The darkest secrets of the Star Wars universe are spoken in hushed tones between robed figures, but fans want to know every detail. The evil forces that seem to mastermind every malevolent event are personified in only a few familiar faces, but where did they get their power and station?
The Sith Order is behind the Empire, which means every Star Wars project shares the same small group of antagonists. Even when the story flips the script, the Sith remain the bad guy in the shadows. Countless years before the earliest canonical event in the franchise, the forces of darkness selected their emissary and began the war on everyone.
One of the biggest problems in the Star Wars universe has nothing to do with the events on the page or screen, but occurs due to the actions of a real-life empire, Disney. When Disney acquired the Star Wars license in 2012, the overwhelming majority of non-film Extended Universe material was immediately declared non-canon. The stuff contained in the countless novels, games, and other mediums is referred to as the Legends continuity. While technically non-canon, this material often answers questions that go unanswered in the technically accurate canon. With that in mind, most fans have to settle with old answers to their questions before Disney puts out their accepted lore.
An immeasurable period of time ago, the Prime Jedi established the first Jedi Order on Ahch-To, the planet where Rey finds Luke Skywalker hiding out in The Last Jedi. Fellow believers of the Prime Jedi's wisdom flocked to the temple and forged the earliest vestiges of the Jedi Order. For ages, the Jedi studied the Force and meditated, seeking peace and wisdom in their relationship with all things. Jedi spread their influence throughout the galaxy, establishing temples on a variety of other worlds, including the best-known one on Coruscant. Through processes that have gone unexplained, the powerful religious order found themselves aligning with the central governing body of the galaxy, the Galactic Republic. The Jedi would go on to become the galaxy's most trusted peacekeeping force and source of spiritual guidance, but all was not well in the Jedi Order.
The spark that started the never-ending war for the very heart of the Force came in the form of a single man. The Legends Continuity called him Ajunta Pall, but the modern canon has left him without a name. Whatever his identity, his fate is known. This mysterious man was once a skilled Jedi Master, but his studies took him away from the Jedi ways. He began to study the dark side of the Force and became convinced that the greatest depths of their power were being hidden from him. This rogue Jedi rebelled against the peaceful teachings of the Order and tapped into the dark side, and was exiled for his actions. However, his teachings did not fall on deaf ears, and many other Jedi joined him in leaving the Order and pursuing the power that lies with the dark side. That group took the name of a red-skinned species capable of using these dark powers, and began calling themselves the Sith Order.
The fracture between the Jedi and the Sith came in a period known only as the Hundred-Year Darkness. Not much is known about the Hundred-Year Darkness, other than that it left the Sith and Jedi bitter enemies. This long period devolved into open warfare between the Jedi and Sith. This war was long and grim, costing the lives of countless Force-sensitive followers of both sides. Unsurprisingly, the Jedi won the war and the Sith were believed to have been vanquished. Fans who remember The Phantom Menace might recall the shock on the Jedi Council's faces when Qui-Gon Jinn explained that he'd encountered a Sith warrior. Though the Sith Order were defeated by the Jedi, they were far from finished battling the group they once called their brothers.
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The Sith Order retreated to Moraband, a secretive and hidden planet that is quietly one of the most important locations in the galaxy. On Moraband, the Sith built their own temples, which expanded into localized empires. The Sith Order gained new followers, overwhelmingly from vengeful or exiled former Jedi. Hundreds of years passed after the wars between the Jedi and the Sith before the dark forces reared their evil heads again. This long period was spent building power, gathering followers, inserting agents into high-value positions in government, and waiting for the chosen one. Once the chosen one finally arose, Darth Sidious put his absurd multifaceted plan into action and the rest is history.
The Sith are, and have always been, the splinter group of the Jedi Order. They are warriors steeped in the teachings of the Council who would turn against their upbringing and seek to destroy all that they once knew. The Sith are the perfect reminder that to every light, there is a dark side.