Domus Publica
 |  |
For obvious dramatic reasons, the vast majority of sources set in the Star Wars universe focus on the lives of those actually
participating in the Civil War in the mid-to-late 30s rS, with relatively little information being provided on the lives of the
common men, women, and children of the galaxy. The vast majority of novels, comics, and other sources are centered around the
actions and lives of atypical individuals; indeed, except for the scant few glimpses of normal life in the opening of A New Hope
and part of The Empire Strikes Back, the films are almost entirely set in a military or paramilitary environment. This leaves open
the question of what life was like for the average citizen of the Galactic Empire. Indeed, one wonders who precisely is a citizen of
the Empire, and what citizenship entails.
The Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition provides the following information, whence one may establish a certain framework to
use in discussion of Imperial civic life:
basic (but herein undefined) rights and freedoms, privileges and immunities; although all citizens are subject to Imperial law and
are obligated to pay taxes, a citizen’s galacticographical location plays a large part in determining the degree of direct Imperial
control exercised in his or her life. Although useful for establishing a basic theoretical framework of Imperial citizenship, this
provides precious little information regarding actual civic life in the Empire. Fortunately, the Dark Empire Sourcebook presents
an interesting but regrettably brief description of life in the Empire:
Of particular interest here is the fact that “most Imperial citizens” – which is the same thing as “most sapient inhabitants of the
Empire,” according to the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition – apparently live on “clean, orderly police-state planets,” and are
accustomed to the regular presence of armed peacekeeping and constabulary forces, sentry automata, and weapons detectors (that
a statist regime like the Empire would adopt a restrictive approach toward personal weapons is quite unsurprising); compare this
with the average citizen’s life on Kashyyyk, living in close proximity to a large number of Ingsocful flatscreen monitors in The
Star Wars Holiday Special. Indeed, the average citizen is said to live on a “safe luxury liner world,” a sanitized social environment
reminiscent of the antiseptic, sterilized décor of Kamino in Attack of the Clones or the pristine uniformity of Mr. George Lucas’s
earliest film, THX-1138.
The Dark Empire Sourcebook’s description of these negative Utopian worlds is neatly complemented by another bit of text, this
one given by the Han Solo and the Corporate Sector Sourcebook:
The Security Division of the Corporate Sector Authority is very much obsessed with the maintenance of public order, and the
possession of firearms in the Corporate Sector is carefully restricted, if not wholly criminalized. Police action is swift and
thorough; disorderly conduct and criminal behavior is not tolerated in the Corporate Sector, and the Security Division is reputed
for the severity of its policing measures. The CSA’s deliberate, methodical effort to create a crime-free working environment is
largely successful, and the fact that its success is comparable to that of the Empire in the maintenance of order is noteworthy.
As Major Arhul Hextrophon (the Executive Secretary and Master Historian, Alliance High Command) notes in the Imperial
Sourcebook, Second Edition, life in the Empire is not uniform, with the Imperial State tending to have the least direct influence in
one’s life in the Core Worlds Region and the Outer Rim Territories Region. Nevertheless, popular support for the Imperial State
tends to grow stronger as one heads Core-ward; Hextrophon comments in the Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, Second Edition that one
finds “there is still much skepticism concerning the Rebellion” in the Core, where many view the rebels as “brigands, pirates and
anarchists.” The Mussolinified worlds described by the Dark Empire Sourcebook – where trains always arrive on time – are
almost surely to be found in the Core Worlds Region and Colonies Region, and perhaps also in the Expansion Region and Inner
Rim Region, where the majority of Imperial citizens would live.
How should one interpret this with the knowledge from the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition that the Imperial State tends
not to exercise much direct control of citizens’ lives in the Core Worlds? In fact, that same source clarifies the matter somewhat
with its remarks on Imperial government:
A more specific example is provided by Coruscant and the Core Worlds, whose article on Esseles mentions the rise of “a local
New Order party, which devoted years to the task of transforming culture and taking over Esseles’s parliament,” or the claim of
The Far Orbit Project that “the ancient ruling body of Corulag, the House of Citizens, is entirely compliant to the will of Imperial
Governor Zafiel Snopps.” A somewhat similar arrangement is described in Goroth: Slave of the Empire, which depicts a puppet
state nominally ruled by local authorities but functionally controlled by an Imperial colonial governor (officially present at the
request of the P’Dar’Ken, the local planetary government). In general, one might conclude that the conditions of civic life in the
Galactic Empire are as often as not imposed not by the Imperial State, but rather by Quisling governments of the member states
themselves; one of the clearest such examples is found in “In the Shadows of Their Fathers,” in which Jabiimi rebels claim to
oppose “the Nationalist Government that sold us out” to the Empire. In Galaxy of Fear: The Swarm, Captain Thrawn responds
to criticism of the Imperial State with the following speech, which seems to support the indirect role of the Imperial State in most
worlds:
Nevertheless, Hextrophon writes in the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition that the Imperial State habitually “intervenes in the
politics of a single world with an arrogance new to the governed peoples,” but qualifies this by adding that “these changes have
created resentment on some worlds, but the resentment is rarely cause enough for significant support of the Rebellion.” This
emphasizes that there is a certain reluctance on the part of the population to have to do with a revolutionary movement, perhaps
because the concept is too closely related to the traumatic memories of the Separatist movement that led to the creation of the
Confederacy of Independent Systems in 13 rS and the Clone Wars. This notion is supported by the biographical sketch of Kaja
Or’Zee, Chamberlain of the Imperial Residence on Naboo, in “Who’s Who in Star Wars Galaxies”:
Although there may be a sense of opposition to the Empire’s authoritarian and interventionist policies, it appears that the
majority of the galactic population is content to cling to the evils it knows, rather than to fly to those it knows not; there is not a
great deal of popular support for the Rebellion in the most populated and most civilized parts of the galaxy, perhaps because the
Rebellion is altogether too reminiscent of the Separatist movement; indeed, it seems likely that the rebel Alliance to Restore the
Republic uses much of the same rhetoric as did the secessionist Confederacy of Independent Systems, and the collective psyche
of the galactic population may remember the Clone War of 13 - 16 rS too vividly to allow it to support another revolutionary
movement.
Hence, Darth Vader muses in Return of the Jedi that “soon, the old Emperor would die – and though the galaxy would bend from
the horror of that loss,” and “Who’s Who in Star Wars Galaxies” describes the Galactic Emperor as being “known to the citizens
of the Galactic Empire as a frail, beloved old man,” enjoying “the support of the ignorant masses [...] so unwavering that the
Emperor can order the destruction of entire worlds and the execution of their populations – and has done so, far too many times –
and then blame these tragedies on the Rebel Alliance.” Indeed, Coruscant and the Core Worlds comments that many Imperial
citizens “regard Palpatine as a demigod.” The Star Wars Roleplaying Game, Second Edition goes so far as to say that “there were
many who distrusted the concept of an emperor, yet trusted Palpatine, and thus accepted the president’s action as a temporary
and necessary step.”
