New Republic

New Republic
General information
Organization type	Republic
Head of state	Chancellor
Commander-in-chief	Grand Admiral
Legislative branch	Galactic Senate
Military branch	Republic military
Societal information
Capital	Rotating Chandrila Hosnian Prime
Historical information
Formed from	Alliance to Restore the Republic
Date established	4 years after the Battle of Yavin, shortly after the Battle of Endor

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"This is democracy. […] We will not always get it right. We will never have it perfect. But we will listen. To the countless voices crying out across the galaxy, we have opened our ears, and we will always listen. That is how democracy survives. That is how it thrives. […] That is democracy. That is the New Republic. And if you'll excuse me, we have a great deal of work to do."

―Olia Choko

The New Republic, also known as the Republic or the Alliance, was the government formed from the Alliance to Restore the Republic after the Battle of Endor. The New Republic followed in the footsteps of the Galactic Republic, commonly known in that time as the "Old Republic," and fought the shattered forces of the Galactic Empire. The Republic aimed to prevent Imperial forces from regrouping and retaliating against them. Unlike its predecessor, the New Republic's capital was not based on Coruscant, but instead on its member worlds on a rotating basis, chosen through an election.

History

Origins

"In order to ensure the security and continuing stability, the Republic will be reorganized into the first Galactic Empire, for a safe and secure society!"

―Palpatine declares the fall of the Old Republic and the rise of the New Order

File:Battle of Endor.png

The Rebel Alliance formed the New Republic in the aftermath of the decisive Battle of Endor.

For over a thousand years, the galaxy had been governed through a democratic union called the Galactic Republic. Centered on the capital world of Coruscant, the Republic was ruled by the Galactic Senate, which in turn was led by an elected Supreme Chancellor. With the assistance of the Jedi Order whose Jedi Knights served as peacekeepers, the Republic enjoyed a millennia without large-scale war. However, as time went on, the government of the Republic became bloated and corrupt. The Senate, filled with greedy politicians, was unable to deal effectively with disputes that arose between the member worlds of the Republic. About ten years before the eruption of the Clone Wars, a dispute over the taxation of trade routes in the galaxy caused the Trade Federation to invade the planet Naboo. Although the Jedi, with the assistance of the Naboo people and the Gungans, were able to end the occupation, the senator of Naboo Sheev Palpatine, secretly the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Sidious, took advantage of the conflict, which he had secretly organized, leading to his successful election as Supreme Chancellor. Palpatine then manipulated the rise of the Separatist Crisis during which worlds who had become disaffected with the Republic seceded to form the Confederacy of Independent Systems. The discovery by the Jedi of the Separatist's Droid Army as well as a clone army commissioned for the Republic in secret by Palpatine, was the start of the first major war in a thousand years, the Clone Wars. The galaxy fell into turmoil as the Clone Wars raged on for three years during which Chancellor Palpatine amassed more and more power.

When the Jedi discovered Palpatine's identity as the Sith Lord Darth Sidious, they attempted to arrest him but failed when a young Jedi and the Chosen One named Anakin Skywalker interfered and fell to the dark side of the Force. He was inducted into the Sith Order as Sidious' apprentice, and became known as Darth Vader. Palpatine then issued Order 66, declaring all Jedi as traitors and forcing the clone troopers to execute their Jedi Generals, wiping out the Jedi Order. Palpatine then called together the Senate in an emergency session of Congress and announced that a New Order would be established; the Republic would be reorganized into the Galactic Empire ruled by an Imperial Senate and led by himself as Galactic Emperor. A group of resistance fighters were organized by such figures as Senators Mon Mothma and Bail Organa into the Alliance to Restore the Republic. These resistance fighters resolved to depose the Emperor from his rule over the galaxy and restore the Old Republic.

Just prior to the Battle of Yavin, some nineteen years after the end of the Clone Wars, Palpatine disbanded the Imperial Senate and introduced the planet-destroying Death Star. However, the Galactic Civil War had begun in earnest and the Rebel Alliance launched an attack that was able to destroy the Death Star. Despite an ensuing four years of setbacks, the Rebel Alliance launched the decisive Battle of Endor against the Empire. By the battle's end, the second Death Star was destroyed. The Emperor was killed by Darth Vader, who once again became Anakin Skywalker as he was redeemed from the dark side of the Force by his son, Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker, though Anakin died shortly thereafter from his injuries. The Empire suffered a crippling defeat, and the leadership vacuum left Imperial leaders vying to gain power for themselves.

A new government

"This is Leia Organa, last princess of Alderaan, former member of the Galactic Senate, and a leader in the Alliance to Restore the Republic. I have a message for the galaxy. Emperor Palpatine—the greatest tyrant civilization has ever known, responsible for death and suffering beyond measure—is dead. He and a second Death Star battle station were destroyed by Alliance forces earlier today. This does not mark the end of the Empire. The fight will continue. But you must take this opportunity. Join us in the foundation of a new Republic to be shaped by the will of the governed. Claim your freedom and your future. Help is on the way."

―Leia Organa, in a holographic transmission sent to the Anoat sector in the wake of the Battle of Endor

Their success in the Battle of Endor led the Rebel Alliance to reorganize into a fledgling new government known as the New Republic. The Republic pressed its advantage against the Empire by pursuing shattered Imperial forces throughout the galaxy, hoping to prevent them from regrouping into a larger foe once more. Several factions of the Empire rose up in the wake of the Emperor's death and several of them retreated to worlds in the Outer Rim to escape the attention of the New Republic. Strategically unimportant worlds such as Naalol also saw heavy fighting in the months following the Emperor's death, with the Imperials using them as fallback positions as other worlds slowly eluded its grasp. Twenty days after the Battle of Endor, Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan, who had been sent by Mon Mothma, Chancellor of the Alliance, visited the then-Queen of Naboo, Sosha Soruna. In the royal palace's throne room, Organa asked for Naboo's support in the establishment of a New Republic and the restoration of a senate. The queen accepted Organa's offer, claiming that the Naboo felt great shame over Palpatine's actions. Although the Empire attempted to destroy Naboo during Operation: Cinder, it was defended by Alliance forces. During subsequent attacks by Imperial forces, the New Republic would continue to successfully defend Naboo, its efforts there led by Thane Kyrell and Corona Squadron.

The New Republic victory at Jakku forced the Imperial remnants to sign a peace treaty and admit defeat.

New Republic forces quickly began to swell as propaganda broadcasts featuring the destruction of the second Death Star rallied thousands of individuals to take up arms against the Empire. Wedge Antilles, a New Republic starfighter pilot, eventually tracked a gathering of Imperial forces on the remote world of Akiva, but was captured by the Star Destroyer Vigilance before he could report to the New Republic, necessitating a mission to rescue him. The resulting Battle of Akiva saw several key Imperial figures killed or captured. In the early days of the New Republic, Chandrila was chosen to be the capital of the fledgling government. The Galactic Senate was re-established and its newly seated members elected Mon Mothma as the Chancellor of the New Republic.

One year after the Battle of Endor, the New Republic fought Imperial forces during the Battle of Jakku. The New Republic forces intended to capture the Imperial Star Destroyer, Inflictor, sending Thane Kyrell and a number of former Imperials on the mission. Ciena Ree, commander of the vessel, realized their plan and crashed the Star Destroyer into Jakku. This left the landscape of the desert world of Jakku littered with starship remains, including those of a T-65B X-wing starfighter and the Inflictor itself. During the battle, damaged Imperial warships used tractor beams to pull Republic ships down to the planet with them. With heavy losses following the battle, the Empire was forced to sign the Galactic Concordance with the Republic on Coruscant, bringing an end to the Galactic Civil War, and ensuring a Republic victory. The peace treaty imposed strict rules on the remaining Imperial-held territories, disarming them and imposing harsh reparations. Much of the remaining Imperial forces retreated into the Unknown Regions, and the old Empire dissolved almost completely. As time went on, former Imperial officers and nobles began rebuilding the government into a faction that would be called the First Order.

A shattered peace

"Today is the end of the Republic. The end of a regime that acquiesces to disorder. At this very moment in a system far from here, the New Republic lies to the galaxy while secretly supporting the treachery of the loathsome Resistance. This fierce machine which you have built, upon which we stand will bring an end to the Senate, to their cherished fleet. All remaining systems will bow to the First Order and will remember this as the last day of the Republic!"

―General Hux to the members of Starkiller Base before the destruction of the Hosnian system

As one its first acts following the signing of the the Galactic Concordance, the Senate passed the Military Disarmament Act which drastically cut the New Republic's military to a large but limited in ability peacekeeping force, an early goal of Mon Mothma's. The move was lauded by most who believed that the remaining Imperial hardliners posed no threat. Leia Organa disagreed and was sidelined from the New Republic's political process. Organa then formed the Resistance, a private military force which kept watch over the First Order's movements. Although she petitioned for assistance from the New Republic, the Senate was too self-absorbed to take much notice and its slow political process frustrated the former princess.

File:Destruction of the Hosnian system.png

Starkiller Base destroys the Hosnian system and, with it, the Republic's seat of power

Some thirty years after the Emperor's defeat at Endor, a cold war developed between the growing First Order and the New Republic. Despite warnings from General Organa about the dangers of the First Order, the Senate, led by Chancellor Lanever Villecham focused more on improving trade relationships with the neutral Trans-Hydian Borderlands systems. Believing that the First Order was remaining within their assigned borders and following the tenants of the Galactic Concordance, the Senate and Chancellor Villecham saw little cause for alarm. In the hopes of convincing the Senate to her point of view, Organa sent Resistance Commander Korr Sella to as an envoy to make a case for action by the New Republic. Determined to reveal its true power, the First Order, led by Supreme Leader Snoke, attacked the New Republic using its superweapon, the Starkiller Base, commanded by General Hux. It harnessed the sun's power and then destroyed the planets of the Hosnian system, including Hosnian Prime which at that time was serving as the Republic capital and hosting the Senate and one New Republic fleet. The Resistance in turn attacked Starkiller Base and was able to destroy it.

Politics

With the signing of the Galactic Concordance on Coruscant, the New Republic secured both victory and peace. Several changes were made to the political process to ensure mistakes of the Old Republic were not repeated. Despite dropping the "supreme" from the title, the post of Chancellor still held the emergency powers granted to Palpatine during the Old Republic's last years. To prevent further abuses of the office, Mon Mothma gave up these emergency powers and set forth a plan to give aid to war-torn worlds and bolster the training of their planetary defense forces so that they could defend themselves. Additionally, the Senate passed the Military Disarmament Act which, while maintaining the New Republic Starfleet, greatly reduced its size and capabilities. In order to gain the support of disaffected worlds and prevent friction that had occurred during the Old Republic and later the Empire, the New Republic government chose to not settle on Coruscant. Instead, member worlds would host the capital on a rotating basis with elections deciding where to seat the Senate. Despite its outward appearance of unity, many members of the Republic Senate were in fact in collusion with the First Order, with Senators such as Erudo Ro-Kiintor discretely accepting large sums of credits transferred through the Corporate Sector Authority and third-party corporations. These senators frequently delayed, derailed and dismissed motions regarding sanctions against the First Order and increased support for the Republic Navy.

Astrography

Thirty years after the Battle of Endor, the New Republic occupied vast swaths of space stretching from the Inner Core to the Outer Rim Territories, and at that time had its rotating capital on the Core World of Hosnian Prime. Some known Republic worlds included Chandrila, Akiva, Coruscant,Taris, Naboo, Hevurion, and Mirrin Prime. Between Republic and First Order space existed a neutral region of systems known as the Trans-Hydian Borderlands, in which an act of aggression within would be viewed as an overt act of war. Despite this, the First Order fleet frequently crossed the Borderlands and penetrated New Republic space, which led to incidents like the Suraz engagement. In spite of these violations of the Galactic Concordance, the New Republic refused to take action against the First Order beyond issuing formal diplomatic protests. Republic Command also did not believe that the First Order posed a serious threat and limited military units like Rapier Squadron to sector patrol.

