Order 66/Legends

"Execute Order 66."

- Palpatine to numerous clone commanders

Order 66 was one of a series of contingency orders that the clone troopers of the Grand Army of the Republic were secretly trained to prepare for during their growth. The order branded the Jedi as traitors of the Republic and called for their immediate removal without question. Its issuing marked the formal beginning of the Great Jedi Purge, that started the Galactic Civil War.

History
"I sense a plot to destroy the Jedi."

- Mace Windu



In 19 BBY, Order 66 was issued by Darth Sidious towards the end of the Clone Wars. The official reason given for its execution was the onset of an attempted Jedi vendetta against the Republic; in reality, it was the culmination of a chain of events orchestrated by Palpatine himself over a period of decades, all designed to bring about the end of the Jedi Order. Just days earlier the Senate had passed the Security Act, which gave Palpatine authority to disband the Jedi Order.

After the destruction of General Grievous at the hands of Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi Masters Mace Windu, Kit Fisto, Agen Kolar, and Saesee Tiin stormed the Supreme Chancellor's office, intent on arresting Palpatine, who had been revealed to them as an elusive Sith Lord, Darth Sidious, by Anakin Skywalker. Fisto, Kolar, and Tiin were quickly cut down by Sidious, but Windu was able to hold him off and eventually disarm him. Skywalker then arrived to find the Supreme Chancellor, looking defeated, attempting to surrender in exchange for his life. When it became evident that Windu was going to kill the older man, Skywalker intervened, which gave the Sith Lord the opportunity to destroy the Jedi Master. The Jedi's actions provided the Chancellor with the excuse he needed to have the Order carried out.

Palpatine sent word out via the office of the Chancellor to all of the clone commanders in the army. The commanders had a variety of reactions to the surprising Order, but since it came from the Chancellor himself, virtually all of them carried it out. On over 200 planets, Jedi were cut down by their troopers. The Jedi, who had been spread throughout the Galaxy across disparate battlefields, were almost all caught totally unaware, and were gunned down with ease. Three years of warfare polluted the Force with the dark side, clouding Jedi perception even further. While the clones had no malice nor hatred, by merely following a legal order, they had no ill intent in their heart which might give warning to the Jedi via the Force.



Although it was impossible for Palpatine to have issued the order to every single commander individually, he did take the time to contact several personally before the Order was relayed throughout the army as a whole. Within the first minutes of the Order, several members of the Jedi Council had been killed; including Plo Koon on Cato Neimoidia at the hands of Captain Jag, Stass Allie on Saleucami at the hands of Commander Neyo, and Ki-Adi-Mundi on Mygeeto at the hands of Commander Bacara. On Utapau, Obi-Wan Kenobi was riding a varactyl named Boga when Commander Cody executed the order, but Kenobi managed to survive and escape the planet. He soon reunited with Grand Jedi Master Yoda, who had also managed to escape peril on Kashyyyk. As noted, not all clone troopers obeyed the Order. On Murkhana, Roan Shryne and Olee Starstone were rescued from Order 66 by a member of a clone commando unit named Climber, who initially questioned the validity of the order, and even upon confirmation, refused to side with the government over those who had fought alongside them. However, that is the only evidence of a soldier disobeying the order; even other clone commandos and ARC troopers obeyed it.

On Coruscant, Senate Emergency Response announced a state of martial law over Coruscant, and declared the Jedi Temple under military lockdown. Order 66 authorized Darth Vader and the 501st Legion to attack the Jedi Temple; however, deciding to take a more suprise-attack approach, a mission named Operation: Knightfall was devised where the 501st killed everyone they found in the Temple&mdash;Masters, Padawans, even younglings. None within the building were spared, but somehow Shaak Ti escaped.

Although Order 66 greatly depleted the Jedi Order's ranks, with an estimated less than 100 Jedi surviving it, it was only the beginning of the Great Jedi Purge, which stretched on for years. Nearly all of the surviving Jedi Knights were hunted down and murdered by Darth Vader, while Order 66 itself remained in effect indefinitely among the ranks of the Galactic Empire's newly-christened stormtroopers. Kenobi and Yoda, like many others, chose to go into exile&mdash;on Tatooine and Dagobah, respectively. There they managed to elude Imperial justice for many years; a feat few of their contemporaries could claim. Within two decades, the Sith Order had risen completely from the shadows, controlling the Galaxy through an impenetrable network of executive privilege, including organizations such as Imperial Intelligence, the Imperial Security Bureau, and COMPNOR, not to mention a system of powerful regional governors, all loyal to Palpatine himself.