These data allow one to draw some conclusions about day to day life for the average Imperial citizen. For the most part, life in
the Empire is not a constant terror, but is rather characterized by cleanliness, neatness, and orderliness, in keeping with the
Empire’s ideals of unity, stability, conformity, and security (or, as in the Galactic Emperor’s first Speech from the Throne,
“safety, security, justice, and peace”). Provided that one pays one’s taxes, obeys the laws, and doesn’t attract unnecessary
attention to oneself, one has nothing to fear from the State. One is under constant surveillance and scrutiny, but this is mostly
passive and generally does not actually interfere with one’s life, except when one is a State employee. Although Imperial law is
rather draconian in many respects, one certainly isn’t obligated to watch the Execution Channel (mentioned by the Han Solo and
the Corporate Sector Sourcebook).
This comfortable, insulated life would very likely predispose most Imperial citizens to be at least passive supporters of Imperial
rule, especially when the alternative is perceived as being the chaos, violence, and disorder of the Clone Wars. Furthermore, the
popular conception of the Galactic Emperor as a beloved elder statesman, the heroic and noble statesman who brought order and
stability to the galaxy and ended the horrors of the Clone Wars, makes it possible to resent Imperial government but still have a
strong sense of loyalty to the Empire itself, as embodied by the Galactic Emperor. The Galactic Emperor deliberately took
advantage of this by divorcing his person from the day-to-day operations of the Imperial State; instead, actual government of the
Empire was handled by de facto regents like Ars Dangor before the Battle of Yavin and the Grand Vizier around the time of the
Battle of Hoth, according to the Death Star Technical Companion and the Dark Empire Sourcebook. Indeed, in Star Wars: From
the Adventures of Luke Skywalker, First Mate Biggs Darklighter, a recently commissioned officer of the merchant marine,
explained to his friend Luke Skywalker why he had joined the Rebellion by saying “the Empire may have been great and beautiful
once, but the people in charge now – ”; rather than blaming the revered Galactic Emperor for Imperial viciousness and brutality,
much of the citizenry (like Darklighter), would instead tend to blame the Moff Governors, Government ministers, and other
political leaders.
participating in the Civil War in the mid-to-late 30s rS, with relatively little information being provided on the lives of the
common men, women, and children of the galaxy. The vast majority of novels, comics, and other sources are centered around the
actions and lives of atypical individuals; indeed, except for the scant few glimpses of normal life in the opening of A New Hope
and part of The Empire Strikes Back, the films are almost entirely set in a military or paramilitary environment. This leaves open
the question of what life was like for the average citizen of the Galactic Empire. Indeed, one wonders who precisely is a citizen of
the Empire, and what citizenship entails.
The Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition provides the following information, whence one may establish a certain framework to
use in discussion of Imperial civic life:
All sapient inhabitants of the Empire – except droids – are considered full citizens. Full citizens are accorded certain rights
under Imperial law, namely, the right to follow the precepts of the New Order fully and without question. Other rights include
certain freedoms that in no way interfere with Imperial doctrines and goals.
- Where in the galaxy a citizen is determines the amount of prohibitions and restrictions governing his or her daily life. The
least restrictive areas in the galaxy tend to be in the Galactic Core and in the Outer Rim Territories. Those areas in between
find themselves under the greatest amount of scrutiny and, therefore, face the brunt of Imperial authority.
- All citizens are subject to the laws of the Empire, and all must pay some form of tribute to the New Order. Laws vary from
system to system, but the most uniform are the Imperial Revenue Codes. Under these laws, the burden of proof is upon the
citizen to show that he has met all of his fiscal obligations to the Empire. Failure to provide proof is considered an admission
of guilt, penalties for which range from confiscation of goods to the increasingly common sentence to labor camps.
basic (but herein undefined) rights and freedoms, privileges and immunities; although all citizens are subject to Imperial law and
are obligated to pay taxes, a citizen’s galacticographical location plays a large part in determining the degree of direct Imperial
control exercised in his or her life. Although useful for establishing a basic theoretical framework of Imperial citizenship, this
provides precious little information regarding actual civic life in the Empire. Fortunately, the Dark Empire Sourcebook presents
an interesting but regrettably brief description of life in the Empire:
- Far from the watchful eye of the Empire and its clean, orderly police-state planets, there is a totally different world not
patrolled by armed and armored troops, lacking curfews and weapons detectors and sentry droids. Most Imperial citizens never
enter this world, moving only in hermetically sealed, environmentally sculpted corridors and mallplexes. But if they left
behind their safe luxury liner world for a while, they would see a unique environment with its own rules.
Of particular interest here is the fact that “most Imperial citizens” – which is the same thing as “most sapient inhabitants of the
Empire,” according to the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition – apparently live on “clean, orderly police-state planets,” and are
accustomed to the regular presence of armed peacekeeping and constabulary forces, sentry automata, and weapons detectors (that
a statist regime like the Empire would adopt a restrictive approach toward personal weapons is quite unsurprising); compare this
with the average citizen’s life on Kashyyyk, living in close proximity to a large number of Ingsocful flatscreen monitors in The
Star Wars Holiday Special. Indeed, the average citizen is said to live on a “safe luxury liner world,” a sanitized social environment
reminiscent of the antiseptic, sterilized décor of Kamino in Attack of the Clones or the pristine uniformity of Mr. George Lucas’s
earliest film, THX-1138.
The Dark Empire Sourcebook’s description of these negative Utopian worlds is neatly complemented by another bit of text, this
one given by the Han Solo and the Corporate Sector Sourcebook:
- Ever mindful of its corporate image, the Authority likes the idea of a Sector free of crime and unrest. All things considered,
many Authority worlds are just as safe as the safest in the Empire.
The Security Division of the Corporate Sector Authority is very much obsessed with the maintenance of public order, and the
possession of firearms in the Corporate Sector is carefully restricted, if not wholly criminalized. Police action is swift and
thorough; disorderly conduct and criminal behavior is not tolerated in the Corporate Sector, and the Security Division is reputed
for the severity of its policing measures. The CSA’s deliberate, methodical effort to create a crime-free working environment is
largely successful, and the fact that its success is comparable to that of the Empire in the maintenance of order is noteworthy.
As Major Arhul Hextrophon (the Executive Secretary and Master Historian, Alliance High Command) notes in the Imperial
Sourcebook, Second Edition, life in the Empire is not uniform, with the Imperial State tending to have the least direct influence in
one’s life in the Core Worlds Region and the Outer Rim Territories Region. Nevertheless, popular support for the Imperial State
tends to grow stronger as one heads Core-ward; Hextrophon comments in the Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, Second Edition that one
finds “there is still much skepticism concerning the Rebellion” in the Core, where many view the rebels as “brigands, pirates and
anarchists.” The Mussolinified worlds described by the Dark Empire Sourcebook – where trains always arrive on time – are
almost surely to be found in the Core Worlds Region and Colonies Region, and perhaps also in the Expansion Region and Inner
Rim Region, where the majority of Imperial citizens would live.
How should one interpret this with the knowledge from the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition that the Imperial State tends
not to exercise much direct control of citizens’ lives in the Core Worlds? In fact, that same source clarifies the matter somewhat
with its remarks on Imperial government:
- The Empire has not completely altered the governments of hundreds of thousands of worlds. Such a task would be impractical.
The Emperor has left it to his advisors to modify the portions of a planetary government, be it government procedure or
members of the ruling body, to conform to the will of the Empire. Less than one planet in 80 has been so modified.
The preferred option is to let a planet run itself much as it has for years, but maintaining a visible Imperial presence so that
the rulers know who their ultimate master is. The Empire also encourages the constituent planets to reform their own
governments to conform to the Imperial method. In this way, individual worlds eliminate laws and freedoms, replacing them
with doctrines and statutes more in line with Imperial edicts.
A more specific example is provided by Coruscant and the Core Worlds, whose article on Esseles mentions the rise of “a local
New Order party, which devoted years to the task of transforming culture and taking over Esseles’s parliament,” or the claim of
The Far Orbit Project that “the ancient ruling body of Corulag, the House of Citizens, is entirely compliant to the will of Imperial
Governor Zafiel Snopps.” A somewhat similar arrangement is described in Goroth: Slave of the Empire, which depicts a puppet
state nominally ruled by local authorities but functionally controlled by an Imperial colonial governor (officially present at the
request of the P’Dar’Ken, the local planetary government). In general, one might conclude that the conditions of civic life in the
Galactic Empire are as often as not imposed not by the Imperial State, but rather by Quisling governments of the member states
themselves; one of the clearest such examples is found in “In the Shadows of Their Fathers,” in which Jabiimi rebels claim to
oppose “the Nationalist Government that sold us out” to the Empire. In Galaxy of Fear: The Swarm, Captain Thrawn responds
to criticism of the Imperial State with the following speech, which seems to support the indirect role of the Imperial State in most
worlds:
- I encounter civilians like you all the time. You believe the Empire is continually plotting to do harm. Let me tell you, your
view of the Empire is far too dramatic. The Empire is a government. It keeps billions of beings fed and clothed. Day after
day, year after year, on thousands of worlds people live their lives under Imperial rule without ever seeing a stormtrooper or
hearing a TIE fighter scream overhead.
Nevertheless, Hextrophon writes in the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition that the Imperial State habitually “intervenes in the
politics of a single world with an arrogance new to the governed peoples,” but qualifies this by adding that “these changes have
created resentment on some worlds, but the resentment is rarely cause enough for significant support of the Rebellion.” This
emphasizes that there is a certain reluctance on the part of the population to have to do with a revolutionary movement, perhaps
because the concept is too closely related to the traumatic memories of the Separatist movement that led to the creation of the
Confederacy of Independent Systems in 13 rS and the Clone Wars. This notion is supported by the biographical sketch of Kaja
Or’Zee, Chamberlain of the Imperial Residence on Naboo, in “Who’s Who in Star Wars Galaxies”:
- Chamberlain Or’Zee believes wholeheartedly in the Emperor’s infallibility and feels that he is giving the galaxy a magnificent
gift by maintaining order. Politically speaking, Chamberlain Or’Zee is a simplistic person – but having grown up during the
Clone Wars, her perceptions of order and tyranny are more than a bit skewed.
Although there may be a sense of opposition to the Empire’s authoritarian and interventionist policies, it appears that the
majority of the galactic population is content to cling to the evils it knows, rather than to fly to those it knows not; there is not a
great deal of popular support for the Rebellion in the most populated and most civilized parts of the galaxy, perhaps because the
Rebellion is altogether too reminiscent of the Separatist movement; indeed, it seems likely that the rebel Alliance to Restore the
Republic uses much of the same rhetoric as did the secessionist Confederacy of Independent Systems, and the collective psyche
of the galactic population may remember the Clone War of 13 - 16 rS too vividly to allow it to support another revolutionary
movement.
Hence, Darth Vader muses in Return of the Jedi that “soon, the old Emperor would die – and though the galaxy would bend from
the horror of that loss,” and “Who’s Who in Star Wars Galaxies” describes the Galactic Emperor as being “known to the citizens
of the Galactic Empire as a frail, beloved old man,” enjoying “the support of the ignorant masses [...] so unwavering that the
Emperor can order the destruction of entire worlds and the execution of their populations – and has done so, far too many times –
and then blame these tragedies on the Rebel Alliance.” Indeed, Coruscant and the Core Worlds comments that many Imperial
citizens “regard Palpatine as a demigod.” The Star Wars Roleplaying Game, Second Edition goes so far as to say that “there were
many who distrusted the concept of an emperor, yet trusted Palpatine, and thus accepted the president’s action as a temporary
and necessary step.”
These data allow one to draw some conclusions about day to day life for the average Imperial citizen. For the most part, life in
the Empire is not a constant terror, but is rather characterized by cleanliness, neatness, and orderliness, in keeping with the
Empire’s ideals of unity, stability, conformity, and security (or, as in the Galactic Emperor’s first Speech from the Throne,
“safety, security, justice, and peace”). Provided that one pays one’s taxes, obeys the laws, and doesn’t attract unnecessary
attention to oneself, one has nothing to fear from the State. One is under constant surveillance and scrutiny, but this is mostly
passive and generally does not actually interfere with one’s life, except when one is a State employee. Although Imperial law is
rather draconian in many respects, one certainly isn’t obligated to watch the Execution Channel (mentioned by the Han Solo and
the Corporate Sector Sourcebook).
This comfortable, insulated life would very likely predispose most Imperial citizens to be at least passive supporters of Imperial
rule, especially when the alternative is perceived as being the chaos, violence, and disorder of the Clone Wars. Furthermore, the
popular conception of the Galactic Emperor as a beloved elder statesman, the heroic and noble statesman who brought order and
stability to the galaxy and ended the horrors of the Clone Wars, makes it possible to resent Imperial government but still have a
strong sense of loyalty to the Empire itself, as embodied by the Galactic Emperor. The Galactic Emperor deliberately took
advantage of this by divorcing his person from the day-to-day operations of the Imperial State; instead, actual government of the
Empire was handled by de facto regents like Ars Dangor before the Battle of Yavin and the Grand Vizier around the time of the
Battle of Hoth, according to the Death Star Technical Companion and the Dark Empire Sourcebook. Indeed, in Star Wars: From
the Adventures of Luke Skywalker, First Mate Biggs Darklighter, a recently commissioned officer of the merchant marine,
explained to his friend Luke Skywalker why he had joined the Rebellion by saying “the Empire may have been great and beautiful
once, but the people in charge now – ”; rather than blaming the revered Galactic Emperor for Imperial viciousness and brutality,
much of the citizenry (like Darklighter), would instead tend to blame the Moff Governors, Government ministers, and other
political leaders.
Part I: Civil Life
Part II: The Rebellion
If the general population of the Galactic Empire lives on the Mussolinified worlds and has at least a passive acceptance of Imperial
rule, what of the rebel Alliance to Restore the Republic? How much popular support does this revolutionary movement actually
enjoy among the majority? In all likelihood, relative to the total population of the galaxy, the rebel Alliance probably had very little
actual popular support. As already noted, popular support for the rebel Alliance tended to weaken relative to proximity to the
Core. Indeed, because of the Imperial State’s monopoly on the HoloNet and probable tight regulation of subspace communications
networks, Hextrophon himself admits in the Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, Second Edition (a document that notionally corresponds to
part of his The Official History of the Rebellion, Volume One, the authorized history of the rebel Alliance itself) that Imperial
propagandists were generally successful at portraying the Rebellion as “pirates, criminals, and anarchists, intent upon
overthrowing the Empire for personal gain.”
