In 9 BBY, during the Galactic Empire's Imperial Era, a battle unfolded on Botajef. This conflict arose from Governor Quesl's attempt to declare Botajef's independence, a ruse designed to pilfer the planet's prized art collections for his personal gain. Commodore Thrawn spearheaded the Imperial forces in this confrontation, ultimately exposing Governor Quesl's deceptive scheme. The result was a peaceful resolution, favoring the Empire.
The indigenous Jefi people inhabit the world of Botajef. Their history is marked by prolonged periods of quiet loyalty, punctuated by brief but intense conflicts that usher in new leadership and another era of passive allegiance. This cyclical pattern is reflected in Jefi art, characterized by curves intersected by sharp lines or angles, with a color palette mirroring the group's emotional and ethical spectrum. During the Imperial Era, the Galactic Empire held dominion over Botajef, with Governor [Quesl](/article/quesl], a human, appointed to govern. Despite being human, Quesl skillfully persuaded the Jefi to submit to his authority.
Prior to the Batonn insurgency, Governor Quesl made the decision to separate Botajef from the Galactic Empire. Given that this secession evoked memories of the devastating Clone Wars, the Galactic Empire was unwilling to accept Botajef's secession. Although Quesl had succeeded in gaining the support of the Jefi, the secession was merely a facade for his scheme to steal invaluable Botajef art and sell it off-world by orchestrating his own demise in a staged confrontation with the Empire. Fleet Admiral Jok Donassius dispatched Commodore Thrawn to subdue the separatists. Thrawn was given this assignment because xenophobic members of the Imperial Military harbored resentment towards the Chiss alien and desired his failure.
Driven by a sense of duty, Commodore Thrawn accepted the mission. During the fifteen hour journey to Botajef, Thrawn dedicated his time to studying the planet's history and art. He was also assisted by Weapons Officer Lieutenant Pyrondi, who explained that the Jefi people followed those whom they perceived as great leaders. Thrawn's forces consisted of the Imperial Star Destroyer Chimaera, while the Botajef Defense Force was composed of two CR90 corvettes and seven squadrons of V-19 Torrent starfighters; with five squadrons based in the north-polar base and two based in the south-polar base.
Upon exiting hyperspace, the Chimaera was greeted by Governor Quesl's two CR90 corvettes. Governor Quesl demanded that the Imperials depart, but Thrawn countered that Botajef's secession violated the formal stipulations outlined in Section Eighteen, Paragraph Four of the treaty the Jefi had signed with the Empire following the Clone Wars. While Thrawn engaged the Governor in conversation, four TIE fighters flew past the starboard corvette. This did not startle the corvettes who maintained stationary.
When Quesl denied the existence of such a treaty, Thrawn added that Paragraph Seven of the treaty stipulated that the governor or other leaders must fully disarm before any secession talks. Thrawn then demanded that Quesl dismantle the turbolaser emplacements surrounding his palace. Quesl mocked Thrawn and challenged him to destroy them himself. Thrawn then instructed Senior Lieutenant Yve to dispatch six TIE fighters to eliminate the turbolasers. Thanks to Yve's exceptional training, the Imperial TIE fighters swiftly destroyed the turbolasers without causing any damage to Quesl's palace.
Thrawn then directed Commander Karyn Faro to maneuver the Chimaera towards starboard in the direction of the corvette holding position there. This action shook the Botajef corvette and caused Quesl's comm display to tremble. At that point, Commander Eli Vanto realized that Quesl was aboard one of the corvettes rather than at the palace. Observing the paintings behind Quesl, Thrawn deduced that Quesl had orchestrated the secession as a scheme to fake his death and flee off-world with Botajef's art. When Quesl insisted that the Jefi remained loyal to him, Thrawn countered that they would only obey a respected leader and that Quesl no longer commanded that respect.
Acknowledging defeat, Quesl lamented that he could have sold the art for billions off-world. When Quesl inquired how Thrawn had outmaneuvered him, the Commodore explained that his human crew had twitched in response to what he perceived as an impending collision. However, the other corvette, crewed by Jefi, had trusted their leader implicitly and displayed no fear. Thrawn then issued orders for Quesl and his crew to be taken aboard the Chimaera and for the artwork to be returned. Thrawn added that the Jefi needed to be "enlightened" and that a new leader needed to be chosen until Coruscant could dispatch a new governor. He also instructed the Imperial pilots to remain vigilant but assured them that no conflict was anticipated.
Thrawn successfully diffused the Botajef uprising without any bloodshed. Following Governor Quesl's defeat, the stolen artwork was recovered. Thrawn took measures to inform the chief of the Botajef Defense Force and the Jefi people about the true circumstances. Thrawn also instructed Commander Vanto to contact Imperial High Command on Coruscant to inform them that the situation on Botajef had been peacefully resolved. In private, Thrawn confided in Commander Faro that the fabricated Clone Wars-era treaty had been a ploy to distract Governor Quesl until his movement under the tractor beam's pull gave final confirmation of his presence aboard one of the CR90 corvettes. The peaceful resolution of the Botajef uprising dealt a blow to those within the Empire who had hope to discredit the alien "outsider" Thrawn. In addition, the conflict's peaceful resolution enabled Thrawn to concentrate on eliminating the shadowy insurgent leader Nightswan
The Battle for Botajef made its debut in Timothy Zahn's 2017 novel, Thrawn, a rebooted Canonical origins story of the titular character.