Leia Organa Solo

"That boy is our last hope." "No. There is another."

- Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda referring to Luke and Leia

Princess Leia Organa Solo of Alderaan (born Leia Amidala Skywalker) was the daughter of Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker and Senator Padmé Amidala of Naboo, making her the younger twin sister of Luke Skywalker. After her birth she became the adopted daughter of Bail Organa and Queen Breha of Alderaan. An accomplished Senator, Organa was most famous for her strong leadership during the Galactic Civil War and other subsequent galactic conflicts, making her one of the galaxy's most greatest heroes. Later she married Han Solo and became the mother of their three children: Jaina, Jacen and Anakin Solo. Around the start of the Swarm War, Leia would unknowingly become a grandmother through Jacen's daughter Allana.

One of the most important figures in the Galactic Civil War and the New Republic, she could have been simply another galactic denizen had she not been adopted by Bail Organa. Politician, fighter, and spy were the roles that awaited her instead. She had a forceful personality and bright intellect, having accomplished much in her youth: she was a strong proponent for the Rebel Alliance, the youngest Senator ever of the Galactic Empire at eighteen standard years of age, and a member of the Royal Family of Alderaan. Years later, she would be elected Chief of State of the New Republic and serve twice in that office.

Though raised in the privileged surroundings of a peaceful planet that had banished weapons from its culture, the times were dark and this fiery diplomat received martial training in order to defend herself, both with a blaster and just her bare hands. She would use this training in the numerous wars and other conflicts that shook the Galaxy during her lifetime.

Due to her powerful Force heritage, Leia, following her family's legacy, became a Jedi Knight in the New Jedi Order, partially trained by her brother Luke and later by Saba Sebatyne, who declared her a fully trained Knight at the end of the Swarm War. This training would serve her well as the Galaxy teetered on the edge of collapse into civil once more during the Second Corellian Insurrection, although it complicated her allegiance.

Birth and adoption into the House of Organa
"It's a girl." "Leia."

- Obi-Wan Kenobi and Padmé Amidala



Leia was born on the asteroid colony of Polis Massa in 19 BBY, shortly after the start of the Great Jedi Purge and the foundation of the Galactic Empire. Mere seconds after her birth, her mother Padmé Amidala died, effectively orphaning Leia and her older twin brother Luke.

Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda knew the children, both strong in the Force, had to be protected from Emperor Palpatine. Deciding it would be best if they were separated, the two Jedi Masters agreed to send the infant boy to live with their father's stepbrother Owen Lars and his wife Beru on Tatooine. Leia was adopted and raised by Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan and his wife, Queen Breha. Through adoption, Leia Amidala Skywalker became Princess Leia Organa. Nineteen years would pass before the twins saw each other again.

"She will be loved with us."

- Bail Organa to Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, referring to Leia



The orphaned daughter of the Naboo Senator and a fallen Jedi Knight was given a loving home within the House of Organa, one of the Galaxy's so-called Ancient Houses. Her adoptive parents couldn't have children of their own, so Leia became the heir of the Royal House of Alderaan. Silya Shessaun, a mentor and a friend of Amidala, assisted in her upbringing, as did Bail Organa's three sisters Tia, Rouge, and Celly, whom Leia described as "three redoubtable dowagers" that "made her girlhood an intermittent burden."

Although the Organas weren't trying to hide the fact that Leia was adopted, they never informed the Princess of her true parentage, nor did they reveal the existence of her twin brother. However, during the short time between her birth and her mother's death, Leia gained a faint memory of her mother as a beautiful and kind, yet sad woman. This had presumably something to do with Leia being Force-sensitive.

The tomboy Princess
"The line between the life I want to live and the life I'm expected to live is about as thin as a Hutt after a buffet."

- Leia in her diary in c. 9 BBY

The Princess, nicknamed Lelila, grew up with the two years older Winter, an orphaned daughter of one of Bail Organa's aides. Ever since being adopted by the Organa family, Winter was Leia's best friend and companion. With a natural grace and poise, she was often mistaken for the Princess of Alderaan by court visitors, while the tomboy Leia was regarded as a domestic girl.

Leia exhibited little of the upper-class gentility, which was a constant source of despair to her aunts Tia, Rouge, and Celly. Nevertheless, they were determined to turn her to what they called "a Proper Princess," and hired deportment teachers to drill into her a behavior fitting for the heir of an Ancient House.



One part of making her a lady was to learn how a princess dresses up and does her hair. According to Alderaanian customs, Leia's hair was allowed to grow long and arranged into fanciful hairdos. Ironically enough, one of Leia's trademark symbols &mdash; her signature "bun" coiffure &mdash; was inherited from her mother's homeworld of Naboo, although a long time passed before she came to know it. To avoid the tiring hairstyling, she even cut her hair once &mdash; only to be forced to wear a wig, even though she protested that she didn't need earmuffs in the summer.

While Leia disliked being "everyone's dress-up doll", her bright and outspoken nature blossomed out when she had a chance to learn diplomacy, government and languages. Like her birth mother before her, Leia had the benefit of palace education: the finest tutors and best equipment. Wanting to expose her to as many experiences as possible, Bail often took her daughter along to trips to other worlds, such as Ithor, where he attended the Time of the Meeting as the representative of the Imperial Senate. About six years old at the time, the Meeting was an unforgettable experience for Leia. She also visited Alderaan's secret Caamasi colony in her childhood.

Besides receiving palace education, Leia attended the Alderaan Select Academy for Young Ladies under the tutelage of the strict Madame Vesta. Together with other daughters of Alderaanian nobles, the Princess learned etiquette, table manners and many other useful (and to her mind, rather boring) things that a lady needed to know. During this time, Leia saw the downside of the upper class as well: one of her school friends used drugs, many of the girls had a condescending attitude towards ordinary people and threw expensive parties even though many in the Galaxy were hungry and suffering.

Despite knowing that she was loved, Leia sometimes felt an outsider to her family. Winter was like a sister to her, but the young Princess still wished she had a brother or a sister of her own, someone she could truly feel close to. In her growing years, she often felt that she was just slightly different, without exactly knowing how, and that a part of her was missing. It can only be assumed that this was an indication of her latent Force-sensitivity and of the lingering twin bond with Luke Skywalker.

Once she reached her adolescent years, Leia befriended Heeth and Raal Panteer. She and Raal fell in love soon after but the relationship failed to last. Organa and the Panteer brothers would encounter meet again during the Galactic Civil War.

A senator in the making
"I'm grooming her to take my place in the Imperial Senate." "Perhaps you should wean her first."

- Bail Organa and Wilhuff Tarkin about Leia

Leia showed promise in politics and from early on, Bail Organa began grooming her to one day succeed him in the Imperial Senate, encouraging her to attend Alderaanian debates and palace receptions for offworld personnel. In this Leia unknowingly followed the footsteps of her late birth mother, who had entered politics at an early age and became a Senator. Indeed, Leia resembled Padmé Amidala in many ways: she was confident, poised and a had a quick political wit.

When Leia was thirteen, she met Wilhuff Tarkin for the first time when he came to visit Bail Organa on Alderaan. She had heard a lot about the Moff from her father, none of it good. She instantly disliked him, holding that he represented everything that was wrong with the Empire. Leia was particularly disgusted with the idea of Tarkin having a slave, as she didn't understand how it was possible that the Emperor allowed slavery. The visit made her seriously contemplate what kind of galaxy she lived in, and what she could do to change it.

At the age of 16, Leia attended the University of Alderaan together with Winter, whose holographic and audiographic memory, as Leia would joke, was very useful with homework. They studied history and art, two subjects the Empire seemed eager to suppress, which in Bail Organa's opinion was all the more reason to study them. Leia also began training with Giles Durane, a mercenary her father had hired to teach her self-defense and marksmanship. True to her tomboyish nature, she enjoyed these lessons far more than those of Madame Vesta, and showed considerable talent in both areas.

Around this time, Leia began to realize that her father was preparing her for something more than just becoming the next Senator of her home planet. A month before turning 17, she accidentally overheard a secret HoloNet meeting Bail Organa was having with fellow Senators Mon Mothma of Chandrila and Garm Bel Iblis of Corellia, where the name Alliance to Restore the Republic came up. Leia's hatred for the Empire had been growing over the years &mdash; she certainly found their treatment of non-Humans and women atrocious and their desire to control everything appalling &mdash; but this was the first time she heard anyone discuss an open rebellion. She decided not the tell her father what she had heard, but promised herself to make him proud and do whatever it took to restore the freedoms the Empire was systematically taking away.

Among the old Houses, it was customary to bring the daughters to Coruscant when they finished school at seventeen &mdash; or even sixteen, if the parents were ambitious to start the long and complex search of a good match at the Imperial Court. The Princess's aunts would have been glad to see their niece marry someone from one of the other Ancient Houses; Leia, however, regarded their heirs as "brainless twerps" and refused to be presented to the Emperor until she could do so as a Senator in her own right, not simply as a young girl in the Court marriage market. Her aunts were horrified, doubly so when Leia's decision was backed by Bail Organa.

The time for Leia's introduction at the Imperial Palace came soon enough, though. At the age of 18, she became the youngest Imperial Senator ever elected, and Bail Organa formally presented her to Palpatine shortly before she assumed her Senatorial post. Having witnessed earlier a Caamasi being arrested by two stormtroopers for simply trying to buy a drink at a café, Leia firmly decided that she would bring up the issue to Palpatine at the same time.

When she met the Emperor, however, she became frightened by the pure evil radiating from him and was unable to do anything more than mutter thanks to his compliments as Darth Vader watched. Following the reception, Bail assured her that there was nothing to be ashamed of, as it was a common reaction to seeing Palpatine, especially for the first time. To make her feel better, Organa told Leia how proud he was of her, and related a piece of good news &mdash; he had arranged for the Caamasi she saw arrested to be released. Happy, Leia went to meet the Caamasi, who introduced himself as Eg'Ros Akala.

