Republic Military

The Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic served as the Commander-in-Chief of the Republic Military. The ten Systems Armies that made up the Grand Army of the Republic were under the Supreme Chancellor's direct command. After the passing of the Reflex Amendment, the office of the Supreme Chancellor gained almost total control over the Republic Military.

The Jedi Order was incorporated into the command structure of the Republic Military through the Jedi Military Integration Act, which designated the Jedi as commanding officers within the Grand Army. The Integration Act established the military rank of Jedi General for both Jedi Knights and Jedi Masters, and the rank of Jedi Commander for Padawans. Command over the Grand Army's Sector Armies was reserved for members of the Jedi High Council, and each Systems Army was led by a High Jedi General.

Republic officers were experienced, non-clone officers within the Galactic Republic Navy. An agreement made during wartime between Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine and the Jedi Order led to Republic officers being assigned to Jedi Generals, such as Admiral Wullf Yularen, who served alongside Jedi General Anakin Skywalker during the Clone Wars. While strict military discipline and Jedi leadership often worked together to achieve ambitious goals for the Republic Military, some fleet officers had trouble adjusting to the Jedi's command methods. Yularen admired Skywalker for his talent and bravery but disapproved of the young Jedi's dangerous behavior. Admiral Wilhuff Tarkin was of the opinion that the Jedi should be completely removed from the military's command structure. Having served as a captain under Jedi General Even Piell, Tarkin was convinced that the Jedi Code prevented the Republic Military from securing a complete victory because it forced them to adhere to Jedi ethics during wartime.

Clone trooper officers occupied the lower ranks of the Republic Military's command hierarchy. They had the authority to command clone troopers, but were subordinate to both Jedi and non-clone officers. Clone ranks varied from lower positions such as Clone Sergeant and Clone Lieutenant to higher positions like Clone Captain and Clone Commander. The Republic Military employed clone navigation officers to operate the Star Destroyers and other starships within the Republic Navy.

The Republic Center for Military Operations was based on Coruscant, which was the capital planet of the Galactic Republic. The Strategic Advisory Cell was established to supervise different operations during the war. Its members included Vice Chair Mas Amedda, Doctor Gubacher, Lieutenant Commander Orson Callan Krennic, the director of the Commission for the Protection of the Republic, and representatives from pro-Republic corporations like Rendili StarDrive, Corellian Engineering Corporation, and Kuat Drive Yards. The Republic also maintained an Outer Rim Command Center to oversee military actions in that region of the galaxy.

The Republic army served as the armed forces of the early Galactic Republic. After the Republic annexed the planet Thisspias, thousands of Thisspiasian warrior-monks volunteered to join the ranks of the Republic army.

In 22 BBY, the Grand Army of the Republic was officially created because of the Separatist Crisis that led to the formation of the Confederacy of Independent Systems in opposition to the modern Galactic Republic. Although its initial strength was 200,000 clone troopers with an additional million in production, the Grand Army grew to include 3,200,000 troopers, organized into ten Systems Armies. These were further divided into Sector Armies, corps, legions, regiments, battalions, companies, platoons, squads, and brigades.

The clones of the Grand Army wore Phase I clone trooper armor, which consisted of white plastoid armor plates worn over a black body glove. Phase I was later replaced by an improved version, the Phase II clone trooper armor, towards the end of the Clone Wars. In addition to infantry units, specialized units like clone trooper pilots and clone ordnance specialists wore modified versions of clone trooper armor to better suit their roles.

Clone troopers were the primary force of the Republic. However, because they aged at an accelerated rate, the Republic Military sometimes used conscripted troopers to supplement the clones. During the Battle of Abrion Bridge, the 212th Attack Battalion was reinforced by a company of Roonian soldiers.

The Galactic Republic Navy functioned as the naval warfare division of the Republic Military. It possessed a variety of military warships, most notably the Venator-class Star Destroyers and Acclamator-class transgalactic military assault ships. The Acclamator-class assault ship, which debuted at the First Battle of Geonosis, was used as a troop transport to carry thousands of clone troopers across the galaxy. The Venator-class Star Destroyer was used not only as a transport vessel for the Republic army, but its primary function was ship-to-ship combat. Additionally, the Venator was designed to function as a carrier for various starfighters and Low Altitude Assault Transport gunships. The Venator-class also became closely associated with the Republic Military's Jedi leaders, earning it the nickname "Jedi cruiser."

The Low Altitude Assault Transport/infantry gunship played a crucial role in the military, serving as both a troop carrier and an escort for other forces. The gunship could also be used as an elevated gun platform and could effectively destroy enemy vehicles with its missiles.

The beginnings of the Republic Military can be traced back to the era of the Old Republic. These forces were headquartered on Coruscant, and were eventually disbanded around 1032 BBY following the Jedi-Sith War. The Old Republic evolved into the modern Galactic Republic, a government that had a military around the time it was formed. However, for much of its existence, the Republic did not need a standing military. Local star systems and sectors were responsible for their own security; the Galactic Senate gave the Jedi Order the responsibility of maintaining peace throughout the Republic; and the Republic Era lasted for a millennium, leading to increased peace and democracy under the Republic's leadership.

