What Do We Really Know About Star Wars’ Old Republic History?

For thousands of years before the formation of the Galactic Empire, the Republic was one of the de facto major powers in the country’s socio-political structure. Star Wars‘the galaxy. But while certain flashpoints are explored, especially as we approach the fall of the Republic in the prequel trilogy — for the most part now Star Wars continuity has kept the past of the Republic within the confines of legend. But the franchise is increasingly willing to delve into its distant past James Mangold’s Ancient Jedi equalize Skeleton Crewintelligence How much do we actually know what kind of equality the old Republic was longer long ago?

Times of the Galactic Republic

The power of the Galactic Republic can be largely divided four different periods— each shorter than the last, and the last two are essentially subdivisions of the second period. The largest are two fundamental broad periods of galactic history: one begins with the official founding of the Republic, some 25,000 years before the events of the original period. Star Wars a cinematic epic and the creation of a “modern” republic – the galactic entity we broadly know Star Warsprequel material – about a thousand years before these films. These last two sections are the periods with which we are most familiar through the primary material: the High Republic, which takes place over about 400 years during the last period of the post-Reformation Republic, and its twilight, as seen here. Acolyte and Star Wars A prequel trilogy with a twist to the Galactic Empire.

The first of these periods remains the least researched at present Star Wars durability, but is significantly more fleshy franchise old “Expanded Universe”. While many of these stories are clearly out of current continuity, the modern canon has made vague statements that some of these EU stories still hold canonically true in some form – but in the broadest sense, with very little official material confirming information about how the Republic was founded in its earliest times. managed and existed.

The actual “Old” Republic

Now 24,000 years a a lot our current knowledge of history and of what is often referred to as the “Old Republic” (which has always been the Galactic Republic throughout its history) is deliberately vague. As the Expanded Universe evolves in discovery through things like this era Tales of the Jedi comics and, most famously, the world-building of BioWare and Obsidian Knights of the Old Republic seriesmodern Star Wars canon treated this era as little more than myth, aside from hints at elements of stories and characters from this era that still have some canonical influence in the EU. That could change, of course, as Mangold approaches projects like the aforementioned Dawn of the Jedi, which will be set around the same time as the founding of the Republic in 25,000 BBY.

What we know about the Old Republic still bears some similarities to the more modern Republic Star Wars movies. Coruscant has always been its seat of power, the galactic core forming the Republic’s oldest member worlds and seats of power. Founded at a similar time, the Jedi Order has long had ties to the Republic, both morally and militarily. More to come widespread hyperspace travelas well as financial support from other ruling planetary powers allowed the nascent Republic to expand its borders over thousands of years, accepting more member worlds and inevitably facing conflict as other galactic powers crossed paths. The conflict defines much of what we know about this period of galactic history: we know that at some point the Republic confronted the Zygerian empire and succumbed to its sanction of slavery, leading to a war between Republic and Jedi forces that eventually destroyed most of the Zygerrian power base. We also know that the Mandalorians waged numerous crusades against the Old Republic and the Jedi during this time, leading to war many times.

The rise of the Jedi faction that would become the Sith—some 20,000 years after the founding of the order—also created another major warfront for the Jedi and the Republic. The Sith fought numerous wars against the Jedi during their existence, after the establishment of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant brought the Order itself closer to the Republic. early conflict between Jedi and Sith post-disintegration The Sith saw the latter faction exiled from Republic space before resurgent with its own galactic power, the Sith Empire, rising from the planet Moraband. Collectively known as the Sith Wars, these engagements pushed the Republic into alliances with the Jedi and the Chiss Ascendancy, bringing the final millennium of Old Republic rule into the chaos of perpetual war on multiple fronts against Sith and Mandalorian hostility.

The final Jedi-Sith War of this era saw the dominant Sith Empire effectively overthrow most of the Republic in the galaxy. Coruscant itself was sacked and occupied, and although it was eventually liberated by the Jedi, much of the Republic was still devastated by interstellar conflict. The resurgent Jedi Order, along with the remnants of the Republic army, launched an attack that would usher in a full-scale reformation of the galactic institution.

