Mandalore

Located in the Outer Rim Territories region of the galaxy, near the Hydian Way trade route, Mandalore orbited as the fifth planet in the Mandalore system, which gave its name to the Mandalore sector. Positioned between the orbits of Kalevala and Mandallia, it marked the end of the Mandalorian Road, an ancient hyperspace route connecting Mandalore to Corsin in the Inner Rim. This terrestrial world, with a diameter of 9,200 kilometers, possessed standard gravity and two moons, one of which was Concordia, a former mining base and agricultural center. A unique feature of Mandalore and Concordia was the presence of beskar iron ore, an almost indestructible metal resistant to lightsaber strikes, used by Mandalorian metalsmiths to create armor, weapons, and starships. A year on Mandalore consisted of 366 days, each divided into 19 hours. Mandalore's atmosphere was breathable, with a climate that varied across its regions.

Prior to the Mandalorians' rise, Mandalore was dominated by massive mythosaurs. These colossal creatures were said to rival cities in size, but upon the arrival of the Taung warriors, they were systematically slaughtered as part of the conquest, leaving only their massive skeletons to bleach under Mandalore's sun. Native veshok trees covered much of Mandalore's northern hemisphere, including the Olankur region of its northern continent, forming vast forests that stretched nearly to the polar ice caps. Northern winters often brought heavy snowfall and bitter cold. The veshok forests were home to herbivorous shatuals and intelligent, six-legged strills that preyed on them. Tall, long-lived galek trees with silver-colored leaves were also common, as were golden amber ferns found in galek groves. Wild mushrooms grew around the trees, and a number of serpentine rawl could be found in the Mandalorian wild.

At 45 degrees north of Mandalore's equator, the city of Keldabe was situated atop a flat granite hill along a bend in the kilometers-long Kelita River. Since at least 3960 BBY, Keldabe served as Mandalore's capital and the center of government for much of Mandalorian space. However, with the rise of the New Mandalorian faction, the reformists declared Sundari, a domed city in one of Mandalore's expansive white-sand desert regions, as their capital. Located on the flat desert plain, Sundari was built over a large, active beskar mine and surrounded by sand and the giant cube-cities constructed by the innovative New Mandalorians, who rejected the warrior clans' ways. In contrast, Keldabe was surrounded by woodland and the Kelita River, with gentle green hills extending to fertile grassland used for farming. Keldabe featured two prominent landmarks: the hundred-meter-tall MandalMotors tower headquarters and the Oyu'baat hotel and tapcafe, one of the planet's oldest establishments. Lacking formal palaces or offices, the Oyu'baat served as an informal meeting place for the Mand'alor and clan chieftains, making it the unofficial center of Mandalore's clan-based government until 40 ABY, when this role was shared by the newly established MandalMotors Hall.

Other cities and settlements dotted Mandalore's surface, including the Keldabe suburb of Bralsin near the Kelita valley, and the small town of Shuror. Most settlements were heavily fortified, making them easily defensible. An example was the hill-[fort](/article/fortress-legends] town of Norg Bral, home to members of Clan Bralor. Water was supplied to these settlements via pipelines and deep wells, often using both to ensure a reliable water source. Further south, Mandalore's tropic regions had warmer weather and were where varos fruit grew. Roads on Mandalore were rarely straight, designed to give Mandalorians an advantage in ambushing enemies. Traditional dwellings called vheh'yaime—made from wood, woven vines, and matted mud—were common homes for Mandalorian warrior clans, with vheh'yaime of various sizes found across Mandalore. Due to the diverse species and backgrounds of the Mandalorian people, Mandalore's architecture varied greatly by region, from towers of transparisteel and granite to durasteel and even tree-bound structures.

Mandalore began as a savage, uninhabited world dominated by gigantic mythosaurs. This changed with the arrival of the Taung. Driven from Coruscant in the Core Worlds long before the Galactic Republic's founding by the Human Battalions of Zhell, the Taung fled to Roon before reaching the Outer Rim world they named Mandalore around 7000 BBY. They named it Manda'yaim, or "home of the Mand'alor," in honor of their leader, Mandalore the First, later transliterated as Mandalore in Galactic Basic Standard. Similarly, the Taung rebranded themselves as Mandalorians, or Mando'ade: "sons and daughters of Mandalore." The Mandalorians tamed their new world, slaughtering the mythosaurs and leaving only their skeletons. Mandalore became home to fierce clans of masked Taung warriors led by a warlord who adopted the name Mand'alor—meaning "sole ruler" in Mando'a—after Mandalore the First. However, a single planet was not enough, and although Mandalore remained the center of Mandalorian space, it was largely abandoned by the time of the Great Sith War in 3996 BBY, as Mandalore the Indomitable led the clans as Mandalorian Crusaders to conquer new star systems.