Imperial Senate and involvement in the Rebellion (1 BBY to 0 BBY)
In 1 BBY, Bail Organa stepped down as Senator of Alderaan &mdash; a position he had held for thirty-one years &mdash; and Leia took his place. The day her father retired, Leia told him that she knew about the Rebellion, and that she wanted to make a difference together with him. A keen political thinker, Leia knew that her diplomatic immunity and consular ship would be perfect for running covert missions for the Alliance. Bail agreed, and thus began Leia's double life as a Senator and a Rebel.

Young Senator Organa inherited her father's diplomatic cruiser, the Corellian Corvette Tantive IV. Her uncle Raymus Antilles, who had served under Bail Organa as well, continued as the captain of the ship, and Leia's cousin Corla Metonae was also part of the vessel's crew. Winter accompanied Leia to Coruscant as an aide; she was aware of the Princess's involvement in the Rebellion, and participated in many of the Alliance's operations herself in the following years.

During her time in the Senate, Leia worked with Senator Pooja Naberrie of Naboo, her maternal cousin. The two became good friends, completely unaware of their familial relationship. Not everyone was pleased with the young Senator, however. Despite her first intimidating encounter with Palpatine, Leia became one of the leading voices of criticism towards the Emperor's policies. Being somewhat of a political firebrand, her outraged sense of justice made some people feel threatened, while others viewed her as pathetically idealistic. Drost Elegin, head of the Ancient House Elegin and a notorious playboy at Palpatine's court, mockingly called her "Madame Senator" and "Little Miss Inalienable Rights."

Shortly after becoming a Senator, Organa began working with fellow Senator Mon Mothma on the Rebel war effort against the Empire. During her years in the Alliance, Leia was taken by Mothma as her political protégé and groomed Organa for eventual leadership.

Mission to Ralltiir
Prior to the Battle of Yavin 4 Leia went on a diplomatic mission to Ralltiir, a world subjugated by the Empire. It was here that she discovered a wounded Rebel containing vital information on the Death Star. While in the process of rescuing the rebel Leia encountered the Moff of Ralltiir, Lord Tion. After getting the information, Leia rescued him. Later, Leia killed Tion in self-defense, making her an enemy of the Empire. After discovering the Imperial superweapon, Rebel spys were able to steal the Death Star's blueprints, sending them to the Rebel Alliance before being killed.

Mission to Kattada
"Please, your highness, put away your sorrow. Mia died for a cause she believed in, and the victory to which you led us would have made her proud."

- Mia's father



Following the trip to Ralltiir where they retrieved the Ralltiir rebel, Basso, Princess Leia and her uncle, Raymus Antilles, traveled on the Tantive IV to Kattada's main space port at Haloeda. Upon arriving, they were greeted by Haloeda's ruler Madam Mia Ikova, another sympathizer of the Rebel Alliance. Later, at the spaceport, Leia and Mia Ikova received word from a messenger that an Imperial patrol ship was landing. By then, Leia and her crew had realized that it was too late to escape and that they could not leave Mia Ikova and her people to deal with the Empire alone. Shortly after, a force of Stormtroopers and Scout troopers departed from the landed on the planet under the command of Commander Karg, who announced that all who were present were under arrest in the name of Emperor Palpatine. After refusing to surrender Karg ordered his legion of stormtroopers to shoot, injuring Mia.

Enraged at her refusal to surrender, Karg attempted to shoot Leia. Luckily, Leia was saved when the Tantive IV turbolaser turret opened fire on Karg, wounding him severely. The Tantive IV's crew then retrieved Leia, Ikova and Karg and brought them to the medical bay. Unfortunately, Mia wasn't able to overcome her injuries and died. Leia blamed herself for what had happened and wished she had never come to Kattada. Ikova' father responded by reminding Leia that she had come to seek help for the rebels on Ralltiir who needed their aid badly and that she should not let what had occurred sway her from her purpose, before presumably dying. Later, Organa lead a ground assault, successfully neutralizing the imperial threat on the planet. Following the battle, Leia left for Alderaan on the Tantive IV after saying farewell to her Kattadan allies.

After the disastrous Battle of Kattada, Organa was contacted by her father, giving her an important mission to track down Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and bring him to Alderaan. Leia set a course to the planet Tatooine with the stolen Death Star plans in tow.

Early Galactic Civil War (0 BBY to 4 ABY)
"General Kenobi, years ago you served my father in the Clone Wars. Now he begs you to help him in his struggle against the Empire. I regret that I am unable to present my father's request to you in person, but my ship has fallen under attack and I'm afraid my mission to bring you to Alderaan has failed. I have placed information vital to the survival of the Rebellion into the memory systems of this R2 unit. My father will know how to retrieve it. You must see this droid safely delivered to him on Alderaan. This is our most desperate hour. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi, you're my only hope."

- Leia Organa



In 0 BBY, Organa was captured along with her ship, the Tantive IV, by Darth Vader. The Sith Lord sought to recover the plans for the Death Star I, which Imperial Intelligence suggested had been stolen by Rebel spy Kyle Katarn.

Unknown to Vader, the young senator had hidden the plans inside an R2 unit, R2-D2, and sent the droid to find the legendary Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi on the planet Tatooine. Leia attempted to hide from the stormtroopers in her ship, but was found and stunned after shooting one of them with her sporting blaster. She was brought before Lord Vader, who accused her of treason, although Leia denied any connection with the Alliance.

Vader brought her to the Death Star I, where he personally interrogated and tortured her, seeking the location of the plans and the hidden Rebel base from which the Empire suspected the Alliance was striking. Remarkably, she managed to keep silent, despite Vader's Sith powers and the use of an interrogation droid.

Wilhuff Tarkin, Leia's old acquaintance and now a Grand Moff, threatened Organa with the destruction of her homeworld, Alderaan, if she did not reveal the location of the Rebel base. She lied, giving them instead the location of a long-since abandoned base on Dantooine. Tarkin proceeded with the destruction of Alderaan regardless, one of the most infamous acts of the Empire and a shocking example of the Tarkin doctrine of rule by terror. Leia was then placed in a holding cell and scheduled to be executed, while the Imperial Navy deployed scout craft to investigate Dantooine.

Princess Organa's message had reached Obi-Wan Kenobi by this time, and he set out from Tatooine with Luke Skywalker, intending to bring R2-D2 to Leia on Alderaan. Kenobi had hired Han Solo as a pilot. Arriving in the Alderaan system shortly after the world's destruction, the Millennium Falcon was captured by the Death Star's tractor beam.



Surprisingly, this small group managed to avoid immediate capture. Finding that Organa was on the station, they set out to rescue her. Killing a number of Stormtroopers they succeeded in rescuing Leia. Tarkin had by this point discovered that Dantooine was indeed abandoned. In order to find the true location of the hidden base, he ordered his soldiers to allow the small band to escape with Leia, after planting a tracking device on the Falcon. Darth Vader, meanwhile, set out to find Obi-Wan Kenobi, whom he later killed in a duel.

Organa realized that her escape must have been deliberately permitted by the Empire, and surmised that the ship was being tracked. However, she nonetheless decided to return to the base on Yavin 4.

Presumably, she would have been arrested immediately had she tried to land on any inhabited Imperial world, and finding another place to trade ships would have been complicated and dangerous. (Locating the tracking device would have been virtually impossible, given how small such a device could be.) This was a risk, of course: if no weakness could be found, or if the discovered weakness could only be exploited by, for instance, a saboteur on board the Death Star, it would be necessary to stage a massive evacuation.

Returning to Yavin 4, Princess Organa found that her gamble had paid off, as the plans did in fact reveal a weakness that starfighters could potentially exploit. At the Battle of Yavin, the Death Star was destroyed by Organa's twin brother, Luke Skywalker (although this familial relationship was unknown by both twins at this time). This marked a turning point for the Rebellion.

Following the Rebel victory at the Battle of Yavin, Leia held a public ceremony, rewarding Luke Skywalker and Han Solo for their accomplishments and heroism during the battle. She gave Han the rank of Captain and Luke the rank of Commander.

Hero of the Rebellion
"You are part of the Rebel Alliance and a traitor!"

- Darth Vader



Several days after the Battle of Yavin, Leia received reports that Han Solo was stealing Sith treasure from the ancient temples on the forest moon. She, along with Luke, raced out to catch him, but he rocketed away in the Millennium Falcon just as they got to the temple. Furious, she denounced Solo, despite his efforts at the major battle, and issued a warrant for his arrest, should he return to Yavin IV. When he did return, she found out that the treasure was sold to finance the Alliance, and she forgave him. Subsequently, she went with him on a mission to the Incom Factory to negotiate the purchase of new X-Wings with Vors Voorhorian.

With Organa now exposed as a Rebel, she took over the Alliance's diplomatic efforts. At the Conference of Uncommitted Worlds on Kabal, she won the Alliance the support of Silver Fyre and her Aquaris Freeholders. She also encouraged sedition on any number of worlds to the planets of the distant Minos Cluster.

A week after the Battle of Yavin, Leia, R2-D2, and Luke traveled to Rebel base of Akuria to insure against a sudden Imperial counter-attack on Yavin. But because Artoo wasn't properly repaired the ship went off course. After a near-miss with an Imperial fleet, Organa and Skywalker encountered four android children, who had the power to control the elements, and a computerized "Keeper" on a formerly war-torn world who helped them escape the Imperials.

Shortly after the loss of their base on Yavin 4, Leia, Nera Dantels, and Jorin Sol accompanied Luke to Jabiim where they discovered that the locals had a personal vendetta against Anakin Skywalker after he abandoned them to the separatists during the Clone Wars. They captured by the natives shortly after. Having managed an escape from the rebel group who wanted revenge for their father's actions during the Clone Wars, Leia, Luke, and the droids fought their way through Imperial stromtroopers and encountered Nolan Gillmunn, a local resistance leader and son of Jedi knight, Orliss Gillmunn. Becoming allied with Nolan and his band of rebels, Organa and the others participated in the Battle of Jabiim.