Rather, in keeping with its historical origin as a movement led by the dispossessed elite of the defunct Republic, Hextrophon
writes in the Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, Second Edition’s “History of the Rebellion” that the newly-established Alliance gathered
resources “mostly anonymous untraceable ‘donations’ from wealthy families and corporations” and that ships were “‘stolen’ from
friendly governments”; of the three main groups which first allied to form the Alliance, the Alderaani one was fully sponsored by
one of the Empire’s member states, led by the Viceroy and First Chairman (the Alderaani head of government, who happened to be
married to the purely ceremonial Queen of Alderaa, Queen Breha) and aided and abetted by a seated Imperial Senator, while the
Corellian one was led by a second seated Imperial Senator and the Chandrilan one by a former Imperial Senator. In Star Wars:
From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker, Lieutenant General Jan Dodonna refers to the a small group present at his Death Star
briefing as “the Senators and Generals whose worlds have given us support, whether open or covert”; Return of the Jedi adds that
in addition to the former Senator Mothma “there had been other leaders, but many were killed when the Empire’s first Death Star
annihilated the planet Alderaan” (Grand Moff Tarkin refers to Alderaan as “their main source of munitions” in Star Wars: From
the Adventures of Luke Skywalker). Indeed, the so-called Secession Worlds directly and openly provided a substantial amount of
resources to the fledgling Alliance:
Even many states unwilling to openly ally with the rebel Alliance provided military aid after the Battle of Yavin:
Indeed, Hextrophon’s analysis of the state of affairs in the galaxy after the Battle of Yavin is quite telling; in it, he discusses the
willingness of public officials and governments to support the Alliance, rather than any sort of popular support:
of its intentions and principles, as ethics and morality judgements are beyond the scope of this article – , a state-sponsored
terrorist group, sustained by rogue states and disloyal governments within the Galactic Empire. Although there may be widespread
theoretical support and sympathy for the concept of overthrowing Imperial oppression, actual supporters of the rebel Alliance
remain in the minority, as evidenced by the size of the rebel forces massed at Sullust for the strike at the second Death Star; if the
novelization of Return of the Jedi is to be taken literally, the forces gathered at Sullust comprise the entire rebel Alliance, “every
Rebel in the galaxy, soldier and civilian alike.” Even considering that the rebel fleet stretched beyond visual range, it is still relatively
tiny.
Furthermore, it is known that the Imperial State actively promotes a healthy mistrust of the rebel Alliance amongst its member
states. The Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition describes the “political gain operations” (PGOs) undertaken with increasing
frequency by Imperial special forces personnel on worlds perceived to be sympathetic to the rebellion, in which the special forces
“stage several terrorist attacks, executed in a manner which would suggest that political factions native to the world have produced
the attacks.” These ‘strawman’ attacks continue until the local government or other political faction appeals to the Imperial
governor:
Alliance recruiters. In fact, in some cases, Imperial leadership might take this one step further: On Goroth Prime (Goroth Alpha
IV), the Colonial Governor is known to have actually sponsored a resistance movement with the ultimate intention of suppressing
it, thereby discrediting and demoralizing other such groups. The Imperial State worked to erode the tenuous support for the rebel
Alliance not only by propaganda but also by covert and clandestine operations to portray the rebel Alliance as dangerous terrorists
and anarchical criminals. Indeed, one must wonder if the rebels’ iconoclastic habit of vituperating the Galactic Emperor himself and
blaming him personally for Imperial misdeeds generally did not in itself contribute in some way to the population’s mistrust.
rule, what of the rebel Alliance to Restore the Republic? How much popular support does this revolutionary movement actually
enjoy among the majority? In all likelihood, relative to the total population of the galaxy, the rebel Alliance probably had very little
actual popular support. As already noted, popular support for the rebel Alliance tended to weaken relative to proximity to the
Core. Indeed, because of the Imperial State’s monopoly on the HoloNet and probable tight regulation of subspace communications
networks, Hextrophon himself admits in the Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, Second Edition (a document that notionally corresponds to
part of his The Official History of the Rebellion, Volume One, the authorized history of the rebel Alliance itself) that Imperial
propagandists were generally successful at portraying the Rebellion as “pirates, criminals, and anarchists, intent upon
overthrowing the Empire for personal gain.”
Rather, in keeping with its historical origin as a movement led by the dispossessed elite of the defunct Republic, Hextrophon
writes in the Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, Second Edition’s “History of the Rebellion” that the newly-established Alliance gathered
resources “mostly anonymous untraceable ‘donations’ from wealthy families and corporations” and that ships were “‘stolen’ from
friendly governments”; of the three main groups which first allied to form the Alliance, the Alderaani one was fully sponsored by
one of the Empire’s member states, led by the Viceroy and First Chairman (the Alderaani head of government, who happened to be
married to the purely ceremonial Queen of Alderaa, Queen Breha) and aided and abetted by a seated Imperial Senator, while the
Corellian one was led by a second seated Imperial Senator and the Chandrilan one by a former Imperial Senator. In Star Wars:
From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker, Lieutenant General Jan Dodonna refers to the a small group present at his Death Star
briefing as “the Senators and Generals whose worlds have given us support, whether open or covert”; Return of the Jedi adds that
in addition to the former Senator Mothma “there had been other leaders, but many were killed when the Empire’s first Death Star
annihilated the planet Alderaan” (Grand Moff Tarkin refers to Alderaan as “their main source of munitions” in Star Wars: From
the Adventures of Luke Skywalker). Indeed, the so-called Secession Worlds directly and openly provided a substantial amount of
resources to the fledgling Alliance:
- Soon after the Declaration was distributed, several systems openly declared their allegiance to the Alliance. This was valiant, but
foolish – Mothma attempted to stop them but was too late. Imperial response was swift and harsh, and within weeks all the
“Secession Worlds” were suppressed. However, in their few weeks of freedom, the planets were able to transfer much of their
weaponry, resources and manpower off-world, into the hands of the Alliance.
Even many states unwilling to openly ally with the rebel Alliance provided military aid after the Battle of Yavin:
- Particularly impressionable are the outlying systems, those not yet fully under the domination of the Empire. The Empire
applies a lot of political pressure against these systems, using the threat of force to keep them in line. Most systems, knowing
the awesome fleets at the Emperor’s command and the relatively puny forces of the Alliance, used to see no option but to
surrender to the Empire without a battle.
Now, however, the Alliance’s stirring victory has given them new backbone. Even if they are not willing to absolutely cast their
lot in with the Alliance, they are also less willing to cave in to pressure from the Empire. More importantly. many are
surreptitiously aiding the Rebellion, supplying much-needed money, equipment, and soldiers.
Indeed, Hextrophon’s analysis of the state of affairs in the galaxy after the Battle of Yavin is quite telling; in it, he discusses the
willingness of public officials and governments to support the Alliance, rather than any sort of popular support:
- Within the Core systems, the Alliance has no allies; in fact, it has few political connections at all. Even if a planetary governor
or Moff were to wish to open discussions with the Alliance, their staffs are usually riddled with Imperial Security Bureau agents,
making any kind of contact extremely risky for both sides. The huge businesses of the galaxy are even more tightly monitored.
Consequently, the Rebellion looks to the outlying systems, underground organizations and nomadic free-traders for political
support. Further complicating the diplomatic picture is the Alliance’s reputation. The Imperial propagandists have been most
effective at portraying the Alliance as a terrorist group, making many planetary and system leaders more than a little hesitant
about opening discussions with them. The Alliance Ministry of Education is dedicated to altering that image through counter-
propaganda, a task which has been made easier by the Empire’s democide at Alderaan.
Though there are many systems which are generally sympathetic to the Alliance, only a few are willing to openly support it,
the others effectively cowed by fear of Imperial retribution. This is not unjustified – If the Empire discovers that a planet has
been actively assisting the Alliance, It uses the harshest means at its disposal to punish the planet – witness again Alderaan.
of its intentions and principles, as ethics and morality judgements are beyond the scope of this article – , a state-sponsored
terrorist group, sustained by rogue states and disloyal governments within the Galactic Empire. Although there may be widespread
theoretical support and sympathy for the concept of overthrowing Imperial oppression, actual supporters of the rebel Alliance
remain in the minority, as evidenced by the size of the rebel forces massed at Sullust for the strike at the second Death Star; if the
novelization of Return of the Jedi is to be taken literally, the forces gathered at Sullust comprise the entire rebel Alliance, “every
Rebel in the galaxy, soldier and civilian alike.” Even considering that the rebel fleet stretched beyond visual range, it is still relatively
tiny.
Furthermore, it is known that the Imperial State actively promotes a healthy mistrust of the rebel Alliance amongst its member
states. The Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition describes the “political gain operations” (PGOs) undertaken with increasing
frequency by Imperial special forces personnel on worlds perceived to be sympathetic to the rebellion, in which the special forces
“stage several terrorist attacks, executed in a manner which would suggest that political factions native to the world have produced
the attacks.” These ‘strawman’ attacks continue until the local government or other political faction appeals to the Imperial
governor:
- The governor will declare martial law, asking for help from the fleet. The help arrives in the form of hundreds or thousands of
additional troops. These troops operate on “new intelligence,”“rounding up scores of suspected or known Rebel sympathizers
for imprisonment or execution. Once the Rebels are out of the way the attacks cease, reinforcing the impression that the
Rebellion indeed sponsored the attacks. The special missions force then moves on to another world.
Alliance recruiters. In fact, in some cases, Imperial leadership might take this one step further: On Goroth Prime (Goroth Alpha
IV), the Colonial Governor is known to have actually sponsored a resistance movement with the ultimate intention of suppressing
it, thereby discrediting and demoralizing other such groups. The Imperial State worked to erode the tenuous support for the rebel
Alliance not only by propaganda but also by covert and clandestine operations to portray the rebel Alliance as dangerous terrorists
and anarchical criminals. Indeed, one must wonder if the rebels’ iconoclastic habit of vituperating the Galactic Emperor himself and
blaming him personally for Imperial misdeeds generally did not in itself contribute in some way to the population’s mistrust.
Part III: The Apotheosis of Palpatine
Dr. Sam Vaknin describes narcissism in his book Malignant Self Love: Narcissism Revisited as “a pattern of traits and behaviors
which signify infatuation and obsession with one’s self to the exclusion of all others and the egotistic and ruthless pursuit of one’s
gratification, dominance ambition”; in the “The Seeds of the Self: An Interview with Otto Kernberg”, psychoanalyst Dr. Kernberg
describes malignant narcissism as
The history of the Galactic Emperor – who “judged the universe on his own terms, with a clear sense of right and wrong” and
“looked to no other guide than himself,” according to Cloak of Deception – reveals him to be a consummate manipulator of others,
who uses their own intentions and actions to further his goals, often without their realization of the fact. Indeed, his schemes were
often already faits accomplis by the time others are even dimly aware of their existence; e.g., the Han Solo and the Corporate
Sector Sourcebook states that “upon his election as President of the Republic, he already had wealth and connections enough to
guarantee himself unlimited power,” indicating that his corporate, political, and social connections under the dual guises of
Palpatine of Naboo and Darth Sidious had already given him the ability to dominate the galactic government before he even claimed
its leadership. In essence, the time between The Phantom Menace and Revenge of the Sith was not to accumulate power for himself,
but rather to acclimate the galaxy to his exercise of it.
The Galactic Emperor seems to favor a strategy of introducing small, seemingly innocuous measures which arouse no ire from
opponents, which once combined link together to form a chain too strong to be broken once it is realized that the chain does in fact
exist. Much the same sort of strategy is in use with regards to the ideologies of the Imperial leadership, which range from
paternalism to authoritarianism to outright totalitarianism. The ultimate form of the Galactic Empire is already present in
embryonic form within it, doubtlessly being slowly and carefully cultivated by the Galactic Emperor, with no one being the wiser.
The pristine “luxury liner” worlds on which most of the Imperial population seems to dwell are surely intended as the first stage
of transformation from orderly, neat worlds into idyllic paradisaical worlds like Byss, whose 19.8 billions of inhabitants were
slowly being absorbed into the Galactic Emperor himself, by means of the “drain life essence” dark side ability according to the
very same Dark Empire Sourcebook which first described the Mussolinification of Imperial worlds. In such worlds, the
population is already accustomed to obedience to “the face and voice of Authority,” a central theme of the Galactic Emperor’s The
Weakness of Inferiors (the first volume of his encyclopedic Dark Side Compendium, quoted in the Dark Empire Sourcebook),
which develops his doctrine of “control, without violence.”
This is especially significant in that the scribe revealed in The New Essential Guide to Characters that The Weakness of Inferiors is
a synthesis of Sith philosophy with the political theories published and critically well-received by Palpatine earlier in his career. In
fact, his political science work was so well-received among the intelligentsia and academia that it was incorporated into standard
texts at a number of the galaxy’s most prestigious universities, according to the Core Rulebook and the Revised Core Rulebook. By
this, one finds that the Galactic Emperor’s unadulterated doctrine was previously introduced to and accepted by the galaxy, in a
more readily digestible form. Public officials and other social leaders educated earlier in his career might be more inclined to accept
new measures and policies based on these earlier theories which they were taught and which they had accepted during their
university days. It is a sort of Fabian indoctrination, whereby a doctrine that would likely be rejected as a whole is slowly
assembled piece by piece instead of being introduced all at once. What cannot be fit through the front door is instead slipped in
with the post piece by piece, and then fully assembled once inside. By the time one becomes aware of the true nature of the
doctrine, it is already entrenched: fait accompli.
One of the key elements of the ultimate form of the Galactic Empire, not yet fully integrated into the existing framework, was the
Galactic Emperor’s dark side adepts, the cardinals of his dark side hierarchy. These practitioners of the dark side of the Force, who
also contributed to the Galactic Emperor’s exhaustive study of the Force in all its manifestations, are described by the Dark
Empire Sourcebook as follows:
Even once these hierarchs were fully integrated into the Imperial system creating the intended theocracy, the evolution of the
Galactic Empire would not yet be complete. The key to the ultimate form lay in the Galactic Emperor’s connection to his
hierarchical cardinals, and by extension their own connection to the countless Imperial citizens under their rule. As described in
Dark Empire II, the Galactic Emperor’s Dark Jedi were largely absorbed into his own consciousness, becoming “extensions of his
being.” The Dark Empire Sourcebook indicates that this same relationship exists in parallel between the dark side adepts and the
Sentinels in the Imperial Citadel on Byss (cf. Grand Admiral Thrawn’s “borg-implant” theory regarding the Imperial Starfleet at
Endor in Heir to the Empire or Joruus C’baoth’s assimilation of General Freja Covell in The Last Command).
Here one sees the final form of the Galactic Empire: The Galactic Emperor would ultimately consume his own hierarchs into his
own ego. In turn, each of these adepts would consume others beneath them, until at last every last sentient being were assimilated
into the Galactic Emperor. The Galactic Emperor was already quasi-immortal, having overcome death by means of possessing
clone bodies; by then, he would have transcended humanity itself, becoming more a force of nature than an individual being. Indeed,
one questions whether he would have need of his original body at all, having every single body in the galaxy as his own. Here
consider the Emperor’s meditation in Return of the Jedi:
In this, one finds in the Galactic Emperor the ultimate expression of the malignant narcissism described by Dr. Kernberg. Having
idealized himself as an aggressor and sole arbiter of right and wrong, the Galactic Emperor undertakes not only to control, exploit,
and destroy others, but to obliterate them entirely as beings distinct from himself; he identifies himself with civilization, the State,
and ultimately even the universe itself. The projected end result is the total realization of the first stage of Sigismund Freud’s
concept of psychological development; the Galactic Emperor will have created a galaxy wherein all life is literally an extension of
the self, where others exist solely to satisfy the self’s needs and desires.
The military/naval complex of the Galactic Empire, like everything else within the Imperial framework, exists to further the goals
of the Galactic Emperor; the Imperial Army, Imperial Navy, Imperial Marines, and Imperial Intelligence serve a very practical
function within that framework: to protect, enforce, and propagate the Imperial system, the vehicle by which he means to achieve
his transformation. By equipping the Empire with a powerful military/naval complex, the Galactic Emperor has essentially built a
sort of aggressive cocoon, able to defend itself until the metamorphosis is complete and the cocoon is no longer necessary.
Although, as considered previously within this article, the majority of the Imperial population – which, it may be added, includes
both humans and non-humans – may support the Galactic Emperor personally and the Imperial State institutionally (although the
latter very likely to a lesser degree), by no means does this mean that the member states within the Galactic Empire necessarily
have any sort of regard for one another; law and order is an important part of the Imperial system – not to mention the fact that a
Sith Lord uses the word “Chaos” as a curse in Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker – and infighting among the
Empire’s member states is not at all conducive toward those ends. Indeed, during the events revolving the apparent return of the
late Grand Admiral Thrawn, the former “Star Warriors” of the New Republic came to realize just how much of the Imperial armed
forces’ operations were devoted to suppressing internecine fighting and ancient, violent rivalries within the galactic community,
quite apart from counterinsurgency and counterrevolutionary operations; Specter of the Past refers to the “petty little wars the
Emperor’s New Order had so thoughtlessly interrupted.”
Aside from suppressing fraternal warfare, the Imperial forces also serve to suppress rebellion directed at the Imperial State itself.
At the Sector and Oversector levels, the Sector Command and Oversector Command simultaneously defend Imperial territory from
piracy and also function as a permanent occupation force; at the pan-Empire level, even greater strategic forces exist to subjugate
undue independence, warlordism, or secessionism on the part of full-fledged member states or Sector, Regional, and Oversector
Governors (For further reflection upon this subject, refer to “Rattling the Saber”). Additionally, the Imperial armed forces are also
responsible for defense of Imperial territories and satellite states from outside aggression (client states are responsible for their own
defense), and for conquest of new territories as deemed appropriate by the political leadership (conquest is usually undertaken
after diplomatic negotiation has failed to secure the desired results, according to the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition).
Elimination of the rebel Alliance and like oppositionist movements is merely one of the many tasks of the Imperial armed forces.
Ultimately, once the dark side theocracy were instituted in its fullest form, the purpose of the Imperial military/naval complex
would probably change; in a guest lecture at the Brionelle Memorial Military Academy, Chandrila, Hextrophon made the following
remarks (found in the Dark Empire Sourcebook):
Hextrophon’s belief is confirmed by The Dark Side Sourcebook, which remarks that the Galactic Emperor “had succeeded where
all others failed in taming the Dark Side. He would journey across the universe, spreading the shadow of his rule, blotting out the
stars themselves, and taking his Dark Rule to other helpless galaxies.” Like everything else in the Imperial system, the Imperial
military/naval complex has its own role in the Apotheosis of Palpatine. Once he had become a sort of God-Emperor – it would
become the task of the Imperial forces, in the shape of the World Devastators, to extend his all-encompassing rule to other galaxies,
as well. In its final form, the Galactic Empire – or, more correctly, the Galactic Emperor – would be a sort of mystical,
expansionist organism; ironically, the result of the Empire’s increasing totalitarianism would be anarchy, as the concept of the state
would be rendered wholly obsolescent by the apotheosized Galactic Emperor. In the face of an immortal enemy imbued with vast
preternatural abilities, able to foresee the future and in possession of colossal engines of destruction capable of self-repair and
adaptation, one might very well conclude that resistance would in fact be futile.
References:
which signify infatuation and obsession with one’s self to the exclusion of all others and the egotistic and ruthless pursuit of one’s
gratification, dominance ambition”; in the “The Seeds of the Self: An Interview with Otto Kernberg”, psychoanalyst Dr. Kernberg
describes malignant narcissism as
- [...]the most severe forms of it [narcissism] – in which there is a particular malignant development that consists of a return to
primitive aggression and an idealization of the self as an aggressive self with power over others. This pathological idealization
of the self as an aggressive self clinically is called “malignant narcissism.” And this is very much connected with evil and with a
number of clinical forms that evil takes, such as the pleasure and enjoyment in controlling others, in making them suffer, in
destroying them, or the casual pleasure in using others’ trust and confidence and love to exploit them and to destroy them.
That’s the real evil – that synthesis between pathological narcissism and primitive aggression. And we find that at the level of
individuals and in groups as well. Sometimes we find it in organizations. We find it in certain fundamentalist ideologies; we find
it in certain aspects of mass psychology. That’s the real evil.
The history of the Galactic Emperor – who “judged the universe on his own terms, with a clear sense of right and wrong” and
“looked to no other guide than himself,” according to Cloak of Deception – reveals him to be a consummate manipulator of others,
who uses their own intentions and actions to further his goals, often without their realization of the fact. Indeed, his schemes were
often already faits accomplis by the time others are even dimly aware of their existence; e.g., the Han Solo and the Corporate
Sector Sourcebook states that “upon his election as President of the Republic, he already had wealth and connections enough to
guarantee himself unlimited power,” indicating that his corporate, political, and social connections under the dual guises of
Palpatine of Naboo and Darth Sidious had already given him the ability to dominate the galactic government before he even claimed
its leadership. In essence, the time between The Phantom Menace and Revenge of the Sith was not to accumulate power for himself,
but rather to acclimate the galaxy to his exercise of it.
The Galactic Emperor seems to favor a strategy of introducing small, seemingly innocuous measures which arouse no ire from
opponents, which once combined link together to form a chain too strong to be broken once it is realized that the chain does in fact
exist. Much the same sort of strategy is in use with regards to the ideologies of the Imperial leadership, which range from
paternalism to authoritarianism to outright totalitarianism. The ultimate form of the Galactic Empire is already present in
embryonic form within it, doubtlessly being slowly and carefully cultivated by the Galactic Emperor, with no one being the wiser.
The pristine “luxury liner” worlds on which most of the Imperial population seems to dwell are surely intended as the first stage
of transformation from orderly, neat worlds into idyllic paradisaical worlds like Byss, whose 19.8 billions of inhabitants were
slowly being absorbed into the Galactic Emperor himself, by means of the “drain life essence” dark side ability according to the
very same Dark Empire Sourcebook which first described the Mussolinification of Imperial worlds. In such worlds, the
population is already accustomed to obedience to “the face and voice of Authority,” a central theme of the Galactic Emperor’s The
Weakness of Inferiors (the first volume of his encyclopedic Dark Side Compendium, quoted in the Dark Empire Sourcebook),
which develops his doctrine of “control, without violence.”
This is especially significant in that the scribe revealed in The New Essential Guide to Characters that The Weakness of Inferiors is
a synthesis of Sith philosophy with the political theories published and critically well-received by Palpatine earlier in his career. In
fact, his political science work was so well-received among the intelligentsia and academia that it was incorporated into standard
texts at a number of the galaxy’s most prestigious universities, according to the Core Rulebook and the Revised Core Rulebook. By
this, one finds that the Galactic Emperor’s unadulterated doctrine was previously introduced to and accepted by the galaxy, in a
more readily digestible form. Public officials and other social leaders educated earlier in his career might be more inclined to accept
new measures and policies based on these earlier theories which they were taught and which they had accepted during their
university days. It is a sort of Fabian indoctrination, whereby a doctrine that would likely be rejected as a whole is slowly
assembled piece by piece instead of being introduced all at once. What cannot be fit through the front door is instead slipped in
with the post piece by piece, and then fully assembled once inside. By the time one becomes aware of the true nature of the
doctrine, it is already entrenched: fait accompli.
One of the key elements of the ultimate form of the Galactic Empire, not yet fully integrated into the existing framework, was the
Galactic Emperor’s dark side adepts, the cardinals of his dark side hierarchy. These practitioners of the dark side of the Force, who
also contributed to the Galactic Emperor’s exhaustive study of the Force in all its manifestations, are described by the Dark
Empire Sourcebook as follows:
- While none of them were permitted to advance far compared to Palpatine’s own level of power, they did become quite
powerful indeed. Some were taught ways of combat and made into Dark Jedi. Others joined the elite of Imperial functionaries,
traversing the galaxy and seeing to the proper enforcement of Palpatine’s decrees. Still others were courtiers at the Palace in
the new capital on Byss.
Whatever they do, they enact the Emperor’s will and policies with his total trust and confidence because their link to him
through the Force allows him to always observe them. Before the Emperor’s defeat, many had been gathered into the Imperial
Ruling Council. It had been planned that eventually these adepts would replace the system of Moffs, Grand Moffs and
governors, instituting a Dark Side Theocracy.
Even once these hierarchs were fully integrated into the Imperial system creating the intended theocracy, the evolution of the
Galactic Empire would not yet be complete. The key to the ultimate form lay in the Galactic Emperor’s connection to his
hierarchical cardinals, and by extension their own connection to the countless Imperial citizens under their rule. As described in
Dark Empire II, the Galactic Emperor’s Dark Jedi were largely absorbed into his own consciousness, becoming “extensions of his
being.” The Dark Empire Sourcebook indicates that this same relationship exists in parallel between the dark side adepts and the
Sentinels in the Imperial Citadel on Byss (cf. Grand Admiral Thrawn’s “borg-implant” theory regarding the Imperial Starfleet at
Endor in Heir to the Empire or Joruus C’baoth’s assimilation of General Freja Covell in The Last Command).
Here one sees the final form of the Galactic Empire: The Galactic Emperor would ultimately consume his own hierarchs into his
own ego. In turn, each of these adepts would consume others beneath them, until at last every last sentient being were assimilated
into the Galactic Emperor. The Galactic Emperor was already quasi-immortal, having overcome death by means of possessing
clone bodies; by then, he would have transcended humanity itself, becoming more a force of nature than an individual being. Indeed,
one questions whether he would have need of his original body at all, having every single body in the galaxy as his own. Here
consider the Emperor’s meditation in Return of the Jedi:
- For his soul was the black center of the Empire.
He contemplated the dense impenetrability of the deep space beyond the window. Densely black as his soul - as if he were, in
some real way, this blackness; as if his inner spirit was itself this void over which he reigned. He smiled at the thought: he was
the Empire; he was the Universe.
In this, one finds in the Galactic Emperor the ultimate expression of the malignant narcissism described by Dr. Kernberg. Having
idealized himself as an aggressor and sole arbiter of right and wrong, the Galactic Emperor undertakes not only to control, exploit,
and destroy others, but to obliterate them entirely as beings distinct from himself; he identifies himself with civilization, the State,
and ultimately even the universe itself. The projected end result is the total realization of the first stage of Sigismund Freud’s
concept of psychological development; the Galactic Emperor will have created a galaxy wherein all life is literally an extension of
the self, where others exist solely to satisfy the self’s needs and desires.
The military/naval complex of the Galactic Empire, like everything else within the Imperial framework, exists to further the goals
of the Galactic Emperor; the Imperial Army, Imperial Navy, Imperial Marines, and Imperial Intelligence serve a very practical
function within that framework: to protect, enforce, and propagate the Imperial system, the vehicle by which he means to achieve
his transformation. By equipping the Empire with a powerful military/naval complex, the Galactic Emperor has essentially built a
sort of aggressive cocoon, able to defend itself until the metamorphosis is complete and the cocoon is no longer necessary.
Although, as considered previously within this article, the majority of the Imperial population – which, it may be added, includes
both humans and non-humans – may support the Galactic Emperor personally and the Imperial State institutionally (although the
latter very likely to a lesser degree), by no means does this mean that the member states within the Galactic Empire necessarily
have any sort of regard for one another; law and order is an important part of the Imperial system – not to mention the fact that a
Sith Lord uses the word “Chaos” as a curse in Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker – and infighting among the
Empire’s member states is not at all conducive toward those ends. Indeed, during the events revolving the apparent return of the
late Grand Admiral Thrawn, the former “Star Warriors” of the New Republic came to realize just how much of the Imperial armed
forces’ operations were devoted to suppressing internecine fighting and ancient, violent rivalries within the galactic community,
quite apart from counterinsurgency and counterrevolutionary operations; Specter of the Past refers to the “petty little wars the
Emperor’s New Order had so thoughtlessly interrupted.”
Aside from suppressing fraternal warfare, the Imperial forces also serve to suppress rebellion directed at the Imperial State itself.
At the Sector and Oversector levels, the Sector Command and Oversector Command simultaneously defend Imperial territory from
piracy and also function as a permanent occupation force; at the pan-Empire level, even greater strategic forces exist to subjugate
undue independence, warlordism, or secessionism on the part of full-fledged member states or Sector, Regional, and Oversector
Governors (For further reflection upon this subject, refer to “Rattling the Saber”). Additionally, the Imperial armed forces are also
responsible for defense of Imperial territories and satellite states from outside aggression (client states are responsible for their own
defense), and for conquest of new territories as deemed appropriate by the political leadership (conquest is usually undertaken
after diplomatic negotiation has failed to secure the desired results, according to the Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition).
