Trader’s Guide to Sevarcos”), the Imperial Substance Control Authority (The Abduction of Crying Dawn
Singer), the Imperial Science Division (Galaxy of Fear: Army of Terror), the Bureau of Punishments (Children of the Jedi), the School of Torturers (id.),
and the Imperial Office of Criminal Investigations (Galaxy Guide 9: Fragments from the Rim).
Generally speaking, it is likely that these would fall under the direction of responsible ministers in HIM Government, such as the Bureau of Revenue and
the Taxation Bureau belonging to the Finance portfolio, while the Board of Culture and the Propaganda Bureau would likely belong to a Culture or
Information portfolio. Although little of these organizations has been seen, it is quite likely that there is an elaborate hierarchy in place within the Imperial
State, consisting of career civil servants of varying ranks (Tapani Sector Instant Adventures mentions the existence of an “Imperial Civil Service uniform”).
Based on the example of the old Republic, one would expect bureaux to be headed by directors and further divisions within bureaux by sub-directors, yet
one finds that the head of the Bureau of Punishments — presumably falling under the jurisdiction of the Procurator of Justice, the Galactic Empire’s chief
executioner in The Crystal Star — is titled “President” instead. One rank known to exist within this bureaucratic hierarchy is that of supervisor, such as
Supervisor Gurdun in “Therefore I Am: The Tale of IG-88,” who successively oversaw the Phlutdroid Project, the development of the Viper probot, and
the procurement and delivery of the computer core for the second Death Star Project. Another rank to exist within the hierarchy is that of minor, such as
Gurdun’s aide, Minor Relsted (subsequently promoted to supervisor when Gurdun vacated his old office to accept assignment to the second Death Star
Project).
The bureaucracy is one of the most obvious places to find in-fighting and jockeying for position. In the novelization of Return of the Jedi, the Galactic
Emperor reflects that he encounters the dark side every day “from traitorous lieutenants who betrayed their superiors for favors; from weak-principled
functionaries who gave him the secrets of local star systems’ governments; from greedy landlords, and sadistic gangsters, and power-hungry politicians.”
Indeed, the Dark Empire Sourcebook reveals that the Galactic Emperor encouraged the backstabbing and rivalries within the Imperial State. In the case of
much of the bureaucracy, the overlapping responsibilities of different organs — e.g., the Imperial Survey Corps and the Imperial Exploratory Division, or
the Bureau of Revenue and the Taxation Bureau — probably creates a constantly shifting environment of secretarial warfare; the multiplicity of superior
authorities — HIM Government, the Senate, the Privy Council, and even COMPNOR — makes it possible for any number of factions to develop within
the bureaucracy; the additional threat of redundancy or loss of funding to a rival agency creates a perverse influence within the civil service (the ‘failure’ to
expend one’s entire budget is often taken as a sign that one’s agency simply does not need so much funding, resulting in the deliberate wasting of money
and resources in order to prevent budgetary cuts). However, it is likely that most politicking within the bureaucracy will be esoteric and relatively
unimportant, as the bureaucracy essentially lacks any large degree of policy-making power (at best, the Civil Service can obfuscate policies created by
HIM Government, the Privy Council, or the Senate, consigning such policies to the ‘death of a thousand paper cuts’).
The Imperial colonial administration refers to the part of the Imperial State responsible for the government of those territories belonging to the Galactic
Empire but not to any particular member state. The majority of the college of Moffs is employed in the colonial administration as Sector Governors,
Regional Governors, and Oversector Governors, administering the government of the Galactic Empire’s Sectors, Regions, and Oversectors (see “Rattling
the Saber” for further discussion of the nature of these echelons and their relationships with the Imperial Armed Forces). Subordinate to the Moff
Governor of each Sector are the governors, who directly administer the Galactic Empire’s vast collection of colonies, territories, and protectorates;
governors are civilian agents of the Imperial State and do not have operational control of Naval forces operating within their jurisdictions, according to the
Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition. The same source indicates that governors receive their instructions from the Diplomatic Service and from the
responsible Moff Governor; in the event of a conflict between the two, the Moff Governor’s policies take precedence. Presumably the governors were
also obliged to report to the Senate in some fashion, or else Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin’s comment in A New Hope that “the Regional Governors will now
have direct control” would make little sense. There are a handful of other officers junior in rank to a governor; this includes prefects, who are apparently
responsible for the government of individual planets, such as Prefect Gerom on Namore in Heroes and Rogues, and also sub-prefects, seen in Galaxy
Guide 10: Bounty Hunters and Galaxy Guide 11: Criminal Organizations. One supposes that sub-prefects perhaps represent the interests of the Imperial
State on worlds without a substantial Imperial presence. There also exists the office of supervisor, perhaps related to the bureaucratic office, as Splinter of
the Mind’s Eye shows that Imperial Army’s officer in charge on Circarpous V in 35 rS was Captain-Supervisor Grammel (whom Governor Bin Essada
promised to make a “colonel-supervisor” if he were to successfully capture the Princess Leia of Alderaan). Prefects, sub-prefects, and supervisors fall
under the jurisdiction of governors, indicating that governors’ jurisdictions can include more than one star system.
It should be noted that the dignity of Moff is not synonymous with the office of Sector Governor. There are in fact Sector Governors who are not Moffs,
and also Moffs who are not Sector Governors (e.g., neither Sector Governor Paro Lanto from Galaxy Guide 4: Alien Races nor Sector Governor Nardix
from “Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM” was a Moff, while Moff Kadir from “Betrayal” was Commander of Imperial Center
Security, not a Sector Governor). The Rebellion Era Sourcebook explains that ordinary Sector Governors are elected (it does not explain how or by
whom), and that Moff Governors are appointed by the Galactic Emperor and the Privy Council. There exists also an office of “Governor General,” such
as the Governor General of the Bright Jewel Cluster mentioned in Geonosis and the Outer Rim Worlds, which office was subsequently upgraded to Grand
Moff Governor of Bright Jewel Oversector. The significance of the “general” modifier is unclear; perhaps a Governor General administers a Region rather
than a Sector, or perhaps the office is appointed directly by the Senate rather than by the Privy Council? It could be that the Governor General is the non-
Grand Moff governor at the Regional level, counterpart to the non-Moff Sector Governor. Unfortunately evidence is insufficient to make any comfortable
conclusions at the present time.
The opportunity for variation and conflict within the colonial administration is greater than in the bureaucracy in some ways and lesser in others. In the
first place, the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition indicates that Moff Governors “frequently remold the local bureaucracies, including the sector-wide
government, planetary governments (through governors) and even more localized governments, making them more ‘agreeable’ to the Moff’s personal
objectives while still adhering to Imperial standards.” In the second place, the hierarchical nature of the system means that a Moff Governor has a far
greater degree of power and authority than a governor, who in turn has greater power and authority than a prefect, and so on. The hitherto cited example
of Bin Essada promising to promote Grammel is an example of this obvious, straightforward relationship. However, the very nature of institutional
politics makes it possible for perverse relationships to develop; consider, for example, if a governor is protégé to a particularly powerful Senator or Privy
Counsellor, it is possible that the responsible Moff Governor will be unable to assert his or her nominal authority without politically endangering his or
her own position (Tarkin’s comment on the dissolution of the Senate requires that there be negative repercussions associated with attempts to exert direct
Imperial control over the territories while the Senate was in session). Furthermore, there is the known tendency of Moff Governors to rule as virtual
dictators, rivaling one another and quite likely even waging quiet war on one another (“Soldiers of the Empire!” indicates that it was quite common for
Imperial leaders to use their elite Imperial Guards units to assassinate other leaders). Furthermore, because they are chosen for their offices by the Privy
Council, Moff Governors are known to become entangled in the politicking at court, and all the repercussions known to result therefrom. Although
political maneuvering within the colonial administration may not be as subtle or widespread as in the bureaucracy, it is rather likelier to involve the
outright use of violence and assassination, with the tools of force readily available to the players.
The Imperial Armed Forces consist of the Imperial Army, the Imperial Navy, the Imperial Marines (“Pax Empirica – The Wookiee Annihilation”), and
Imperial Intelligence (Death Star Technical Companion). It seems that the branches are ultimately organized under a single overarching authority, the
Imperial High Command, which appears to be the supreme headquarters responsible for overall administration, direction, command, and control of the
entire military/naval complex. Unfortunately, the High Command has not been detailed by any source, having been mentioned in passing only by the
Rebellion Era Sourcebook, TIE Fighter: The Stele Chronicles, and Galactic Battlegrounds: Clone Campaigns; the latter source indicates that the High
Command is located on Imperial Center. The Mandalorian Armor identifies Darth Vader’s policies with those of the High Command, which implies that
Vader may have become Supreme Commander after the Battle of Yavin (one supposes that Admiral Terrinald Screed may have been a previous Supreme
Commander); this is consistent with the substantial increase in Vader’s power within the Imperial State following the destruction of the first Death Star in
35 rS, seeing him rise from a glorified errand boy to commander of an enormous fleet, defeating a number of potential rivals for the Galactic Emperor’s
favor (it is noteworthy that two of these rivals, the Lord Tagge and the Prince Xizor, were killed as a result of Vader’s machinations). It is not clear if the
High Command is responsible to HIM Government or even to the Privy Council. Imperial Intelligence is said by the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition
to report directly to the Galactic Emperor as well as to the members of the college of Moffs, and the same source indicates that the High Command can
assume direct control of Sector-based assets; its status as one of the four services comprising the Imperial Armed Forces may imply that the other three
also answer directly to the Galactic Emperor and to the college of Moffs.
A large part of the Armed Forces are deployed on a Sectorial basis and are subject to the operational command and control of Sector Governors and
Oversector Governors (see “Rattling the Saber” ). In addition to these ordinary forces, there are a handful of other organs of the massive military/naval
complex. The Imperial Department of Military Research has been seen in the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition, Cracken’s Threat Dossier, The
Essential Guide to Weapons and Technology, and The Essential Guide to Droids; what relationship this organization has with Section Nineteen and
“Warthan’s wizards” mentioned by Tyrant’s Test and Agents of Chaos II: Jedi Eclipse is unknown, although they appear to share the same function of
advanced projects research and development; the DMR submitted a report on recent projects to the Advisory Committee on Military Affairs in the
Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition (the report was intercepted by rebel agents and included in a briefing on the Imperial State to the leadership of the
rebel Alliance to Restore the Republic). The Imperial Biological Weapons Division (which often operated under the front-name of the Imperial Biological
Welfare Division), appeared in Galaxy of Fear: Planet Plague, and may have been a division of the DMR. The Imperial Safeguards Division, evidently a
joint-service unit, is responsible for ensuring the physical safety of the Galactic Emperor, according to The Star Wars Sourcebook, Second Edition (his
personal bodyguard, the Imperial Royal Guard, is nevertheless a formation of the Imperial Marines).
The Member States of the Galactic Empire
The other category at this broadest possible basis is that of the member states, those million semi-independent, autonomous polities which maintain their
own governments independent of the Imperial State and its colonial administration. These states are collectively represented by the Imperial Senate, the
powerful counterweight to the Imperial State and its massive federal government. The scholars write that the Senate was empowered “to create laws,
pacts, and treaties and to govern the galactic union” and “to steer the course of government and administer to the many member systems,” which seems to
indicate that it has exclusive legislative jurisdiction over the member states and that member states are (in most circumstances) exempt from the Imperial
State’s influence except by the consent of the Senate. Because the member states will be the wealthiest and most powerful polities in the Galactic Empire,
the Senate’s monopoly on them means that it controls an extremely large fraction of the Imperial budget; the power of supply is one of the most
important powers of any government, and gives the Senate an enormous advantage in its dealings with the Imperial State.
