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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[5]

Mos Eisley (pronounced /mɑs aɪzliː/, moss izelee, (Listen )), 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."

Description[]

"Mos Eisley is known as the galaxy's armpit. I guess there are worse parts of the anatomy where we could be stuck."
Lando Calrissian[6]
MosEisleyFarFarAway-ANH

The full expanse of Mos Eisley

Mos Eisley was located in a valley to the east of the Jundland Wastes[4] and roughly 80 kilometers north of Anchorhead, near the desert palace of Jabba the Hutt. It could be reached from the high ground to the west via the Sluuce Canyon.[4]

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.[4][7] By order of the Empire, all of these hangars were equipped with time-lock devices.[4] 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.[4] 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 level surrounding buildings.[4] 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.[8]

History[]

"The city's history actually has a lot to do with a crashed starship, the Dowager Queen, which crashed into the desert flats in the center of what is now the city of Mos Eisley."
Mayor Mikdanyell Guh'rantt, to a spacer[9]
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 to be 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.[4] Jabba the Hutt owned a townhouse in the city.

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 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.[5]

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 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 cantina. Luke Skywalker reluctantly returned to Tatooine in order to investigate the capsule.[10]

Six months later,[11] Mos Eisley was attacked by Imperial TIE Bombers and Viper probe droids to draw out the now–Rebel Alliance pilot Luke Skywalker.[12] A bounty hunter had provided information which led to the raid.[11]

After the Battle of Yavin, the Rodian Mikdanyell Guh'rantt was the mayor of Mos Eisley. During his term, Guh'rantt was willing to improve, despite limited funding, life conditions and security in the city. To achieve those objectives, he worked closely with the animal control officer Entha Kandela, the veteran marksman Purvis Arrison and the combat expert Peawp R'dawc, and he occasionally hired spacers to assist them. However, the mayor eventually found himself indebted to the Hutt crime lord Jabba Desilijic Tiure.[13] In retaliation for the late payments, Jabba developed a plan to trick the Tusken Raiders into attacking Mos Eisley. One of Jabba's minions, the Trandoshan bounty hunter Bossk, recruited a spacer to attack Tuskens around Mos Eisley so they would think the Mos Eisley militia was responsible. Although a Tusken berserker discovered the truth and was promptly assassinated by the spacer, Jabba's plan eventually worked out.[14] Then, hostile Tuskens began to amass in Junktown, a slum on the outskirts of Mos Eisley, to attack the city.[15] Fortunately, in 1 ABY,[16] Bib Fortuna, Jabba's majordomo, offered the services of spacers to help the mayor find a way to reimburse the Hutt.[13] Working with Peawp R'dawc, the spacers defeated undesirable thugs and criminals who prowled around Mos Eisley.[17][18][19][20] In addition, the spacers and Entha Kandela eliminated various creatures which were posing a threat to public health and damaging city infrastructure.[21][22][23][24][25] Finally, the spacer under the orders of Purvis Arrison battled the Tusken Raiders around Junktown. The adventurers killed enough Tuskens to preventing them to raid Mos Eisley for the time being.[26]

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.[27]

In 4 ABY,[28] the city erupted in celebrations after the destruction of the Empire's second Death Star and the death of the Emperor.

Locations[]

"Much of the business—legal or otherwise—is conducted in the seedy cantinas near the docking bays."
Mammon Hoole[29]
Mos Eisley map

Mos Eisley layout


Behind the scenes[]

MCQ-moseisley

Concept art by Ralph McQuarrie

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.[37] Also, Mos Eisley was used as a map for Star Wars: Battlefront's successor, Star Wars: Battlefront II, where the player could play as either a hero or a villain.

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

Appearances[]

Non-canon appearances[]

Sources[]

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Notes and references[]

  1. Secrets of Tatooine
  2. Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided
  3. The Essential Guide to Planets and Moons
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 Star Wars: Complete Locations
  5. 5.0 5.1 Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope
  6. Shadows of the Empire novel
  7. Star Wars: Build the Millennium Falcon 1
  8. Star Wars Battlefront: Prima Official Game Guide
  9. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: The Total Experience — Conversation with "Mayor Mikdanyell Guh'rantt" on Tatooine
  10. "Tatooine Sojourn"
  11. 11.0 11.1 Star Wars: Rogue Squadron: The Official Nintendo Player's Guide
  12. Star Wars: Rogue Squadron
  13. 13.0 13.1 SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "If It Helps" on Tatooine
  14. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Quest: "Tusken's Rage" on Tatooine
  15. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "Tusken Raiders in Mos Eisley" on Tatooine
  16. According to its opening crawl, Star Wars Galaxies was set sometime after Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. The only precise time indication in the game was given by the character Ruwan Tokai, who referenced the destruction of the Death Star at the Battle of Yavin as occurring one year earlier, placing the game sometime around 1 ABY. Later, multiple elements confirmed the placement of the game storyline in 1 ABY. First, The Essential Reader's Companion established that the tie-in novel Star Wars Galaxies: The Ruins of Dantooine took place in 1 ABY. Furthermore, the game expansion Star Wars Galaxies: Rage of the Wookiees was set during the Blockade of Kashyyyk, one year after the Battle of Yavin according to The Star Wars Holiday Special. Additionally, the main scenario of The Nightsister's Revenge from the Star Wars Galaxies Trading Card Game was set over a year before the Battle of Hoth (3 ABY), so around 1.5 ABY. Finally, the reference book Strongholds of Resistance placed the events of Star Wars Galaxies's Chapter 9: "The Fury of Exar Kun" one year after the Battle of Yavin. Of note, Galaxies's Chapter 11: "The Battle of Echo Base" introduced the Battle of Hoth in the game. However, the developers were quite clear that this was only intended to be a completely isolated "Star Wars Moment" without any effect on continuity for the rest of the game.
  17. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "No Respect!" on Tatooine
  18. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "Moisture Thieves" on Tatooine
  19. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "Run Out the Gunrunners" on Tatooine
  20. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "Identity Theft" on Tatooine
  21. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "Give me Some Skin" on Tatooine
  22. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "Bug Hunt" on Tatooine
  23. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "Dem Bones" on Tatooine
  24. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "Rill Thing" on Tatooine
  25. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "Mighty Mites" on Tatooine
  26. SWG logo sm Star Wars Galaxies: Starter Kit — Legacy Quest: "Tusken Infestation" on Tatooine
  27. The Star Wars Holiday Special
  28. The New Essential Chronology
  29. The Illustrated Star Wars Universe
  30. 30.00 30.01 30.02 30.03 30.04 30.05 30.06 30.07 30.08 30.09 30.10 30.11 30.12 30.13 30.14 30.15 30.16 30.17 30.18 30.19 30.20 30.21 30.22 30.23 30.24 30.25 30.26 30.27 30.28 30.29 30.30 30.31 30.32 30.33 30.34 30.35 30.36 30.37 30.38 30.39 30.40 30.41 Galaxy Guide 7: Mos Eisley
  31. 31.0 31.1 31.2 31.3 SWGamer-icon "Secrets of Mos Eisley" — Star Wars Gamer 7
  32. Star Wars Screen Entertainment
  33. Platt's Smugglers Guide
  34. Star Wars: Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
  35. Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy
  36. 36.0 36.1 36.2 Galactic Phrase Book & Travel Guide
  37. StarWarsDotComBlogsLogoStacked "Holocron Keeper comments archive" — Keeper of the Holocron's BlogLeland Chee's StarWars.com Blog (backup link)

External links[]

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