Against Luke's better judgment, Leia sought the help of Raal Panter, a childhood friend from Alderaan, in finding a new location for the Rebel base. Raal didn't care for the Rebellion much, though he did care for Leia, and proposed that she stay on the moon with him and together they could preserve a bit of Alderaan together. When Leia accompanied Raal on a tour through the wild preserve, they crash-landed on planet where Panteer was bitten by a creature and died. Enraged Heeth ordered Leia to leave the planet, refusing to help the rebellion.

In 1 ABY Organa traveled to Metalorn on a mission to spread the message of hope to its residents. Metalorn, a factory planet, had been controlled by the Empire, under the direction of Governor Corwyth with no information of the Rebellion reaching its citizens. Leia managed to evade Imperial stormtroopers long enough to contact her former instructor Arn Horada in order for him to spread the word that the Rebel Alliance actively opposed the Empire's tyranny. Soon after Organa was confronted by Baron Orman Tagge before she was able to establish any details, but managed to escape with the help of a youngster named Tammi.



Sometime after the Battle of Yavin 4, Leia, accompanied by Luke, crash-landed on Mimban. On Mimban Leia and Luke encountered Halla, a Force-sensitive. They struck a deal with the Halla, promising to find the Kaiburr crystal if she aided in their escape. During their search, Leia and Luke confronted Darth Vader. Darth Vader managed to injure Skywalker and would have killed him if it weren't for Leia. Using Luke's lightsaber, Leia briefly dueled the Dark Lord and was quickly defeated due to her inexperience with the weapon. Luke was able to heal her wounds with the Kaiburr crystal and defeated Vader, with the help of Obi-Wan Kenobi's spirit. Leia subsequently secured funding from the Circarpous IV business underground after revealing an illegal Imperial mine on Mimban.

Shortly after the disastrous mission to Mimban, Leia was able to access lost Organa resources of money and capital on Ord Mantell greatly needed for the Rebel war effort. Leia also focused her efforts on rallying planets to help them defeat the Empire. On one occasion she traveled to the Minos Cluster, where she helped unify Rebellion against the Empire.

As the war continued, Leia, C-3PO, R2-D2 and Rebellion finance minister Viscount Tardi traveled to the banking world of Aargau to complete the financing of a sale of X-wing fighters to the Rebellion. However they were unaware of Darth Vader and his entourage of paid assassins were also on the planet.

Vader's assassins made several attempts on Tardi's life, but Leia's quick wit not only saved the Viscount, but destroyed the assassins as well. Ultimately Vader was forced to play his hand and cut Tardi down with his lightsaber, only to discover that Viscount Tardi was actually just a droid made in his image and the real Tardi had died months ago. Leia had R2 record video images of the "murder" and transmitted them to C-3PO who was at police headquarters in order to prevent Vader from exposing their ruse to the authorities. Leia needed the fake Viscount to secure the loan, and used the Crown Jewels of Alderaan as indisputable collateral. As a precaution Leia had to manipulate Vader into destroying the duplicate droid of Tardi.

Unbeknownst to Organa, Darth Vader had manipulated her as he really had no interest in preventing her financial deal for the starfighters, he only wanted to take possession of the priceless Alderaanian jewels. He bribed an officer at the local customs station, and acquired the treasure, and had only played along with Leia's plan to ensure he could leave the planet without the jewels being missed by the authorities. Nonetheless Leia secured the funding for the starfighters.

Just before the Fifth Battle of Yavin IV and the imminent Rebel evacuation, a transport filled with Alderaanian refugees, Bail Organa landed at the Rebel base. As Leia went out to greet them, she was reunited with Darlen a friend from her life as a Princess on the destroyed planet. Shortly before the Battle of Hoth, Princess Leia and Captain Chedaki went to investigate Imperial activity in the Shiva system, but as the two entered a shuttle to go down to the planet Shiva IV, the ship was damaged by a space mine that caused an explosion that killed Chedaki. Leia was forced to launch the damaged shuttle in order to protect the ship and the rest of the crew from harm.

The shuttle crashed on Shiva IV, soon after Leia was immediately attacked by a savage raiding party. A group of natives led by Aron Peacebringer and Kéral Longknife repelled the raiders and rescued the princess. After her encounter with the raiding party Leia returned to the capital Illÿriaqum with Aron, and tried to warn him of the danger that the Galactic Empire posed, but the warlord was not convinced that such an empire existed. But during a gala of Calian nobility, Aron and Leia were both secretly captured by Imperial stormtroopers and brought before General Sk'ar as prisoners, however Leia and Aron escaped.



In 3 ABY, Leia moved the Rebel base to the ice planet Hoth after their base on Yavin 4 was discovered. Soon after, Luke went missing. Worried, Organa sent Han to look for him. Fortunately Han returned with an unconscious and badly injured Skywalker in tow. Luke was immediately put into a bacta tank and recovered from his encounter with a wampa. When Han confronted Leia on the issue of their relationship, an incensed Organa kissed Luke, causing a love triangle between the three friends.

When Darth Vader and the Empire discovered the base, Organa helped coordinate the evacuation of the rebel base from Hoth. Despite the ongoing battle, she remained composed and issued commands from the crumbling base. Luckily, she was able to escape any danger and flee with C-3PO, Han Solo and Chewbacca on the Millennium Falcon. Pursued by Imperial fighters, and hobbled by a non-functional hyperdrive, they escaped by flying into an asteroid field.

Crisis at Cloud City
"You truly belong here with us among the clouds."

- Lando Calrissian

Princess Organa's initially adversarial relationship with Han Solo around this time evolved into a more romantic one. Not long after their escape from Hoth, Leia, Han, Chewbacca, and Threepio went to Cloud City, then owned by Han's friend, Lando Calrissian, to get help with the Falcon. Soon after they landed, C-3PO went missing, and worst of all, Lando betrayed them by bringing them to Darth Vader. Han was soon tortured and Leia and the Wookiee were thrown in the dungeon. Moments later Lando came to the dungeons to tell the group that he did what he needed to and informed them of Vader's trap for Luke Skywalker.



Solo was then used as a test subject for the carbonite-freezing process which Darth Vader intended for Luke Skywalker (Solo survived the freezing process, and was taken to Jabba the Hutt by the bounty hunter Boba Fett.) Before he was frozen, her parting words were "I love you," to which Solo responded "I know." After Han was frozen Leia unsuccessfully warned Luke of the incoming danger before being taken as Vader's prisoner. Fortunately Lando managed to rescue Leia, Chewbacca, and Threepio.

Leia displayed latent telepathy, despite having never been trained in the use of the Force, when she sensed Luke's distress as he hung from a weather vane after being defeated by Darth Vader. She led the Falcon back to rescue him, and together they departed for a secret rendezvous point where the Rebel fleet was hiding.

Rescue of Han Solo
"Where am I?" "Jabba's Palace." "Who're you?" "Someone who loves you."

- Han Solo and Leia



In the months that followed, Leia divided her time between missions for the Alliance and the search for Han. At one point, she sought assistance from Prince Xizor of the Black Sun criminal syndicate. In order to get past Imperial security, Leia was disguised as the Ubese bounty hunter Boushh, and Chewbacca took on the identity of the Wookiee bounty hunter Snoova. From there the two became guests of Black Sun's leader, the Falleen Prince Xizor. Xizor also became enamored of Leia, and attempted to seduce her. He used his pheromones upon her and was succeeding when he was interrupted by Chewbacca, who revealed Xizor's scheme to her. Upon returning to Xizor's presence, she stalled for time and then quickly rebuffed his advances by kneeing him in the groin, leaving an enraged Xizor who locked her up. Leia was able to escape due to the efforts of Luke, Chewbacca, Lando Calrissian and Dash Rendar.



Organa participated in the rescue of Han by posing again as the bounty hunter Boushh, allowing herself and Chewbacca to infiltrate Jabba's Palace. She played her role well, for the urging of more money led the Hutt to believe "he" was his kind of scum. However, in order to convince the ruthless Hutt, Leia coldly held an armed thermal detonator ticking down its time until it blew unless Jabba agreed to a higher bounty. That night she freed Solo from carbonite but Solo and Leia were caught by Jabba. Han was thrown into a cell with Chewbacca, while Jabba had better plans for her. To Leia's discomfort, he licked her with his over-exocentric tongue. She was then forced into replacing Oola as Jabba's favorite slave girl. During this time she was forced to wear a skimpy metal bikini costume of one of Jabba's slave girls and endure the shame and humiliation of being at the mercy of the Hutt's lust.

Leia's spirits rose when Luke arrived to rescue everyone but were temporarily dashed when Jabba tried to kill Luke by putting him into the rancor pit. To her relief, Luke killed the monster, however Leia was rewarded by being choked and hassled around by a furious Jabba. During the ride on Jabba's sail barge, she was made to drink a grotesque drink. After Luke escaped once again and as Jabba's skiff guards fell into the sarlacc, Leia made her move. She crushed the light that lit up the barge and turned it into a pitch black frenzy. As everyone was too preoccupied to help Jabba, Leia hopped over him and choked him with the very chain that held her captive, dealing with the vile gangster once and for all. R2-D2 then cut her chains and she joined Luke on the top deck of the sail barge. From there she pointed the deck gun at the barge and swung away to safety with Luke.

Endor and a shocking revelation
"You have a power that I don't understand and can never have." "You're wrong Leia, you have that power too. In time you will learn to use it as I have."