The other advantage of the member states within the Senate is the existence of their own security forces. The same wealth that enables the Senate to wield
the power of the purse to its own advantage enables many of its members to finance not inconsiderable military/naval forces of their own; the Chandrilan
Home Defense Fleet, the Corellian Defense Force (CDF) and Corellian Security Force (CorSec), the Kuati Security Forces, and the Sacorrian military are
all mentioned by Coruscant and the Core Worlds, while the same source reveals that the House of Tagge, headquartered at its throneworld of Tepasi in
the Core, was able to contribute such substantial naval forces that it was an equal partner in the blockade of the Yavin system alongside Darth Vader’s
fleet and the Bright Jewel Oversector. In Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker, Vader confirmed that ostensibly pacifistic Alderaan
possessed defenses “as strong as any in the Empire,” including a planetary deflector shield seen to withstand for a fraction of a second the full force of the
Death Star’s planet-shattering main artillery weapon; in “The Rebel Opposition,” Dame Winter mentions the Alderaan Navy. Bank of Aargau Security,
Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Bank of Aargau (a financial institution virtually synonymous with the Aargauun government), operated the largest
private army in the galaxy during the Galactic Emperor’s reign, according to “Aargau: For All Your Banking Needs.” Mission to Lianna mentions the Liann
Military Guards, and Pirates & Privateers mentions the Induparan Crown Defense Forces. It is not inconceivable that some member states would be able
to withstand executive action by the Imperial State. Indeed, this may well have been one of the considerations leading to the decision to proceed with the
Death Star Project.
Coruscant and the Core Worlds unambiguously states that each of the Galactic Senate Chamber’s 1,024 floating platforms belongs to “a regional or
sectorial Senator”; it is not known how the Galactic Republic arranged for the designation of Senators to represent entire Sectors or Regions containing
more than one member state. One supposes that the Senators from a given Sector or Region caucused and designated one among their number to represent
them en bloc, vesting that one “Senior Senator” with their own votes in an attempt to increase their caucus’s voice and voting power in the enormous
Senate. A single Senator able to cast a dozen or more votes would be able to exercise increased leverage in committee, the traditional workhorse of
legislatures of unwieldy size. It is also known from Cloak of Deception that member states of the Galactic Republic were able to cede their right to
representation in the Senate to a non-governmental organization (NGO) like the Trade Federation, the Commerce Guild, or the Techno Union; there is no
evidence as of yet as to whether or not the Imperial Senate continued this practice. If so, then it could help explain why Opposition leaders like Mon
Mothma and the Princess Leia of Alderaan were able to remain such vocal critics in the Senate despite the obvious annoyance of leaders in the Imperial
State; if they represented large caucuses of absentee Senators, the Imperial State may have had difficulty attacking them directly or indirectly without
concrete evidence of criminal activity. This idea is generally consistent with Alderaan’s status as “one of the foremost of the inner systems” (as claimed
by Vader in Star Wars: The Original Radio Drama), which implies a sort of leadership role, and the likelihood that such vocal Opposition members
would likely find support in other, like-minded Senators, forming a voting bloc of their own, precisely like Prince Bail Antilles’s Core Worlds conservative
caucus in Cloak of Deception.
Notably, in A New Hope and “Princess... Warrior,” member states of the Galactic Empire possess ius legationis (i.e., they accredit diplomatic agents) and
their formal representatives possess diplomatic immunity, although some agents of the Imperial State may disregard this privilege under certain
circumstances (it should be added that this disregard for diplomatic immunity probably skirts contempt for the Senate, and may in fact be illegal).
Commander Daine Jir expressed clear concern for the response of the Senate when it received word that Vader had openly attacked a “consular ship”
carrying an Imperial Senator on a “diplomatic mission.” Even more interestingly, Vader himself referred to the Princess Leia as being an “ambassador,”
which actually tends to suggest that the Galactic Empire is more of a permanent interstellar organization of sovereign states than a single state in and of
itself (refer back to the beginning of the article for a similar analogy); certainly ius legationis is a telltale sign of sovereignty or semi-sovereignty, and the
Imperial State even maintains an embassy on Procopia, capital of the Tapani Sector — which is a member state of the Empire — in the Lords of the
Expanse Campaign Guide. In any event, Imperial Senators are treated in Imperial law as being ambassadors, and enjoy diplomatic immunity, although
Pollux Hax writes in The Illustrated Star Wars Universe that “the Emperor has abolished the outdated Old Republic concept of diplomatic immunity”
within Imperial City, Imperial Center, itself.
The presiding officer of the Imperial Senate has been identified as having two different titles. The scholars refer to the presiding officer as the Chancellor
of the Senate, while Cracken’s Threat Dossier refers to the same officer as the President of the Senate (note that it is probable that these are in fact
translated from different languages). One supposes that Mas Amedda, Supreme Chancellor Valorum’s and Supreme Chancellor Palpatine’s Vice Chair of
the Senate, may have been Chancellor/President at some point, as he was the senior legislative official closely associated with the Palpatine Government.
Unfortunately, there is little information about the incumbents of this office — described by the scholars somewhat romantically as “a roving ambassador,
arbiter, policy maker, and planner” — , except that, according to Voren Na’al, “most of the subsequent Presidents of the Imperial Senate were lapdogs of
the Emperor.” In The New Rebellion, the Princess Leia of Alderaan recalls having seen several votes of no-confidence from her days in the Imperial Senate.
The membership of the Senate, however, is enormous, consisting presumably of representatives from each of the million member states. Even if there
were only one Senator from each member state, the Senate would resemble a small city’s population rather than a legislature. It would be necessary to
assemble very broad coalitions among Senators to be able to exert any substantial influence in any particular direction (an absolute majority would require
500,001 votes, while a two-thirds supermajority would require 666,666 votes). The enormity of the Senate and the vastly different interests of the
member states suggests that the majority of votes would be decided by pluralities and simple majorities. In this environment, a coalition or voting bloc
with a high degree of party discipline could exert a disproportionately large influence over the Senate even if it should have a relatively small percentage of
the total membership. If a single voting bloc were to control 9% of the Senate’s membership, for example, it would have 90,000 votes; if voting discipline
or voting by proxy could guarantee these votes as the leadership desired, this bloc would be able to deliver nearly 18% of a simple majority on command.
It is probable that Senators belonging to individual local political parties may form coalitions with other Senators from like-minded parties elsewhere, or
else that Senators may coalesce into personality-based parties such as that centered around Alderaan’s delegation; the Senate may resemble a patchwork
of a myriad coalitions of coalitions. There is also the influence of sub-Regional powers to be considered, such as the economic power of the Commonality,
a confederacy of nine Sectors in the Outer Rim Territories Region mentioned in Geonosis and the Outer Rim Worlds.