Foreign relations

The New Republic evolved from the Alliance to Restore the Republic to become the new galactic government. Following the Battle of Jakku, the Republic signed the Galactic Concordance with the Galactic Empire, which imposed strict disarmament treaties and punishing reparations that limited the Empire's ability to wage war. About thirty years after the Battle of Endor, the New Republic believed that the remnants of the "Old Empire" no longer posed a threat and thus turned its attention to reshaping galactic politics. About thirty years after the Battle of Endor, Chancellor Lanever Villecham favored developing closer trade relations with the Trans-Hydian Borderlands as opposed to taking military action against the First Order, a remnant of the "Old Empire." Despite intelligence reports to the contrary, both the Republic's Senate Intelligence Committee and several Republic military commanders like Major Lonno Deso viewed the First Order as an ill-organized, poorly equipped, and badly-funded group of Imperial loyalists who used propaganda and fear to exaggerate their strength and importance.

The New Republic tolerated the Resistance, a private military force created by General Leia Organa to monitor the movements of the First Order. While the New Republic officially tolerated the Resistance, it was reluctant to help the Resistance since it was wary of risking war with the First Order. Conversely, the Resistance's leadership found the Galactic Senate too slow and too preoccupied with self-interest to be of any help. Some military commanders like Major Deso believed that the Resistance was inflating its own activities and exaggerating the threat posed by the First Order. The First Order on the other hand despised the New Republic as an illegitimate regime that tolerated disorder and supported the Resistance. In an effort to destroy the Republic, the First Order launched a preemptive attack on the Hosnian system, which at that time hosted the Senate and the New Republic Starfleet.

Besides the Resistance and the First Order, the New Republic had to contend with other entities including the Guavian Death Gang, the Hutts, and the Corporate Sector Authority.

Behind the scenes

The New Republic first appeared in the 1991 Star Wars Legends novel Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn. The government appeared in the next two chapters of Zahn's Thrawn Trilogy and went on to appear in a number of Legends stories until it was reorganized into the Galactic Federation of Free Alliances in The New Jedi Order series novel Force Heretic I: Remnant.

In the 2014 canon mobile game Star Wars: Galactic Defense, Tarfful can be seen yelling "hnn-rowr yrroonn nng rarr"—text that first appeared in the Legends comic Empire's End and meant "long live the New Republic," when translated from Shyriiwook.

In 2015, it was revealed that the New Republic would be part of the official Star Wars canon when it was referenced in a press release for the Star Wars Battlefront Battle of Jakku DLC. Prior to the release of Battlefront, the New Republic appears in the novels Aftermath and Lost Stars by Chuck Wendig and Claudia Gray respectively.

Appearances

• Star Wars: Shattered Empire, Part II (Mentioned only)
• Star Wars: Shattered Empire, Part III (Mentioned only in opening credits)
• Aftermath (First appearance, simultaneous with Lost Stars)
• Lost Stars (First appearance, simultaneous with Aftermath)
• Star Wars Battlefront
• Bloodline
• "The Perfect Weapon" (Mentioned only)
• "Bait" — Star Wars Insider 162 (Mentioned only)
• Before the Awakening
• Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens
• Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens junior novelization

Sources

• Coming Soon to Your Personal Jedi Archives: Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens – Sneak Peek! on StarWars.com (backup link)
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens: The Visual Dictionary
• Star Wars: Rey's Survival Guide
• Admiral Ackbar in the Databank (backup link)
• Han Solo in the Databank (backup link)
• Hosnian Prime in the Databank (backup link)
• Leia Organa in the Databank (backup link)
• The New Republic in the Databank (backup link)
• The Resistance in the Databank (backup link)

Notes and references

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