Known victims
"Every single Jedi [...] is now an enemy of the Republic."

- Palpatine


 * Stass Allie
 * Sors Bandeam
 * Nem Bees
 * Bene
 * Olana Chion
 * Cin Drallig
 * Zett Jukassa
 * Jurokk
 * Serra Keto
 * Plo Koon
 * Saras Loorne
 * Whie Malreaux
 * Ki-Adi-Mundi
 * Jocasta Nu
 * Barriss Offee
 * Aayla Secura
 * Sev
 * Simms
 * Tra'avis
 * Luminara Unduli

Known survivors
It was said that fewer than one hundred Jedi&mdash;approximately one percent of the entire Order&mdash;survived Order 66. Many of these Jedi were killed during the Great Jedi Purge over the following years.


 * Klossi Anno
 * Koffi Arana
 * Beldorian
 * Ood Bnar
 * Niebur Boton
 * Empatojayos Brand
 * Bol Chatak
 * Tsui Choi
 * Roblio Darté
 * Ekria
 * Jastus Farr
 * Minos Fel'Kona
 * Siadem Forte
 * Geith
 * A'Sharad Hett
 * Kai Hudorra
 * Ikrit
 * Ylenic It'kla
 * Darrus Jeht
 * Jeisel
 * Dass Jennir
 * Jerec
 * Kai Justiss
 * K'Kruhk
 * Obi-Wan Kenobi
 * Ydra Kilwallen
 * Iwo Kulka
 * An'ya Kuro
 * Drake Lo'gaan
 * Ma'kis'shaalas
 * Callista Ming
 * Dama Montalvo
 * Garen Muln
 * Noirah Na
 * Deran Nalual
 * Ferus Olin
 * Jax Pavan
 * Shadday Potkin
 * Qu Rahn
 * Tyneir Renz
 * T'ra Saa
 * Echuu Shen-Jon
 * Roan Shryne
 * Ranik Solusar
 * Olee Starstone
 * Bultar Swan
 * Tholme
 * Shaak Ti
 * Halagad Ventor
 * Vergere
 * Vima-Da-Boda
 * Quinlan Vos
 * Sia-Lan Wezz
 * Yoda
 * Zao
 * Zonder

Unknown/MIA
There are some Jedi whose fate after Order 66 is unknown. Among them are:


 * Depa Billaba (comatose since the Battle of Haruun Kal)
 * Joclad Danva
 * Bardan Jusik
 * Coleman Kcaj
 * Sha Koon
 * Joc Sah
 * Etain Tur-Mukan
 * Even Piell
 * Saldith

Behind the scenes

 * There are a number of theories regarding the origin of Order 66:


 * Order 66 may take its name from 666, the Mark of the Beast and a sign of the Apocalypse.


 * It may also take its name from Executive Order 9066 issued by US President Franklin Roosevelt, which ordered the internment of Japanese, Italian, and German Americans during World War II.


 * Order 66 has a great deal in common with the historical elimination of the Warrior Monks known as the Knights Templar. Like Order 66, it was a command spread though secrecy and suddenly implemented.  Virtually all of the Templars in France were simultaneously arrested on October 13 (the unlucky Friday the 13th), 1307.  Many were tortured and sentenced to death.  In most every other country, the Templars were forced to leave the order or join other orders.  A few Templars escaped and lived in exile, mainly in Scotland.  King Philip IV of France at this time also seized the Templar's treasury for himself, putting an end to the monastic banking system.  These events are largely seen as manipulated by Philip to gain greater powers.  Like in Star Wars, this began an era of military fiat.


 * Also consider The Auspicious Incident, the end of the Janissaries of Turkey.


 * When Revenge of the Sith first came out, it was believed that Order 66 was preprogrammed into the clone troopers. However, George Lucas has stated that it was a "last resort" order, not preprogrammed.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (novel)
 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (comics)
 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (game)
 * Star Wars: Battlefront II
 * Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game