One expects that the Senate would display the most varied political makeup of any organization within the Galactic Empire. Its membership is known to
include a number of different political persuasions, ranging from republicans (Senator Gno from The New Rebellion) to monarchists (Senator Page
(Corulag) from the Heir to the Empire Sourcebook), from conservatives (Senator Doman Beruss (Illodia) from Tyrant’s Test) to moderates (Senator Garm
Bel Iblis (Corellia)) to pragmatists (Senator Prince Bail Prestor of Organa, Prince Consort of Alderaan (Alderaan)) to radicals (Senator Mon Mothma
(Chandrila)). The evidence of Coruscant and the Core Worlds alone indicates that one can expect the ideological character of the Senate to range from the
liberal individualism of Chandrila and Alderaan to the capitalism of Brentaal and Kuat to the statist collectivism of Corulag. Nor is there necessarily any
uniformity within ideological families; plutocratic member states like Kuat or Tepasi, dominated by single multistellar corporations (Kuat Drive Yards and
the Tagge Company, respectively) would have a vested interest in the benefit of those corporations to the detriment of others. Furthermore, there exists
even in the monarchist camp an ideological split between paternalists and authoritarians on the one hand (individuals like Grand Admiral Thrawn and
Admiral Teren Rogriss) and totalitarians on the other (most notably COMPNOR and its affiliates). Furthermore, one should remember that a large number
of nobles serve in the both the Republican and Imperial Senates (e.g., the House of Organa from Alderaan, Clan Beruss from Illodia, the patrician
Valorums of Coruscant and Tarkins of Eriadu, etc.), according to the Hero’s Guide, and the Core World noble houses are known to have very long
memories for both friends and enemies. In addition to ideological and philosophical divisions, there would also quite likely be personality-based divisions
and rivalries derived from familial and historical enmity. Just as the House of Organa and Clan Beruss were traditionally allied, the Tarkins had a
longstanding rivalry with a branch of the Valorums. An interesting indication of the dangers of politics can be found in Star Wars: The Original Radio
Drama, wherein Vader rejects Tarkin’s suggestion to use outright torture on the Princess Leia by saying:
The Senate possesses oversight functions with relation to the Imperial State, and especially the bureaucracy and colonial administration, and has the
authority to amend the Constitutions of New Order (mentioned in Children of the Jedi); the extent of these oversight functions is made clear by the fact
that Prince Bail Prestor is said by the Official Site’s Databank to have served on the Senate Finance, Appropriations, Intelligence Oversight, and Military
Oversight Committees. The existence of oversight powers implies the ability to serve Imperial State officers with summonses subpoenae ad testificandum,
and even the power of impeachment and removal. The Senators and commissioned officers assembled in Tarkin’s conference room aboard the first Death
Star, as well as Vader’s flag lieutenant Sub-Lieutenant Daine Jir evidently felt that the Senate’s displeasure still represented a significant danger of political
repercussions in A New Hope; when explaining the repercussions of the Senate’s dissolution, Tarkin said that “Regional Governors will now have direct
control and a free hand in administering their territories,” while High General Cassio Tagge objected that the Emperor could not “maintain control of the
Imperial bureaucracy” without the Senate. Although the enormous size of the Senate and its heterogeneous composition may mean that it is difficult to
put together an effective plurality or majority, it seems clear that certain acts by the Imperial State may provoke an adverse reaction among the normally
fractious membership of the Senate. It would therefore be in the interests of the Imperial State to conceal its excesses and more questionable operations
from the Senate; more egregious violations of the Imperial Charter (mentioned in Splinter of the Mind’s Eye) would probably take place in the Outer Rim,
far from the eyes of the Senate.
The Senate was dissolved by the Galactic Emperor’s spokesman, Ars Dangor, shortly before Alderaan was annihilated by the first Death Star, according
to the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition; Dangor released two statements, one to the general public and one to the Grand Moff Governors (Tarkin
quoted extensively from the latter holomessage to the Senators and officers in his conference room aboard the Death Star). Dangor explained that “the
Emperor has superseded and suspended the Imperial Senate for the duration of this emergency,” although “Senatorial representation has not been formally
abolished.” Imperial Senators continued to be designated and to enjoy (in theory) the privileges and immunities of office, the fact that the Senate had
ceased to sit notwithstanding. Hence Simon Greyshade insisted on being addressed as “Senator Greyshade” on the grounds that “the Emperor may have
dissolved that august office, but I still like the title” in “The Empire Strikes!”; Greyshade is especially interesting in that a relative of his, Dietrich
Greyshade, is said to be the responsible Moff of the Commonality in Geonosis and the Outer Rim Worlds, and their family is known to dominate the
politics and economy of the Commonality, being also responsible for the development of the Wheel, a massive gambling venture not unlike the Corporate
Sector Authority in that the Imperial State’s arrangement with both provides an area of space in which the Imperial State exercises no direct influence, in
exchange for a portion of the revenues, completely independent of the Senate; there is no surprise that some Senators, like Bail Organa, opposed the
construction of the Wheel.
The Imperial State’s relationship with entities like the Wheel and the CSA is interesting in that it has a number of implications for Imperial politics.
Greyshade specifically stated that “much of the Empire’s military funding comes from the tax on the Wheel’s earnings”; while an analysis of the CSA’s
revenues reveals that in some years the Imperial State’s annual tribute would be on the order of hundreds of trillions credits (the Han Solo and the
Corporate Sector Sourcebook explains that although the tribute is considerably smaller than the taxes from a comparable Sector or Region in the Empire,
“the revenues would go directly to the Imperial government, rather than be split amongst sector, planetary and local governments”). This reveals that the
threat by the Senate of loss of supply cannot be the only source of the Senate’s leverage in the Imperial State; the Imperial State spent only 97 trillion
credits on the 25,000 Imperial Star Destroyers mentioned by Specter of the Past, whereas a good year for the CSA would yield a tribute sufficient to buy
three times as many, above and beyond the monies actually being collected from the Wheel and the appropriated monies from the Senate. In short, the
Imperial State would have an enormous surplus of credits not being spent on military/naval expansion or operations. Therefore, the Senate’s power of the
purse, although a powerful check against the Imperial State, cannot be its only source of power. This becomes especially clear from the Rebel Alliance
Sourcebook, Second Edition, which states that after the Battle of Yavin, the Imperial State nearly doubled the size of the Imperial Armed Forces in short
order; the Imperial State clearly had a large supply of cash and resources on hand to be able to do such a thing.
There must be some other factor providing the Senate with such a strong influence, or the Imperial State would simply be able to spend from its own
pocket and relegate the Senate to irrelevance. As hitherto discussed, it may be a question of the military/naval power possessed by the member states; the
member states may be able to outspend and outpace the Imperial State in the event of an arms race, or perhaps may be able to mobilize their forces more
quickly than the Imperial State. The existence of the Death Star is a potent argument that the member states of the Empire may collectively have been able
effectively to resist the Imperial State in the event of outright confrontation (also explaining the Imperial State’s habit of capitalizing on the momentary
weakness of individual worlds like Ralltiir or Chandrila, while leading opposition worlds like Alderaan remained untouched). Jir’s and Tagge’s concerns
about sympathy for the Rebellion in the Senate must have reflected a credible threat to the Imperial State. Certainly, one of the motivating factors behind
the Death Star Project was the desire to have a strategic weapon able to overwhelm and destroy hostile worlds which possessed the means to deter any
conventional assault; such worlds would more often be found in the Core Worlds Region than in the galactic backwaters of the Outer Rim Territories
Region where the Rebellion was strongest (cf. concerns about the intended use of the Fifth New Republic Fleet in the Black Fleet Crisis trilogy).
own governments independent of the Imperial State and its colonial administration. These states are collectively represented by the Imperial Senate, the
powerful counterweight to the Imperial State and its massive federal government. The scholars write that the Senate was empowered “to create laws,
pacts, and treaties and to govern the galactic union” and “to steer the course of government and administer to the many member systems,” which seems to
indicate that it has exclusive legislative jurisdiction over the member states and that member states are (in most circumstances) exempt from the Imperial
State’s influence except by the consent of the Senate. Because the member states will be the wealthiest and most powerful polities in the Galactic Empire,
the Senate’s monopoly on them means that it controls an extremely large fraction of the Imperial budget; the power of supply is one of the most
important powers of any government, and gives the Senate an enormous advantage in its dealings with the Imperial State.
The other advantage of the member states within the Senate is the existence of their own security forces. The same wealth that enables the Senate to wield
the power of the purse to its own advantage enables many of its members to finance not inconsiderable military/naval forces of their own; the Chandrilan
Home Defense Fleet, the Corellian Defense Force (CDF) and Corellian Security Force (CorSec), the Kuati Security Forces, and the Sacorrian military are
all mentioned by Coruscant and the Core Worlds, while the same source reveals that the House of Tagge, headquartered at its throneworld of Tepasi in
the Core, was able to contribute such substantial naval forces that it was an equal partner in the blockade of the Yavin system alongside Darth Vader’s
fleet and the Bright Jewel Oversector. In Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker, Vader confirmed that ostensibly pacifistic Alderaan
possessed defenses “as strong as any in the Empire,” including a planetary deflector shield seen to withstand for a fraction of a second the full force of the
Death Star’s planet-shattering main artillery weapon; in “The Rebel Opposition,” Dame Winter mentions the Alderaan Navy. Bank of Aargau Security,
Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Bank of Aargau (a financial institution virtually synonymous with the Aargauun government), operated the largest
private army in the galaxy during the Galactic Emperor’s reign, according to “Aargau: For All Your Banking Needs.” Mission to Lianna mentions the Liann
Military Guards, and Pirates & Privateers mentions the Induparan Crown Defense Forces. It is not inconceivable that some member states would be able
to withstand executive action by the Imperial State. Indeed, this may well have been one of the considerations leading to the decision to proceed with the
Death Star Project.
Coruscant and the Core Worlds unambiguously states that each of the Galactic Senate Chamber’s 1,024 floating platforms belongs to “a regional or
sectorial Senator”; it is not known how the Galactic Republic arranged for the designation of Senators to represent entire Sectors or Regions containing
more than one member state. One supposes that the Senators from a given Sector or Region caucused and designated one among their number to represent
them en bloc, vesting that one “Senior Senator” with their own votes in an attempt to increase their caucus’s voice and voting power in the enormous
Senate. A single Senator able to cast a dozen or more votes would be able to exercise increased leverage in committee, the traditional workhorse of
legislatures of unwieldy size. It is also known from Cloak of Deception that member states of the Galactic Republic were able to cede their right to
representation in the Senate to a non-governmental organization (NGO) like the Trade Federation, the Commerce Guild, or the Techno Union; there is no
evidence as of yet as to whether or not the Imperial Senate continued this practice. If so, then it could help explain why Opposition leaders like Mon
Mothma and the Princess Leia of Alderaan were able to remain such vocal critics in the Senate despite the obvious annoyance of leaders in the Imperial
State; if they represented large caucuses of absentee Senators, the Imperial State may have had difficulty attacking them directly or indirectly without
concrete evidence of criminal activity. This idea is generally consistent with Alderaan’s status as “one of the foremost of the inner systems” (as claimed
by Vader in Star Wars: The Original Radio Drama), which implies a sort of leadership role, and the likelihood that such vocal Opposition members
would likely find support in other, like-minded Senators, forming a voting bloc of their own, precisely like Prince Bail Antilles’s Core Worlds conservative
caucus in Cloak of Deception.
Notably, in A New Hope and “Princess... Warrior,” member states of the Galactic Empire possess ius legationis (i.e., they accredit diplomatic agents) and
their formal representatives possess diplomatic immunity, although some agents of the Imperial State may disregard this privilege under certain
circumstances (it should be added that this disregard for diplomatic immunity probably skirts contempt for the Senate, and may in fact be illegal).
Commander Daine Jir expressed clear concern for the response of the Senate when it received word that Vader had openly attacked a “consular ship”
carrying an Imperial Senator on a “diplomatic mission.” Even more interestingly, Vader himself referred to the Princess Leia as being an “ambassador,”
which actually tends to suggest that the Galactic Empire is more of a permanent interstellar organization of sovereign states than a single state in and of
itself (refer back to the beginning of the article for a similar analogy); certainly ius legationis is a telltale sign of sovereignty or semi-sovereignty, and the
Imperial State even maintains an embassy on Procopia, capital of the Tapani Sector — which is a member state of the Empire — in the Lords of the
Expanse Campaign Guide. In any event, Imperial Senators are treated in Imperial law as being ambassadors, and enjoy diplomatic immunity, although
Pollux Hax writes in The Illustrated Star Wars Universe that “the Emperor has abolished the outdated Old Republic concept of diplomatic immunity”
within Imperial City, Imperial Center, itself.
