Bright Tree Village/Legends

Bright Tree Village was the name of an Ewok tree village on the Forest moon of Endor. It was home to the Ewok tribe that helped the Alliance to Restore the Republic defeat the Galactic Empire at the Battle of Endor.

Characteristics


Bright Tree Village was located fifty meters above the ground, in the canopy of a forest known as the Happy Grove.

The village was home to about 200 Ewoks and was structured so that the chief's and other elder's huts formed the center of the villages, along with the Place of Sickness and an open platform for public gatherings. Families and unmarried females lived in clustered huts outside this area and unmarried males and sentries lived even further away, below the main village. Higher up in the canopy were situated the lookout huts where Ewoks could sight roving Goraxes, and further up, the launching sites of Ewok hang gliders.

Most of the huts clung to the sides of individual trees, while huts used by village elders like Chief Chirpa, were hollowed out in the tree trunks themselves. Lighting the interior of each hut was not a problem, as the ancient conifers were tolerant of the heat generated by the fireplaces.

History
For years, the village was ruled by the wise Chief Chirpa. Together with the medicine man Logray and younger Ewok warriors, Chirpa defended the village from such threats as Duloks and Morag the Tulgah witch. Chirpa's tribe did not always live in the treetops &mdash; while Cindel Towani and her family lived with the Ewoks, they lived in huts on the ground.

The Ewok tribe that lived in Bright Tree Village were hostile to the Empire after they established their base on Endor. After a group of Ewoks caught a new group of outsiders in their trap, Logray led the tribe in an attempt to sacrifice Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, and R2-D2 to the "Golden One" (actually the protocol droid C-3PO.) The sacrifice was averted after pleading from Leia Organa (who had befriended the young Ewok warrior Wicket W. Warrick) and threats of the Golden One's "powerful magic" (really Luke Skywalker's use of the Force.) Later that night, C-3PO's storytelling told the Ewoks about the Rebel struggle against the Empire. This convinced the Ewoks to adopt the Rebels as part of their tribe, and join in the ensuing battle. After playing a pivotal role in the Rebel victory, the Ewoks of Bright Tree Village hosted a joint celebration of the fall of the Galactic Empire.

After the Battle of Endor, while the Rebel Alliance transitioned into the Alliance of Free Planets, Bright Tree Village was the temporary headquarters for the Alliance. Many diplomats from a variety of alien cultures, including Zeltrons, Lahsbees, and representatives from numerous Human worlds, visited the Ewok village. The First Conference of Free Peoples was held in one of Bright Tree Village. The village was used as the Alliance capital until the Second Battle of Endor, when the Alliance forces left the system to pursue their war against the Nagai. However, the New Republic eventually set up some trading posts and landing pads on the forest moon, including Salfur's Trading Post in a clearing near Bright Tree Village.

Some time after the Battle of Endor, Logray was exiled by Chief Chirpa, with Paploo becoming the new medicine man. In time, Chirpa died, and the village was ruled by Wicket W. Warrick and his wife Princess Kneesaa a Jari Kintaka (Chirpa's daughter).

Notes and references
Bright Tree