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Sheev Palpatine is a character in the Star Wars franchise created by George Lucas. He first appeared in the 1980 film The Empire Strikes Back as The Emperor. He is also known by his Sith name, Darth Sidious, which was first used in the novelization of The Phantom Menace (1999).
Palpatine, known also by his Sith name Darth Sidious or simply as The Emperor, was a Force-sensitive Human male who served as the last Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic, holding the position from 32 BBY until 19 BBY, and was the first Emperor of the Galactic Empire from 19 BBY until...
Darth Sidious, born Sheev Palpatine and also simply known as The Emperor, was a male human Dark Lord of the Sith and Emperor of the Galactic Empire, with his reign lasting from 19 BBY to 4 ABY. Rising to power in the Galactic Senate as the senator of Naboo, the secretive Sith Lord cultivated two...
The dark side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural, and Sheev Palpatine is the most infamous follower of its doctrines. Scheming, powerful, and evil to the core, Darth Sidious restored the Sith and destroyed the Jedi Order. Living a double life, he was also Palpatine, a Naboo Senator and phantom menace.
- Overview
- Background
- History
- Video Games
- Other Appearances
- Relationships
- Trivia
“The dark side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be... unnatural.”
―Palpatine
Sheev Palpatine, also known as Darth Sidious or simply as The Emperor, is a Dark Lord of the Sith and the main antagonist of the Star Wars franchise.
As the senator of Naboo, he cultivated two identities (Sidious and Palpatine) to further his political power over the galaxy, and he was eventually elected the Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic. With his Sith apprentices Darth Maul and Darth Tyranus, Sidious orchestrated the Clone Wars and various other crises to achieve galactic dominance with the fall of the Republic and destruction of the Jedi Order. Shortly after betraying Tyranus and orchestrating his death, Palpatine lured Anakin Skywalker to the dark side as his new apprentice, Darth Vader, and reorganized the Republic into the Galactic Empire, declaring himself Emperor. His reign was unchallenged until the formation of the Rebel Alliance. During the Galactic Civil War, the Emperor sought to betray Vader by replacing him with his son, Luke Skywalker. This backfired when Luke refused to join him, while Vader renounced the dark side and killed his master to protect Luke, destroying the Sith and bringing balance to the Force as the prophesied Chosen One.
Personality
Initially, Palpatine appeared to be an amiable politician, and a harmless but well-meaning individual. This guise was used to fool the Galactic Senate into thinking that he had the best intentions for the galaxy. However, Palpatine is actually an arrogant, ambitious, power-hungry, and machiavellian individual. He desires absolute power and rule out of his deluded belief that he is above everything else. In addition to his narcissism and arrogance, he is extremely intelligent, patient, cunning, deceitful and manipulative. He uses the double identify to orchestrate numerous events, and deceive both the Jedi and Confederacy. He even willingly betrays his own allies if he no longer has a use for them. After Palpatine had successively gained full control of the Galactic Republic, turning it into the Galactic Empire, he abandoned his public persona, becoming openly a tyrannical ruler. Despite this, he never reveals that he is the Dark Lord of the Sith to the public, as only his most trusted followers become aware of his Sith identity. Some of his commanding officers, such as Wilhuff Tarkin, also came to suspect that he is a Sith, but with no way to prove it. He is also very clever about hiding his face by using public holograms and decoys that resemble his Pre-Imperial appearance to make it appear that he recovered from his attack by Mace Windu and often appeared in public. Palpatine is the only Sith Master/Dark Lord of the Sith in the history of the galaxy to achieve the ultimate goal of the Sith Order to eradicate the Jedi Order, and bring the galaxy under the rule of the Sith to restore the Sith Empire. Palpatine greatly desires to become immortal. His former mentor, Darth Plagueis, had once had the ability to keep others from dying using the power of the dark side of the Force. Palpatine learned this same ability and desires to use a similar power to increase his lifespan so that he can rule the galaxy forever, with one such scheme involving the creation of a Force-made virus called Project: Blackwing. But Palpatine's searches for such secrets of the Sith result being ultimately fruitless, as the Blackwing virus turned its hosts into undead zombies and had to be eradicated. Thus, he never was able to find a way to become immortal. Despite this desire for immortality, he can still gamble his own life in order to ensure that an exceptionally powerful Force-user is turned to the dark side. This is especially evident with Anakin Skywalker, when Palpatine casually asked if Anakin was going to kill him and then proceeded to heavily imply that doing so would draw him into the dark side. Later, he repeatedly goaded his son, Luke Skywalker, into trying to kill him, so he'd turn to the dark side. On a related note, just prior to his duel with Yoda and stating the latter wouldn't stop his plans due to Darth Vader, he also expressed some eagerness at the potential of Vader becoming far stronger than even himself. Regardless, Palpatine would later achieve his goal of immortality in a sense by being able to revive himself from death, but at the immense cost of becoming blind, partially rotted, unable to walk and undead. It was revealed in the film's novelization of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, that Palpatine's resurrection was aided by his followers of the cult known as the Sith Eternal, who utilized both the dark side of the Force and powerful technology to help revive their master and liege lord inside a clone body. Palpatine saw his allies as tools he could use for his purposes and discard when he no longer needed them. He betrayed countless allies, including Plagueis, Maul, Dooku, the Separatist Council, and Darth Vader. Like most practitioners of the dark side of the Force, Palpatine is susceptible to fear to the point of being paranoid. This paranoia is extensive to the point where he fears the power of other Force-users and has them hunted down and either killed or turned to his side as loyal servants. But his paranoia is never extensive to the point of being cowardly, since he is not afraid of getting into direct confrontations with exceptionally powerful opponents (such as Mace Windu and Yoda) or in the cases when he risks himself to turn a Force-user to the dark side. But fear ultimately proves to be Palpatine's weakness, as it causes him to constantly plot and devise schemes against his enemies, which ultimately led to the unexpected creation of the Rebel Alliance, and the eventual downfall of the Galactic Empire. During the time of the Galactic Empire, Palpatine is not very forgiving, killing his allies or subordinates for failing him even once, except for of Vader and his most trusted followers. He has no tolerance for failure while his former apprentice is able to tolerate failure to a certain extent, as Vader once stated to Moff Jerjerrod that the Emperor was not as forgiving as he was. Despite Palpatine's evil nature, he is a known patron of the arts. This is evidenced in the craftsmanship of his lightsabers and in the many statues and sculptures present in his office, during his time as Chancellor. However, he abandoned most of his love of the arts when he became the Sith Emperor in favor of expanding his power. Not only is Palpatine greedy, callous, hateful and cold, but he is also extremely creepy as seen by his disfigured appearance, eerie voice and yellow eyes. In an interview, Ian McDiarmid (Palpatine's actor) claimed Palpatine is pure evil, and that only Snoke is superior to Palpatine in regards to evil, as the Supreme Leader is a much darker person than the Dark Lord of the Sith ever was (despite being later discovered that Palpatine is actually the Supreme Leader's creator, and was utilizing Snoke to control and manipulate others during his absence). Despite Palpatine's accomplishments, or perhaps because of them, he is arrogant, manipulative, cruel, hateful and extremely wrathful to the point of underestimating his opponents, such as the Rebel Alliance. He pays no heed to the strength and determination of the Rebellion, mainly as a result of them having just a few Force-users in their group, such as Ahsoka Tano, Kanan Jarrus, Ezra Bridger, and Luke Skywalker. Like Yoda, Palpatine also believes that once an individual falls to the dark side, they could never be swayed to return to the light side. This is evident in his failure to perceive the love Anakin has for his family and the effect that his son would have on him. This arrogance and lack of insight of his eventually led to Palpatine's first death at the hands of the redeemed Anakin Skywalker, when he attempted to kill Anakin's son, Luke. His arrogance was also the result of his second and final death at the hands of his own granddaughter, Rey. Palpatine underestimated her abilities and determination, and her connection with Anakin's grandson, Ben Solo, was unnoticed to him. He considered only the blood relation between the Skywalkers to be the cause of his last defeat at Anakin's hands, failing to notice Kylo Ren's romantic feelings and strong attachment towards Rey, which prompted Ben to abandon the dark side and come to her rescue on Exegol. As a result, until they were both in front of him, he never realized that they were in fact a real dyad, a power which he had been searching for years. Ultimately, his attempts to turn Rey to his side failed because of Ben Solo, and her power combined with the strength of all the past Jedi is proven to be superior to his, allowing his granddaughter to disintegrate him with his own Force lightning.
Early Life
Palpatine's origins were closely guarded secrets that he took to his grave more than once. He was trained in the ways of the Sith by his late master, Darth Plagueis and took on the name Darth Sidious. Eventually, Sidious learnt everything he needed from his master, after which he decided that he had no further use for his teacher. In accordance with the Rule of Two tradition, Palpatine betrayed Plagueis by killing in his sleep, and ascended to ultimate power and acquiring the title of Sith Master for himself.
Invasion of Naboo
Palpatine is a middle-aged politician of the Republic who rises to power through deception and treachery. Outwardly, he behaves like a well-intentioned and loyal public servant and supporter of democracy, yet underneath his affable public persona lurks his true identity; Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord of the Sith. He orchestrates the invasion of Naboo through pawns Viceroy Nute Gunray and Gunray's assistant, Rune Haako of the Trade Federation. When Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi arrive on Gunray's ship to negotiate, Palpatine orders their deaths, though Gunray fails to kill them. After Queen Amidala escapes the invasion, Sidious dispatches Darth Maul, his apprentice, to dispose of the Jedi. Pretending to help deal with the invasion as Palpatine, he manipulates and deceives the Senate to make him the new Chancellor in place of Chancellor Valorum by convincing Amidala to move for a vote of no confidence in Valorum. Soon after, he learns of Queen Amidala's plans to return to Naboo and liberate their people, and dispatches Maul once again to join the subsequent battle. Amidala's plan is risky, but it succeeds in the end. Gunray is captured, the droid army is immobilized, and Maul is defeated. Sidious' plans to take over Naboo have failed for the time being. He is last seen being introduced to Anakin Skywalker, who has just destroyed the Droid Control Ship.
Chancellor of the Republic
As Chancellor Palpatine of the Republic, Darth Sidious continues in his guise. To replace Darth Maul, Sidious begins training Count Dooku, a man who used to be a Jedi but turned to the dark side, dubbing him Darth Tyranus. Learning that Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas had contacted Kamino and placed an order for a Clone army for the Republic, Dooku betrayed and orchestrated Dyas's death, allowing Sidious and Dooku to take control of the project. Sidious and Dooku gained control of a biochip Sifo-Dyas intended to have instilled in each Clone as a safeguard against rogue Jedi's. To ensure that the army turns against the Jedi, Sidious and Dooku retool the chip to contain a protocol that Sidious could use to compel them to turn against the Jedi upon his command. As Palpatine, he sets up security measures to counter the mercenaries attempting to murder Senator Amidala, also lying to Yoda that he fears the thought of an imminent war (in reality, he anticipates it) he also convinces Jar Jar Binks to propose that the senate grant him emergency powers, allowing him to summon the clone army (That Sidious had put in motion 10 years prior) and consolidate his control. With this new authority, he begins the Battle of Geonosis and later the Clone Wars. After the said battle, Dooku informs him that the war had begun as planned, and even though they lost, it was merely the first step in a greater game. During the war, he continues to set up several events to his advantage. The war goes on for three years.
Star Wars: Force Arena
Emperor Palpatine is a playable character in Star Wars: Force Arena as a Legendary squad leader card.
LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Emperor Palpatine appears in the Prologue, which narrates the events of the Battle of Endor.
Phineas and Ferb: Star Wars
Palpatine made a brief cameo in the crossover special as a hand puppet used by Darthenshmirtz during his song Sith-inator.
Star Wars Weekends
Darth Sidious was a meetable character during the Star Wars Weekends event in Disney's Hollywood Studios at The Walt Disney World.
has an article focusing on the relationships of Palpatine.
•Palpatine/Darth Sidious is often considered as one of the most evil movie villains ever created as he is mostly known for being the most ruthless or sinister in the Star Wars universe, being the mastermind behind most of the series' events.
•Since the initial theatrical run of Return of the Jedi, Sidious has become a symbol of evil and sinister deception in popular culture. People have compared Palpatine's corrupt leadership to that of many dictators throughout history and his appearance to that of Benedict Arnold.
•The film historian Robin Wood has compared Sidious' appearance to that of the Evil Queen's witch form in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Coincidentally, both of their disfigured appearances had some relation to lightning that they summoned (the Queen added lightning to a potion as part of an ingredient to fashion a disguise for herself and Sidious' body ended up disfigured as a direct result of Mace Windu redirecting his Force Lightning back at Sidious when he attempted to blast him with it, although it was heavily implied with the latter, at least in the old Expanded Universe, that the disfigurements were actually his true form being exposed).
•Contrary to popular belief, neither of the names "Palpatine" or "Sidious" was not referred to by name until The Phantom Menace. His name originated from supplementary materials such as the visual dictionary for the original trilogy, the script, and the novelizations.
•During production of Revenge of the Sith, George Lucas decided to shoot new footage for The Empire Strikes Back to create continuity between the prequels and original trilogy. Thus, in the 2004 DVD release of the films, the original version of the Emperor was replaced by actor Ian McDiarmid, who portrayed Palpatine in the other films. The dialogue between the Emperor and Darth Vader was revised, such as "the offspring of Anakin Skywalker" rather than saying Luke's name.
•For the Star Wars: The Clone Wars film and subsequent TV show, Palpatine/Sidious was voiced by veteran actor Ian Abercrombie. Abercrombie passed away on January 26, 2012, leading to the legendary actor Tim Curry replacing him in the final seconds of "The Lawless" as well as the remaining episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars series, for which he was credited, beginning the fifth season finale "The Wrong Jedi". In the season 7 episode "Shattered", Ian McDiarmand voices Sidious through an archival recording from Revenge of the Sith telling "Execute Order 66" to Rex.
Dec 23, 2019 · The Entire Emperor Palpatine Story Explained. When the first Star Wars movie came out in 1977, Darth Vader was the main bad guy, and the Emperor was only an unseen figure in the background. By ...
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Dec 25, 2019 · As the dust of Exegol settles from Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, here's your guide to the life and times of Emperor Palpatine. Two thousand years before the Skywalker Saga, the Sith ruled the galaxy. They were eventually overthrown by the Jedi, and cast into the shadows.
