Padmé Amidala

"She was&hellip; very beautiful. Kind, but&hellip; sad."

- Leia Organa, to Luke Skywalker, the former reminiscing their deceased mother

Padmé Naberrie, known publicly as Padmé Amidala, was a Human female politician who became an influential figure in the declining days of the Galactic Republic. Amidala was elected Queen of Naboo at a young age, and led her people through the Trade Federation's invasion of the planet. With the help of the Jedi Order, Amidala was able to lead her people in liberating Naboo from the Federation. When her two terms as queen ended, there was a movement to amend the law so she could continue to serve, but she declined and instead accepted the role of Senator of Naboo.

In the lead-up to the Clone Wars, Senator Amidala was an outspoken critic of the creation of a Grand Army of the Republic to combat the Confederacy of Independent Systems. The war broke out anyway, however, and Amidala was present on Geonosis during the first battle; Amidala had been captured there by the Separatists, leading to her fighting in the ensuing battle. After the battle, Amidala secretly married Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker.

Amidala continued her pursuit of peace after the war began, attempting to broker a peaceful solution between the Republic and the Separatist Alliance. Those attempts failed, however, though Amidala did achieve some victories against the war hawks, including in her push to allow Mandalore to declare neutrality in the war. The war continued on, often separating Skywalker and Amidala for long periods of time.

At the end of the war, Amidala became pregnant with twins, and Skywalker began having visions of her dying in childbirth. His attempts to save her led him to the dark side of the Force, and he became the Sith Lord Darth Vader. In the ensuing days, and after the destruction of the Jedi Order, Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine&mdash;who was secretly the Sith Lord Darth Sidious&mdash;transformed the Republic into the Galactic Empire. Amidala later tried to save Vader from the dark side, but failed in her efforts. She lost the will to live and died just after giving birth to her twins, Luke and Leia. Leia followed in her mother's footsteps, becoming a member of the Rebel Alliance, while Luke became a Jedi Knight and redeemed Anakin from the dark side.

Rise to queenship
"I wasn't the youngest Queen ever elected. But now that I think back on it, I'm not sure I was old enough. I'm not sure I was ready."

- Padmé Amidala

The female Human best known as Amidala was born on the bountiful planet of Naboo fourteen years prior to its invasion, under the name of Padmé Naberrie. Although her parents were of modest origins, Naberrie was identified as a gifted and brilliant young girl at an early age. As a child, she devoted herself to public service. Her father was a friend of Senator Onaconda Farr, who represented the solar system of Rodia in the Senate of the Galactic Republic. Naberrie was very fond of the Rodian, whom she referred to as "Uncle Ono." At age twelve, Naberrie participated in the Legislative Youth Program, in which she met a slightly older boy named Palo. The two felt in love, but their relationship did not last, as they parted ways when Palo left politics and chose to become an artist. Two years later, at the tender age of fourteen, Padmé Naberrie was elected Queen of Naboo, and she adopted Amidala as her name of office. Although she was not the youngest sovereign ever elected, she would later question her own maturity at the time of her election.

The Invasion of Naboo
"I was not elected to watch my people suffer and die while you discuss this invasion in a committee!"

- Queen Amidala, to the Galactic Senate

Shortly after her election, the young queen was faced with a major crisis when the Trade Federation decided to lay siege to her home planet. The Federation's devious leader, Viceroy Nute Gunray, intended to force her to sign a treaty that would legitimize the invasion in the eyes of the Galactic Republic. However, Amidala refused to submit to the Federation. The Viceroy then sent her to Camp Four. However, Amidala was rescued in the eleventh hour by two Jedi, Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi. The two had been charged with negotiating a truce with the Trade Federation, but Gunray had tried to kill them as soon as they had arrived. The Jedi freed Amidala and her entourage from the clutches of the Federation's batlle droids, and the group fled the blockaded Naboo aboard the queen's royal starship.

However, the royal starship was damaged in combat while trying to break though the blockade of battleships the Federation had deployed around the Naboo star system. The hyperdrive generator needed to be repaired, which prompted the crew to make an emergency landing on Tatooine. The queen, who was curious about the desert world, disguised as one of her handmaidens&mdash;using her birth name of Padmé Naberrie&mdash;so she could accompany the Jedi on the planet's surface. With her companions, Amidala ventured into the spaceport of Mos Espa, which Qui-Gon Jinn described as a haven for "those who do not wish to be found." While trying to negotiate for spare parts with the junk dealer Watto, the party met Anakin Skywalker, a nine-year-old Human slave. The boy was immediately fascinated by Amidala's aura of beauty, asking her whether she was an Angel from the moons of Iego. In turn, the queen thought the boy was a bit odd, yet charming.

Since the Jedi and the queen could not raise the money needed to purchase the repair parts for the royal ship, Skywalker offered to compete in the incoming Boonta Eve Classic Podrace so he could earn the required funds for them. Master Jinn promptly accepted the offer, but Amidala criticized his actions; although she did like Skywalker, she thought it was unwise to place the fate of Naboo in the hands of a nine-year-old slaveboy. However, Skywalker managed to win the race, beating the reigning champion Sebulba against all odds, and Amidala joined the scenes of jubilation that followed the boy's victory in the Grand Arena of Mos Espa. Thanks to a bargain Qui-Gon Jinn had made with Watto, Skywalker was now freed from slavery and allowed to accompany the Jedi in their travel. On the way to the galactic capital of Coruscant, Amidala, still in the guise of the handmaiden Padmé, helped Skywalker cope with the loss of his mother Shmi, whom Watto had refused to let go.

The fight for Theed
"Now, Viceroy, we will discuss a new treaty!"

- Queen Amidala after capturing Nute Gunray

Once the group arrived on Coruscant, Amidala resumed her role as queen. In preparation for her public appearance before the Republic Senate, she met with Sheev Palpatine, who represented the Naboo system in that governing body. While she wished to plead for the Senate to rescue her homeworld, Palpatine informed her that the assembly was too corrupt to care about their situation. The senator then encouraged Amidala to move for a Vote of No Confidence in the leadership of Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum, ruler of the Republic. Valorum was a well-meaning politician, and the queen initially refused to move against him. However, upon witnessing the problems of politics during the Senate session in which she pleaded, Amidala ended up following Palpatine's advice, asking for Valorum's ousting from office. An election was decided, and Palpatine himself emerged as a likely candidate to succeed the disgraced Valorum. Although the senator asked to stay on Coruscant until the end of the elective process, Amidala decided to return to Naboo, intent on retaking her world without the Senate's help.

En route, the Queen revealed to a concerned Master Jinn that she planned to unit with the Gungans, the sentient amphibians native to Naboo. However, Jinn and his apprentice Kenobi had met the Gungans at the beginning of their adventure, and the natives had expressed their lack of interest for the fate of the Nabooan Humans. Having once again assumed the identity of a handmaiden, the queen journeyed through the swamps of Naboo with her party. They managed to locate the sacred place where the Gungans had taken refuge after evacuating their city of Otoh Gunga. Initially, the decoy queen Sabé tried to negotiate herself with Boss Nass, leader of the Gungans, but to little avail. As a sign of trust, the real Amidala decided to reveal her identity, which surprised not only the Gungans, but also all of her companions. The queen then kneeled in front of Boss Nass, asking fro help in battling the Federation troops. Impressed by the queen's respectful attitude, Nass heartily agreed.

Though the queen's plan ended up working perfectly, it did not come about without loss. On the grassy plains of Naboo, there were Gungan casualties until Anakin Skywalker destroyed Federation's Droid Control Ship. Additionally, Master Qui-Gon Jinn was killed during his duel with Darth Maul. Now that Naboo was freed, Amidala greeted Palpatine, who came to announce her he had been elected Supreme Chancellor, since many had voted for him in an outpouring of sympathy. In the immediate aftermath of the invasion, Amidala attended Qui-Gon Jinn's ritual creamation in a funeral temple of Theed to pay her respects. Finally, a huge parade was held in the Naboo capital to celebrate the official unification of the Humans and Gungans. During the ceremony, which was attended by Chancellor Palpatine, the members of the Jedi Council, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, Amidala handed over the Globe of Peace to an overjoyed Boss Nass.

Separatist Crisis
"Wake up, Senators&hellip; you must wake up! If we offer the Separatists violence, they can only show us violence in return! Many will lose their lives. All will lose their freedom."

- Padmé Amidala, before the Galactic Senate, after the first of many attempts on her life

At the conclusion of her two terms as Queen, Amidala stepped aside for her elected successor, Queen Jamillia. However, the Naboo had grown so fond of Amidala that there was widespread talk that the constitution should be amended to allow her another term. After her coronation, Queen Jamillia asked Amidala to serve as Naboo's representative in the Galactic Senate, a request that Amidala ultimately accepted. Amidala entered the Senate in the same year as Senator Rush Clovis of Scipio. The pair served on several Senate Committees together and became close; Amidala ultimately ended the relationship however. Ten years after the Invasion of Naboo, former Jedi Count Dooku became the public face of a Confederacy of Independent Systems that had withdrawn from the Republic in opposition to the corruption they believed had enveloped the Senate. In response to the threat posed by this Separtist Alliance, the Republic Senate debated the proposed Military Creation Act that would allow Supreme Chancellor Palpatine to formally commission a Grand Army of the Republic. During this time, Senator Amidala became a member of the Chancellor's Loyalist Committee and was regarded as the Leader of the Opposition to the Military Creation Act.

On the eve of the vote in the Senate over the Military Creation Act, Senator Amidala arrived on Coruscant. Upon landing, her shuttle was hit in an assassination attempt by bounty hunter Zam Wesell, who had been hired to kill Amidala by Jango Fett, himself under the employee of Count Dooku. The explosion killed several of her guards as well as Amidala's double, Cordé. At the request of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, the Jedi Council assigned Jedi Knights Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakain Skywalker to protect Amidala and investigate the incident, though Amidala objected to the added security. That evening, Amidala met with Kenobi and Skywalker in her penthouse apartment. With several years having passed, Skywalker was nervous to meet Amidala and while she hid her feelings, Kenobi noted that the Senator was pleased to see Skywalker as well. That night, Zam Wesell tried again to kill Amidala by releasing two deadly Kouhuns into her apartment using a droid. Kenobi and Skywalker sensed the attack and rushed into the bedroom. Skywalker managed to kill the Kouhuns as Kenobi jumped through the bedroom window and grabbed on to the droid as security officers rushed into the apartment. Kenobi and Skywalker, after a chase through the Coruscant skylanes, were able to capture Zam Wesell. Before she could reveal the plot behind the assassination attempts on Senator Amidala, Wesell was killed by Jango Fett using a Kamino dart.