The presiding officer of the Imperial Senate has been identified as having two different titles. The scholars refer to the presiding officer as the Chancellor
of the Senate, while Cracken’s Threat Dossier refers to the same officer as the President of the Senate (note that it is probable that these are in fact
translated from different languages). One supposes that Mas Amedda, Supreme Chancellor Valorum’s and Supreme Chancellor Palpatine’s Vice Chair of
the Senate, may have been Chancellor/President at some point, as he was the senior legislative official closely associated with the Palpatine Government.
Unfortunately, there is little information about the incumbents of this office — described by the scholars somewhat romantically as “a roving ambassador,
arbiter, policy maker, and planner” — , except that, according to Voren Na’al, “most of the subsequent Presidents of the Imperial Senate were lapdogs of
the Emperor.” In The New Rebellion, the Princess Leia of Alderaan recalls having seen several votes of no-confidence from her days in the Imperial Senate.
The membership of the Senate, however, is enormous, consisting presumably of representatives from each of the million member states. Even if there
were only one Senator from each member state, the Senate would resemble a small city’s population rather than a legislature. It would be necessary to
assemble very broad coalitions among Senators to be able to exert any substantial influence in any particular direction (an absolute majority would require
500,001 votes, while a two-thirds supermajority would require 666,666 votes). The enormity of the Senate and the vastly different interests of the
member states suggests that the majority of votes would be decided by pluralities and simple majorities. In this environment, a coalition or voting bloc
with a high degree of party discipline could exert a disproportionately large influence over the Senate even if it should have a relatively small percentage of
the total membership. If a single voting bloc were to control 9% of the Senate’s membership, for example, it would have 90,000 votes; if voting discipline
or voting by proxy could guarantee these votes as the leadership desired, this bloc would be able to deliver nearly 18% of a simple majority on command.
It is probable that Senators belonging to individual local political parties may form coalitions with other Senators from like-minded parties elsewhere, or
else that Senators may coalesce into personality-based parties such as that centered around Alderaan’s delegation; the Senate may resemble a patchwork
of a myriad coalitions of coalitions. There is also the influence of sub-Regional powers to be considered, such as the economic power of the Commonality,
a confederacy of nine Sectors in the Outer Rim Territories Region mentioned in Geonosis and the Outer Rim Worlds.
One expects that the Senate would display the most varied political makeup of any organization within the Galactic Empire. Its membership is known to
include a number of different political persuasions, ranging from republicans (Senator Gno from The New Rebellion) to monarchists (Senator Page
(Corulag) from the Heir to the Empire Sourcebook), from conservatives (Senator Doman Beruss (Illodia) from Tyrant’s Test) to moderates (Senator Garm
Bel Iblis (Corellia)) to pragmatists (Senator Prince Bail Prestor of Organa, Prince Consort of Alderaan (Alderaan)) to radicals (Senator Mon Mothma
(Chandrila)). The evidence of Coruscant and the Core Worlds alone indicates that one can expect the ideological character of the Senate to range from the
liberal individualism of Chandrila and Alderaan to the capitalism of Brentaal and Kuat to the statist collectivism of Corulag. Nor is there necessarily any
uniformity within ideological families; plutocratic member states like Kuat or Tepasi, dominated by single multistellar corporations (Kuat Drive Yards and
the Tagge Company, respectively) would have a vested interest in the benefit of those corporations to the detriment of others. Furthermore, there exists
even in the monarchist camp an ideological split between paternalists and authoritarians on the one hand (individuals like Grand Admiral Thrawn and
Admiral Teren Rogriss) and totalitarians on the other (most notably COMPNOR and its affiliates). Furthermore, one should remember that a large number
of nobles serve in the both the Republican and Imperial Senates (e.g., the House of Organa from Alderaan, Clan Beruss from Illodia, the patrician
Valorums of Coruscant and Tarkins of Eriadu, etc.), according to the Hero’s Guide, and the Core World noble houses are known to have very long
memories for both friends and enemies. In addition to ideological and philosophical divisions, there would also quite likely be personality-based divisions
and rivalries derived from familial and historical enmity. Just as the House of Organa and Clan Beruss were traditionally allied, the Tarkins had a
longstanding rivalry with a branch of the Valorums. An interesting indication of the dangers of politics can be found in Star Wars: The Original Radio
Drama, wherein Vader rejects Tarkin’s suggestion to use outright torture on the Princess Leia by saying:
- I think not. She is a member of the Royal House of Alderaan and of the Imperial Senate. She has had access to many family and government secrets;
she has been specifically trained and prepared to withstand conventional questioning. I would have to apply levels of pain so high as to risk killing her.
The Senate possesses oversight functions with relation to the Imperial State, and especially the bureaucracy and colonial administration, and has the
authority to amend the Constitutions of New Order (mentioned in Children of the Jedi); the extent of these oversight functions is made clear by the fact
that Prince Bail Prestor is said by the Official Site’s Databank to have served on the Senate Finance, Appropriations, Intelligence Oversight, and Military
Oversight Committees. The existence of oversight powers implies the ability to serve Imperial State officers with summonses subpoenae ad testificandum,
and even the power of impeachment and removal. The Senators and commissioned officers assembled in Tarkin’s conference room aboard the first Death
Star, as well as Vader’s flag lieutenant Sub-Lieutenant Daine Jir evidently felt that the Senate’s displeasure still represented a significant danger of political
repercussions in A New Hope; when explaining the repercussions of the Senate’s dissolution, Tarkin said that “Regional Governors will now have direct
control and a free hand in administering their territories,” while High General Cassio Tagge objected that the Emperor could not “maintain control of the
Imperial bureaucracy” without the Senate. Although the enormous size of the Senate and its heterogeneous composition may mean that it is difficult to
put together an effective plurality or majority, it seems clear that certain acts by the Imperial State may provoke an adverse reaction among the normally
fractious membership of the Senate. It would therefore be in the interests of the Imperial State to conceal its excesses and more questionable operations
from the Senate; more egregious violations of the Imperial Charter (mentioned in Splinter of the Mind’s Eye) would probably take place in the Outer Rim,
far from the eyes of the Senate.
