Mandalorian-made restraints, known as Mandalorian manacles, were crafted by individuals within the Mandalorian culture. These devices were constructed using the nearly indestructible iron alloy, beskar. The exceptional strength imparted to these restraints by the ore allowed Mandalorian manacles to remain relevant and useful even as newer restraining technologies emerged.
In the centuries leading up to the development of force shackles, Mandalorian manacles were a sought-after export from the planet of Mandalore. Both Mandalorians and those from other cultures employed them. They were a standard item for Mandalorian police forces, and criminals, along with enemies of Force-users like the Knights of the Jedi Order, also favored beskar manacles. For example, Bogga the Hutt provided his henchmen with these manacles to hold Jedi captive. These were the same manacles used to restrain Jedi Master Thon during a skirmish that took place on Ambria. Thon was later freed by his student, Nomi Sunrider, who severed the chains using her lightsaber. Many millennia later, after the rise of the Galactic Empire, the Imperial government procured beskar equipment, including Mandalorian manacles, from the MandalMotors company. A few decades after that, when Jedi Knight Jaina Solo sought help from the Mandalorians to capture her brother, the Sith Lord Darth Caedus, Mandalorian manacles were suggested as a means of confining him.
Mandalorian manacles were constructed from beskar iron, a nearly indestructible and scarce ore exclusively found on the planet of Mandalore – the cultural homeworld of the Mandalorians, situated in the Outer Rim Territories of the galaxy – and Mandalore's moon, Concordia. These beskar manacles, crafted by Mandalorian metalsmiths, served as a type of binders intended to restrain the wrists and ankles of captives.
Dating back to the time of the ancient Mandalorian Crusaders, Mandalorian manacles became a popular export from Mandalore as knowledge of their beskar composition spread in the centuries before the creation of force shackles and energy cuffs. Bogga, a Hutt crime lord, acquired a set of Mandalorian manacles and provided them to his henchman Gudb for the purpose of incapacitating Jedi Master Thon. Shortly after his capture and restraint using the manacles, Thon was liberated by his student, Nomi Sunrider, who used her lightsaber to cut through the chains.
Despite the development of more advanced restraining technologies in the galaxy, the strength of Mandalorian manacles allowed them to remain competitive. Beskar manacles became standard equipment for Mandalorian police units and gained a reputation for their ability to imprison Force-users. After the rise of the Galactic Empire, Imperial forces contacted MandalMotors in Keldabe, the capital city of Mandalore, to procure specialized beskar equipment, with Mandalorian manacles included in the Empire's request. Decades later, in 41 ABY, Goran Beviin, a veteran Mandalorian soldier, suggested Mandalorian manacles to Jedi Knight Jaina Solo, who had come to Mandalore seeking assistance in capturing her brother, Jacen Solo, who had recently become a Sith Lord.
The comic series Tales of the Jedi, specifically the fifth issue which was the third part of The Saga of Nomi Sunrider, first introduced Mandalorian manacles to the Star Wars universe. The Tales of the Jedi audio drama mentioned them again, and they were featured in Abel G. Peña's article The History of the Mandalorians published in the eightieth issue of Star Wars Insider in March of 2005. Karen Traviss, an author, mentioned Mandalorian manacles in her Star Wars: Legacy of the Force novel Revelation in 2008. The following year, on October 27, 2009, Traviss included another mention of the manacles in her Republic Commando novel, Imperial Commando: 501st.