As time passed, the Crusaders' attacks intensified. Although Mandalore the Indomitable fell in battle while engaging the Republic's military with the Brotherhood of the Sith, Mandalore the Ultimate quickly replaced him. Believing the "Great Last Battle" was at hand, the new Mand'alor returned to Mandalore at the urging of his advisor, Cassus Fett, to gather his new army. There, they found the unorthodox warrior sect known as the Neo-Crusaders. These warriors differed from the Crusaders by wearing identical suits of armor and implementing a more rigid command structure. Following Fett's advice, Mandalore the Ultimate made the Neo-Crusaders the backbone of his army, and by the time he instigated the Mandalorian Wars with the Republic, they comprised most of Mandalore's warriors. As the Neo-Crusader army conquered more worlds, Mandalore became the center of a sector that stretched across much of the galaxy's northern quadrant. However, Mandalore the Ultimate's endeavors were doomed, and when Jedi Knight Revan slew the Mand'alor in single combat at Malachor V, the Mandalorian Wars ended swiftly. Without purpose, many defeated Mandalorians became mercenaries, bounty hunters, or bandits, while others returned home to Mandalore.

Thousands of years later, during the Republic Dark Age, the Candorian plague spread across the galaxy. Mandalore was one of many worlds devastated by the disease. Furthermore, a weakened Mandalore sector was under attack by raiders to such an extent that Mandalorian vessels had to form defensive caravans. When veteran mercenary Aga Awaud returned home in 1058 BBY to find most of his clan dead and Mandalorian space under siege, he soon took up the vacant role of Mand'alor. To stem the chaos, Awaud began the Return, calling on Mandalorians throughout the galaxy to defend Mandalorian space. Awaud's efforts succeeded, allowing Mandalore to survive and flourish, becoming a regional industrial power and a symbol of stability in the Outer Rim Territories.

In the years after the Galactic Republic's defeat of the Brotherhood of Darkness at Ruusan, and the subsequent Republic reformation that marked the end of the New Sith Wars, the Mandalorians sought to transform themselves into a more technologically advanced and militant society. This rise in militancy alarmed the Republic and its Jedi protectors, and while some clan leaders urged peace and alliance with the Republic, they were ignored. Unwilling to face another war, in 738 BBY the Jedi led a Republic strike force in the Mandalorian Excision, a brief but devastating conflict that transformed parts of Mandalore into inhospitable white-sand deserts. From this disaster emerged the pacifist New Mandalorians, a political faction formed from the pre-Excision peace movement. They renounced violence and the warrior codes of the past, seeking to save Mandalore and survive in a hostile galaxy. Instead, they preached peace, neutrality, and tolerance, using their skills as builders and inventors to create grand cube cities in Mandalore's desert, forging a new society isolated from the warrior clans on what they called "New Mandalore."

The New Mandalorians' dedication to peace, advanced technology, and the wealth of beskar from Sundari's mines allowed them to dominate the scattered warrior clans for centuries. For the first time, Mandalore was welcomed by the Republic and offered representation in the Galactic Senate. However, many Mandalorians continued their traditional warrior ways in places like Keldabe. These were known as "Old Mandalorians," the Aka'liit, or "Mandalorian Faithful." Many of the Faithful considered the New Mandalorians to be Faithless for abandoning their cultural heritage.

In 60 BBY, Jaster Mereel became Mand'alor. Born on Concord Dawn, Mereel served as a law officer in the Journeyman Protectors until his moral code led him to kill a corrupt superior officer. As punishment, he was exiled from Concord Dawn and joined the Mandalorian culture. Noticing the dissatisfaction with the savagery prevalent in some warrior circles, Mereel sought to hold Mandalorians to a higher standard. As Mand'alor, he instituted the Supercommando Codex, a new behavioral guideline influenced by his morals, decreeing that Mandalorians who wished to fight would be highly-paid soldiers and should act as honorable mercenaries. However, some amoral Mandalorians resented Mereel's attempts to control their lifestyles. These malcontents rallied to Tor Vizsla, forming a splinter group known as the Death Watch, a Secret Mandalore led by Vizsla. They pledged to destroy the New Mandalorian regime and return the Mandalorians to their ancient roots as conquerors, aiming to instigate another galactic war. Around this time, Chieftain Nam Beroya left Mandalore with members of Clan Awaud, disillusioned with the divisive politics and seeking a simpler life. Civil war soon erupted between the Death Watch and Mereel's loyal supercommandos—now calling themselves the "True Mandalorians"—while the New Mandalorians remained pacifist, rejecting both groups and staying out of the conflict.

Despite its significant philosophical and ideological weight for the Mandalorian people, the conflict was essentially a clash between relatively small groups of soldiers, perceived by some as a mere power grab. The standing Mandalorian army was consumed by the fighting, along with several important clans, yet it barely affected Mandalorians living outside of Mandalore, even those within the nearby Mandalore sector. Eventually, Jaster Mereel was killed by Tor Vizsla on Korda Six; however, leadership of the True Mandalorian army and the mantle of Mand'alor was assumed by Mereel's adopted son, Jango Fett. The civil war, fought across various non-Mandalorian planets, saw the advantage shift repeatedly until the devastating battle on Galidraan. There, the Death Watch's machinations led a misled Jedi team to eliminate the True Mandalorians, except for Jango Fett, who was captured by the Jedi and handed over to the Governor of Galidraan, who then sold Fett into slavery. Although Fett managed to escape his unjust imprisonment and avenge himself on Vizsla, his ordeal and losses embittered him, and despite remaining Mand'alor, he became estranged from the Mandalorian community.