- Leia and Luke

After leaving Tatooine, Leia joined the gathered Rebel fleet near Sullust, and accompanied General Crix Madine's commando force to the forest moon of Endor where the Death Star II's shield generator was located. Soon after Leia accompanied Luke and Han to Endor. On Endor, Leia and Luke confronted stormtroopers. In order to make sure their arrival was kept secret, Leia jumped on a speeder bike, with Luke in tow, and chased them throughout Endor's dense forests. Leia was able to shoot down one but was also shot down herself and collapsed. After falling off of her stolen speeder bike, she was found by a curious Ewok named Wicket Wystri Warrick, a local to the sanctuary moon of Endor. Soon after a stormtrooper attacked them, fortunately Leia and Wicket were able to subdue him. To keep her safe, Wicket took her to his village where she was considered a princess to the Ewoks.



Worried, Han, Luke, Chewbacca, R2-D2, and C-3PO searched the forest, only to be captured by Ewoks, however, the Ewoks saw Threepio as a god. Taken to Bright Tree Village as a feast to honor Threepio, Leia reunited with her friends and tried, unsuccessfully, to convince them to let her friends go. Fortunately Threepio was able to persuade them to let Han, Luke, Chewbacca, and Artoo go, with the help of Skywalker. Later on, the Ewoks accepted them as part of their tribe.

The night before the battle, Organa received news that forever changed her life. Her long-time "friend", Luke Skywalker, revealed to her that they were brother and sister, and that the fallen Jedi, Darth Vader, was their father. After Luke revealed to her of their relationship, Leia told Luke that she had somehow knew that Luke was her brother. During the conversation, Leia revealed to have memories of her real mother, but they were only "images" and "feelings." She recalled her mother as being "very beautiful, kind, but sad". "&hellip;he's my brother."

- Leia to Han on Endor referring to Luke



When Luke told Leia that he had to confront Darth Vader, still stricken with shock, she tried to convince him to just "run far away" instead, but Luke had already made up his mind and left her deeply shocked.

Leia fought alongside Han in the battle that followed, though she was injured with a blaster wound to her upper arm during the fighting. Even with this injury, Leia was able to shoot dead two stormtroopers who attempted to capture her and Han at the shield bunker. The mission to Endor was eventually a success, and the Death Star II was destroyed in the epochal Battle of Endor when Lando Calrissian and Nien Nunb, piloting the Millennium Falcon, flew into the station's core and destroyed it from the inside. Following the battle, Leia informed Han of her familial relationship with Luke, and the two shared a kiss as the explosion of the Death Star lit the skies above.

Truce at Bakura


"Maybe Vader had died heroically, but ten minutes contribution did not make up for years of atrocities."

- Leia, after her first and only visitation from the Force ghost of her father

Immediately after the Battle of Endor, the Rebel Alliance answered a distress call from Bakura, which was under invasion by the Ssi-Ruuk. Leia and Han Solo also struggled to find some time together and hash out their newly-formed relationship. Leia discovered that Bakura chafed under Imperial rule. The remaining Imperial forces were outnumbered and outgunned by Ssi-Ruuk invaders, and the result was a truce between the Imperials and the Rebels. However, after a successful engagement led to the temporary withdrawal of the Ssi-Ruuk, Imperial governor Wilek Nereus betrayed the Rebels and ordered them targeted. Leia was imprisoned in an out-of-the-way complex, but was rescued by a typically crazy stunt by Han Solo. Leia then aided the short, swift Bakuran overthrow of the government and was present at the surrender of Nereus. It was during this time that the spirit of Anakin Skywalker appeared to Leia to beg for her forgiveness, which she would not or could not grant at that time since she had just learned of her parentage and the fact that he was Darth Vader. Shortly afterwards the Alliance of Free Planets was formed.

Right after the founding of the New Republic, the false Prophet of the Dark Side known as Kadann foretold that the chosen heir to the Galactic Empire would present himself bearing the glove of Darth Vader. An Imperial Grand Moff, Bertroff Hissa, heard the prophecy and used it to proclaim Palpatine's son, Trioculus, as the new Galactic Emperor. Now Emperor, Trioculus asked for Leia's hand in marriage. Leia accompanied her brother on his mission to locate the Glove of Darth Vader, a rare gauntlet once owned by her father.

Nagai-Tof War
"Run back to your friends, little Leia...but you have worse things to worry about than stormtroopers. Before long, you and everyone you hold dear will learn just how "pretty dangerous" a foe I can be."

- Lumiya



As the Empire was crippled and the Alliance of Free Planets was founded, Leia embarked on several missions to secure the new order. But before Leia and the newly formed Alliance of free planets could reverse the changes done by the Empire, she was caught up in the Nagai-Tof War.

Traveling to several worlds with Mon Mothma, Leia became embroiled in the events surrounding the Battle of Herdessa. Almost immediately after Leia had pledged her support, she was thrust immediately into an open conflict between Lumiya's forces and the Herdessan Rebels. Personally leading a large group of Herdessan shocktroopers, Lumiya burst into the Rebel's base. Nearly all the Rebels were incapacitated by stun beams in the firefight, but Leia and Suzu were able to escape from the battle. Realizing that Leia and the rebels were a threat Lumiya ordered the residents to track her down. The Herdessan Rebel Finn was soon detained and Lumiya prepared to execute him. Luckily, Suzu and Leia created a diversion that delayed the execution and allowed Leia to ambush Lumiya's guards. As Leia distracted the guards, Suzu released the rest of the prisoners and a final fight broke out between Lumiya's men and the now armed rebels. As the rebels and the Imperial exchanged blaster fire, the remaining Herdessan citizens seized the opportunity to rise up against Lumiya and her corrupt allies. Attacking the Imperials from the rear, the Herdessan citizens quickly subdued their former oppressors ending the battle.

After the Battle of Endor and the formation of a new government, certain members began to talk amongst themselves about the manner in which the leadership of the Alliance was run, claiming it was too oppressive. The leaders of the discontent parties gathered on Kabray to share their concerns with one another. Admiral Ackbar dispatched Princess Leia and Han Solo, along with four Zeltrons as an escort, to the gathering to listen to their concerns and show them the leadership was not aloof, not deaf to their concerns.

The Nagai leadership targeted this gathering as an opportunity to disrupt the Alliance's diplomatic base and dispatched 13 Nagai warriors, led by Knife, to round up the non-combatants. The Nagai arrived before the Alliance reps and easily captured the party of diplomats. When Leia and Han finally arrived they walked right into a trap and were captured without a fight. While they tried to formulate a plan involving Leia pretending to faint, the Zeltron boys set their own trap. They hoisted Jahn up to the ceiling where he wedged himself in the corner above the door. When a Nagai guard entered the room, he jumped on him, knocking him to the ground. The remaining Zeltrons rushed out of the cell and attacked the remaining Nagai in a fierce brawl. Leia and Han appropriated blasters from downed Nagai and joined in on the fighting. Eventually, the Nagai were all rounded up and captured by the Alliance team.

Things went from bad to worse when Princess Leia's transport was caught in the crossfire, and forced to make an emergency landing on Trenwyth. There she found an injured Tai and nursed him back to full health, before both parties made their separate ways, leaving the planet in the clutches of the Tof. Unaware of an oncoming Nagai assault, Leia and the others had rendezvoused on Zeltros, where they were hoping to persuade the Zeltron leaders, Arno and Leonie, to join the war effort. To celebrate the arrival of the Free Alliance heroes, the Zeltron leaders threw a grand party. However, Nagai lieutenant Den Siva and the Nagai forces gate-crashed the festivities, capturing Leia and her friend Dani. The Tof also happened upon Den Siva, and blackmailed Siva into leading his Nagai forces and their prisoners into a Tof ambush &mdash; leaving Leia and Dani in the foul clutches of the Tof. Fortunately, Leia and Dani's sneak attack gave the prisoners a chance to strike back at the Tof. Rallied by Lando, the prisoners were able to defeat the Tof forces, and in the aftermath of the carnage, Den Siva emerged, with an offer to join the Alliance.

The final battle of the war came at the Battle of Saijo after the Alliance allied with the Nagai against the Tofs. It was during this battle that Leia would encounter Lumiya, formerly Shira Brie. The war ended when the prince of the Tof, Sereno, surrendered and Lumiya being betrayed by a Tof soldier.

New Republic Leader
Princess Leia Organa was a founding member of the New Republic, which was formally promulgated in 5 ABY. Her first New Republic position was Minister of State, which she served as during the taking of Coruscant by the New Republic. Also, she served as Councilor during the Thrawn crisis. She went on to succeed Mon Mothma as its Chief of State, and later filled other offices, such as Minister of Defense, and various diplomatic posts. Although most of her life was devoted to such matters of state, she engaged in limited study of the Jedi arts, with her twin brother Luke Skywalker as her teacher. Notably, she wielded a blue lightsaber that she built herself, and then Luke gave her a ruby-red lightsaber to complement the weapon she had constructed earlier. Because of her duties as leader of the New Republic, Leia became more of Jedi Consular than a Jedi Guardian.



Sometime after 5 ABY, Zorba the Hutt was set free from his prison holding cell, after his prison on Kip was infiltrated. He found of his son's death and vowed revenge on Leia, Han, Luke and the others responsible.. He had one of his hunters, Cobak, kidnap Princess Leia, who was vacationing at the Fun World. Zorba, finally face-to-face with Leia, introduced himself as Jabba the Hutt's father, and vowed to take her to the Great Pit of Carkoon, where he would feed her to the Sarlacc. En route to Tatooine, the Zorba's Express was captured by the Imperial Moffship, and both Leia and Zorba were captured. They dropped Zorba into the Pit, but was spit out, and Leia got a low priority bounty on her head in the years to come.

Soon after, Leia was kidnapped by Kadann, who planned to turn her to dark side and make her Queen of the Empire. Fortunately Leia was rescued and with her help, Luke and the others were able to find Palpatine's real son, Triclops, and subdue Trioculus and Bertroff.

