Ghorman Massacre

The Ghorman Massacre, also known as the Massacre at Ghorman, was an atrocity perpetrated by the Galactic Empire shortly after Emperor Palpatine's Declaration of a New Order in 19 BBY. Following an increase in taxation, citizens of the Colonies planet Ghorman staged a peaceful sit-in protest at their capital square and at landing pads at their spaceport. Imperial Captain Wilfhuff Tarkin arrived on Ghorman to collect the taxes and ordered his warship to land on top of the protesters, killing and wounding hundreds. Others were also killed and wounded by Imperial troops intervening in the protests.

The massacre horrified many throughout the galaxy, and although it initially suppressed resistance to the Empire, it inspired many to openly rebel. Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan decided to support Senator Mon Mothma's growing resistance movement in response to the massacre, having previously rejected the idea of revolution. The massacre was commemorated annually by Imperial dissenters, and some activists who publicly protested it were forcibly disappeared.

Text and facts from the “Ghorman Massacre/Legends” article on Wookieepedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Modified for this site.