With the True Mandalorians out of the picture, the Death Watch sought to exploit growing tensions among the feuding clans on Mandalore, whose allegiances were divided. As full-scale war erupted, Death Watch tried to rally popular support to overthrow the New Mandalorians, but the bloody conflict known as the Great Clan Wars damaged their cause as much as anyone else's, and the splinter group suffered considerable losses in the fighting. This second civil war fractured clans, turning family against family, resulting in numerous Mandalorian deaths and further devastation to Mandalore, adding to the scars of the centuries-old Excision. Ultimately, the Death Watch failed to oust the New Mandalorian government, while most of the chieftain warlords responsible for the conflict either joined the New Mandalorians, weary of war, or went into exile on Mandalore's moon, Concordia.

The Clone Wars ignited in 22 BBY at Geonosis, pitting the Galactic Republic against the droid army of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Jango Fett was killed in combat with Jedi Master Mace Windu. However, a decade prior, he had been selected as the template for the Republic's clone troopers of the Grand Army, secretly grown from his DNA on Kamino by Kaminoan cloners. With Fett's death, the New Mandalorian government determined Mandalore's role in the war. At this time, Senator Tal Merrik of the nearby world, Kalevala represented Mandalore and its sector in the Republic senate. Led by Duchess Satine Kryze—who had been named Mand'alor of the New Mandalorians at the end of the Great Clan Wars in opposition to Jango Fett, whom the New Mandalorians did not recognize—Mandalore became part of the Council of Neutral Systems, a political alliance of nearly fifteen hundred star systems seeking neutrality in the Clone Wars. Despite the New Mandalorian government's declaration of planetary neutrality, various Mandalorian mercenaries worked individually and in groups for both sides during the conflict.

It was during this period that the Death Watch reemerged on the galactic stage. Having splintered and gone into hiding under the Mandalorian principle of ba'slan shev'la, or "strategic disappearance," after Tor Vizsla's death and the end of the Great Clan Wars, Death Watch began to regroup under the leadership of another member of the Vizsla clan, Pre Vizsla. As governor of Mandalore's moon, Concordia, Vizsla publicly presented himself as a loyal friend and ally of Duchess Kryze. However, in secret, Vizsla loathed Kryze, the pacifist New Mandalorians, and their government's control over Mandalore. Following Jango Fett's death, Vizsla considered himself the true Mand'alor, and began assembling a new Death Watch army at a secret base within the abandoned beskar mines of Concordia. Aligning himself with the Confederacy of Independent Systems and its leader, Count Dooku of Serenno, Vizsla plotted to destroy the New Mandalorians and seize Mandalore. He dispatched a Death Watch operative to attack a Republic cruiser, and spread rumors of Mandalore raising an army for the Confederacy, drawing the attention of the Jedi Council, who sent Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi to Mandalore. During a meeting between Kenobi and Duchess Kryze in Sundari's Peace Park, the park's Memorial Shrine was bombed by a member of the Death Watch, the latest in a series of escalating attacks.

Fearing the apparent threat the Death Watch posed to Mandalore and the wider galaxy, the Republic senate drafted a resolution to send a Republic military force to Mandalore for defense against the Death Watch, a resolution supported by Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. This was Count Dooku's scheme, intending to portray the Republic as an invading force, which would then cause the people of Mandalore to support the Death Watch as liberators. To prevent this outcome and avoid making Mandalore a military target, Duchess Kryze, Senator Tal Merrik, and other sympathetic senators traveled to Coruscant aboard Kryze's personal starship, where the New Mandalorian leader planned to argue her case before the Galactic Senate. En route, Senator Merrik was revealed as a traitor to the New Mandalorian cause and a secret ally of the Death Watch; he attempted to have Kryze murdered, only to be exposed and killed by one of the Duchess's Jedi protectors. With Merrik dead, Mandalore was without a senator, and Kryze personally addressed the Republic senate. Although manipulation within the Republic government initially turned the vote against Kryze—and the Death Watch continued to attempt to assassinate her, even on Coruscant—the Duchess ultimately convinced the Galactic Senate, aided by posthumous testimony from the New Mandalorian Deputy Minister, Jerec, that the New Mandalorian government could independently and effectively combat the Death Watch, without Republic intervention. Death Watch was eventually exiled from Mandalore, and forced from the surrounding system.

The senate voted to allow Mandalore to maintain its neutrality in the war, thwarting Pre Vizsla and the Death Watch's hopes of seizing control of the planet, but that victory came at a cost. Duchess Kryze's actions were viewed negatively by elements of the Republic government, and as a neutral state, Mandalore was considered a Republic outsider. Trade routes to Mandalore were shut down, leaving the world to rely on its own resources without assistance from the interstellar government, and forcing the New Mandalorian people to depend heavily on black market dealings to obtain essential supplies. This venture into illegal trade led to widespread greed and corruption within the New Mandalorian government and police force. To ease these tensions, Duchess Kryze invited Senator Padmé Amidala to Mandalore for a diplomatic visit to discuss the crisis. During Amidala's visit, corruption within the New Mandalorian customs department allowed a large number of New Mandalorian school children to be poisoned by slabin-laced tea imported by smugglers. Kryze and Amidala traced the Moogan smugglers to a warehouse at the shipping docks of Sundari, and following a brief shootout between the smugglers and Mandalorian guard officers, the operation was shut down. Kryze later provided the antidote to the hospitalized children. Soon after, it was revealed that the New Mandalorians' own Prime Minister, Almec, was behind the black market conspiracy. Almec was removed from office and imprisoned.

Despite all this, Mandalore was chosen as the venue for diplomatic talks between select members of the Republic Senate and the Separatist Parliament. In the Royal Palace of Sundari, diplomats from each government met to discuss peace and an end to the Clone Wars. These peace negotiations fell apart when the young Separatist Senator Lux Bonteri accused Confederate leader Count Dooku of wrongdoing, causing the proceedings to collapse.

Nearly two years after their previous attempt to seize power from the New Mandalorians, the Death Watch returned to Mandalore concurrently with an attack on Sundari by criminals known as the Shadow Collective. As soldiers of Black Sun, the Pyke Syndicate, and the Hutt Cartels terrorized Sundari, Death Watch presented themselves to the New Mandalorian people as saviors. However, Death Watch was secretly in league with the Shadow Collective, having made a deal with the criminal alliance's leaders, the Sith Lord Darth Maul and his apprentice Savage Opress. The outlaws would create chaos and disorder throughout New Mandalorian territory, allowing Death Watch to appear as the people's rescuers and gain public support. Across Sundari and other New Mandalorian cities, Death Watch fought back and arrested the criminal members of the Shadow Collective in staged battles, demonstrating the ineffectiveness of Duchess Satine Kryze's leadership, before confronting the New Mandalorian leader in her palace throne room. With popular opinion on his side, Death Watch leader Pre Vizsla deposed Kryze, imprisoning the duchess and her council of ministers, before installing himself as the new Prime Minister and claiming the title of Mand'alor of the New Mandalorians.

Having achieved his goals, Vizsla betrayed his Sith allies, imprisoning Maul and Opress in the same facility where the New Mandalorian government officials were held. Unbeknownst to Vizsla, Darth Maul had anticipated this betrayal, allowing himself to be captured in order to find a more pliable replacement for Vizsla as the puppet ruler of the New Mandalorians. Within the prison, Maul encountered the former Prime Minister Almec, who was willing to side with the Sith to escape prison and regain his lost position. Breaking free, Maul stormed the Royal Palace with his apprentice and Almec, challenging Vizsla to single combat for the right to rule. Bound by honor to the ancient warrior codes he sought to reinstate, Vizsla battled Maul in a furious duel through the throne room, ultimately losing when the Sith Lord decapitated him.

Although Maul had won leadership of Death Watch according to the old ways the group revered, a unit of soldiers loyal to Vizsla's lieutenant Bo-Katan refused to accept a non-Mandalorian as their leader. The breakaway group fled the palace during a firefight, and moved to rescue the imprisoned Duchess Kryze. While Kryze was apprehended shortly after the Death Watch renegades' escape attempt, she managed to contact the Jedi Temple with news of the coup, bringing Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi to Mandalore to save her. Kenobi's rescue attempt was no more successful than Bo-Katan and her troops', and Kryze was slain by Maul to cause her former lover, Kenobi, pain. Despite their failure to rescue the duchess, Bo-Katan and her warriors freed Kenobi from Maul's Death Watch loyalists, and hurried the Jedi Master out of Sundari and off Mandalore during a battle between the two Death Watch factions. Simultaneously, the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Sidious arrived on Mandalore, having sensed the location of his former apprentice, Darth Maul. In the Sundari palace, Sidious faced Maul and Savage Opress in a duel to settle a breach of the Sith Order's Rule of Two, eventually killing Opress and subduing Maul for his own purposes.

The New Mandalorians were not the only inhabitants of Mandalore to suffer during the Clone Wars. Marginalized by the Republic, much of Mandalore had become impoverished and in need of funds. This was the environment that Spar—the former Alpha-class ARC trooper who deserted the Grand Army and fled Kamino before the Clone Wars—entered when he arrived on Mandalore. Encouraged by clan chieftain Fenn Shysa, who spread rumors that Spar was the son and heir of Jango Fett to capitalize on Fett's reputation as a Jedi killer, Spar assumed the vacant position of Mand'alor. Determined to rebuild a new army of Mandalorian supercommandos in the image of the fallen True Mandalorians, Spar found many willing recruits among the local police, and his growing Mandalorian Protector army even attracted nearly a dozen former members of the Death Watch.

Spar and the Protectors gained control of Mandalore, and Spar took the name "Mandalore the Resurrector" to signify the restoration of the warrior clans' traditions. The new Mand'alor aligned the planet with the Confederacy of Independent Systems, viewing the Republic as a corrupt oppressor, and seized the production facilities of MandalMotors in Keldabe for the Confederacy's exclusive use. Once Mandalore sided with the CIS, the ranks of Spar's Mandalorian Protector army were augmented by one thousand BL-series Battle Legionnaire droids, partially designed by Fenn Shysa, and supplied by the Confederacy's droid foundries. Departing from Mandalore, the Mandalorian Protectors entered the Clone Wars as a Confederate shock force. Confederacy commanders tasked the Protectors with overcoming stubborn Republic opposition that their mass-produced battle droids could not defeat; the enemy was often defeated within a day of the Protectors' arrival on the battlefield.

They stormed planets such as New Bornalex, New Holstice, Null, and Zaadja, until being assigned to capture Senator Padmé Amidala on Norval II, a task given to them by the shadowy Darth Sidious on behalf of the CIS. On Norval II, the Protectors were overwhelmed in a surprise Republic ambush orchestrated by Sidious' alter-ego, Chancellor Palpatine. Nearly all of the Protectors' Battle Legionnaire droids were destroyed and the Mandalorians killed, except for Fenn Shysa, Tobbi Dala, and Mand'alor Spar himself. After the devastating defeat, the three returned to Mandalore, where a shell-shocked Spar relinquished his title as Mand'alor, though Shysa repeatedly tried to persuade the ex-Mand'alor to resume his position.

As the Clone Wars ended, the Galactic Republic was transformed into the Galactic Empire, under the newly crowned Emperor Palpatine. Despite Mandalore's late-war role in the Confederacy of Independent Systems, the fledgling Empire granted the planet amnesty and even offered Mandalorians mercenary work as part of the Jedi purge Palpatine had initiated. The Imperials also wanted to purchase land on Mandalore to establish a garrison as a base of operations for the surrounding quadrant. The clans met and, finding the Empire's offer generous, agreed to a temporary lease of land near Keldabe. The Imperials moved into what became known as the City of Bone, a failed amusement park designed by an enterprising Mandalorian to resemble a giant mythosaur skeleton, hoping to attract adventure tourism to Mandalore. As the Empire began to move onto Mandalore, Fenn Shysa yielded to popular demand and accepted the position of Mand'alor.

During this time, Mandalore became a refuge for numerous clone troopers who had deserted from the Grand Army for the promise of freedom. This underground movement centered around Kyrimorut, home of the former Cuy'val Dar clone trainer Kal Skirata and his clan. However, clone deserters were not the only increased presence on Mandalore during this period. Following the fall of the New Mandalorians and the dissolution of the Shadow Collective, elements of Black Sun moved to fill the void left by the fleeting criminal contingent. The syndicate established a presence on Mandalore's moon, Concordia, and Tyno Fabris—lieutenant to the Black Sun Vigo Xizor—took up residence in Keldabe, working out of an office in the Oyu'baat cantina. Around 18 BBY, the Jedi Knight Jax Pavan traveled to Mandalore seeking information on the whereabouts of a friend captured by the Empire. He met with Fabris at the Oyu'baat on multiple occasions, eventually acquiring the information he sought after making a deal with Fabris' superior, Vigo Xizor.

While the Empire's relationship with Mandalore was initially cordial—offering large sums for mining rights in the beskar-rich Tokursh region and brokering starship contracts with MandalMotors—by the start of the Galactic Civil War, the Imperial grip on the Mandalorian homeworld had tightened significantly. Aided by elements of the reborn Death Watch, operating on Mandalore under the leadership of Lorka Gedyc, Imperial advisers were installed on MandalMotors' executive board, accumulating power in the name of the Empire. One such adviser, known as the Suprema, confiscated the traditional armor of Mandalore's citizens and instituted a massive slaving operation, sending a large portion of Mandalore's population into chains. These slaves were used by the Empire to operate factories contributing to the Imperial war effort and to strip-mine Mandalore of valuable beskar ore. The Empire also established an Imperial Academy on Mandalore.

It was during this period that the criminal organization led by the crime lord Tyber Zann undertook a mission to Mandalore, successfully kidnapping the being known as the "Supreme Strategist." His pirates were also responsible for several raids on facilities owned by Mandal Hypernautics, carried out to convince the Mandalore-based company to supply his organization with their ships and war machines.

Against the Imperial occupation, Mand'alor Fenn Shysa was secretly building up a new group of Mandalorian Protectors. Due to the scarcity of Mandalorian armor and weapons, Shysa trained his new force in the ways of guerrilla warfare, effectively making them an insurgent army. Alongside Spar, Shysa and Tobbi Dala, the only other surviving member of the original Mandalorian Protectors, spearheaded numerous raids targeting slaver operations. They rescued Mandalorian slaves from Imperial captivity, utilizing their deep understanding of Mandalore's dense jungles to vanish before the Empire could retaliate. However, the Protectors' effectiveness made Shysa a prime target for an Imperial bounty. During the later stages of their fight against the Empire's presence on Mandalore, Dala was captured by the Suprema. When the bounty hunter Dengar arrived on Mandalore to claim the reward for Shysa's capture, the Protectors instead captured him. Negotiations ensued, aiming to exchange Dengar for Dala's freedom.

Not long after, Princess Leia Organa of the Rebel Alliance journeyed to Mandalore, seeking to find Dengar. Her goal was to learn the location of Boba Fett, his bounty hunter colleague, so she could rescue Han Solo, the Alliance officer Fett had captured. Accidentally intervening in a Protector strike against a slaver convoy, Organa became involved in Mandalore's struggle for liberation. She was taken to the Protector's camp near Keldabe, but Dengar, after escaping Protector custody, betrayed her to the Empire. Shysa, disguised as a stormtrooper, infiltrated the Imperial base in the City of Bone, intending to liberate both Princess Organa and Dala. Once inside, he signaled his Protectors to launch an attack on the Imperial headquarters, resulting in the structure's destruction. Although Organa was freed, Dala sacrificed himself to ensure the slavers' defeat and the Suprema's death. Many of the freed slaves chose to join the Mandalorian Protectors. With the recovered armor and weapons, Shysa commanded a planetary army of several hundred soldiers.

With the Empire's control over Mandalore shattered, Shysa's triumph transformed the Mand'alor into a symbol of hope for his people. Under Shysa's leadership, Mandalore embarked on a path to recovery. The revitalized Mandalorian Protector army confronted Grand Admiral Miltin Takel, the Imperial overseer of the Mandalore sector, swiftly removing Takel and the Empire's influence from Mandalorian territory. Following Emperor Palpatine's death and the Imperial defeat at the Battle of Endor, the Nagai attacked Mandalore. Shysa then led Mandalore into a coalition with the Alliance of Free Planets—a provisional government formed from the Rebellion, as it transitioned into the New Republic following Palpatine's demise. Together, they drove the Nagai from Mandalore and assisted the Alliance in their fight against the Nagai and the Tof. After peace was re-established, the Mandalorian Protectors began actively protecting Mandalore's sector of space. Any hostile ships entering Mandalorian territory were boarded and captured, then brought back to Mandalore. Almost two decades after Mandalore's liberation from the Empire, Fenn Shysa, the world's most revered leader in recent memory, died in 21 ABY on the planet Shogun, while saving Boba Fett's life. In accordance with Shysa's final wish, Fett succeeded him as the next Mand'alor.

Fett's leadership of the Mandalorians was quickly put to the test with the arrival of Nom Anor, an early Yuuzhan Vong scout. Anor, using the alias "Udelen," approached the Mandalorians, seeking to employ their mercenary skills in preparation for the larger galactic invasion. When the Yuuzhan Vong initiated their galactic incursion in 25 ABY, and Fett learned the truth about their plans to invade, conquer, and violently reshape the galaxy according to their radical religious ideals, he struck a deal with Anor. He agreed to continue their mercenary service, provided Mandalore and its sector were spared. However, knowing the Yuuzhan Vong would betray their word and recognizing the danger they posed, Fett secretly established contact with Kubariet, a Jedi New Republic Intelligence agent. He shared intelligence gathered by himself and other Mandalorians employed by the Vong, along with collected bio-samples.

The Yuuzhan Vong discovered Fett's deception and, in retaliation, launched an attack on Mandalore in 29 ABY. Fett and a legion of Mandalore's supercommandos engaged the Vong in a battle to defend Mandalore. Unlike other planets they sought to terraform, the Vong intended to obliterate the Mandalorian homeworld. They used singularity ordnance to create massive craters on Mandalore's surface, destroying vast forested areas and poisoning fertile farmland. Nearly one and a half million Mandalorians perished in the attack. However, through the use of underground tunnels, Mandalore's rugged terrain, and their martial prowess, the Mandalorians defeated and repelled the Yuuzhan Vong. Although Mandalore's population was reduced by nearly a third, the Mandalorians, both living and dead, were remembered as the only people to independently defeat the Yuuzhan Vong. Having openly turned against Mandalore, Fett led his Mandalorian Protectors against the Yuuzhan Vong in defense of the galaxy, defeating the invaders at Gyndine and liberating Tholatin from their control. During the battle at Caluula Station, the Mandalorian Protectors instilled fear of Mandalore's power in the Yuuzhan Vong.

After the Yuuzhan Vong War ended, and the defeated Vong settled on the sentient planet Zonama Sekot, Mandalore, devastated by the war, was among the planets that chose not to join the newly formed Galactic Federation of Free Alliances, a multi-governmental political entity. Despite its contributions to the New Republic and its defense of worlds threatened by the Vong, Mandalore also received no aid from the new Galactic Alliance. Consequently, the slow process of revitalizing Mandalore was solely the responsibility of the Mandalorian people, a task that took nearly a decade.

By 40 ABY, much of the physical destruction inflicted by the Yuuzhan Vong on Mandalore had been repaired. The remains of the dead, both Mandalorian and Vong, were buried, and most of the damage to buildings and infrastructure was fixed. However, the hundred-meter-tall tower housing MandalMotors' headquarters in Keldabe still bore scars, and the majority of the woodlands surrounding Mandalore's capital city remained flattened. Perhaps the most pressing issues hindering Mandalore's recovery were the food shortages caused by the Vong's poisoning of farmland, and the significantly reduced population. These issues were discussed at a meeting of Mandalorian clan chieftains held at MandalMotors Hall in Keldabe. Mand'alor Boba Fett, presiding over the assembly of clan leaders and corporate executives, approved a proposal by Mandalorian soldier Graad to recall two million Mandalorians living offworld back to Mandalore to increase the population. The Carid clan assumed the responsibility of allocating Mandalore's abandoned farmland to any returning Mandalorians who wished to claim it. Fett also contributed several million credits to a fund for importing necessary food and supplies until self-sufficiency could be restored, a fund to which Jir Yomaget, the head of MandalMotors, pledged half of the company's profits.

Responding to the Mand'alor's call, Mandalorians from planets across the galaxy flocked to Mandalore, reclaiming abandoned farmland and contributing their diverse skills to the Mandalorian homeworld. Two such Mandalorians—one a geologist and the other a minerals engineer—scanning a region of Mandalore heavily damaged by the Yuuzhan Vong from orbit, discovered a new deposit of beskar iron deep within the planet. This deposit had been missed by the Galactic Empire years earlier, only to be revealed by the Vong's attack. Located a few hundred kilometers north of the remote town of Enceri, the beskar deposit was not on land owned by any individual Mandalorian. Therefore, the Mand'alor declared that the new ore would be a resource for all of Mandalore: half would be sold offworld for profit, and half would be reserved for domestic armament. The newly discovered beskar initiated a new era of economic recovery on Mandalore. When news of Mandalore's beskar discovery became public, the Verpine of the Roche asteroid field expressed interest in purchasing a quantity of the powerful metal. However, they also voiced concerns about potential Mandalorian aggression while their representative Sass Sikili was in negotiations with Boba Fett. Fett allayed the Verpine's fears by offering a treaty between Mandalore and Roche, establishing a non-aggression pact and a mutual aid system: Mandalore would provide martial service and beskar iron in exchange for exclusive Verpine technology and access to Verpine technical facilities. The Verpine hive accepted, and the resulting alliance strengthened Mandalore's economy.

As Mandalore's economy and infrastructure thrived, the outside galaxy was experiencing a division that rapidly escalated into the Second Galactic Civil War, with the Galactic Alliance facing off against the Corellian-led Confederation. To better focus on Mandalore's restoration, Boba Fett declared the planet neutral in the conflict. However, he recognized the importance of mercenary work for some Mandalorian residents and did not restrict individuals from accepting personal contracts. Due to Mandalore's recent treaty with Roche, Mandalorians declined work from Verpine disfavored Kem Stor Ai, and retaliated with bombing raids on several factories on Murkhana after the planet abused Verpine technological patents. The bombing raid on Murkhana also showcased Mandalore's new Bes'uliik starfighters, designed and built by MandalMotors using the new beskar deposits. Several Bes'uliik fighters joined Mandalore's defense fleet, along with more heavily armed and armored Tra'kad-class assault ships. By the Mand'alor's decree, Bes'uliik fighters were to be available for sale and export to all interested parties, regardless of their side in the current civil war. However, he stipulated that Jacen Solo—who had recently killed Fett's daughter, Ailyn Vel—would have to negotiate personally on Mandalore for the Republic. The government of Bothawui sent a formal offer to Mandalore to acquire a squadron of Bes'uliik fighters, offering a larger premium for exclusive purchasing rights. The Bothans also offered twenty million credits per month for the services of a Mandalorian assault fleet and additional infantry forces.

Despite Mandalore's neutrality, when Imperial Admiral Natasi Daala contacted Boba Fett before the Second Battle of Fondor, Fett agreed to assemble a group of supercommando mercenaries to assist Grand Admiral Gilad Pellaeon. When Pellaeon was killed by the Sith apprentice Tahiri Veila, Fett and his commandos attacked and seized control of Pellaeon's flagship, the Bloodfin, wounding both Veila and her Sith Lord master, Darth Caedus—formerly Jacen Solo. Although the injured Sith escaped, the battle at Fondor was a victory for the Galactic Alliance and the Imperial Remnant-comprised "Jedi Coalition." Shortly afterward, Fett's granddaughter, Mirta Gev, was married to her lover Ghes Orade on Mandalore, with a wedding reception held in Keldabe.

The Mandalorians were later called upon to defend the Verpine asteroid Nickel One against an attack by Imperial Remnant forces loyal to Darth Caedus, fulfilling Mandalore's treaty obligations with Roche. Fett and his soldiers were present during the Jedi Coalition's assault on Caedus, even participating in the deaths of several Imperial Moffs loyal to the Sith Lord. In retaliation for the Mandalorians' involvement, Caedus dispatched the remaining ships of the Galactic Alliance Fifth Fleet to attack Mandalore, and released a nanovirus across the surface, engineered using blood stolen from Mirta Gev to kill any member of the Fett clan who set foot on the world. However, unbeknownst to the Imperials, who used a modified version of the Clone Wars–era FG36 virus, much of Mandalore's populace had been inoculated against the base nanovirus years earlier during the reign of Mand'alor Fenn Shysa by Ovolot Qail Uthan, a former Separatist scientist. This cure was communicable through air and touch, and passed from parent to child.

By the first year of the Sith–Imperial War, Chernan Ordo had become the new Mand'alor. While employed by the Galactic Alliance to defend the planet Botajef from the forces of the Fel Empire, Ordo was betrayed by his trusted soldier, Yaga Auchs. Auchs withdrew the Mandalorians from battle, and with all but [Hondo Karr](/article/hondo_karr], who discovered Auchs' betrayal, unaware, Auchs claimed the title of Mand'alor for himself. Using this authority, he ordered the Mandalorians back to Mandalore, ending the alliance with the Galactic Alliance. They were to remain there under the guise of rebuilding, as Boba Fett had done years before. Unlike Fett, Auchs' decree came at the command of the master he secretly served, who wanted the Mandalorians to stay out of the war.

Ever since the Taung's arrival from Roon, the Mandalorian people have been the dominant group on Mandalore. Over time, the planet evolved into the political center of Mandalorian space, recognized as the one true homeworld by the often-nomadic warriors. However, because Mandalorians were scattered throughout the galaxy, many were not born on Mandalore and had never seen it. While the term "Mandalorian" was initially used by the Taung to describe themselves, by the close of the Great Sith War, the Mandalorians began accepting members of other races, treating them as equals and transforming the meaning of being Mandalorian. Having become a diverse group of beings from various worlds and species, those who identified as Mandalorian were united by a single, shared culture defined by the Resol'nare.

Mandalore was never a densely populated world, maintaining a population of around four million throughout much of its history. Due to its sparse population, land outside urban areas was freely available for settlement, provided it was unoccupied. Despite the significance of mercenary work in the culture of Mandalore's warrior clans, many Mandalorians pursued non-martial occupations on Mandalore. Some worked in workshops and factories, while others managed bars, owned shops, and worked as doctors, veterinarians, and, in New Mandalorian society, even formal teachers. As Mandalore, along with its moon Concordia, was the only known source of the element beskar, Mandalorians have mined it for generations, with Mandalorian blacksmiths passing down the closely-guarded secrets of how to manipulate beskar through the ages.

The ultimate authority on Mandalore, and in the broader Mandalorian culture, rested with the Mand'alor. This position, which was non-hereditary and a combination of general, king, and warlord, meant "sole ruler" and was the closest thing to an official head of state that the Mandalorian warrior clans traditionally had. Below the Mand'alor were the leaders of the various Mandalorian clans. These clan chieftains functioned as an informal senate, gathering, often with the current Mand'alor, to make decisions affecting Mandalore. However, the New Mandalorians had a different system of government. More centralized and bureaucratic than the loose association of Mandalore's warrior clans, the New Mandalorian government consisted of a Ruling Council of ministers, led by a Prime Minister. The Prime Minister was also subservient to the New Mandalorians' own Mand'alor, chosen in opposition to those who ruled the warrior clans.

Throughout much of Mandalore's history, the planet's economy has been driven by MandalMotors, which had its headquarters in Keldabe, Mandalore's capital city. Renowned for its vehicle designs, MandalMotors produced starships like the StarViper-class attack ship, the Bes'uliik-class starfighter, and the Keldabe-class battleship, as well as Canderous-class assault tanks and Buirk'alor-class airspeeders, among many other designs. During the New Mandalorians' period of dominance on Mandalore, Republic trade routes were established, and New Mandalorian society benefited from food and supplies provided by Republic benefactors. However, once the New Mandalorian government declared Mandalore's neutrality during the Clone Wars, the flow of goods was halted as the trade routes were closed. Despite a history of marginalization, Mandalore carved out a niche in the galactic economy with beskar iron, one of the strongest and most valuable metals known in the galaxy. On an individual level, Mandalorian mercenaries and bounty hunters were one of Mandalore's largest exports, and Mandalorian weaponsmiths, veterinarians, metallurgists, and shopkeepers could earn a sustainable living through their trades.

The origins of Mandalore can be traced back to an early story concept for Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back. A group of armored supercommandos from the Mandalore system was conceived and designed for the film, but the idea was ultimately dropped, and the concept art for their armor was repurposed for Boba Fett. However, Mandalore and the concept of the Mandalorian supercommandos persisted. The world, the soldiers, and the name were introduced into Star Wars Legends in the 1982 Marvel comic, Star Wars (1977) 68. Initially, the Mandalore system and the Empress Teta system were located near each other, but they were later placed half a galaxy apart in The Essential Atlas.

Many aspects of Mandalore, including its environment, government, and population, were created and expanded upon in the Republic and Imperial Commando novel series by author Karen Traviss, where the planet served as a key location. Traviss further developed the Mandalorian world during the multi-author series, Star Wars: Legacy of the Force. Additional details about Mandalore were added by Traviss' Star Wars Insider article, The Mandalorians: People and Culture, and Abel G. Peña's earlier article, The History of the Mandalorians.

With the broadcast of three installments—namely The Mandalore Plot, Voyage of Temptation, and Duchess of Mandalore—within the second season of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars TV show, a markedly distinct depiction of the planet Mandalore was presented to audiences. This iteration of Mandalore, initially hinted at within The Art of Star Wars: The Clone Wars companion book, showcased a desolate planet, characterized by a ravaged, flat, white-sand desert rendered unsuitable for life beyond enclosed, cube-shaped urban centers inhabited by committed pacifists, and featuring a capital city protected by a dome, known as Sundari. Notwithstanding the drastic deviation from established lore that the TV program employed for Mandalore, subsequent sourcebooks like The Essential Atlas and Star Wars: The Clone Wars: New Battlefronts: The Visual Guide implemented various retroactive continuities that successfully reconciled the reimagined Mandalore with earlier, more forest-rich portrayals, collectively asserting that the arid desert landscape represents merely one facet of Mandalore's diverse ecological zones, and that the previously established jungles and woodlands remained part of the official canon.

The creative group responsible for the Star Wars: The Clone Wars television show also conceived a distinctive palette of colors for Mandalorian technology in order to differentiate it from the hardware utilized by the other groups appearing in the series. In contrast to the Republic and Separatists, whose technology generally displayed shades of blue or green, respectively, the technological devices on Mandalore were rendered in a signature amber tone.