Disastrous courtship


Leia, now busy with Minister of State duties while Han was away for a few months fighting Warlord Zsinj, caused a significant rift between the two. During this time, Leia had been conducting negotiations with the Hapes Consortium and was visited by the Hapes delegation at the time of Han's return. They presented Leia with a total of 63 different gifts &mdash; one from each Hapan world &mdash; including a Hapan Gun of Command, rainbow gems from Gallinore, a plant which promotes longevity and intelligence, several Star Destroyers, and last, the hand of the Hapes cluster ruler Ta'a Chume's son, Prince Isolder, in matrimony, to which Leia seriously considered, as Isolder was handsome, well-mannered, and most importantly would provide both the New Republic and the Alderaanian exiles a great deal of benefit.

Jealous, Han kidnapped Leia and took her to Dathomir, a planet he had won in a high-stakes sabacc game. During the flight, Leia was hostile and icy towards Han for abandoning his responsibilities. To make amends, Han promised to return and accept whatever punishment was deserved if she would spend a week with him and didn't love him by the end. However, they found out that the planet was owned by Zsinj and were shot down onto Dathomir, which was interdicted. They encountered the Singing Mountain Clan of Dathomiri witches and set to work repairing the Millennium Falcon. They met up with Luke and Isolder, who had come to rescue them but were also trapped on the planet, and sparks flew between Han and Isolder again. However, the Nightsisters had a plan to capture the Falcon and get off the planet, so Leia had to put all her effort into getting off the planet rather than over which man she should marry. Soon afterwards a battle broke out, which resulted in the end of Zsinj and his army and the marriage between Han Solo and Leia Organa.



After the near-disastrous courtship, Leia married Han Solo in 8 ABY. At first, she did not want to have children, as she feared they would turn out like her father, however she would soon discover the truth. Right after the wedding Leia and Han went on an important mission to Tatooine to retrieve Killik Twilight and the Shadowcast key hidden within it. It was here that Leia discovered her father's friend Kitster Banai in the Valley of the Spirits. With Kitster's help, Solo had discovered her grandmother Shmi's diary and the location of the moss painting. After speaking to her father's childhood friends Kitster and Wald and reading her grandmother's diary, Leia discovered her father hadn't been born or raised as the evil monster she had known, and decided that there was nothing inherently evil in the Skywalker bloodline. Soon afterwards, she became pregnant with twins.

Return of the Empire (9 ABY to 19 ABY)
"They're up to something, Han &mdash; I can feel it. Something big; something dangerous. But I can't figure out what it could be."

- Leia to Han Solo



A year later during the Thrawn Crisis, Grand Admiral Thrawn ordered Noghri commandos to kidnap the pregnant Leia in exchange for Joruus C'baoth's help, who attempted several times to capture her. C'baoth had planned to turn Leia and her brother Luke to the dark side and make them his apprentices. To avoid capture she hid on the planet Kashyyyk, but her would-be kidnappers tracked her. She later learned that Darth Vader once landed on the Noghri home planet Honoghr and tricked the Noghri into serving the Empire by promising to help their planet recover from the ecological disaster that it suffered during the Clone Wars. Because of this, they were fiercely loyal to Vader and later to Thrawn, his successor. The Noghri discovered Leia was the biological daughter of Darth Vader by her bloodline scent, and went to Honoghr and convince the Noghri of the Empire's deception. They left the service of the Empire and became allies of New Republic. Leia was addressed as "The Lady Vader" among the Noghri and both she and her family became revered figures in their society, to the point where Leia, known to the Noghri as the Mal'ary'ush, or "Daughter of the Savior", was granted a permanent bodyguard of lethal Noghri warriors.

Also, during the Thrawn crisis, Leia gave birth to the twins Jaina, named after Han's mother, and Jacen on Coruscant. Despite her pregnancy and later her newborn children, Leia continued to play a pivotal role in the fledgling New Republic as Thrawn's depredations threatened the security of the galaxy. Leia helped get Garm Bel Iblis the command of Coruscant's defense forces after Thrawn laid siege to the planet and also helped root out the mysterious Delta Source that had given the Imperials so much vital intelligence. Finally, Leia helped procure the aid of Talon Karrde to the New Republic, authorizing payments to the smuggler to get his help and information. Talon would later ask Han Solo, after Solo said it took Leia to bring him to the Alliance, if she had any sisters. During the later part of the Rebel Alliance and the early part of the New Republic, Princess Leia was highly popular among both the rank-and-file Alliance fighters and the leaders. After the twins were born, prior to the deaths of Thrawn and C'baoth, Imperial Intelligence agents staged one last unsuccessful attempt to apprehend Leia and the twins.

In 10 ABY, she discovered to her horror that Palpatine was alive and that her brother had turned to the dark side. After learning of Palpatine's return Leia went to Nar Shaddaa where she encountered the old Jedi, Vima-Da-Boda, who told her the tale of her fall and bequeathed to Leia a box containing a 10,000 year old lightsaber discovered on Ossus nearly 850 BBY. With Leia's help, Luke managed to return to the light. Leia observed their duel, giving her energy to Luke through the use of Battle meditation and together they were able to subdue Palpatine on his flagship Eclipse.



After the death of Palpatine's clone on Byss, Leia returned to Nar Shaddaa to remove Vima and extract from her knowledge of the holocrons and the destroyed Jedi Order. After fleeing to Nespis VIII, her second son was born and was named Anakin after his grandfather. Leia, who had been hesitant to tap into her Force potential, learned the valuable techniques from Vima, including how to shield the newly born Anakin. This skill allowed Leia to save baby Anakin from being possessed by the spirit of Palpatine. With the reborn Palpatine's clone body rapidly deteriorating, she was forced to flee to Onderon to hide Anakin Solo from him. The Emperor did eventually find her, but he was shot in the back and a sacrifice from Empatojayos Brand, saved them from Palpatine's spirit.

"Mom and Dad never act that weird unless they're worried about us three little darlings." "That's for sure. They sure do worry." "Come on, Jacen. If you were our parents, wouldn't you worry?"

- Jaina and Jacen Solo talking about their parents

Leia loved all three of her children dearly but because of her position as Chief of State, Leia had barely enough time to devote to family. As a result of kidnapping attempts on her children's lives Leia sent the children to various safe worlds where they were put in the care of Leia's most trusted friend, Winter. Though they were safe, the children, especially Jaina, missed her dearly. However when they returned, the children viewed Leia as a stranger and wanted to believe that Winter was their mother. Jaina would begin to notice her distance from her family, leading to a big rift between the two years later.

Although her sibling relationship to Luke Skywalker (and their relationship to Darth Vader) became public knowledge, she remained known as the heir to Bail Organa, and thus a member of the Royal House of Alderaan. She played an important role for those Alderaanians who still lived, having been offworld at the time of the planet's destruction. She founded New Alderaan, over which the Royal House of Alderaan, in the person of Leia Organa Solo and her children, continued to hold sovereignty. The government on New Alderaan also administered their former Alderaan system.

"You will be our leader, Leia."

- Mon Mothma

Mon Mothma's health began to decline in 11 ABY. No one could discover the source of her illness until Terpfen, Admiral Ackbar's chief mechanic, told her that the Caridan Ambassador Furgan had poisoned her. With that knowledge, the Jedi Healer Cilghal healed her by removing the poison drop by drop. Leia replaced Mon Mothma as Chief of State at this time.

Jedi search


In 11 ABY, when her brother Luke was disabled by Kyp Durron and the spirit of an ancient Sith Lord named Exar Kun, Leia and the family went to visit the Jedi Praxeum on Yavin 4 and were baffled by his condition. During the dinner that followed, Leia, along with the twins and the students felt a great disturbance in the Force when the planet of Carida was destroyed by Kyp Durron. Leia helped the Jedi students make plans to deal with Exar Kun to save Luke.

The next year as Luke began the process of restoring the Jedi Order, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca set out on a mission of their own, vital to the survival of the fragile New Republic. They begin searching for the long-lost children of the Jedi. The quest took them to the Jedi planet of Belsavis, a nearly forgotten frozen world. Having heard tales of a Jedi exodus from the dark crypts below the planet's surface and also hearing that since the time of the exodus no one entering the crypts has returned alive, Leia went to Belsavis to start her search.

Planet of twilight


During the Death Seed plague crisis in 13 ABY Leia was kidnapped by Seti Ashgad and was taken to Nam Chorios, the home of Tsils and the strange alien lifeform, droch. She was held captive by Beldorian, a Hutt Dark Jedi. Beldorian told her stories of the ancient Jedi Masters such as Thon and Yoda, whose power he admired, if not their principles. Despite the fact that his Force abilities were greatly boosted by the planet, Beldorian was killed by Leia in a lightsaber duel. Leia managed to escape and was reunited with Han, Chewbacca, Luke Skywalker, and Lando Calrissian.

Sati Ashagad and Moff Getelles had planned to devastate the Meridian Sector through the use of the Death Seed. However their efforts were foiled by Leia and Luke. Soon afterwards Leia participated in the Battle of Nam Chorios. The battle ended when Luke managed to convince the Chorian crystal mind of the threat that Ashgad posed to the Galaxy if his plans succeeded. As a result Ashgad was killed though Getelles still survived.

Waru


During the Empire Reborn movement of 14 ABY, while on a diplomatic mission to the planet Munto Codru, Jaina, Jacen and Anakin were kidnapped by Lord Hethrir, the Imperial Procurator of Justice, in a fiendish plot to take advantage of their Force powers and sacrifice young Anakin to the creature Waru. To get them back, Leia disguised herself as a pirate, assuming her childhood nickname Lelila as her alias. Along with Chewbacca and Artoo, she followed the kidnappers' trail to a disabled refugee ship, from which children were also missing. It was here that she learned of Hethrir's twisted plan to restore the Empire.

As she followed the path of her children across space, Luke and Han arrived on Crseih Station in order to discover the secret of Waru's sinister cult. While in the process of rescuing her children, Leia freed Hethrir's mate Rillao, whose son Tigris was with Hethrir. She arrived on Hethrir's worldcraft on her yacht Alderaan, rescued the twins and then loaded all the other children aboard the ship before leaving for Crseih Station to rescue Anakin. In the end, Waru destroyed Hethrir before vanishing from the known galaxy following a confrontation with Leia, Han and Luke.

Black Fleet Crisis
Chief of State Organa Solo guided the New Republic through a number of dangerous external crises from post-Imperial warlords. As the threat of Imperial warlords shrank and the New Republic's growth accelerated rapidly, she also faced a number of internal political conflicts in the Third Electoral.

During the Black Fleet Crisis in 16 ABY, Leia faced a ruthless leader of the Duskhan League, an arrogant Yevetha who seemed bent on a genocidal war that could shatter the fragile unity of the New Republic. To end this threat Leia called upon the Senate to take a stand and eliminate the Yevetha threat, even at the cost of Han's life.



Using the New Republic's lack of intelligence on the Dushkan League and Senatorial political infighting to his advantage, Nil Spaar extended his negotiations with Chief of State Solo over a period of weeks. Pressured by military and intelligence advisors who sought answers, and potentially an ally against the Core Imperial strongholds, Organa Solo entered the discussions, only to find herself on the receiving end of a political plot to throw the New Republic into confusion. These two forces came to a head, Leia had no choice but to invoke the Article Five of the Common Charter to forestall a recall vote against her office and declare war against the Yevetha. Cracks in Leia's widespread popularity began to show during this period, cracks that would accelerate with the political ascendance of Borsk Fey'lya.

However these "cracks" would soon resurface in the Almanian Uprising. Leia Organa Solo, Chief of State of the New Republic and President of the Senate, had been under intense pressure from the Black Fleet Crisis political situation. As a result there were many attempts on her life. Leia, however, was determined to put it behind her. Her new term of the Senate added several new ex-Imperial Senators and ex-Imperial worlds, such as the Senator for Exodeen. Despite reassurance from Mon Mothma, she was unsure of the situation. As Leia took the podium and started into an inspired speech, powerful bombs rocked the Imperial Palace Senate chamber. Leia was knocked off her feet, over a hundred Senators were dead or wounded and Leia herself had lost her hearing. More disturbingly to Leia, as she recovered she sensed Luke, in trouble and injured. She had planned to find him incognito, but Mon Mothma sent along a fleet under the command of Wedge Antilles to help her. She found Luke on Almania, where they along with Han, confronted the fallen Jedi student Kueller. Just as Kueller was about to strike down the injured Luke, he was startled by the sudden loss of his connection to the Force thanks to the proximity of a ysalamir. As Kueller pulled out a remote to detonate the rest of the droids around the galaxy to increase his dark side strength through the pain and destruction, Leia shot him, ending his so-called New Rebellion.

Kueller crisis
In 17 ABY, Leia saved her brother from death on Almania and  made their way to her ship. Leia accidentally left him behind after she rushed ahead not realizing that Luke was still weak. In those moments when they were apart, Kueller found Luke and forced a lightsaber duel. Leia came back to find both locked in combat. Terribly weakened, Luke abruptly decided to give up. As Kueller raised his lightsaber to strike Luke down, he lost his connection to the Force. He tried to use his anger to tap into the Force, but doing so was useless, since a thernbee that had swallowed an ysalamir nutrient frame had wandered into the general vicinity. He had one last trick up his sleeve, though: he used a remote to send the signal to self-destruct his remaining droids. However, Kueller's last gasp of malice was thwarted thanks to the efforts of R2-D2, C-3PO, and a young mechanic named Cole Fardreamer. As Kueller had attempted to activate his remaining bombs, Leia shot him. She removed the death mask from his lifeless body, revealing Dolph's boyish face.

First Corellian Insurrection
In 18 ABY Leia and her family took a vacation to Han Solo's home planet of Corellia. While the dust of the defeated Empire settled, Chief of State Leia Organa Solo announced a major trade conference on Corellia, the President of the Senate determined to bring Corellia back to its previous state. Once there they learned of the Human League, headed by Han's cousin Thrackan Sal-Solo and the Sacorrian Triad. The Human League and the Sacorrian Triad joined forces causing the First Corellian Insurrection.

Thrackan managed to imprison Leia and Han while he kidnapped their children. During her imprisonment, Leia met with Mara Jade and the two plotted their escape to the Coronet House. With the help of Jade's ship, Jade's Fire and their own ingenious plan, the two successfully decided to retreat to Selonia, hoping her children were safe with Chewbacca.

On Selonia, with Leia, Mara and Han attempting to convince the Selonians to change their mind &mdash; and they too were imprisoned for a short time. Sinisterly, Thrackan dropped the jamming field long enough to show Leia a hologram of him with her children in custody &mdash; to the immense outrage of the Selonians. The Overden immediately released the three just as Luke arrived and began planning a course of action. Meanwhile while all of this was going on Leia's youngest son, Anakin, managed to stop the destruction the Centerpoint Station was causing.

Despite Leia's brave actions throughout the crisis, the Senate entered a new phase of criticism for her letting the Insurrection get as far as it did, many seeking to oust her from her position.

Caamas Document Crisis


During this time she became involved in the Caamas Document crisis in 19 ABY, in which Thrawn presumably came back from the dead. While on Wayland during a leave of absence from the position of Chief of State, Leia became entangled with a Devaronian who had found a datacard and wanted to keep it under the Debble Agreement. He claimed to be working for Talon Karrde, but did not recognize the smuggler chief. After offering to sell it to her for a ridiculous price, he threw a smoke grenade and tried to escape, but was caught and forced to land by the Wild Karrde. That datacard turned out to reveal that Bothans had been involved in the attack on Caamas. She served as a Councilor on the New Republic's High Council during the leave of absence. Ponc Gavrisom served as New Republic Chief of State during her leave.

Leia was also irritated to learn that Han had taken her place in negotiations between the Ishori and Diamala, which he characteristically handled with his usual subtlety and diplomatic skill &mdash; next to none. Leia also visited Bothawui with Han to investigate the Bothan Clans to try and find the names of the Bothans involved as well as the financial well-being of the clans. During their stay, Han was blamed for a riot instigated by Imperial Intelligence and the Solos left the planet.

While still on her leave of absence to spend more time on her Jedi training, Han arranged a vacation to the sleepy Pakrik system. When traveling near the backwater world of Pakrik Minor, the Millennium Falcon was attacked by assassins. However, they were rescued by a sleeper of cell of clones, including Carib Devist, that Thrawn held left on Pakrik Minor. In exchange for their silence, they helped fix the Falcon and allowed Han and Leia to leave. Shortly afterwards, a shuttle containing Elegos A'kla and Ghent arrived with news that Admiral Pellaeon wanted to discuss a peace treaty. Leia immediately left with the Caamasi and Ghent, along with her Noghri bodyguard. Leia had successfully managed to discuss the treaty preliminarily with Pellaeon, but returned to find fleets of warships facing off over Bothawui.

Leia was on board one of the Ishori ships in place around Bothawui as part of the hostile standoff over the planet when Imperial saboteurs successfully lowered the shield around Drev'starn and used a captured weapons cluster on one of the ships to bombard the planet. Then the Imperials lured each of the fleets into attacking the other. As full scale battle threatened, Leia sensed danger and worry from Han in the Falcon, who had been trapped by an Imperial Star Destroyer that was cloaked. She started moving the Ishori ship towards the threat, which absolutely incensed the Ishori captain. However, just as Leia was about to charged with mutiny under Ishori war-law, President Gavrisom stepped in and nationalized the warship using an obscure New Republic law. The Imperial ships, expecting to surprise the Rebels after the fleets had already battered each other, were surprised to find a united fleet attacking them led by Lando Calrissian, who Leia had selected.

After receiving the Caamas Document, Leia began talks with Admiral Pellaeon that led to Pellaeon-Gavrisom Treaty and an end to the Galactic Civil War. Once the Caamas Document crisis was dealt with, Leia, along with Mirax, and Iella, took some time off to help Mara Jade prepare for her wedding to Luke. Leia along with her family attended Luke's wedding on Coruscant, where she helped stop an assassination attempt.

All three of her children were trained as Jedi at Luke Skywalker's Jedi Praxeum from 22 ABY, and would defend the Galaxy from the Yuuzhan Vong War as part of the New Jedi Order. In 24 ABY Leia and her children, Jaina and Jacen, were able to stop the Diversity Alliance, a non-human organization, from wreaking havoc. Unfortunately, Leia's role as Chief of State came to an end when Borsk Fey'lya succeeded her as the leader of the New Republic.

A new threat


"The New Republic? Are you blind? There is no New Republic! It died before the Yuuzhan Vong came."

- Leia Organa Solo

After serving a second term, Leia resigned as Chief of State, and was replaced by Borsk Fey'lya. After the death of Chewbacca on Sernpidal in 25 ABY, Leia went before the Senate to bring attention to the fact that the approaching Yuuzhan Vong were a threat to the Galaxy. Her pleas went unheeded, and the invasion continued full force. Leia contributed to the war effort by aiding in the evacuations of Dubrillion and Dantooine, finally getting help from the Advisory Council via Admiral Traest Kre'fey's threat to place her into power via launching a military coup d'état. Soon after she joined SELCORE, a movement that aided refugees.

Leia and her husband suffered a brief period of estrangement some months after the death of Chewbacca; her husband was still struggling with his grief and rage over the death of his longtime friend. After the death of Chewbacca, Han blamed Anakin for Chewie's death and returned to the loner he once was, leaving the family to go on adventures with his friend Droma. Leia buried herself in her work with SELCORE, hoping that her husband would one day come back and mend the severed ties with their family.

A year later, during the Battle of Duro, Leia  was captured by Warmaster Tsavong Lah, who tortured her to the brink of paralysis. Lah intended to sacrifice Leia to Yun-Yammka, the God of War and the patron deity of the Warrior caste. Fortunately, Jacen managed to locate his mother and managed to knock Lah out a window, tearing the Warmaster's left foot loose. Shortly afterwards Han returned and rescued her.

After Duro was taken by the Yuuzhan Vong, Leia and Han fled to Corellia for Leia to recover but were chased away from his cousin now Governor of the planet. They then decided to take a short break to try and close the rift in their marriage that was formed by Han's grief over Chewbacca. While on vacation, Leia and Han ran into a previously unknown group of Jedi called the Wild Knights which was lead by Saba Sebatyne, and helped bring them to Luke's attention, and into the limelight of the war.

Death of a son and aftermath


The Solo family enjoyed small blessings early during the war, beginning with the reconciliation of Han and Anakin, who Han originally had blamed in no small part for Chewbacca's death. Shortly afterwards, Leia's nephew Ben Skywalker was born, whom she adored and called "Skycrawler". Perhaps the greatest tragedy the Solos would face during the war came shortly afterwards, when on a doomed mission to Myrkr, Anakin died while leading a Jedi team tasked with the destruction of the Jedi-hunting Vong creations, the voxyn. To make things worse her eldest son, Jacen, was presumed dead after she and the other Jedi felt his supposed death through the force. For a short period of time, Tahiri, was put in the care of the Solos after she suffered terrible dreams as a result of her shaping and Anakin's death.

Almost concurrently, the Yuuzhan Vong launched a massive attack that overwhelmed Coruscant. Still struggling with the overwhelming grief of her son's death, Leia &mdash; at the urging of Fey'lya &mdash; managed to make an impassioned plea to all New Republic forces to fight and resist at all costs.

Meanwhile, Leia and Han gained temporary custody of their nephew as his parents were busy fighting the war. She enjoyed Ben's company but in some ways, she was reminded of her the son she had just lost. During the Fall of Coruscant, Leia was forced to turn Ben over to C-3PO as Viqi Shesh was planning to kidnap the infant. Fortunately, Lando was able to save both Threepio and baby Ben from harm's way. Though they were facing one of the most devastating wars in the galaxy, Leia and Han were once again found hope when they reunited with Jacen and his mentor Vergere. Coruscant's fall, Han and Leia went to Hapes for Anakin's funeral, then went on several missions to restore HoloNet communications to the Unknown Regions, and foiled a second attempt of the Ssi-Ruuk to invade Bakura in the process.

When Zonama Sekot made its existence known near Coruscant in 30 ABY, Han and Leia traveled there to be reunited with the rest of their family. While there, they met Harrar, a Yuuzhan Vong priest. Solo also played a major role during the Liberation of Coruscant. Leia and Han, along with Harrar, Threepio and Artoo, crashed the Millennium Falcon into the well of the World Brain. After the destruction of Shimrra and Onimi, Leia and the others traveled with Nom Anor across the labyrinth the mighty war vessel of the Master Shaper. However, the executor turned on them, shooting his venom at Han. Jacen managed to save him just in time. Before he could kill them off, Leia engaged Non Amor, slicing off his hand in the process. They managed to escape and arrived at conclave on Zonama Sekot, which marked the end of the Yuuzhan Vong War.

Though the war caused much pain for the Solos and Skywalkers, their relationship became stronger. It was during this time that Leia and Jaina were able to repair their tenuous relationship. She had forsaken politics to become Han's copilot, a position she would hold for five years.

A cry for help
"You're too old to start being a real Jedi now." "I think I need to teach you some manners."

- Alema Rar and Leia Organa Solo



In 35 ABY, Han and Leia followed several Jedi including Luke and Mara into the Unknown Regions and discovered that Raynar Thul was alive, and had been taken in by a nest of Killiks. During the mission to Myrkr, Thul had been incapacitated by the Nightsister Lomi Plo and the Dark Jedi Welk. They took him and escaped on the Tachyon Flier, which was under fire during Myrkr outbound, where all three were presumed lost. In truth, the Tachyon Flier had crashed onto the planet Yoggoy, a Killik nest, and made all three Force-users into Joiners. Raynar Thul was integrated into the Yoggoy nest while Lomi Plo and Welk were integrated into the Gorog nest. All became leaders of their respective nests, Raynar even created a new lead nest named Unu and became the Prime Unu, now reborn as UnuThul. The Killik nests took on the persona of the people they integrated, or Joined into their nests. The Yoggoy nests, and each other nest, except for Gorog, gained Raynar's sense of compassion and value for life, whereas the Gorog nest retreated into secrecy, due to the want of Lomi Plo and Welk to hide. The Gorog became the Dark Nest, and secretly controlled the other nests, without their even knowing.

UnuThul greeted the Solos in Yoggoy hangar with a masterful display of his current Force power. In the Prime Chamber, UnuThul used "we" to address himself, stating Raynar Thul no longer existed and "they" were now UnuThul. Luke insisted that he sensed Raynar's presence in UnuThul, and guessed Raynar might be in hiding. Raynar then guided the Jedi to read the Chronicle on the wall, explaining the transformation of Raynar Thul to UnuThul, and the rise of the Unu nest. UnuThul explained the Unu nest as "the nest of the nests".

In the following interview Luke sensed the Raynar presence rose repeatedly to the surface but was swallowed by the presence of the hive mind. UnuThul claimed that the Crash was remembered, but not the Dark Jedi, and concluded that they must be dead. When Luke tried to probe UnuThul again, the hive mind was able to powerfully push Luke out. When Mara demanded the location of the missing Jedi, UnuThul suddenly Force probed Luke with such a power that required the combined strength of Luke, Mara, Saba and Leia to stop him.

Still refusing to surrender the location of Qoribu, UnuThul stated that anyone could leave whenever they wanted, and decided to assign a Yoggoy guide to escort the Jedi back to Lizil. The Jedi soon realized that such a collective mind allowed UnuThul to spy on them almost anytime and anywhere on Yoggoy. They visited the crash site, and Leia received Jacen's flow-walking message about Qoribu which was in the Gyuel system. Insects dark blue in color then attempted to assassinate the Jedi Masters at the crash site, which the Jedi barely escaped with Nanna killing several of the blue insects in the process. However, the Yoggoy guide that accompanied the Jedi denied ever seeing any blue insects before its death. When they traveled back to the hangar, Han and UnuThul exchanged harsh words on the matter of attempted assassination. As the debate became a stalemate, Luke proposed that it was another party who attempted to assassinate the Jedi, but UnuThul insisted that even if someone else attacked the Jedi, the hive mind would also be aware.

To avoid a war with the Chiss, Leia suggested to UnuThul that the Killik nest be moved to a new planet, but made him think it was his idea. Afterwards, Leia decided to begin formal training as a Jedi Knight, and asked Saba Sebatyne to train her. Leia stated that Saba could challenge her in "new and unexpected ways." Amongst the ways she was tested was to rely more on the Force than on technology, and also to learn to appreciate the authority of the Masters' Council (more uncomfortable for the Masters than Leia, since a few had spent their adult lives taking orders from her).

Swarm War


Just prior to the Swarm War, Luke and Han had been taken prisoner by the Killiks in order to gain help for stopping the Fizz. Upon returning from Ossus with Master Saba, as well as Mara Jade Skywalker and a team of Jedi in StealthX's, Leia was captured by Admiral Bwau'tu, commander of the 5th Fleet, stationed in the Utegetu Nebula to prevent the Killiks from leaving their homeworlds. While arguing with the Admiral aboard the Admiral Ackbar, the Killiks attacked the ship. Led by Alema Rar, the Killiks managed to take over the ship, with Leia fighting Rar to a standstill before escaping, just as Han and Luke returned from Utegetu.

Around this same time, R2-D2 had a malfunction where he had shown Luke a holoclip of the mother he had never known. Before Luke could get more out info out of Artoo, Artoo had a meltdown, claiming he was protecting Luke. Frustrated, Luke contacted master slicer Zakarisz Ghent, who managed to recover one other holo featuring Padmé and Anakin Skywalker, which was displayed to both Luke and Leia.

Leia did not approve when Luke took complete control of the Jedi Order. During the Jedi convocation at Ossus, she and Han discovered that Tenel Ka had recently given birth to a daughter Allana, whom she did not know was her granddaughter through her son Jacen, though she did suspect Jacen knew the father. She later went off with Han to search for their daughter Jaina in the Unknown Regions. They were detained many times, but eventually got to their destination.

On Tenupe, during the Swarm War, Leia dueled for the third time with Dark Jedi Alema Rar. Saba observed this duel, and was very approving when Leia finally defeated Alema. In truth, the Dark Jedi was dragged off by a huge creature, one that Leia soon knocked off a cliff. The Chiss were less than happy with this explanation, however.

Leia then had her lightsaber taken by Saba, who told her that it didn't reflect her skills anymore (she had built this one 20 years before), and that it was time that she build a new lightsaber, a saber fit for a fully-fledged Jedi Knight.

Second Corellian Crisis
"When did a nice girl like you learn to do things like that?"

- Han on Leia

In 40 ABY, when tensions with Corellia rose, Leia remained officially a member of the Alliance. However, she was secretly aiding the Corellian independence movement. She was present at the Battle of Tralus; although she was a member of the Alliance fleet, she helped the Corellians win their victory. However, after the battle, Leia didn't realize that her son Jacen had turned to the dark side &mdash; ironically, this was the reason she didn't want to have children in the first place, as she believed that any children she bore would turn to the dark side as her father did.

