Battle of Bilbringi (9 ABY)

"Let's remind the Rebellion what war is all about ..."

- Grand Admiral Thrawn

The Battle of Bilbringi of the Galactic Civil War took place some 9 ABY between the Imperial forces under Grand Admiral Thrawn and the combined forces of New Republic military and the Smuggler's Alliance. The battle was fought over the Imperial shipyards for the sole fact that both the New Republic and Smuggler's Alliance desired to capture a crystal gravfield trap (CGT), a device that would allow the New Republic to uncover the location of cloaked asteroids which Thrawn had set in orbit over Coruscant.

A consummate strategist, Grand Admiral Thrawn predicted that the main New Republic fleet would target Bilbringi, while the attack on the Imperial Ubiqtorate Base on Tangrene would be a feint.

The battle
The Grand Admiral's fleet arrived at Bilbringi to prepare to set a trap for the Rebels. Thrawn instructed his Interdictor Cruisers and Interdictor Star Destroyers to activate their gravity well projectors in anticipation of the imminent Rebel attack. As accurately predicted by Thrawn, the main New Republic fleet came out of hyperspace outside the Bilbringi perimeter.

Commander Wedge Antilles and Admiral Ackbar realized that the New Republic fleet had come out of hyperspace too early, and too far out from the Imperial Shipyards. In the distance, a large Imperial fleet was arrayed before the New Republic forces. Several Interdictors were strategically positioned at the rear of the Imperial fleet, preventing any escape. At once, Admiral Ackbar recognized the trap.

Grand Admiral Thrawn ordered the Interdictor Cruisers Constrainer and Sentinel, that were the furthest from the main fleet, to secure from entrapment duty and return to the demarcation line, where they would be protected. Then, the Grand Admiral instructed all Imperial warships to prepare to engage the enemy fleet.

Soon, the two fleets locked into battle, and the fight was going clearly in favor of the Empire, as Thrawn's forces hammered the New Republic ships, which were quickly caught in the confusion.

Unfortunately for the Imperials, the Smuggler's Alliance was present at Bilbringi, and decided to aid the New Republic fleet by directly attacking the Imperial Shipyards with the help of Rogue Squadron and some New Republic ships. The four Imperial Golan II platforms that protected the shipyards were unable to hold back the swift attack. As such, the Imperial defensive line was breached.

This tactical shift forced the Imperial fleet to divert some of its warships and starfighters to protect the shipyards. Thrawn's second-in-command, Captain Gilad Pellaeon, was dismayed by the sudden change of fortunes, but the Grand Admiral reminded him that the battle was far from over. To regain the initiative for the Imperial fleet, Thrawn planned to execute a tactical maneuver, dubbed the 'Thrawn Princer', that would use the Interdictors to bring in more Imperial Star Destroyers and other warships directly behind the enemy fleet.

Despite Thrawn's tactical genius and before the Grand Admiral could initiate the maneuver, the Imperial fleet was defeated when Thrawn's bodyguard, a Noghri named Rukh, assassinated him aboard the bridge of the Chimaera at the height of the battle. As Captain Pellaeon read aloud an incoming report from Wayland that indicated that Thrawn's cloning facility was under attack, Rukh temporarily incapacitated the Captain by hitting him on the neck. Rukh then thrust his long assassin's knife into the back of the Grand Admiral's command chair, pinning and killing the Grand Admiral.

Aftermath
"But...it was so artistically done..."

- Grand Admiral Thrawn's last words

Rukh himself was killed by the Chimaera's stormtroopers, led by former Royal Guard Grodin Tierce while trying to escape, and presumably the rest of the Noghri bodyguard met a similar fate. Although the fleets were nearly matched, and the New Republic forces had taken many more casualties than the Imperial ones, Captain Gilad Pellaeon, realized that without Thrawn's genius, there was no way the Imperial fleet could manage a victory. With the New Republic forces gaining the initiative and many Star Destroyers requesting new orders in light of the tactical change, Pellaeon assumed command and ordered a full retreat towards the Unknown Regions, before later participating in Operation Shadow Hand.

It was his actions at the battle that led Mon Mothma to promote Wedge Antilles to the rank of general and give him command of Rogue Wing.

Appearances

 * The Last Command
 * X-wing: Isard's Revenge
 * Vision of the Future
 * The Final Prophecy