Occupation of Mon Cala

"The arrival of the Mon Calamari city-ships was a shocking (and perhaps, given our limited effectiveness against the occupation of Mon Cala, undeserved) boon, emphasizing the significance of winning the hearts of the galaxy's civilians above all else."

- Mon Mothma, in "Short Notes on the History of the Rebel Alliance Navy"

The occupation of Mon Cala began when the planet Mon Cala, the shared homeworld of the Mon Calamari and Quarren species, was brutally subjugated by the Galactic Empire as punishment for its rebel sympathies.

However, the peaceful Mon Calamari, having learned harsh and costly lessons during the Clone Wars, were ready. The Imperial occupation heralded a mass exodus, triggering a launch of spaceworthy structures that the Empire mistook for city buildings, which disappeared into hyperspace.

In retaliation, the Mon Calamari became one of the key species of the Alliance to Restore the Republic, supplying capital ships to the Alliance Fleet, despite its limited effectiveness against the occupation, which were converted for war by rebels in deep-space facilities located in the remote Telaris system, far from Imperial naval patrols.

Behind the scenes
The occupation of Mon Cala was first mentioned, albiet unidentified, in the new Star Wars canon in the Mon Calamari's entry in the now-discontinued Encyclopedia on StarWars.com, which was carried over to its replacement, the Databank. It was first identified in the novelization of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, written by Alexander Freed and released on December 16, 2016. The event was originally created for The Star Wars Sourcebook, a Star Wars Legends sourcebook written by Bill Slavicsek and Curtis Smith for Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game and released on October 1, 1987.

Appearances

 * Rogue One: A Star Wars Story novelization
 * Star Wars 44: Mutiny at Mon Cala, Part I