The Senate was dissolved by the Galactic Emperor’s spokesman, Ars Dangor, shortly before Alderaan was annihilated by the first Death Star, according
to the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition; Dangor released two statements, one to the general public and one to the Grand Moff Governors (Tarkin
quoted extensively from the latter holomessage to the Senators and officers in his conference room aboard the Death Star). Dangor explained that “the
Emperor has superseded and suspended the Imperial Senate for the duration of this emergency,” although “Senatorial representation has not been formally
abolished.” Imperial Senators continued to be designated and to enjoy (in theory) the privileges and immunities of office, the fact that the Senate had
ceased to sit notwithstanding. Hence Simon Greyshade insisted on being addressed as “Senator Greyshade” on the grounds that “the Emperor may have
dissolved that august office, but I still like the title” in “The Empire Strikes!”; Greyshade is especially interesting in that a relative of his, Dietrich
Greyshade, is said to be the responsible Moff of the Commonality in Geonosis and the Outer Rim Worlds, and their family is known to dominate the
politics and economy of the Commonality, being also responsible for the development of the Wheel, a massive gambling venture not unlike the Corporate
Sector Authority in that the Imperial State’s arrangement with both provides an area of space in which the Imperial State exercises no direct influence, in
exchange for a portion of the revenues, completely independent of the Senate; there is no surprise that some Senators, like Bail Organa, opposed the
construction of the Wheel.
The Imperial State’s relationship with entities like the Wheel and the CSA is interesting in that it has a number of implications for Imperial politics.
Greyshade specifically stated that “much of the Empire’s military funding comes from the tax on the Wheel’s earnings”; while an analysis of the CSA’s
revenues reveals that in some years the Imperial State’s annual tribute would be on the order of hundreds of trillions credits (the Han Solo and the
Corporate Sector Sourcebook explains that although the tribute is considerably smaller than the taxes from a comparable Sector or Region in the Empire,
“the revenues would go directly to the Imperial government, rather than be split amongst sector, planetary and local governments”). This reveals that the
threat by the Senate of loss of supply cannot be the only source of the Senate’s leverage in the Imperial State; the Imperial State spent only 97 trillion
credits on the 25,000 Imperial Star Destroyers mentioned by Specter of the Past, whereas a good year for the CSA would yield a tribute sufficient to buy
three times as many, above and beyond the monies actually being collected from the Wheel and the appropriated monies from the Senate. In short, the
Imperial State would have an enormous surplus of credits not being spent on military/naval expansion or operations. Therefore, the Senate’s power of the
purse, although a powerful check against the Imperial State, cannot be its only source of power. This becomes especially clear from the Rebel Alliance
Sourcebook, Second Edition, which states that after the Battle of Yavin, the Imperial State nearly doubled the size of the Imperial Armed Forces in short
order; the Imperial State clearly had a large supply of cash and resources on hand to be able to do such a thing.
There must be some other factor providing the Senate with such a strong influence, or the Imperial State would simply be able to spend from its own
pocket and relegate the Senate to irrelevance. As hitherto discussed, it may be a question of the military/naval power possessed by the member states; the
member states may be able to outspend and outpace the Imperial State in the event of an arms race, or perhaps may be able to mobilize their forces more
quickly than the Imperial State. The existence of the Death Star is a potent argument that the member states of the Empire may collectively have been able
effectively to resist the Imperial State in the event of outright confrontation (also explaining the Imperial State’s habit of capitalizing on the momentary
weakness of individual worlds like Ralltiir or Chandrila, while leading opposition worlds like Alderaan remained untouched). Jir’s and Tagge’s concerns
about sympathy for the Rebellion in the Senate must have reflected a credible threat to the Imperial State. Certainly, one of the motivating factors behind
the Death Star Project was the desire to have a strategic weapon able to overwhelm and destroy hostile worlds which possessed the means to deter any
conventional assault; such worlds would more often be found in the Core Worlds Region than in the galactic backwaters of the Outer Rim Territories
Region where the Rebellion was strongest (cf. concerns about the intended use of the Fifth New Republic Fleet in the Black Fleet Crisis trilogy).
COMPNOR and the New Order Party
One last major power bloc in the political structure of the Galactic Empire remains to be considered. Strictly speaking, the Commission for the
Preservation of the New Order (COMPNOR) is neither part of the Imperial State nor the member states. Incorporated by the Imperial State, it is a quasi-
official political organization which may be viewed in some ways as the third branch of the Imperial federation alongside the Imperial State and the
member states. It is no exaggeration to describe COMPNOR as the totalitarian wing of the monarchist party; the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition’s
definitive chapter on the subject states that COMPNOR “actively attempts to build the ethic of the New Order into the life of the average galactic
citizen.” COMPNOR members came to completely dominate the Imperial Civil Service, and it was known to routinely spy on the Imperial Armed Forces
and the colonial administration; indeed, COMPNOR’s thought police, the Imperial Security Bureau (ISB), was the de facto state security police force of
the Imperial State. When the Galactic Emperor dissolved the Senate in 35 rS, COMPNOR’s ruling body, the Select Committee — composed of
somewhere between 150 and 15,000 members — readily assumed the Senate’s oversight functions (and indeed very likely inspected the Imperial State
with a much more critical eye: not all of the Imperial State meets COMPNOR’s strict standards of ideological purity). Although the Imperial Sourcebook,
Second Edition indicates unambiguously that COMPNOR had a virtual monopoly on the bureaucracy, it makes no mention of any body within
COMPNOR which could actually manage this. Fortunately, however, the Dark Empire Sourcebook refers to some high-ranking leaders in COMPNOR’s
power structure as “wealthy party functionaries and corrupt officials,” and Coruscant and the Core Worlds describes a “local New Order party” as
having “devoted years to the task of transforming culture and taking over Esseles’s parliament.”
The concept of a New Order Party is not insignificant. If COMPNOR uses a New Order Galactic Committee to coordinate and oversee the countless
local New Order Parties throughout the Galactic Empire, it gains the ability to influence the politics of member states in a way not available to the
Imperial State. It is already known that the New Order Party of Esseles was actively attempting to reform Esselian society and government; this coincides
with Arhul Hextrophon’s statement in the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition that “the Empire also encourages the constituent planets to reform their
own governments to conform to the Imperial method” and that “in this way, individual worlds eliminate laws and freedoms, replacing them with doctrines
and statutes more in line with Imperial edicts.” Hextrophon’s statement assumes a high degree of self-government, which is of course a distinctive feature
of the member states. It is quite likely that the New Order Party came into power in a number of member states’ governments (such as the House of
Citizens, the legislature of Corulag, and the Parliament of Esseles), quite likely producing the Mussolinified worlds described by the Dark Empire
Sourcebook; it is equally likely that the New Order voting bloc would form a still larger coalition with other voting blocs of similar convictions, such as
the laissez-faire Rationalist Party, pro-business free marketeers that remained politically powerful after the collapse of the Galactic Empire, with
adherents both in the New Republic and “in nearly every piece of the Empire still big enough to field a fleet,” according to Planet of Twilight. Even if this
New Order coalition controlled a relatively small percent of the Senate’s total membership, it could still exert a disproportionately powerful influence
without necessarily being able to dominate the Senate.
Hypothetical Situation
Having detailed generally as well as possible the political atmosphere of the Galactic Empire, let us consider the following hypothetical situation. A
Senator is named to a committee investigating the conduct of a Moff Governor supported by a powerful Privy Counsellor. The Senator is under pressure
from republican and liberal elements of the Senate to make a thorough investigation and recommend the removal of the Moff from office. Likewise, the
Senator is under pressure from two monarchist factions; one monarchist party wants to see the Moff’s ouster and replacement by its own candidate,
while the other has ties to the Moff’s patron in the Privy Council and wants to see him exonerated. The Senator has to consider how his vote will affect
his standing in the Senate; his vote could easily alienate any number of voting blocs and reduce his influence, keeping him from getting picked for a seat
on the Senate’s more prestigious and powerful committees, especially if he should earn the enmity of the New Order coalition. Furthermore, he has to
consider the long-term affects; suppose he votes with the republicans and the monarchists, and the Moff is removed. Suppose then that the Privy
Counsellor puts together a new Government, and then makes sure that a valuable defense contract doesn’t go to the Senator’s state? Worse still, suppose
the Imperial military/naval complex announces its intention to relocate bases located on the Senator’s world? Can the Senator count on the support of
those parties he allied with to oust the Moff? If not, the Privy Counsellor’s retaliation may well go through, the Senator’s member state may suffer
severe economic effects, and the Senator may now find himself subject to recall by his home government.
This situation explores only the political atmosphere of the Senate (and of course suggests the importance and usefulness of party discipline). But for the
purposes of exploring the overall climate of the Galactic Empire as a whole, let us extend the scenario. If the economic repercussions of the Imperial State’
s retaliation are severe enough, it is possible that the home government might fall, and a new government might come to power. If this new government is
dominated by the local New Order Party, or by one of its galactic affiliates, the Senator’s replacement in the Senate may well join that voting bloc, and
the negative effects might be reversed by preferential treatment or award of profitable new contracts; this may even reinforce support for the New Order
or allied government at home. On the other hand, suppose that instead the new government is more radically opposed to the Imperial State, and that
seditionist or revolutionary activity takes place; the member state may already be somewhat estranged from some economic competitors among the
member states, or longtime rivals for regional dominance. The known sponsorship of rebellion by the home government, combined with the enmity of the
New Order coalition and the disinclination of other member states to come to its aid leaves this member state particularly vulnerable, and the Imperial
State may go so far as to initiate executive action, secure in the knowledge that substantial opposition in the Senate is unlikely.
See also:
References:
Senator is named to a committee investigating the conduct of a Moff Governor supported by a powerful Privy Counsellor. The Senator is under pressure
from republican and liberal elements of the Senate to make a thorough investigation and recommend the removal of the Moff from office. Likewise, the
Senator is under pressure from two monarchist factions; one monarchist party wants to see the Moff’s ouster and replacement by its own candidate,
while the other has ties to the Moff’s patron in the Privy Council and wants to see him exonerated. The Senator has to consider how his vote will affect
his standing in the Senate; his vote could easily alienate any number of voting blocs and reduce his influence, keeping him from getting picked for a seat
on the Senate’s more prestigious and powerful committees, especially if he should earn the enmity of the New Order coalition. Furthermore, he has to
consider the long-term affects; suppose he votes with the republicans and the monarchists, and the Moff is removed. Suppose then that the Privy
Counsellor puts together a new Government, and then makes sure that a valuable defense contract doesn’t go to the Senator’s state? Worse still, suppose
the Imperial military/naval complex announces its intention to relocate bases located on the Senator’s world? Can the Senator count on the support of
those parties he allied with to oust the Moff? If not, the Privy Counsellor’s retaliation may well go through, the Senator’s member state may suffer
severe economic effects, and the Senator may now find himself subject to recall by his home government.
This situation explores only the political atmosphere of the Senate (and of course suggests the importance and usefulness of party discipline). But for the
purposes of exploring the overall climate of the Galactic Empire as a whole, let us extend the scenario. If the economic repercussions of the Imperial State’
s retaliation are severe enough, it is possible that the home government might fall, and a new government might come to power. If this new government is
dominated by the local New Order Party, or by one of its galactic affiliates, the Senator’s replacement in the Senate may well join that voting bloc, and
the negative effects might be reversed by preferential treatment or award of profitable new contracts; this may even reinforce support for the New Order
or allied government at home. On the other hand, suppose that instead the new government is more radically opposed to the Imperial State, and that
seditionist or revolutionary activity takes place; the member state may already be somewhat estranged from some economic competitors among the
member states, or longtime rivals for regional dominance. The known sponsorship of rebellion by the home government, combined with the enmity of the
New Order coalition and the disinclination of other member states to come to its aid leaves this member state particularly vulnerable, and the Imperial
State may go so far as to initiate executive action, secure in the knowledge that substantial opposition in the Senate is unlikely.
See also:
References:
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