Elimination of the rebel Alliance and like oppositionist movements is merely one of the many tasks of the Imperial armed forces.
Ultimately, once the dark side theocracy were instituted in its fullest form, the purpose of the Imperial military/naval complex
would probably change; in a guest lecture at the Brionelle Memorial Military Academy, Chandrila, Hextrophon made the following
remarks (found in the Dark Empire Sourcebook):
- “With the revelation of the Emperor’s possible immortality, a new theory comes to mind. With seemingly no end to his reign,
the Emperor could foresee a time when he would want to expand his reign.
“Would a single galaxy be enough for Palpatine the Undying? I think not. The Old Republic had long considered the possibility
of contact with other galaxies and made several abortive attempts at it. Palpatine had even secretly destroyed the most recent
of these, the Outbound Flight project. According to what we have retrieved from Admiral Thrawn’s notes, he led the mission to
kill the six Jedi aboard the ship.
“It seems obvious that Palpatine’s ultimate goal was the conquest, not just of our galaxy, but of others. What better way to
ensure his military supremacy than with these World Devastators? Arriving at world after world, consuming and creating
weapons while the battle rages on about them, never lacking for resources or energy... the thought is terrifying.”
Hextrophon’s belief is confirmed by The Dark Side Sourcebook, which remarks that the Galactic Emperor “had succeeded where
all others failed in taming the Dark Side. He would journey across the universe, spreading the shadow of his rule, blotting out the
stars themselves, and taking his Dark Rule to other helpless galaxies.” Like everything else in the Imperial system, the Imperial
military/naval complex has its own role in the Apotheosis of Palpatine. Once he had become a sort of God-Emperor – it would
become the task of the Imperial forces, in the shape of the World Devastators, to extend his all-encompassing rule to other galaxies,
as well. In its final form, the Galactic Empire – or, more correctly, the Galactic Emperor – would be a sort of mystical,
expansionist organism; ironically, the result of the Empire’s increasing totalitarianism would be anarchy, as the concept of the state
would be rendered wholly obsolescent by the apotheosized Galactic Emperor. In the face of an immortal enemy imbued with vast
preternatural abilities, able to foresee the future and in possession of colossal engines of destruction capable of self-repair and
adaptation, one might very well conclude that resistance would in fact be futile.
References:
- Acomba, David and Steve Binder. The Star Wars Holiday Special. Columbia Broadcasting System, 1978.
- Andrews, Thomas. “In the Shadows of Their Fathers.” Empire Nos. 29 - 30, 32 - 34. Dark Horse Comics, Inc., 2005.
- Bridle, Susan. “The Seeds of the Self: An Interview with Otto Kernberg” What Is Enlightenment? EnlightenNext, Inc.,
2000) - Carey, Craig R., Chris Doyle, Jason Fry, Paul Sudlow, John Terra and Daniel E. Wallace. Coruscant and the Core Worlds.
Wizards of the Coast, Inc., 2003. - Collins, Andy, Bill Slavicsek and J. D. Wiker. Core Rulebook. Wizards of the Coast, Inc., 2000.
- Findley, Nigel D. Goroth: Slave of the Empire. West End Games, 1994.
- Gorden, Greg. Imperial Sourcebook, Second Edition. West End Games, 1994.
- Horne, Michael Allen. Dark Empire Sourcebook. West End Games, 1993.
- Horne, Michael Allen. Han Solo and the Corporate Sector Sourcebook. West End Games, 1993.
- Kahn, James. Return of the Jedi. Ballantine Books, 1983.
- Kershner, Irvin. The Empire Strikes Back. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 1980.
- Lucas, George. A New Hope. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 1977.
- Lucas, George. Attack of the Clones. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 2002.
- Lucas, George. The Phantom Menace. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 1999.
- Lucas, George. THX-1138. Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., 1970.
- Lucas, George. Revenge of the Sith. Twentieth Century Fox FIlm Corporation, 2005.
- Lucas, George. Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker. Ballantine Books, 1976.
- Luceno, James. Cloak of Deception. Del Rey Books, 2001.
- Marquand, Richard. Return of the Jedi. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 1983.
- Murphy, Paul. Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, Second Edition. West End Games, 1994.
- O’Brien, Timothy S. The Far Orbit Project. West End Games, 1998.
- Slavicsek, Bill. Death Star Technical Companion. West End Games, 1991, 1993.
- Slavicsek, Bill and J. D. Wiker. Revised Core Rulebook. Wizards of the Coast, Inc., 2002.
- Slavicsek, Bill and J. D. Wiker. The Dark Side Sourcebook. Wizards of the Coast, Inc., 2001.
- Smith, Bill. The Star Wars Roleplaying Game, Second Edition. West End Games, 1992.
- Vaknin, Sam. Malignant Self Love: Narcissism Revisited. Narcissus Publications, 2001.
- Veitch, Tom. Dark Empire II. Dark Horse Comics, Inc., 1994 - 1995.
- Wallace, Daniel E. The New Essential Guide to Characters. Del Rey Books, 2002.
- Whitman, John. Galaxy of Fear: The Swarm. Bantam Books, 1998.
- Wiker, J. D. “Who’s Who in Star Wars Galaxies.” Star Wars Insider No. 65. Paizo Publishing LLC, 2003.
- Zahn, Timothy. Heir to the Empire. Bantam Books, 1991.
- Zahn, Timothy. Specter of the Past. Bantam Books, 1998.
- Zahn, Timothy. The Last Command. Bantam Books, 1993.
| This site is for informational and entertainment purposes only. No copyright infringement of any kind is intended. Star Wars and related materials are © Lucasfilm Ltd., which reserves all rights thereto. All original material is © Julius Sykes. Please do not use without permission. |
This article was developed from two posts made by the author to Mr. Michael Wong’s StarDestroyer.Net message board in
September 2002 and September 2004 (an earlier draft of the article’s section on civil life appeared on Mr. Nathan Fortner’s site
in April 2003 under the title De Vitas Civitum Imperii). It was republished on 26 January 2007.
Special thanks are due to Messrs. Adam Gehrls and Matthew Trias for their contributions to the development of this article.
The header was generously provided by Mr. Jamie Holm, using a pencil drawing of the Galactic Emperor done by the author in
August 2005.
The title “Leviathan” is a reference to Thomas Hobbes’s book Leviathan, or The Matter, Forme and Power of a Common
Wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civil, written in 1651. The book’s famous frontispiece depicts the state as a giant man composed of
individual men; the significance of this image to this article is self-evident.
September 2002 and September 2004 (an earlier draft of the article’s section on civil life appeared on Mr. Nathan Fortner’s site
in April 2003 under the title De Vitas Civitum Imperii). It was republished on 26 January 2007.
Special thanks are due to Messrs. Adam Gehrls and Matthew Trias for their contributions to the development of this article.
The header was generously provided by Mr. Jamie Holm, using a pencil drawing of the Galactic Emperor done by the author in
August 2005.
The title “Leviathan” is a reference to Thomas Hobbes’s book Leviathan, or The Matter, Forme and Power of a Common
Wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civil, written in 1651. The book’s famous frontispiece depicts the state as a giant man composed of
individual men; the significance of this image to this article is self-evident.
