Yavin 4/Legends

Yavin 4 is one of the many moons of the gas planet Yavin. It was home to the Rebel Alliance's main military base prior to and during the Battle of Yavin. The Rebels established their base in the ancient Massassi ruins found in its lush jungles following the destruction of their previous base on the planet Dantooine. The Galactic Empire sought to use its new space station super-weapon, the Death Star I, to destroy the small jungle moon and crush the Rebellion. A small force of X-Wing and Y-Wing starfighters were sent to destroy the Death Star, but most were killed in the attack. With the timely assistance of his friend Han Solo, Luke Skywalker was able to fire a proton torpedo into a small thermal exhaust port along the Death Star's equatorial trench, thus destroying the station and saving Yavin 4. A great ceremony was held following the Death Star's destruction, where Princess Leia bestowed medals of honor upon Luke Skywalker and Han Solo, along with his Wookiee co-pilot, Chewbacca.

This battle became known as the Battle of Yavin, and its date is used galaxy wide for marking events. Events before the Battle of Yavin are marked by BBY, and events that occur after are marked by ABY.

Luke later returned to the moon to found a Jedi academy there, rather than on Coruscant. The academy was destroyed during the invasion of the Yuuzhan Vong in 26 ABY.

Naga Sadow used Yavin 4 to hide from the Republic in 5,000 BBY and was discovered a thousand years later by fallen Jedi Freedon Nadd. The Massassi warriors who built the ruins used by the Rebels were brought to the planet by the early Sith.

Prior to this, the ancient Jedi built an underground city on the moon and used it to modify the climate into its current, jungle state. The Jedi eventually left Yavin, losing track of this Lost City of the Jedi, though at least one individual knew its location, as the "Jedi prince" Ken was hidden there. The city was eventually rediscovered by Luke Skywalker, who trapped Kadann, Supreme Prophet of the Prophets of the Dark Side, there.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
 * The Lost City of the Jedi
 * Star Wars:Galaxies