The rebellion

"There are other cells!"

- Sabine Wren

In the years prior to the Battle of Yavin, a network of rebel cells operated across the galaxy in opposition to the rule of the Galactic Empire. These cells, which were scattered and had limited communication with one another, were led in secret by Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan and former Padawan Ahsoka Tano. Tano gave missions to the cells under the codename "Fulcrum" to hide her identity. The cells came together to help rescue Kanan Jarrus, one of the leaders of a cell that operated on the planet Lothal. The network was a precursor to the Alliance to Restore the Republic.

Description
"We weren't supposed to meet. That way, if captured, we couldn't reveal the other rebels to the Empire."

- Hera Syndulla

The network of rebel cells operated across the galaxy, with various cells working in opposition to the Galactic Empire. The network was led by Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan and former Padawan Ahsoka Tano. In many cases, members of these cells were not aware of a larger rebel movement, nor did they know there were other cells. The network was designed to operate in this fashion in the interest of self-preservation; if any rebels were caught by the Empire, they would not have any information about the network to give to the Empire. The network did, however, maintain communication with each cell, with Tano feeding missions to the cells under the codename "Fulcrum." These cells included the crew of the Ghost, which operated on and around the Outer Rim planet Lothal; and Phoenix Squadron, which included A-wing starfighters.

History
"Why did you come here?" "Because of you, and your apprentice. Many in this system and beyond have heard your message. You gave them hope in their darkest times. We didn't want that hope to die."

- Kanan Jarrus and Ahsoka Tano

The rebel network was founded some time after the end of the Clone Wars, in which Supreme Chancellor Palpatine&mdash;secretly Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord of the Sith&mdash;declared himself Emperor and transformed the Galactic Republic into the Galactic Empire. The network, led by Organa and Tano, found rebel cells throughout the galaxy and secretly worked to feed them missions to undertake against the Empire. Five years before the Battle of Yavin, the crew of the Ghost came to Organa's attention after they successfully stopped an arms deal involving illegal T-7 ion disruptors. Organa had sent his two droids, R2-D2 and C-3PO, to handle the weapons, and the droids encountered the Ghost crew. Artoo recorded much of his time with the crew and, once they were returned to Organa, presented the senator with his recordings. After the encounter, the crew received missions from Tano, operating as Fulcrum, though only the owner of the Ghost, Hera Syndulla, knew Fulcrum's identity or any information about the network.

Some time later, the leader of the Ghost crew, the Jedi Kanan Jarrus, was captured by the Empire. His capture came about after the crew infiltrated the main communications tower on Lothal in order to send out a message of hope to the planet's citizens. The attempt was successful and the message was broadcast to Lothal and to many other planets, drawing the attention of both Tano and the Imperial government. Knowing that the cell could be endangered, Tano urged Syndulla to take her crew into hiding. Tano believed that it was the best way to keep Ezra Bridger, Jarrus' Padawan, safe, as he was a source of hope. Jarrus, meanwhile, was taken aboard the Sovereign, the personal Star Destroyer of Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin. The Empire had learned about the rebel network and hoped to extract information about it from Jarrus, but Jarrus had no information to give them.

Despite Tano's warnings, the crew of the Ghost set out to rescue Jarrus despite the warnings. They infiltrated the Sovereign when it was in orbit of Mustafar, and the crew's droid, C1-10P, contacted "Fulcrum" for assistance. Knowing the importance that the Ghost crew had because of their Jedi crew members, Tano organized a fleet of CR90 corvettes, made up of members of other cells, and brought them to Mustafar, where they helped the Lothal crew escape&mdash;with Jarrus in tow. Once the crew was reunited aboard the Ghost, Tano revealed herself as Fulcrum and told the rest of the crew that they were part of a larger rebel movement.

Behind the scenes
The network of rebel cells was first introduced in the animated television series Star Wars Rebels, a show that will chart the formation of the Rebel Alliance. The show's first season focused entirely on the crew of the Ghost, but the first hints of a wider rebel movement were given in the episodes "Droids in Distress" and "Out of Darkness." The network itself was first depicted in the first season finale, "Fire Across the Galaxy," and will be a part of the show's second season.