credit: Star Wars
The buzz about Sheev Palpatine has never really died down over the years since he’s stood out as the dark lord of the Sith, Darth Sidious, and he’s been the Emperor that brought back the Galactic Empire. But with the rumor that he’s not an actual Sith, it’s easier to point out how he’s been one of the master manipulators of the Star Wars franchise, as he’s done a great deal to steer the galaxy in the desired direction that not only made him emperor but saw the dissolution of his most hated rivals, the Jedi.
Just thinking of what it would take to create such mayhem within a room with a small group is enough, but to execute this type of plan on a large scale would be unheard of since it would take someone that had no shame, was ready to see things descend into chaos, and had one hell of a plan B in order to make sure that there’s a contingency just in case things didn’t go the way they needed to. Some might think that contingency might have been Order 66, but it does feel far more likely that the Purge was a part of the overall plan to take over the galaxy. And to think, it started earlier than The Phantom Menace.
credit: Star Wars
Sheev killed his own master, Darth Plagueis.
It’s not really known how Sheev met up with Darth Plagueis unless one happens to read the novel that was written about this character. There is a story out there that details how the Sith Lord took Palpatine on as his apprentice and taught him a great deal before Sheev decided that he’d learned enough.
Killing his master shouldn’t have been possible, but Sheev is the type of person that has a dark will that has kept him moving forward with his plans for quite some time. Darth Plagueis was the type of individual that experimented with various ideas, such as the creation of life and the idea of immortality, as it’s already been heard in the third prequel that he might have found the solution. The problem is that his apprentice decided to end his life before he could implement it.
He was able to secure political power without anyone knowing of his connection to the Sith.
Being born to a well-to-do family didn’t hurt his chances of becoming a political figure since Sheev was raised around those with money and status and knew how to make his way among the most influential beings in the galaxy. His rise to power wasn’t that hard to track since, between his ability to talk to people and to pull strings behind the scenes, Sheev knew which wheels to grease and which people to position in one way or another.
While his motives were usually rather self-serving and dark, his manner was almost always ingratiating and kind on the outside as even in The Phantom Menace, he appeared as a benevolent, almost grandfatherly kind of individual that was there to advise Queen Amidala and bolster the efforts of his fellow politicians. To realize that his kind face was a mask that no one could see through is all kinds of terrifying since two Jedi, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, couldn’t even see past his facade. Of course, just to be fair, at that point, he’d had plenty of time to practice and build his strength in the Force, which means that his status as a Sith was well-deserved at that time.
credit: Star Wars
The fact that he played everyone by acting like the kind, innocent Chancellor is horrifying.
It’s understandable that Amidala and the others around her couldn’t sense anything wrong with Sheev since if he could fool two powerful Jedi then it’s easy to think that those without a strong connection to the Force wouldn’t sense that anything was amiss. This allowed him to continue to move people and things and craft situations that would play out to his advantage behind the scenes as Darth Sidious without any contestation. He was even able to direct Count Dooku to order the construction of a clone army, which had to take a while and could have possibly been started before the events of the second movie.
Palpatine did reshape the galaxy with his actions.
From the murder of his master to the corruption of Anakin Skywalker and the destruction of the Jedi, Sheev created a ripple effect within the galaxy that managed to last for quite a while. Training Darth Maul as his apprentice changed the futures of many people, including Anakin, who lost the only real father figure that might have kept him in check, and ordering Anakin to kill Count Dooku was another master stroke that changed things forever. But while Order 66 was a massive change that flipped the galaxy on its ear, Palpatine’s plans started very small and continued to build throughout the course of his life.
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