As the war raged on Leia and Han find themselves banned from Corellia after Thrackan Sal-Solo placed a bounty on the entire Solo family. In order to avoid danger Han and Leia hid on Corellia, splitting up and meeting in Coronet. Getting useful information from Dur Gejjen, Han decided that Thrackan was too dangerous to be left alive and decided that Thrackan should die, though he had doubts about killing in cold blood. While on Corellia Han and Leia learned of a terrorist attack on a hotel in Coruscant leading to the deaths of thousands. They didn't approve when they learned that Jacen and Ben were leading Galactic Alliance Guard raids on the Corellian parts of Coruscant. After hearing the news Leia and Han decided it was time to face their son and left for Coruscant.

During their return to Coruscant, Leia and Jacen performed a Force Meld in order to keep the aged ship intact. Soon after Han, with the help of Boba Fett and Mirta Gev, killed Thrackan, thus ending his reign of terror. Meanwhile Leia noticed that Jacen has become distant and was slowly becoming a stranger to the whole family. When Leia and Han discovered that Jacen killed Ailyn Vel, Han disowned Jacen while Leia was stricken with shock.

Leia later openly sided with the Corellians, infuriating the rest of the Solo-Skywalker family. Han and Leia entered into the Corellian military, where they fought in a space battle and were accused by the Alliance of being assassins. Jacen led the Galactic Alliance Guard in an attempt to track them down and arrest them.

However, she and Han broke with the Corellians after they learned that the Corellians had marked Tenel Ka and Allana for death.

Personality
"Wonderful girl! Either I'm going to kill her or I'm beginning to like her."

- Han Solo

In her youth Leia had a fiery attitude and was headstrong, though not as much as her brother and father. As a child, Leia wasn't fond of her role as the Princess of Alderaan. She was often seen by many, especially her family, as a tomboy and was sometimes mistaken for a domestic girl rather than a princess. As she matured her outspoken nature blossomed and her dislike of her title ceased. Leia also had a strong personality and a bright intellect. Unlike her brother, Luke Skywalker, and her father, Anakin, Leia never looked for adventure or rushed into things without thinking. Like her mother, Leia avoided the corruption of politics, and instead concentrated on helping others. When she was not serious Leia also possessed a great sense of humor.

Despite growing up on the peaceful world of Alderaan, Leia never became soft. Throughout the Galactic Civil War, Leia proved to be the leader that everyone was willing to follow. Her fierceness and determination to restore freedom to the galaxy helped the Rebel Alliance get through even the toughest of battles. Leia had always put duty before her own personal needs, making her the perfect leader for the New Republic. However, this would be a burden as she had to be away from her young children. Over time her strong stance on political matters ceased and by the time of the Black Fleet Crisis many were seeking to oust Solo from her position as Chief of State. After the death of her youngest son, Anakin, Leia became more serene, losing some traits she possessed in her youth.

Leia was known for having compassion for her friends, and would go to great lengths to help them, whenever she could. This was why she had a strong bond with her son, Jacen, who shared her view.

Talents
"Somebody has to save our skins!"

- Leia Organa

Leia possessed many talents, both Force-related and in combat. During her childhood on Alderaan, Leia was taught self-defense and combat skills from Giles Durane, a weapons master and friend of Bail Organa. Leia is skilled with a blaster. She rarely if ever misses.

Though hesitant about her Jedi training, Leia was later taught various Force techniques, becoming one of the Order's most powerful Jedi. In 10 ABY, Leia helped her brother defeat Palpatine through the use of Battle meditation, and in that very same year, she shielded her baby son Anakin from Palpatine's disembodied spirit. Aside from those, Leia was also skilled in telepathy, telekinesis, and Force meld.

In 40 ABY, Leia was able to land the Millennium Falcon using Force telekinesis and a Force Meld with Jacen, a similar achievement done by her father almost sixty years earlier.

Romances
"You like me because I'm a scoundrel. There aren't enough scoundrels in your life." "I happen to like nice men."

- Leia and Han Solo

Luke Skywalker


During the Galactic Civil War the two were caught in love triangle as Luke and Han both harbored feelings for her, feelings in which she returned. However after Luke discovered that Leia was his sister, Leia's relationship with Luke evolved into that a brother and sister one.

It is possible that Luke and Leia's attraction to each other, who did not know they were related at the time, is actually a common phenomenon known as genetic sexual attraction.

Fenn Shysa
When Han was frozen in carbonite, Leia spent most of her time looking for his whereabouts. During her search she came across Mandalore Fenn Shysa, who had planned to assassinate her as he thought that Leia was her deceased mother, Padmé Amidala. Eventually Shysa joined Organa in her search for Han and as a result the two developed a relationship. However, the relationship did not last.

Prince Xizor
Then there was Prince Xizor, who was the leader of the Black Sun criminal organization. However this relationship was one of seduction and not love. Xizor was a member of the Falleen species, who were known for their special ability to attract members of the opposite sex by using their pheromones, he used this to advantage and seduced Organa. This relationship was short-lived when Leia was able to overcome his seduction with the help of Chewbacca.

Prince Isolder
In 8 ABY Prince Isolder of Hapes asked for Leia's hand in holy matrimony. At a formal reception he presented many gifts in which Leia accepted, nearly saying yes to his proposal. However Han intervened and during a trip to Dathomir Isolder fell in love with the Dathomiri witch Teneniel Djo.

Han Solo
"I love you!" "I know."

- Leia Organa and Han Solo

When they first met the two got off to a rocky start however as they worked together during the Galactic Civil War, Leia and Han's relationship developed that would last throughout the war. Though Leia did not admit at first, she had feelings for Han but she also had feelings for Luke. However when Han became frozen in carbonite Leia realized that she loved him.

In 8 ABY the two were married and had three children, Jaina, Jacen, and Anakin Solo in the next two years. Even with the death of their youngest child Anakin, their relationship grew stronger that even the war would not tear them apart.

Portrayal
Leia was played most notably by actress Carrie Fisher in the original trilogy and The Star Wars Holiday Special. All subsequent images of her likeness were based off Fisher's appearance. She was also played by Aiden Barton as an infant in Revenge of the Sith. Leia's voice has been portrayed by Ann Sachs in the Star Wars radio drama and in Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds, Star Wars: Masters of Teräs Käsi, Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire by Lisa Fuson.

Character development
In early drafts of A New Hope, Leia was a 14-year-old princess (the same age as Queen Amidala in The Phantom Menace), the spoiled daughter of King Kayos and Queen Breha of Aquilae. Later drafts established her as Leia Antilles, the daughter of Bail Antilles from the peaceful world of Organa Major. In the final draft the names were turned around so that Leia Organa came instead from Alderaan.

Name

 * The name "Leia" has a number of potential origins. It may have been derived from "Leah" which in Hebrew means "weary". Alternatively it might mean "mistress'" or "ruler" in Assyrian. Additionally, a Talmudic source cites "Leila" as the "Angel of Night". A third origin could be the Greek word "basileia," meaning "reign". It could also have been adopted from the Hawaiian "Leia", which means "child of heaven".
 * In the Italian version of the films, "Leia Organa" was renamed to "Leila Organa".
 * In June 2005, Princess Märtha Louise of Norway admitted in an interview that the first name of her youngest daughter, Leah Isadora Behn, was inspired by Princess Leia.

Costumes



 * The costume designer for the films had a "no lingerie in space" policy, which prevented Fisher from wearing a brassiere. To maintain decorum, adhesive tape was used in place of the banned garment. Despite the ban on some undergarments, Leia's metallic bikini scenes were voted by Empire magazine as among the most memorable in movie history.
 * According to George Lucas, Leia's famous A New Hope hairdo was the result of "trying to create something different, so I went with a kind of Southwestern Pancho Villa woman look. The buns were basically from turn-of-the-century Mexico."

Her real mother
George Lucas stated that he wanted one of the Skywalker twins to recall their mother, hence Leia describing her as "very beautiful, kind but sad".

When Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith came out, many people didn't understand how it was possible that Leia claims to remember her real mother although she had known her for barely a minute.

There has been some debate since about if Leia was discussing her real mother, Padmé Amidala, or her foster mother. However, the official Star Wars website in its "Q & A" section explicitly states that Leia is remembering Padmé.

Princess Leia's Theme


Princess Leia's Theme is the musical leitmotif in the Star Wars saga that represents Princess Leia Organa.

It is first heard in A New Hope, when Princess Leia is captured by Darth Vader. Later, it is heard as R2-D2 plays Leia's holographic message to Obi-Wan Kenobi. It is also heard very fully as Leia nostalgically remembers the innocent past. Oddly, the theme plays when Obi-Wan Kenobi is killed by Darth Vader, even though Leia has no direct involvement in this event. Finally, it plays in the end credits of A New Hope.

In The Empire Strikes Back the theme is again present and is also developed in the new theme Han Solo and the Princess, which acted as the film's love theme. Princess Leia's Theme plays as Han Solo tells Leia that he must leave to settle his debt with Jabba the Hutt. The only other time it plays is at the end of the movie, when Leia and Lando Calrissian rescue Luke Skywalker from Cloud City on Bespin.

In Return of the Jedi, the theme is only heard as Leia shoots a stormtrooper on the moon Endor.

The theme was revived for the "prequel" trilogy. Its first occurrence in a sequential viewing of George Lucas's revised Star Wars saga is in Revenge of the Sith, when during the final montage of shots at the end of the film, her adoptive parents, Bail Organa and his wife, hold the newborn Leia. It reappears soon after during the end credits of the movie.

Senator Leia Organa, Sith apprentice
In the graphic novel, Star Wars Infinities: A New Hope, the Rebel Alliance is defeated and Princess Leia finds herself a captive of the Emperor. Darth Vader begins teaching her the ways of the Sith, helping her to develop her Force powers, in the hopes that one day they will overthrow the Emperor and rule the galaxy together. In a climactic battle with Luke, she turns back to the light side. That she was taking her training seriously is evidenced by her wielding of a blood-red saber in the final battle.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
 * Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
 * Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi