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"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 /mɑs aɪzliː/, moss izelee, (Listen (help·info))), formerly known as Eisley, 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

GeographyEdit

MosEisley
The full expanse of Mos Eisley.

Mos Eisley was located in a valley somewhere to the southeast of the Jundland Wastes[5] 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.[5] By order of the Empire, all of these hangars were equipped with time-lock devices.[5] 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 spaceship
The streets of Mos Eisley.

Mos Eisley was divided into the "New Quarter" and the "Old Quarter". The Old Quarter was originally wheel-shaped and contained a thriving marketplace. 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 Spaceport Cantina served as the hub of the newer quarter.[5] 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.[5] To support the constant flow of spacers, Mos Eisley featured a large number of hotels, casinos, and cantinas.

The shops district was close to a hangar, the markets, a warehouse, and a housing complex.[6]

HistoryEdit

Mos Eisley street
The Imperial presence in Mos Eisley in 0 BBY.

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. 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.[5]

Because Tatooine was a desert planet, availability of water was at a premium and the sewers were very small. To reprocess water quickly, it was decided that the sewers should use a Bunkurd Reclamation System. Unfortunately, it was prone to leaking and often led to Bunkurd Sewer Disorder, which native Falynn Sandskimmer once contracted as a youth.

During the Galactic Civil War in 0 ABY, 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.

MosEisley-celebration
The streets of Mos Eisley erupted in celebration at the news of the Emperor's demise.

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.[1]

Shortly thereafter, Mos Eisley was transformed overnight into a police state run by the Empire as a direct result of the Battle of Yavin. In addition, it also suffered from a severe outbreak of Bledsoe's Disease after a Jawa that unknowingly took a transport capsule from a crash site containing squills died within the catina. Luke Skywalker reluctantly returned to Tatooine in order to investigate the capsule.[7]

Six months later, Mos Eisley was attacked by Imperial TIE Bombers and Viper probe droids to draw out the Rebel Alliance pilot Luke Skywalker.[8]

In 1 ABY, Mos Eisley and other communities on Tatooine were put under Imperial curfew by a nameless Moff. Ackmena, the night bartender of Chalmun's Cantina, was the one to receive the message, and reluctantly responded by singing to encourage her guests to leave.[9] By this time, Mikdanyell Guh'rantt was the city mayor.[10]

Jabba the Hutt owned a townhouse in the city.

In 4 ABY,[11] the city erupted in celebrations after the destruction of the Empire's second Death Star and the death of the Emperor.

LocationsEdit

"Much of the business—legal or otherwise—is conducted in the seedy cantinas near the docking bays."
―Mammon Hoole[src]
Mos Eisley map
Mos Eisley scheme.

Behind the scenesEdit

The real-world locations for Mos Eisley are mostly in Djerba, Tunisia with the establishing shot on Dante's View in Death Valley looking toward Furnace Creek.

Mos Eisley appears in a map in the 2004 video game Star Wars: Battlefront. During the Historical Campaign, the battle on the map appears as an Imperial mission, although the game's story is secondary continuity, according to Leland Chee, the keeper of Lucasfilm Ltd.'s Holocron continuity database.

Mos Eisley appears in the training missions in the Star Wars: Rogue Squadron video game series.

AppearancesEdit

MCQ-moseisley
Concept art by Ralph McQuarrie.

Non-canon appearancesEdit

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Wookieepedia has 77 images related to Mos Eisley.

SourcesEdit

Notes and referencesEdit

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
  2. ↑ Tatooine Ghost
  3. ↑ Edge of Victory II: Rebirth
  4. ↑ Star Wars: Legacy 37: Tatooine, Part 1
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 Star Wars: Complete Locations
  6. ↑ Battlefront: Prima Official Game Guide
  7. ↑ Tatooine Sojourn
  8. ↑ Star Wars: Rogue Squadron
  9. ↑ The Star Wars Holiday Special
  10. ↑ Gal-icon Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided
  11. ↑ The New Essential Chronology
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 12.6 Galaxy Guide 7: Mos Eisley
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Secrets of Mos Eisley
  14. ↑ Star Wars: Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
  15. ↑ Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Galactic Phrase Book and Travel Guide

External linksEdit

Retrieved from "http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Mos_Eisley?oldid=4498318"
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