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Summary
TheStar Warstimeline and calendar has always been a bit confusing , but there ’s now a canon explanation for using BBY and ABY as its main preeminence . TheStar Warstimelineuses a queer dating system , one that resembles the real - world combining weight of BCE and CE , where a single effect carve up the halves of the calendar . TheStar Warsversion centers around the Battle of Yavin , when Luke Skywalker destroy the Death Star in the originalStar Wars , which was later retitledA New Hope . Thus , theStar Warscalendaris class into BBY and ABY , or before and after the Battle of Yavin .
Using the Battle of Yavin has always made mother wit from an external perspective , as it was the climax ofA New Hopeand the beginning of the integral franchise . Within the galaxy far , far away , however , using BBY and ABY does n’t seem as straight . There were thousands of class ofStar Warshistory beforeA New Hopeand even before theStar Warsmoviesin general , and plenitude of massive battle , moment , and events that could have separated the calendar . as luck would have it , a canon book has finally addressed why the Battle of Yavin has become so important to theStar Warstimeline .
The Empire was the backdrop for much of the world - construction in the original Star Wars trilogy , but what did the regime ’s sovereignty really look like ?
There’s An In-Universe Debate About The Star Wars Timeline Too
Chris Kempshall ’s script , " Star war The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire , " serve as an in - macrocosm accounting of the chronicle ofStar Wars , drop a line by an in - universe of discourse historiographer . Though Kempshall wrote the book in real life , it was purportedly written by Dr. Beaumont Kin , a historian introduced inStar Wars : The Rise of Skywalker . As a definitive history book , The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empiredelved quite deeply into the galaxy ’s story . One passage from the record revealed that the choice to use the Battle of Yavin as the basis ofStar Wars ' calendar also caused some in - world confusion and debate among historians .
" When it come to chronicling the event of the Empire ’s lifespan , there has long been a divide and debate among historian regarding dating rule . Some have favored a calendar which takes the birth of the Empire as a start item . Others have preferred to have their ' before ' and ' after ' time period around the Battle of Endor and the - apparently first - decease of Palpatine . "
As Kempshall and Kin noted , some historians chose other moment to employ as their division between old and new . There are countless example that could have been the foundation of the calendar just as effectively as the Battle of Yavin , such as the establishment of the Empire afterOrder 66 , the Battle of Endor , or even the Battle of Jakku , when the Galactic Civil War officially ended . Star Warshistorians distinctly had differing view , but the Battle of Yavin plainly pull ahead out . fortunately , The Rise and surrender of the Galactic Empirealso explained why that bit was choose instead of others .
Beaumont Kin Explains Why He Views BBY & ABY As The Best Explanation
After explaining how other historians viewed theStar Warscalendar differently , Beaumont Kin go on to explain why he chose the Battle of Yavin instead of other viable choice .
" I infer both of these approaches but have not employ either . As my enquiry progressed , it became more and more clean that the story and activeness of the Empire could be split into two unlike section . Those before the emergence of the Death Star and its demolition at Yavin and those afterward . While the Empire was never truly ' at peace , ' the attack of the Galactic Civil War greatly accelerated many aspects of its rule and the style in which it would interact with - and often slaying - its own citizens . Therefore , I have come to favour a dating system that foreground the years before the Battle of Yavin ( BBY ) and those that hail after ( ABY ) . I have no doubt that this will give rise the sort of stringent debate from both my fellow and other readers which often go with such conclusion . "
free-base on Kin ’s argument for BBY and ABY , it seems clear that the Battle of Yavin was the innate alternative to groundwork theStar Warscalendar on . The organisation and collapse of the Empire were both important moments , but the Galactic Civil War was the true turn point of galactic account , and the Battle of Yavin was the true turn point of the state of war . Kin mentioned that the Empire ’s behavior changed drastically with the macrocosm and death of the Death Star , but the Battle of Yavin also cemented the Rebel Alliance as a licit threat to the Empire ’s reign .
The Battle of Yavin also beat its competition in one key way . The origin and remainder of the Empire were both quite gradual . Palpatine worked for decades to destroy the Jedi and the Republic , and the Empire did n’t come into its full tycoon until years after . to boot , though the Emperor died at the Battle of Endor , the warfare live another year , until the Battle of Jakku . The Empire did n’t have a clear , well dated beginning and final stage , but the Death Star was revealed and destroy in a affair of day . That made the Battle of Yavin a much more precise moment to establish a calendar around .
The Battle of Jakku has not been describe in a Star Wars movie or show yet , but was featured heavy in the " Aftermath " trilogy of Scripture and the TV game " Star Wars Battlefront II . "
How Would Other Approaches Differ?
While it may seem like an arbitrary option , the result that separate theStar Warscalendar was quite authoritative . Whatever effect was chosen would directly be give more grandness , and it would center that present moment as the most polar result in all of galactic history . Using the Proclamation of a New Order , when Palpatine declared himself Emperor , would have centered him in Galactic story . Similarly , using Palpatine ’s death at the Battle of Endor would have been a signal that he was the most important figure in history . The Battle of Yavin , however , signify that the Rebel Alliance was more important and desirable of remembering than the Emperor .
On top of its symbolic grandness , the central date ofStar war ' calendar specify how the integral time period was consider . Using an event focalise on Palpatine would have made him a stand - in for the entire imperium , and essentially showed that he " restarted " Galactic account . That was likely how the disputation about the calendar began , as Palpatine would have loved to view himself as the origin of a young era of history and could have really created a new calendar centered around himself . Additionally , either of those pick would have minimize the unnumberable villains who made the Empire possible , from Grand Moff Tarkin to Grand Admiral Thrawn .
The senator for Naboo , Palpatine rose to magnate and influence during the go bad days of the Republic . In reality , his public persona was just a mask ; he was really Darth Sidious , greatest of the Sith Lords , and he used his political skills and Machiavellian cunning to bring in down both the Republic and the Jedi . Palpatine ruled his Galactic Empire for decades , until he was betrayed by his prentice , Darth Vader . Even this was n’t enough to stop the Emperor , however , as he was resurrect by his followers - only to be defeated once again .
Custom image by Simone Ashmoore
While the Battle of Yavin may not be the most intuitive way to delineate the half of theStar Warscalendar , it was belike the best . It centered the discussion of Galactic history around the Rebellion and the people of the galaxy rather than the Empire . It does n’t , however , present the same integrated chronicle of the Galactic Empire as the other options would have , as they would have kept the integrality of the Empire within the same half of the calendar . There is n’t a perfect direction to divide theStar Warstimeline , but there is at least a canon explanation for using the Battle of Yavin .
Purchase Chris Kempshall ’s " Star war The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire " on Amazon
Star Wars is a multimedia system dealership that started in 1977 by creator George Lucas . After the freeing of Star Wars : Episode IV- A New Hope ( originally just titled Star Wars ) , the dealership cursorily exploded , spawning multiple sequel , prequels , television set show , video game , comics , and much more . After Disney larn the right to the enfranchisement , they quickly extend the existence on Disney+ , starting with The Mandalorian .
The senator for Naboo, Palpatine rose to power and influence during the dying days of the Republic. In reality, his public persona was just a mask; he was really Darth Sidious, greatest of the Sith Lords, and he used his political skills and Machiavellian cunning to bring down both the Republic and the Jedi. Palpatine ruled his Galactic Empire for decades, until he was betrayed by his apprentice, Darth Vader. Even this wasn’t enough to stop the Emperor, however, as he was resurrected by his followers - only to be defeated once again.
Star Wars is a multimedia franchise that started in 1977 by creator George Lucas. After the release of Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope (originally just titled Star Wars), the franchise quickly exploded, spawning multiple sequels, prequels, TV shows, video games, comics, and much more. After Disney acquired the rights to the franchise, they quickly expanded the universe on Disney+, starting with The Mandalorian.
