Template:Structure infobox The Aldera Royal Palace was an elegant, centuries-old building in the heart of Aldera, capital city of Alderaan. In the waning days of the Galactic Republic, it was home to the Royal House of Organa, and the palace from which Queen Breha Organa ruled the planet. The young Princess Leia Organa, the adopted daughter of Queen Breha and Bail Prestor Organa, was raised in this castle, along with her foster sister Winter, her aunts Tia Organa, Rouge Organa and Celly Organa and other members of the extended family. In 0 BBY, the Alderaanian government became a threat to the rise of the ever-rising Galactic Empire. The Royal Palace was destroyed along with the planet when Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin decided to demonstrate the power of the Death Star battlestation on Alderaan.
History
- "It was night in our palace—were you awake or asleep, with mother... or alone?"
- ―Leia Organa
The Royal Palace of Aldera was built more than seven hundred years before the rise of the Galactic Empire, in the first centuries of the Great Peace of the Republic.[1] In the last decades of the Galactic Republic, the castle was inhabited by the noble Houses of Organa and Antilles, which had been united by marriage following the Alderaan Ascendancy Contention.[2] In 3 BBY, the Palace hosted the festivities of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Ascendancy Contention, with nobles from other planets being invited by Queen Breha and her husband Bail Prestor Organa.[3] Three years later, the Aldera Royal Palace was destroyed along with Alderaan itself when the Death Star shattered the planet with its superlaser prior to the Battle of Yavin.[4]
Claimed Survival
- "They found the Palace. The Royal Palace. It's in the Graveyard. Go to Mining Outpost 11. The report was filed there. One scout also said they found... Bail Organa... hurry..."
- ―Zaz Kamiroz
A rumor, circulated by Darth Vader, claimed that the Aldera Palace had been discovered intact on Asteroid 7785, an asteroid in The Graveyard. He hoped this rumor would lure Leia Organa and any other of the survivors of the Battle of Yavin to Alderaan, where Captain Janus Bonn waited for them. Vader soon added a story that a survivor had been discovered in the asteroid who claimed to be Bail Organa. Vader even built a replica of the Palace inside the asteroid as a trap. Unfortunately for Vader, a group of Alliance agents intercepted the message from the Empire before it reached Leia Organa, and arrived at the asteroid before she did. Vader's trap was sprung, but not on its intended victims. Though the Palace had not actually survived completely intact, a large section of the Royal Palace was actually in asteroid 7785.[5]
Layout
External layout
The Grand Reception Room was contained within a dome.
Built at the heart of the city,[6] the Royal Palace lay on a slight rise at the edge of Aldera, overlooking the vast lake. It was a compound of multistoried buildings and turrets, surrounded by ramparts[7] and defensive moats filled with water.[1] The Palace appeared as an assemblage of shallow domes and tall, sharp spires that gleamed white and gold in the daylight.[6] A beatiful ensemble of orchards and gardens surrounded the castle’s outer enclosure, and several terraces were built on various levels, providing the inhabitants with fresh air and light.[7] The North tower was equipped with a lofty balcony, from which the old moats could be seen.[1]
The way to the main gates of the Palace went through a twisting path in the middle of a blooming garden, lined with majestic dark golden trees. The front entrance itself was a wide wooden door ornated with intricate carvings. There were other entrances to the castle, including one in the curved South wall, another in the East wall,[1] and another gate the royal family used to enter and exit their private wing in the back of the castle.[7]
Internal layout
The multi-story building contained all manner of bedrooms and reception rooms. The palace featured a Grand Reception Room, a Grand Ballroom, Queen Breha's throne room, a bridge-spanned reflecting pool, and Bail Organa's study, which overlooked the lake and was surrounded by gardens. The Palace was protected by the Royal Guards.
Appearances
- Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
- Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader
- The Traitor's Gambit
- The Last of the Jedi: Master of Deception
- Star Wars: Agent of the Empire 6: Hard Targets, Part 1
- The Paradise Snare (First appearance)
- "The Princess Leia Diaries" — Star Wars Tales 11 Template:Am
- Star Wars: Empire 5: Princess... Warrior, Part 1 (Mentioned only)
- Rebel Force: Hostage (Mentioned only)
- Template:WEG (Mentioned only)
- Star Wars Journal: The Fight for Justice (Mentioned only)
- Splinter of the Mind's Eye (First mentioned)
- Star Wars 53: The Last Gift From Alderaan! (Mentioned only)
- Tatooine Ghost (Mentioned only)
- Planet of Twilight (Vision to Leia Organa Solo)
- Dark Nest III: The Swarm War (Mentioned only)
Sources
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader
- ↑
Pello Scrambas in the Databank (content now obsolete; backup link)
- ↑ Star Wars: Agent of the Empire 6: Hard Targets, Part 1
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedANH - ↑ Graveyard of Alderaan
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedTPS - ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 The Last of the Jedi: Master of Deception