Great Jedi Purge

"A young Jedi named Darth Vader, who was a pupil of mine before he turned to evil, helped the Empire hunt down and destroy the Jedi Knights."

- Obi-Wan Kenobi

The Great Jedi Purge refers to the efforts initiated by the Sith Lord Darth Sidious upon his creation of the Galactic Empire to exterminate the Jedi Order.

It was generally considered to have lasted from the birth of the Galactic Empire in 19 BBY to the emergence of Luke Skywalker and the Rebel Alliance in the years before the Battle of Yavin. The Great Jedi Purge was sometimes considered the start of the Galactic Civil War.

The Purge Begins
"Execute Order 66."

- Emperor Palpatine to various clone commanders

The Purge began shortly before the end of the Clone Wars, which had been from their conception only one part of a grand scheme by Darth Sidious to eliminate the Jedi.

After Anakin Skywalker discovered that Palpatine was Darth Sidious, the Sith Lord the Jedi had been searching for, Jedi Master Mace Windu led a small group of Jedi Masters to apprehend Sidious, comprised of himself, Agen Kolar, Kit Fisto, and Saesee Tiin. Sidious killed Agen Kolar immediately, followed by Saesee Tiin and with some greater effort Kit Fisto. In the ensuing fight Mace Windu disarmed Sidious, who then attempted to ward off Windu with Force lightning. Windu deflected the lightning back, twisting Palpatine's face, making it appear yellowed and ravaged by the dark side. Anakin Skywalker appeared, and after some apparent inward hesitation, was driven to incapacitate Windu in order to save Palpatine, whom Anakin believed was the only one with sufficient knowledge of the Force (the dark side) to save his wife, Padmé Amidala, from death. As Sidious had foreseen, Anakin then drew his lightsaber to parry Windu's swipe at the Chancellor and through his action, cut off the Jedi Master's saber hand. Then Sidious, who had pleaded with Anakin and Windu not to kill him for his weakness, immediately regained enough strength to blast Master Windu with Force lightning and send him out the window to his death.

Anakin was immediately horrified by what he had done, but despite his guilt, he could not overcome the temptation of the dark side, nor could he simply allow Padmé to die when Sidious (allegedly) had the ability to save her. Anakin swore fealty to Sidious, becoming his new apprentice, and was given the Sith name Darth Vader.

Palpatine wasted no time in spinning the fiction that the Jedi's attempt to take him into custody constituted a betrayal of the Republic by the Order, and used it to justify his ultimate goals. Palpatine ordered the Army of the Republic to execute Order 66&mdash;the total extermination of all living Jedi throughout the galaxy as a sign that the age of the Jedi had ended and the New Order was now in place. Simultaneously, Palpatine dispatched Vader and the 501st Legion to wipe out the Jedi in the Jedi Temple. The newly titled Emperor justified his purge with an elaborate conspiracy tale of the Jedi's attempt to overthrow the Galactic Republic.



Few Jedi escaped the betrayal Vader and the clone troops that they were leading. Among the few survivors were Jedi Masters Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda. Kenobi escaped to Tatooine, while Yoda escaped to the planet Dagobah under secrecy. However, before hiding, the two Jedi altered a return call being sent from the Temple into a warning to stay away; as a result, several other Jedi managed to survive the immediate purge, though most fell to Vader or other Jedi hunters in the years that followed.

By 1 BBY, the systematic Purge itself had finished, but a few of the survivors would die in the years that followed&mdash;including An'ya Kuro who was tracked down and executed by Darth Vader on Cophrigin 5, Echuu Shen-Jon, killed by Vader on Krant, and, most notably, Kenobi himself, who sacrificed himself on the Death Star to ensure the escape of his protege Luke Skywalker.



The Purge was not only intended to symbolically and literally destroy the Jedi Order, but to also consolidate the Jedi's history, knowledge and technology into Palpatine's possession. Many Holocrons, ancient techniques and training materials were lost. During his efforts to reestablish the order, Luke Skywalker participated in intensive research to locate even the smallest scraps of information pertaining to the old order.

Notable Purge Victims

 * Aayla Secura&mdash;killed on Felucia by clone troopers under her command.
 * Agen Kolar&mdash;killed by Palpatine in the Chancellor's office on Coruscant.
 * Aidan Bok&mdash;killed by Darth Vader on Nespis VIII.
 * Ashka Boda&mdash;captured by the Imperial sentinels, and brought to Coruscant to be executed by Palpatine.
 * Bene&mdash;killed by Darth Vader in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.
 * Bodo Baas&mdash;executed by Palpatine.
 * Barriss Offee&mdash;killed on Felucia by fire from an AT-TE walker.
 * Bultar Swan&mdash;killed by clone forces led by Darth Vader in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.
 * Cin Drallig&mdash;killed by Darth Vader in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.
 * Darrin Arkanian&mdash;killed by Tremayne on Coruscant in 10 BBY.
 * Joclad Danva&mdash;killed by clone troopers somewhere, possibly in the Jedi Temple.
 * Jocasta Nu&mdash;killed by Darth Vader in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.
 * Jurokk&mdash;killed by Darth Vader in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.
 * Kit Fisto&mdash;killed by Palpatine in the Chancellor's office on Coruscant.
 * Ki-Adi-Mundi&mdash;killed on Mygeeto by clone troopers under his command.
 * Luminara Unduli&mdash;killed on Kashyyyk by clone troopers.
 * Mace Windu&mdash;killed by Palpatine and Darth Vader in the Chancellor's office on Coruscant.
 * Plo Koon&mdash;shot down over Cato Neimoidia by clone pilots under his command.
 * Roan Shryne&mdash;killed by Darth Vader on Kashyyyk.
 * Saesee Tiin&mdash;killed by Palpatine in the Chancellor's office on Coruscant.
 * Serra Keto&mdash;killed by Darth Vader in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.
 * Shaak Ti&mdash;killed by Darth Vader in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.
 * Stass Allie&mdash;killed on Saleucami by clone troopers under her command.
 * Whie Malreaux&mdash;killed by Darth Vader in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.
 * Zett Jukassa&mdash;killed by clone troopers at the Jedi Temple.

Known survivors as of the end of the Purge (1 BBY)

 * Aqinos
 * An'ya Kuro
 * A'Sharad Hett
 * Beldorian
 * Callista
 * Corwin Shelvay
 * Danaan Kerr
 * Dorn Tavers
 * Echuu Shen-Jon
 * Empatojayos Brand
 * Ferus Olin
 * Garen Muln
 * Gilflyn
 * Geith
 * Gruu Dunrik
 * Halagad Ventor
 * Ikrit
 * Ilum
 * Jeisel
 * K'Kruhk
 * Kam Solusar
 * Obi-Wan Kenobi
 * Ood Bnar
 * Plett
 * Qu Rahn
 * Ranik Solusar
 * Sia-Lan Wezz
 * Sinsor Khal
 * Taj Junak
 * Tyneir Renz
 * Vergere
 * Vima-Da-Boda
 * Ydra Kilwallen Sibwarra
 * Ylenic It'kla
 * Yoda

Survival Unknown

 * Depa Billaba&mdash;In a coma for most of the Clone Wars; fate unknown.
 * Drake Lo'gaan&mdash;Survived Order 66, but ultimate fate unknown.
 * Ekria&mdash;Survived Order 66, but ultimate fate unknown.
 * Etain Tur-Mukan&mdash;Author Karen Traviss has left open the possibility that, in a future Republic Commando book, Etain's clone commandos might not kill her when they received Order 66.
 * Kai Justiss&mdash;Still at large during the early years of the Empire.
 * Koffi Arana&mdash;Survived Order 66, ultimate fate unknown
 * Pablo-Jill&mdash;May have been killed by Darth Vader in the Jedi Temple, or may not have.
 * Tallisibeth Enwandung-Esterhazy&mdash;Ultimate fate unknown.
 * Olee Starstone&mdash;Survived Order 66, ultimate fate unknown
 * Quinlan Vos&mdash;Supposedly killed on Kashyyyk, but survived; survival beyond that point is currently unknown.
 * Voolvif Monn&mdash;Ultimate fate unknown.
 * Zonder&mdash;Survived Order 66, but ultimate fate unknown.

See also:

 * Order 66

Appearances

 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith