The Consular-class light cruiser, also known as the Consular-class cruiser, and frequently called the Republic cruiser, represented a starship from the Corellian Engineering Corporation. The Galactic Republic utilized these vessels to transport both Jedi and diplomats to locations experiencing unrest across the galaxy.
The Corellian Engineering Corporation designed and built the Consular-class space cruiser, which the Galactic Republic then employed to transport Jedi and diplomats to areas of conflict throughout the galaxy. The civilian versions of the Consular-class cruiser were used for simple transport and were unremarkable. However, Consular-class ships used for diplomatic missions were painted red. This color declared their diplomatic immunity, serving as a warning against attack. For centuries, the color red had signified ambassadorial relations and neutrality for Republic capital ships. During the Clone Wars, these cruisers were painted the same colors as Republic attack cruisers. Any ship hailing from Coruscant would be painted entirely red; others would only have stripes.
A salon pod was included on the Republic cruiser, providing a secure meeting space for Republic officials and leaders of conflicting groups. There were also various salon pods that were designed for different alien species. In the event of an emergency, the salon pod could detach from the main ship. It had its own sensors, life support equipment, and engines, allowing it to safeguard the diplomatic crew. The ship also featured a number of escape pods.
The cruiser could accommodate a total of 9 crew members and 16 passengers. To enhance security during diplomatic missions, the number of organic crew members was kept to a minimum, with droids handling many of the ship's functions.
Despite the fact that diplomatic versions were unarmed, some cruisers were modified with double turbolaser cannons and two concussion missile launchers. They then served in the Judicial Forces and regional security forces, with some being reclassified as either Republic light assault cruisers or Republic frigates. Other ships were altered to function as troop carriers and command ships.
The Republic began using Consular cruisers late in its history. An early version was constructed following the Ruusan Reformation and entered service around 990 BBY. They were created due to budget cuts that required the building of new utilitarian and unostentatious starships; it was that quality of them that attracted the Jedi to their use.
In 32 BBY, leading up to the Invasion of Naboo, the Consular-class cruiser known as Radiant VII carried Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi to the Trade Federation battleship, Saak'ak, which was in orbit around Naboo. The ship was crewed by one pilot and a captain, both of whom died when the Trade Federation destroyed the ship.
During the Stark Hyperspace War and the Yinchorri Uprising, militarized Consular-class ships called Republic light assault cruisers were used by the Republic Navy. These ships were upgraded with cannons and additional armor.
During the Clone Wars, certain Consular-class ships underwent the Charger c70 retrofit, receiving weapon batteries to serve as small frigates within the Republic wartime Navy. Their combination of firepower and speed made them valuable assets.
Consulars were also employed by civilians such as Noggox the Hutt. Dool Pundar, a pirate, seized one of Noggox's freighters.
The militarized Consular-class frigates were painted in a style similar to the Venator-class Star Destroyers. The custom of using red paint for strictly diplomatic vessels persisted even into the era of the Galactic Empire. Princess Leia Organa's ship, the Tantive IV, featured red stripes to signify its diplomatic immunity.
Throughout the Galactic Civil War, a small number of armed cruisers remained in service across the galaxy. Rif Taranu, a smuggler, aided the Rebel Alliance by using his modified cruiser, the Dead Reckoning, to transport goods. Several were observed at the Jubilee Wheel in the early stages of the Yuuzhan Vong War, and they participated in the Battle of Yag'Dhul.
The initial designs for the Consular-class cruiser featured a sleek, "Coruscant-look." After several revisions, George Lucas and Doug Chiang determined that the cruiser should have a clear visual connection to the original trilogy. Following this direction, Chiang and the Art Department created a ship with a more rectilinear shape that echoed the design of the blockade runner from Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. One of the final additions to the cruiser was the small antenna array located above the cockpit. Lucas felt that the ship needed "a little extra something" to draw the audience's attention to that area.
In Empire 22, the Consular cruiser was mistakenly depicted as a Personal Luxury Yacht 3000.
In a 2007 campaign for Wizards of the Coast's version of the Star Wars Roleplaying Game Dawn of Defiance, the pirate ship Blood Brother from the 1986 story The Scarlet Pirate, the third issue of the Star Wars: Droids comic series, was identified as a Consular-class cruiser. However, the ship's appearance differed greatly from the Consular-class cruiser featured in Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace. To resolve this inconsistency, Abel G. Peña and Rich Handley later renamed the class of the Blood Brother to Consular III in the first installment of "The Droids Re-Animated," a pair of reference articles on the StarWars.com blog.