Declaration of Rebellion

The Declaration of Rebellion was a document addressed to the Galactic Emperor, Palpatine, that marked the formal declaration of open resistance against the Galactic Empire. It was crafted by Mon Mothma, and ratified by the representatives at the Corellian System Meetings, and was designed to push back against the Imperial notion that the Rebel Alliance was a group of terrorists.

The Declaration was released prior to the Battle of Yavin. The newly formed Alliance distributed millions of copies of the Declaration. In the declaration, the principles and grievances of the Alliance were laid out, and it concluded with an open vow to overthrow Palpatine's regime.

The Declaration of Rebellion proved so stirring that a number of systems decided to openly declare their defiance of the Empire against Mon Mothma's advice. Those systems paid the price for their political imprudence as the Empire reacted swiftly to their actions with ruthlessly overwhelming force and suppressed them.

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