Reform, rise and fall

The liberation of Coruscant was a significant turning point for the Jedi Order and the Galactic Republic. Emboldened, the Jedi left the Mandalorians and shot them Homeworld of Mandalore in the face of environmental devastation, as well as the Mandalorian Clans showing humility to end their crusade against the Republic. This revival also heralded the beginning of the perceived end of the Sith Empire as a galactic power, as Jedi and Republic forces clashed with Imperial and Sith forces on the planet Ruusan. The near total annihilation of the Sith forced the few survivors to leave Moraband and go into hiding, leading to the creation of Darth Bane’s ‘Rule of Two’, which governed the Sith in the shadows for centuries. But the victory also allowed the Republic to look inward after destroying all of the breathing millennia of war in turn.

The end of the Jedi-Sith War led to formal reforms of the Republic, including the establishment of the first democratic union with the creation of the Galactic Senate. Part of the process of ushering in a new age of peace also saw the Republic go through an extensive disarmament process –what a small conflict Coming into this era, it was mostly occupied by the Jedi Order, which assisted Republic law enforcement, Judicial Force peacekeepers in disputes, and internal affairs. This peace would eventually usher in an era seen as the pinnacle of the Galactic Republic’s reach and power in the wider galaxy known as the era of the High Republic. Beginning around 500 BC, the High Republic was a defined era with an expansionist policy From stronger efforts to establish safe hyperspace travel routes throughout the Galactic Republic, across the Core Worlds, and into the Middle Ring, the Republic’s influence extends further into the outer fringes. This effort was also supported by the Pathfinder forces of the Republic working to establish the Jedi Order. interconnected communication networks The Republic’s push into the Outer Rim led to the creation of the Holonet as one of the de facto communications and media networks across much of Republic space.

But while the High Republic, like the expansionist policies of the Old Republic before it, seemed to be at the height of its influence and reach, the Republic and the Jedi Order once again found themselves embroiled in wider conflicts, particularly against the pirate forces of Nihil, encountered on the fringes of Republic space during this period. The light of the High Republic would fade around 100 BY as the expansion of galactic existence brought a sense of increasing stagnation. As the Republic expanded further into the Outer Rim, absorbing worlds along the way, trade and commerce were increasingly withdrawn from the lucrative fringes of Republic space and returned directly to the cosmopolitan powerhouse of the Core Worlds. Corruption ran rampant, as an increasingly inaccessible senatorial body consolidated power toward the center of the Republic, and the limited capabilities of the Judiciary and Jedi peacekeepers led to rampant crime and piracy throughout much of the Republic’s broadest regions. In these regions, corporate power has become increasingly common, leading to the growing influence of financial blocs and institutions such as the Trade Federation or Banking Clans.

It was in the rise of these economic powers—through political power and influence in the senate, both behind the scenes deals and through their representation in the Republican administration—that the Republic set the stage for its own destruction. Naboo’s invasion of Middle-earth, aided from the shadows by the machinations of Trade Federation Sith Lord Darth Sidious, led to the rise of power in the Senate and the ouster of Chancellor Finis Valorum, the last scion of the family. The ruling power within the republic was united from generation to generation. From there, Sidious, posing as Naboo Senator Sheev Palpatine, rose to power as the most recent Supreme Chancellor, further manipulating the growing discontent of the worlds outside the galactic core with his latest apprentice, the former Jedi Master and Count of Serreno. , Dooku—to form an official separatist movement in the Confederacy of Independent Systems.

The Separatist Crisis and the resulting galactic conflict in the Clone Wars—which led to the creation of the first standing army the Galactic Republic had seen in thousands of years—were the culmination of Palpatine’s manipulation of galactic events to align himself. As both usurper of political power within the Republic (emboldened through a series of dictatorial powers. emergency measures to support the war effort) and architect of the Sith’s Revenge of the Jedi Order. Some 25,000 years after its founding, the conflict that once defined and then reformed the Republic left it utterly shattered, culminating in the Clone Wars, when the Jedi Order was destroyed in response to an alleged coup d’état that gave Palpatine an opportunity. To destroy the Republic and resurrect it as the first Galactic Empire. His reign may have been short and was replaced by the New Republic, which still carries many loads and errors his most recent past – but Palpatine achieved the unthinkable by ending decades and thousands of years of influence, both moral and political, with the end of the Jedi Order and the Republic.

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