Unknown to her, Senator Palpatine (secretly the Sith Lord Darth Sidious), along with his master Darth Plagueis, had covertly engineered her ascension to the throne, by suggesting to her parents that she should bid for the throne of Naboo. Amidala, who Prime Councilor Kun Lago believed was behind the publicization of a Foreign Affairs scandal, quickly gained public support to become the next monarch. After the unpopular king's abdication, Amidala was quickly prepared for her coronation.
Amidala being fitted with her coronation gown
In the year 33 BBY, Ars Veruna, King of the Human people living on Naboo, abdicated the throne. The thirteen-year-old Princess of Theed Padmé Naberrie, who went by the name of state of Amidala, was chosen to succeed him. As the former monarch's resignation had been known hours before the official announcement, Naberrie's coronation was properly prepared in advance. Sio Bibble, Governor of the planet and Head of the Naboo Royal Advisory Council, had supervised the grooming of the Princess of Theed by a team of royal handmaidens. While the palatial staff was in the middle of preparations for the upcoming event, Amidala' young boyfriend Ian Lago turned up and declared his love for the Princess. Amidala, however, informed him that their relationship had to end so she could devote her life to the people of Naboo.
The day of the ceremony, Amidala sat in the throne room of the Theed Royal Palace with her back to the wide window. She wore a wide-shouldered, bright-red robe adorned with gold embroideries, a hem of potolli fur and a series of illuminated sein jewels. She also bore the traditional make-up of the Naboo queens: a white facepaint, the red scar of remembrance and two stylized beauty marks. One of the handmaidens then placed the crown—in fact an elaborate wig adorned with a gold faceframe and the precious Jewel of Zenda—on the seated Amidala's head. The new Queen then delivered an official acceptance speech she had been writing the day before, with the help of her chief advisor Bibble. Upon her coronation, Captain Quarsh Panaka explained to her the old strategy of using decoys as a measure of safety. It was in this context that Queen Amidala first met Senator Palpatine, who represented Naboo and the thirty-five other affiliated worlds of the Chommell sector.
Sketch of Amidala's coronation by Randy Martinez
Amidala's coronation was first mentioned in 2000 in "A Summer's Dream," a short comic published the fifth issue of the Star Wars Tales series of comics. However, the only depiction of the ceremony was drawn by Star Wars illustrator Randy Martinez for the 2010 Topps trading card set 2010 Topps Star Wars Galaxy Series 5. Admittedly, Martinez had been wishing to create that scene for years, after visiting Caserta Palace, Italy—used in filming the interior scenes in the Naboo Royal Palace for Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace—in 2005. Palpatine and Plagueis' involvement in having Amidala crowned was also revealed in the novel Darth Plagueis.
There are several key differences between Martinez' preliminary sketch and the trading card. While Amidala and her handmaidens were alone in the sketch, Palpatine and Sio Bibble were added in the background of the finalized product. Additionally, the dress worn by Amidala in the sketch was not the same as her "Throne Room Robe" shown in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, and the crown was put on her head piece by piece.