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This article covers the Canon version of this subject.  Click here for Wookieepedia's article on the Legends version of this subject. 
This article is about the Sith title "Sith Lord".
You may be looking for other similar Sith titles such as "Dark Lord of the Sith" and "Darth".
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"Get help. You're no match for him. He's a Sith Lord."
"Chancellor Palpatine, Sith Lords are our speciality."
―Sheev Palpatine and Obi-Wan Kenobi — (audio) Listen (file info)[3]

Sith Lord, also known as a Lord of the Sith, was a title conferred upon individuals who followed the Sith tradition. Sith Lords drew upon the dark side of the Force, using it to gain power.

The title "Darth" was given to newly christened Sith Lords in place of their old identities. It roughly translated to "Dark Lord."

History[]

The Old Republic[]

"But there was a Sith Lord who survived the culling—the great Darth Bane. It was he who reshaped the Sith. creating a new hierarchy to ensure the survival of our Order. His Rule of Two dictated that only two Sith Lords could exist at any one time—a master to possess the unlimited power of the dark side and an apprentice to covet it."
―Darth Sidious[4]

Founded by a rogue Jedi[5] during the Hundred-Year Darkness,[6] the Sith were an ancient order who used the dark side of the Force and fought the Jedi.[5] During the days of the Old Republic, many individuals held the mantle of Sith Lord and fought countless wars against the Jedi Order. However, their numbers began to dwindle due to infighting, which the Jedi took advantage of, ultimately resulting in the Sith being defeated and nearly destroyed by the Jedi. After Darth Bane established the Rule of Two,[7] Sith tradition dictated that there could only be two Sith Lords—a master and an apprentice—at any given time.[8]

Twilight of the Republic[]

"He was trained in the Jedi arts. My only conclusion can be that it was a Sith lord."
Qui-Gon Jinn, referring to Darth Maul[8]
DarthMaul2

Darth Sidious and Darth Maul were Sith Lords during the late era of the Galactic Republic.

In the years leading up to the Invasion of Naboo, the Sith Lord Darth Plagueis, who had been trained by Darth Tenebrous,[9] was killed by his apprentice Darth Sidious, who also took on his own apprentice, Darth Maul.[10] Sidious' alter ego Sheev Palpatine became the senator of Naboo in order to inflitrate, deceive and eventually destroy the Jedi and Galactic Republic. Sidious planted the seeds for what would become the Confederacy of Independent Systems by forming an alliance with the Trade Federation, a corporation led by Viceroy Nute Gunray. Sidious convinced the Trade Federation to use their army of battle droids to blockade and invade the peaceful planet of Naboo, in order to unseat Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum and have Palpatine become the Chancellor. The invasion failed and Maul was seemingly killed by a Jedi Padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi, but Palpatine was elected as Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic.[8]

The Sith then resurfaced ten years later. Darth Tyranus, Darth Sidious' apprentice, met with Gunray and other influential magnates on Geonosis. They supported the Confederacy of Independent Systems, leading to the start of the Clone Wars against the Republic.[11] A number of other Sith were also active during the war, such as Sidious' former apprentice Maul, Tyranus' first apprentice Asajj Ventress, and Tyranus' second apprentice and Maul's brother Savage Opress.[12] Due to Sidious being both Chancellor of the Republic and the master of Tyranus, the Separatists' Head of State,[13] he was able to manipulate both sides of the war to suit his own schemes. A number of other Sith were also active during the war: Asajj Ventress served as a Sith Acolyte,[14] one Tyranus' disciples, as did Savage Opress.[12] Both were ultimately cast aside, with Opress becoming the pupil of the returned Maul.[15] The two Sith warriors founded the nefarious organization of the Shadow Collective, but were soon defeated by Sidious, who viewed them as a threat. The machinations of the reigning Sith Lords led to Order 66 and the establishment of the Galactic Empire,[3] at the cost of Tyranus' life.[3]

Reign of the Empire[]

"I feel… Cold. I think I know who it is. Back on Lothal I felt something. Kanan did too. The fear. The anger. The hate. It's the Sith Lord we faced."
Ezra Bridger, referring to Darth Vader[16]
StarWarsDarthVader20

The Galactic Empire was ruled by the Sith Lords Darth Sidious and Darth Vader.

Not long after Tyranus was sacrificed and betrayed by Sidious, Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker turned to the dark side and became Sidious' new apprentice, receiving the name "Vader" which was preceded by the moniker Darth,[3] roughly translated as "Dark Lord."[17] With the Great Jedi Purge in effect, Sidious consolidated his power over the galaxy as the self-proclaimed Galactic Emperor,[3] while Vader would act as his forces' Commander-in-Chief.[18]

Years into the Imperial Era, Governor Wilhuff Tarkin and Lord Vader oversaw the deployment of the Death Star battle station. However, the Rebel Alliance destroyed it along with Grand Moff Tarkin during the Battle of Yavin. The Rebels then continued to defy Imperial rule[19] for a further five years,[20] leading to the Battle of Endor with the destruction of the DS-2 Death Star II Mobile Battle Station and both Sith Lords. As the battle turned in the Alliance's favor,[21] Vader sacrificed his life by killing his master in order to protect his son, Luke Skywalker, thereby renouncing the dark side, fulfilling his role as the Chosen One, and dying as Anakin Skywalker.[22]

Legacy[]

"Kylo Ren is no Sith Lord, but his helmet was designed to emulate that of his ancestor Lord Vader."
―Darth Sidious[4]
Kneelren

Kylo Ren aspired to become a Sith Lord like his grandfather, Darth Vader, before him.

The thousand-year lineage that started with Darth Bane came to an end with the demise of the last Sith Lord, Darth Vader.[23] Unknown to the galaxy, Darth Sidious was resurrected when his consciousness transferred to a clone body on the desolate planet Exegol, where his followers, the Sith Eternal cult,[4] preserved the teachings of the Sith religion. In addition to a Sith fleet known as the Final Order, the Sith Eternal trained an army of Sith troopers, divided into legions that were named after ancient Sith Lords, such as Revan, Andeddu, Darth Tanis, Darth Tenebrous, Phobos, and Desolous.[24]

The Dark Lord sought to restore the Sith Order through Vader's grandson, Kylo Ren and his granddaughter, Rey.[25] When Ren journeyed to Exegol, he heard the whispers of Sith Lords long dead—Locphet, Mindran, Felkor, Naga Sadow, and Sissiri—and met Sidious, who had been grooming him for use in his plans for decades.[26] Ren was not a Sith Lord,[4] but he embodied the Sith Order's teachings as well as those of the Jedi Order.[27] Sidious doubted that Ren could overcome his connection to the light side of the Force, but still tasked him with killing Rey as a final chance to prove himself.[4] Despite Ren's intention of becoming the new Dark Lord of the Sith,[26] for which he had been groomed to inherit through the machinations of the Sith Eternal,[24] he ultimately rejected the dark side like his grandfather before him. During the Battle of Exegol, Rey prevented the return of the Sith by destroying her grandfather Sidious.[25]

Appearances[]

Non-canon appearances[]

Sources[]

Non-canon sources[]

Notes and references[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi depicts the deaths of the two Sith Lords of that time, Darth Vader and Darth Sidious, during the Battle of Endor. Star Wars: Galactic Atlas dates the battle to 4 ABY. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: Expanded Edition establishes that Sidious sent his consciousness to a prepared clone body during the battle.
  2. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: The Visual Dictionary dates the events of Star Wars: Episode IX The Rise of Skywalker as taking place one year after the Starkiller Incident, which Star Wars: Galactic Atlas dates to 34 ABY. Therefore, the events of Star Wars: Episode IX The Rise of Skywalker must take place in 35 ABY.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Star Wars: The Secrets of the Sith
  5. 5.0 5.1 StarWars Sith in the Encyclopedia (content now obsolete; backup link)
  6. Star Wars (2015) 9
  7. TCW mini logo Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Sacrifice"
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace
  9. Build the Millennium Falcon Star Wars: Build the Millennium Falcon 44 (Starship Fact File: Sith Infiltrator: Scimitar)
  10. AltayaCite "Emperor Palpatine" — Star Wars Encyclopedia
  11. Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones
  12. 12.0 12.1 TCW mini logo Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Monster"
  13. Rise of the Separatists
  14. Build the Millennium Falcon Star Wars: Build the Millennium Falcon 59 (Guide to the Galaxy: Denizens of Dathomir)
  15. TCW mini logo Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Eminence"
  16. Star Wars Rebels: The Siege of Lothal
  17. Star Wars Made Easy
  18. Bust-Collection-Logo Star Wars Bust Collection 30 (Star Wars Universe: The Emperor's Inner Circle)
  19. Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope
  20. Star Wars: Galactic Atlas
  21. Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi
  22. StarWars-DatabankII Anakin Skywalker in the Databank (backup link)
  23. Star Wars: The Last Jedi: The Visual Dictionary
  24. 24.0 24.1 Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: The Visual Dictionary
  25. 25.0 25.1 Star Wars: Episode IX The Rise of Skywalker
  26. 26.0 26.1 Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: A Junior Novel
  27. StarWars-DatabankII Supreme Leader Kylo Ren in the Databank (backup link)
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