Editing Galactic Empire (Star Wars) (section)

====The Twilight of the High Republic====
The Galactic Empire is born out of the [[Declinism|declining]] [[Galactic Republic|High Republic]]; the rise of the empire wasn't sudden but instead unfolded gradually, step by step with one power grab after the next. However, its seeds of [[decadence]] are planted and nurtured by the Sith over a period of centuries, that bore fruit during the [[Clone Wars]], the epic war between the Republic and the separatist Confederacy of Independent Systems (CIS) depicted in ''[[Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones|Episode II: Attack of the Clones]]'' and ''[[Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith|Episode III: Revenge of the Sith]]''. The [[Jedi|Jedi Council]], sitting atop Coruscant in their ivory tower, pride themselves in having [[genocide|permanently eradicated]] the Sith-menace, and are romanticized as guardians that ushered an unprecedented 1000-year era of peace and justice, yet beneath their solemn chants and stoic meditation lies arrogance masked as wisdom, complacency mistaken for serenity. Palpatine's ascension came with the final layer of poison instilled into a governmental system on the brink of collapse. Because of the hubristic Jedi, the corrupt senate and a civil war, Palpatine was seen by many as a savior and is easily able to take near-complete control of the Republic.

In ''[[Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace|Episode I: The Phantom Menace]]'', amid a trade dispute and invasion of his homeworld of [[Naboo]],<ref name="A Long Time Ago">{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/movies/star-wars-timeline/?slide=2448029#2448029|title='A long time ago': A Star Wars timeline|last1=Smith|first1=Alyssa|last2=Romano|first2=Nick|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|date=December 6, 2019|access-date=February 10, 2020|archive-date=August 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801060613/https://ew.com/movies/star-wars-timeline/?slide=2448029#2448029|url-status=live}}</ref> Senator Palpatine convinces Queen [[Padmé Amidala]] to call for a [[vote of no confidence]] in Supreme Chancellor of the Republic [[Finis Valorum]]. Palpatine is elected Supreme Chancellor in Valorum's place.<ref name="A Long Time Ago"/> For the Jedi, clairvoyant beings who sat calmly as corruption festered in the heart of the Republic, Chancellor Palpatine, a ''Sith Lord'', the greatest galactic threat the Jedi swore to oppose, rose right under their noses.