Early rebellion against the Galactic Empire

Between the Clone Wars and the Galactic Civil War, an early rebellion in the early years of the reign of the Galactic Empire was waged by a collection of rebel cells that ultimately formed the Alliance to Restore the Republic. These militant cells were covertly organized by Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan and quietly given political support in the Imperial Senate by such senators as Mon Mothma of Chandrila and Leia Organa of Alderaan. Major rebel cells included the Massassi Group led by General Jan Dodonna, Phoenix Cell led by Commander Jun Sato, the Spectres led by Captain Hera Syndulla, and the Partisans led by resistance fighter Saw Gerrera. They were often supported by agents known as Fulcrum, including Commander Ahsoka Tano.

The early rebellion against the Empire originated in the last days of the Galactic Republic, when Senator Organa and other members of the Galactic Senate convened in secret to discuss ways to counter the executive power amassed by Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine. When the Clone Wars, a pretext for Palpatine to amass power, came to an end in 19 BBY, the Republic was transformed into the Galactic Empire and Organa began organizing armed resistance against the Imperial regime. By 4 BBY, many resistance cells began working together after they aided in the rescue of the captive Jedi Kanan Jarrus over Mustafar.

The battle marked the outbreak of the fully open Galactic Civil War, in which the Alliance ultimately triumphed over the Empire and formed the New Republic.

Text and facts from the “Early rebellion against the Galactic Empire” article on Wookieepedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Modified for this site.