The Clone Wars, preceded by the two-year Separatist Crisis, is a fictional three-year conflict in the Star Wars franchise by George Lucas. Though mentioned briefly in the first Star Wars film (A New Hope, 1977), the war itself was not depicted until Attack of the Clones (2002) and Revenge of the Sith (2005). The Clone Wars are also the setting for three eponymous projects: a 2D animated series (2003–2005), a 3D film (2008), and a 3D animated series (2008–2014, 2020). They have featured in numerous Star Wars books, comics and games.
Within the Star Wars narrative, the Clone Wars involve a three-year war fought to prevent thousands of planetary systems from seceding from the Galactic Republic and joining the Confederacy of Independent Systems (CIS), colloquially referred to as the Separatists or Separatist Alliance. The Republic uses an army of clone troopers led by the Jedi Order against the Separatist battle droid army. The conflict was a scheme by the Republic's Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, secretly the evil Sith Lord Darth Sidious, seeking to implement the Sith's long-term plans to wipe out all Jedi and take over the galaxy. Palpatine intended this by giving the clone troopers a secret executive command, "Order 66" (in the form of a control chip) embedded in their brains, instantly making clones perceive their Jedi officers as traitors and kill them. He succeeded in issuing the command in Revenge of the Sith promptly leading to the deaths of numerous Jedi around the galaxy, allowing Palpatine to gain total power and ultimately convert the democratic Galactic Republic into the fascist autocratic Galactic Empire, a reign controlled through a military–industrial complex and featured in the original trilogy.
Lucas used the Clone Wars narrative to answer questions about the original trilogy, such as how the Empire originated and how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader. The political and military events of the Clone Wars draw inspiration from such real-world conflicts and historical events, as transition of the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire, the American Civil War, the First and Second World Wars, as well as contemporary events such as the war on terror and the Bush administration during the early 21st century.
Concept and development The first reference to the Clone Wars is in Star Wars creator George Lucas' third draft of the first film, which mentions the grizzled cyborg General Kenobi's "diary of the Clone Wars". The wars were mentioned twice briefly in the final version of the film, referring to Obi-Wan Kenobi as a general who served Leia Organa's (then-unnamed) father Bail Organa during the conflict. In drafting The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Lucas considered introducing a clone character who had been involved with the Clone Wars. Leigh Brackett's first draft of the film initially developed Lando Calrissian as a clone from a planet of clones involved in the Clone Wars mentioned in A New Hope and were nearly made extinct by the war. Boba Fett was also initially considered as being from a group of shocktroopers nearly wiped out by Jedi during the Clone Wars. However, these concepts were not included in the final version of the film. Lucas was more guarded about the details of the Clone Wars than any other element of Star Wars, even making them off-limits to licensed products and books.
Lucas has noted that Palpatine's rise to power is similar to that of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany; as Chancellor of Germany, the latter was granted "emergency powers", as is Palpatine.Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith DVD commentary featuring George Lucas, Rick McCallum, Rob Coleman, John Knoll and Roger Guyett, Lucas has also said that one of the primary influences for the political backdrop behind the Clone Wars, and all of Star Wars, was the Vietnam War and Watergate scandal era, when leaders embraced corruption for what they thought was the best course of action. In 2002, Lucas said:
The clone forces shown at the conclusion of Attack of the Clones comprised the largest digital army created for a film at that point. Lucas proposed to concept artists that Revenge of the Sith would open with a montage of seven battles on seven planets. Lucas then radically re-organized the plot; instead of opening the film with various Clone Wars battles, Lucas decided instead to focus on Anakin Skywalker. The absence of the "seven battles on seven planets" in part led to Lucas's decision to launch the CGI-animated Clone Wars television series; Lucas said the cartoon could "do better" at depicting the conflict.
Depiction
The Clone Wars are first mentioned in A New Hope when Obi-Wan explains to Luke that his father fought in them, to which Luke expresses doubt. It is later mentioned by Leia in her message that Obi-Wan served her father, who will later be identified as Bail Organa, in the Clone Wars. The Clone Wars was first depicted in Attack of the Clones, the release of which brought an end to Lucas's embargo on licensed material set during the era. Numerous novels, comic books, and video games exploring the conflict have been sanctioned by Lucas Licensing.
Origins
Attack of the Clones, set at the beginning of the Clone Wars, opens with the Galactic Republic's rising concern about the secession of thousands of star systems to the Confederacy of Independent Systems, which is publicly led by Count Dooku. Chancellor Palpatine manipulates Jar Jar Binks and the rest of the Galactic Senate, the legislature of the Republic, into granting him emergency powers to deal with the crisis. Investigating two attempted assassinations of Senator Padmé Amidala, Obi-Wan Kenobi discovers Dooku used the identity of a dead Jedi Master to secretly arrange the creation of a massive clone army on the Republic's behalf. Yoda leads the clone army to rescue Obi-Wan, Padmé, and Anakin Skywalker from the Separatists on Geonosis, and the first battle of the war ensues. At the battle's conclusion, Yoda declares: "Begun, the Clone War has." In the final scene of the movie, Anakin and Padmé get married in secret, in violation of Anakin's Jedi vows.Lucas, George, director. Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones. Lucasfilm Ltd., 2002.
Palpatine promises safety at the cost of individual freedoms, all while tightening his own control over every facet of society; he promises to relinquish his powers once peace and order is restored. Among his first emergency orders are conscripting the Jedi as commissioned officers of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) armed forces; by seizing influence over the Jedi Council, Palpatine indirectly takes command of the GAR. He then nationalizes the military-industrial and financial sectors to finance the war effort, intentionally prolonging and exploits the Clone Wars to amass unprecedented political power, using his apprentice Darth Tyranus, Head of State of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, as a pawn to keep everyone distracted and focused on ending the war. During the 6th season of The Clone Wars, a clone trooper named Fives discovers that he and his brothers have chips implanted into their brains that would compel them to kill Jedi when "Order 66" is uttered. Unfortunately, the Jedi remained unaware of this as Fives was executed by a clone shock trooper ordered by Palpatine to conceal the existence of the contingency order.
The Twilight of the Republic In the waning days of the three-year Clone Wars, as depicted in Revenge of the Sith, Palpatine long overstayed his term limits; he exploits the people's fears, systematically rewrites constitutional laws and crushes the institutions that threaten his goals. The Jedi are overstretched across the galaxy trying to end the war; they distrust Palpatine's motives, fearing he has come under the influence of a Dark Lord of the Sith named Darth Sidious. Their concerns are shared by more than 2,000 loyalist, pro-democracy senators who suspect Palpatine may not return his emergency powers once the war ends. These senators set into motion plans that will eventually lead to the creation of the Rebellion.
He orchestrates his own kidnapping by the Separatists by leaking classified information, and thereby bringing the war to the capital, Coruscant, to further spread terror. After killing Dooku and rescuing Palpatine from the Separatists during their assault on Coruscant, Anakin learns Padmé is pregnant. He becomes troubled by visions of her death in childbirth, and Palpatine lures Anakin to the dark side of the Force by promising to teach him how to prevent her premature demise. Meanwhile, Yoda is dispatched to Kashyyyk to stave off a Separatist invasion, and Obi-Wan Kenobi is dispatched to Utapau where he kills General Grievous.
The Purge
Palpatine reveals himself as a Sith Lord to Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker, promising to save Padmé, Skywalker's secret wife, from dying in childbirth as Anakin has foreseen. Skywalker reports Palpatine's true identity to the Jedi Council.
However, when Jedi Master Mace Windu confronts Palpatine, Anakin comes to Palpatine's aid and helps him kill Windu. Desperate to save Padmé, Anakin pledges himself to the dark side of the Force and becomes Palpatine's third apprentice, Darth Vader. Palpatine declares the Jedi to be traitors, providing "irrefutable evidence" that they were the instigating masterminds behind the Clone Wars, and Sidious orders the clone troopers to execute Order 66, all but exterminateing the Jedi Order in a galaxy-wide slaughter, while sending Vader to the Jedi Temple along with several clone troopers to kill the remaining Jedi and Padawans in the temple, before sending Vader to kill the Separatist leaders on Mustafar and to issue a "shutdown command" to their droid army. With their demise, Sidious declares an end to the Clone Wars and the Republic's reformation into the Galactic Empire.
Two remaining Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, mount a counterattack. Obi-Wan defeats Vader and leaves him for dead, but Yoda's duel with Palpatine ends in a stalemate; both Jedi flee into exile. Grievously wounded, Vader is rescued by Palpatine and fitted with cybernetics and a black suit of armor with a life-support system. After Padmé dies giving birth to twins, Yoda and Obi-Wan decide to separate the children – Luke and Leia – to hide them from the Sith. Luke goes to Vader's stepfamily on Tatooine, while Leia is adopted by Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan.Lucas, George, director. Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. Lucasfilm Ltd., 2005.
Aftermath
Having "won" the war, with army liberators occupying every known star system, Palpatine orders them to annex planets, suppress the sectors and subjugate the people. Secured in his power and position, with no one left to stop him, Palpatine moves on to his final political opposition, the Senate; rather than dismantling it outright, he reduces it to a powerless symbol that exists only as an illusion of representation, and as an echo chamber for his rhetoric. Senators with no dedication to public service are bribed or coerced into rubberstamping Palpatine's policy; the remaining pro-democracy senators are spied upon, arrested, extorted, assassinated, or otherwise made to resign and/or disappear. Palpatine appoints governors to oversee all star systems in the Republic; these governors, later known as Imperial Moffs, report directly to Palpatine and are appointed without a vote or approval from any senators. This effectively sidelines the Senate, leaving it unable to influence how the galaxy is governed.