The Third Great Schism was a conflict within the Jedi Order that occurred in 4250 BBY, the third of a series of conflicts where members of the Order fell to the dark side of the Force and waged war on their fellows. The Third Schism was instigated by Jedi who were influenced by teaching of the dark siders known as the Sith.
After a period of intense fighting on the Galactic Republic's capital of Coruscant, the Dark Jedi were forced to fall back to the Vultar system, where they discovered ancient technology that was believed to have been used to artificially construct the planets of the star system. The Dark Jedi attempted to use the machines, including the powerful Cosmic Turbine, but lost control of the technology, resulting in the annihilation of the Vultar system in an event known as the Vultar Cataclysm.
In the aftermath of the cataclysm, the ruined system became known as the Vultar Nebula. The Jedi Order later attributed the cause of the Great Sith War, Jedi Civil War, and ensuing conflicts between dark-siders and the Jedi to the Third Great Schism.
The Vultar Cataclysm was first mentioned in the 1994 comic book Tales of the Jedi – Dark Lords of the Sith 3. The New Essential Chronology (2005) revealed that the events leading to the Vultar Cataclysm were the Third Great Schism.
- The New Essential Guide to Characters
- The New Essential Chronology
- Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force
- The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
- The Jedi Path: A Manual for Students of the Force
- Star Wars Annual 2011