Mos Eisley
From Wookieepedia, the Star Wars wiki.
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| Mos Eisley | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Constructed | |
| Builder |
Dowager Queen colonists |
| Location information | |
| Planet | |
| Location |
80 km north of Anchorhead |
| Societal | |
| Era(s) | |
| Affiliation | |
- "Mos Eisley Spaceport. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious."
- ―Obi-Wan Kenobi, to Luke Skywalker[src]
Mos Eisley (pronounced /məʊs 'aɪzliː/) was a large spaceport town on the planet Tatooine. It was the largest settlement on the planet and generally known as the "armpit of the galaxy".
Contents |
[edit] Geography
Mos Eisley was located in a valley somewhere to the southeast of the Jundland Wastes[1] and roughly 80 kilometers north of Anchorhead, near the desert palace of Jabba the Hutt.
From a distance, the spaceport appeared as a haphazard collage of low-grade duracrete, stone, and plastoid structures that spread outward from a central power and water distribution plant. The city lacked a main landing facility; therefore it relied on 362 individual hangars.[1] By order of the Empire, all of these hangars were equipped with time-lock devices.[1] Illegally parked vessels were not an uncommon sight.
The town was really larger than it looked, as a good portion of it lay underground. In fact, it had a population of around 40 to 60 thousand people, varying seasonally.
Streets in the city included Corporation Road, Curved Street, Outer Curved Street, Straight Street, Spacers Row, Paradise Road, Dune Street, and Kerner Plaza. Many citizens rode rontos, dewbacks, and other beasts of burden.
Mos Eisley was divided into the "New Quarter" and the "Old Quarter". The Old Quarter was originally wheel-shaped and contained a thriving marketplace.[1] Jabba the Hutt also maintained a residence there, known as the Desilijic Complex, since it was difficult to make business from his palace. The New Quarter was more tourist-friendly and was a merchant district where tourists could relax (though there was still much crime). Chalmun's Cantina served as the hub of the newer quarter.[1] Each quarter had individual neighborhoods, such as the rough-and-tumble Tar Mass area.
During the Galactic Civil War, the Empire established a small garrison in Mos Eisley, although this did not help with the city's massive crime rates. The base was located near the cantina and whenever an expansion was required, the Empire would simply bulldoze surrounding houses.[1] To support the constant flow of spacers, Mos Eisley featured a large number of hotels, casinos, and cantinas.
[edit] History
Mos Eisley was built from the beginning with commerce in mind. It was founded as a substitute for the nearby, yet more expensive, Anchorhead. Located around the crash site of the Dowager Queen, the survivors of this crash originally named it simply "Eisley". They later renamed it to fit with other towns such as Mos Espa, and Mos Gamos. These same immigrants would later found the planet's future capital, Bestine.
The city was reputed as being a hub for shady persons and illegal activity, notably the smuggling of spice and illegal arms.[1] The city did not have enough customs officers to keep up with the crime and even when criminals were caught, they often successfully bribed the officers.[1]
Because Tatooine is a desert planet, availability of water is at a premium and the sewers are very small. To reprocess water quickly, it was decided that the sewers should use a Bunkard system. Unfortunately, it was prone to leaking and often led to Bunkard Sewer Disorder, which native Falynn Sandskimmer once contracted as a youth.
During the Galactic Civil War, the "hive of scum and villainy" became a target of notorious Imperial officer Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin, who had been tasked with controlling the Outer Rim by Emperor Palpatine prior to the Battle of Yavin.
He began his conquest on the outskirts of Mos Eisley, seeing the city as an ideal outpost for their operations. Unfortunately for the Imperials, the Rebel Alliance had their own outpost station in nearby Anchorhead, and moved to intercept the Empire, thus the First Battle of Tatooine ensued.
Though the Empire emerged victorious from the desert battle, their task force was considerably diminished, and their eventual presence in Mos Eisley was less than had been expected. This came back to haunt the Empire, as R2-D2 and C-3PO slipped through the cracks in what would otherwise have been a mighty security force. The Rebel presence in Mos Eisley was finally routed during the latter part of the battle.
Chalmun's Cantina played a crucial role in these times, as the establishment was where Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi met Han Solo and Chewbacca in their quest to get to Alderaan in order to deliver the Death Star plans to the Alliance. The Imperials also searched Mos Eisley for R2-D2 and C-3PO, the holders of the missing Death Star plans.
Jabba the Hutt was said to own a townhouse in the city.
[edit] Locations
- "Much of the business—legal or otherwise—is conducted in the seedy cantinas near the docking bays."
- ―Mammon Hoole[src]
- Bargoon Tatooni[2]
- Buzzee's[2]
- Chalmun's Cantina
- City jail
- Corporations Road
- Court of Fountain
- Crystal Moon Restaurant
- The Cutting Edge Clinic
- Desert Survey Office[3]
- Dewback Stables
- Dim-U Monastery
- Docking Bay 35
- Docking Bay 83
- Docking Bay 86
- Docking Bay 87
- Docking Bay 92
- Docking Bay 94
- Dockside Cafe[2]
- Doe See'ybark Bootana
- Dowager Queen wreckage
- Dune Street
- Foamwander Spa
- Gardulla Oola
- Gep's Grill
- Heff's Souvenirs[2]
- Hutt Chuba's
- Imperial garrison base
- Inner Curved Street
- Jabba's town house
- Jango Fett Arena
- Jawa Traders
- Jeh Bonegnawer
- Kayson's Weapons Shop[2]
- Kerner Plaza
- Krayt Cantina[4]
- The Krayt Dragon Lounge
- Lucky Despot
- Lup's General Store
- Marketplace
- Masse Goskey's Famous Arms Emporium[5]
- Methane Fix Cantina
- The House of Momaw Nadon
- Mo' Moolee Rah
- Mos Eisley Inn
- Mos Eisley Spaceport Control Tower
- Motel Nebulus
- Notsub Shipping Company
- Notsub Security[2]
- Outer Curved Street
- The Paddocks[3]
- Paradise Road
- Police Station
- Power Station
- Headquarters of Quebe-Luxfause Systems
- Rayne's Dune Sea Outfitters[3]
- Regional Government Offices
- Ruillia's Insulated Rooms
- Shiin's Library[3]
- Spaceport Customs
- Spaceport Express
- Spaceport Hotel
- Spaceport Speeders
- Spacers Row
- Star Chamber Café
- Straight Street
- Tar Mass[6]
- Tatooni Booka[6]
- Tatooine Militia building
- Transport Depot
- U Wanna Wanna[6]
- Ubrikkian trade tower
- Zygian's Banking Concern[2]
[edit] Behind the scenes
- The real world location for Mos Eisley are mostly in Jerba, Tunisia with the establishing shot on Dante's View in Death Valley looking toward Furnace Creek.
[edit] Appearances
[edit] Non-canon appearances
- Falling Star (Ambiguously canonical source)
- Prey (Ambiguously canonical source)
- Smuggler's Blues (Ambiguously canonical source)
- Best Birthday Ever
- Star Wars Infinities: The Empire Strikes Back
- LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
- LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga
- The Return of Tag & Bink: Special Edition
- Star Wars: Demolition
- Star Wars Infinities: Return of the Jedi
[edit] Sources
- Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game, First Edition
- Star Wars Technical Journal
- Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy
"Premiere Limited" - Star Wars Customizable Card Game (Card: Tatooine: Mos Eisley)
- Star Wars: The Action Figure Archive
- Galactic Phrase Book and Travel Guide
- Galaxy Guide 7: Mos Eisley
- Secrets of Tatooine
- The Official Star Wars Fact File 33
"Who Is That Alien? Ithorians & Gamorreans" - Star Wars Kids 8
Mos Eisley in the Databank
"The Anzati" - Star Wars Gamer 1
- "Secrets of Mos Eisley" - Star Wars Gamer 7
- Star Wars: Complete Locations