During the High Republic Era, the Republic used the Republic Defense Coalition to protect its interests as it expanded into the Outer Rim Territories. The Republic also deployed Republic peacekeeping troops to safeguard its interests during the High Republic Era. The Judicial Forces operated at the Senate's discretion, but were largely replaced by the Jedi Order as the government's preferred peacekeepers. Known as the guardians of peace and justice in the Galactic Republic, the Jedi favored non-violent methods such as diplomacy to resolve conflicts, using more aggressive options only as a last resort.

Despite the efforts of the Jedi and Judicial Forces, a group known as the Militarists began to push for the creation of a formal Republic Military force. The Invasion of Naboo by the Sith highlighted significant weaknesses within the Republic to the wider galaxy, including the absence of a standing military. The centuries of peace that characterized the Republic's rule came to an end because of the Separatist Crisis. Disappointed with the politics of the Senate, thousands of star systems sought to create a new government, the Confederacy of Independent Systems, by seceding from the Republic.

Loyalist senators debated the Military Creation Act, discussing whether to establish a standing military or to continue negotiations with the Separatists. Ultimately, the Republic Military was formed upon the discovery of the Separatist Droid Army: battle droids were secretly being manufactured on Geonosis to force the Republic into recognizing Separatist independence. Feeling they had no choice but to retaliate and shocked by the idea that the Droid Army would attack the Republic, the Senate supported Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine, who activated the Republic Military using the emergency powers granted to him by the troubled legislature. The Republic used an army of genetically engineered soldiers—the clone troopers—from the extragalactic planet Kamino as its military force, forming a Grand Army of the Republic and a Republic Navy.

The Clone Wars marked the final three years of the Republic's existence, during which the Republic Military fought against its counterpart, the Confederacy military, throughout the known galaxy. At the time of its creation, the Republic Military consisted of the Galactic Republic Navy and the Grand Army of the Republic. Using the human bounty hunter Jango Fett as a genetic template, Kaminoan scientists created the clone troopers who formed the backbone of the Republic Military. These soldiers were specifically designed for combat and fought against the Confederacy's battle droids from the first battle on Geonosis to the final engagements of the war. The Senate oversaw the military through its Military Oversight Committee.

The Clone Wars were named after the clone troopers who became symbolic of the first large-scale conflict since the formation of the Republic. When they were deployed from the planet Kamino, the clones showed a level of military power unseen in the history of the galaxy. Throughout the war, clones and Jedi fought together and, in some cases, formed strong relationships while fighting against the galaxy-wide Separatist rebellion. Although the Jedi disliked aggression, they accepted their new role in the Republic Military as part of their commitment to serving the Republic.

During the Clone Wars, the Republic and Separatist forces engaged in many battles across the galaxy. Many clone troopers gave their lives out of loyalty to the Republic, as well as to their Jedi Generals and the Supreme Chancellor. After three years of continuous fighting, the Confederacy was close to defeat as the Jedi-led Republic forces intensified the Outer Rim Sieges. Unbeknownst to both the Jedi and the clones, every clone trooper had been engineered with an organic chip that made them unable to disobey Order 66, a secret protocol that called for the immediate execution of all Jedi. In the final days of the war, Chancellor Palpatine—now known to the Jedi as Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord of the Sith—issued Order 66 to the entire clone army, forcing the clones to kill their longtime allies without hesitation. Ultimately, the Republic Military played a key role in the downfall of both the Jedi Order and the Galactic Republic, leading to the restoration of Sith power through the rise of the Galactic Empire.

At the beginning of Sidious' reign as Galactic Emperor, the Galactic Empire took over the armed forces of the Old Republic and reorganized them into the Imperial Military. The clone troopers, who had once defended the Republic, became the first generation of Imperial stormtroopers, elite enforcers of the Emperor's rule. Conversely, former allies of the Republic, such as Saw Gerrera and his rebels, believed that Palpatine had eliminated the Jedi Order to seize control of the galaxy with the support of the clone army.

Wilhuff Tarkin, Nils Tenant, and other ambitious officers who had built their careers during the war found even more opportunities for advancement in the Empire. While evaluating the strengths of the Imperial Army, Tarkin concluded that the clone trooper program was too expensive to maintain. Therefore, he supported Vice Admiral Edmon Rampart's efforts to replace clones with enlisted soldiers through Project War-Mantle. Although the Clone Wars officially ended with the defeat of the Confederacy, many Separatist holdouts continued to resist the [New Order](/article/new_order], especially in the Western Reaches of the galaxy. Their continued resistance was used to justify the Empire's extensive militarization efforts, allowing the Imperial Military to become larger and more advanced than its Republic predecessor.

The Republic Military first appeared in the 2002 theatrical film, Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones. It was seen again in the 2005 film, Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith, and later appeared throughout the 2008 animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars.