In the initial stages of the Great Galactic War, the Galactic Republic experienced a series of defeats at the hands of the newly-discovered reconstituted Sith Empire located in the galaxy's Outer Rim Territories. Following the Republic Navy's setback in the Tingel Arm, coupled with multiple defensive failures across the Rim, the Galactic Senate alongside the Jedi High Council convened a special legislative meeting to coordinate the Republic Military's galactic defense.
This assembly proved unproductive, as the delegates tasked with prioritizing military objectives failed to reach an agreement, with numerous members stating their unwillingness to cooperate unless their respective worlds received adequate protection. The Republic's allied nations, who would have otherwise committed their military assets to the wider war effort, declined to pledge their resources to combat the Sith. Ultimately, the Senate's inability to achieve a consensus provided the Sith with the opportunity to reorganize and prepare for what would evolve into a twenty-eight-year-long struggle—a conflict that left the Republic politically weakened and militarily vanquished.
In the year 3681 BBY, war descended upon the galaxy for the first time in centuries. This conflict, known as the Great Galactic War, originated from the revelation of an ancient Sith Empire that had existed in the Unknown Regions of the galaxy. This empire had recently resurfaced to exact revenge against the Galactic Republic following the defeat of its previous incarnation during the Great Hyperspace War in 5000 BBY. The war's initial battles took place in the Tingel Arm, a sector within the Outer Rim Territories that quickly succumbed to the Imperial offensive. Despite the Republic Navy's attempt to launch an operation to reclaim the area, they were swiftly overwhelmed and forced into retreat.
The speed of the Imperial offensive caught the Republic by surprise. While the Republic Military grappled with the loss of the Tingel Arm, the Sith continued their campaign to dominate the Outer Rim. The Empire reclaimed their ancient sacred world of Korriban, obliterated the Sluis Van Shipyards in the Sluis sector, established a blockade of the Rimma Trade Route, and captured the abundant resources of the Minos Cluster. All of this was achieved with minimal resistance from the Republic Military, which was still struggling to formulate an effective plan of action.
Witnessing the devastation in the Outer Rim and recognizing the current ineffectiveness of their military against the Sith, the High Council of the Jedi Order and the leaders of the Galactic Senate jointly called for a special congressional meeting. The goal was to develop a defensive strategy to guide the Republic Military's operations. Senators and other representatives gathered on Coruscant, the Republic's capital, to address the crisis. However, despite the session's promising intentions, the discussions quickly became entangled in the political interests of individual senators. The representatives insisted that their respective sectors receive priority in defense. When these demands were not met by the congressional body, the senators simply refused to participate further and departed from the Senate's Grand Convocation Chamber. Consequently, due to the session's lack of meaningful outcomes, the Republic's diplomatic allies, including the Ithorian delegation, chose not to contribute their military forces to the war against the Sith Empire.
The Senate's political breakdown resulted in the failure of the session, leaving each star system and sector to fend for itself. This allowed the Empire to strengthen its position before launching an offensive from the Outer Rim towards the Core Worlds. The Sith achieved considerable success in these objectives until members of the Republic Military and Jedi Order decided to bypass the Senate's indecisiveness and initiate their own operations against the Empire.
Jedi Master Belth Allusis exemplified this independent spirit, and his resistance against the Empire at Bothawui in 3671 BBY checked the Sith advance and boosted the morale of the Republic's defenders, which had been at a low point since the war's inception. Despite this victory, the Republic's initial inability to effectively respond to the Sith's return placed the galactic government at a disadvantage from the outset of the conflict, which ultimately concluded with an Imperial victory.
Following the conclusion of the Great Galactic War and the signing of the Treaty of Coruscant, Jedi Master Gnost-Dural created a holorecord documenting the war's origins. This record, stored within the Jedi Archives on Tython, contained information and images pertaining to the Galactic Senate's emergency session.
The Galactic Senate's emergency session for prioritizing galactic defense was conceived as a backstory element for the LucasArts video game Star Wars: The Old Republic. It was first mentioned in the sixth installment of the Galactic Timeline, entitled Onslaught of the Sith Empire. This timeline was created to provide historical context for the game's events and can be found on Star Wars: The Old Republic's official website. The timeline is narrated by the in-universe character of Jedi historian Gnost-Dural, voiced by actor Lance Henriksen. The event was also referenced, though indirectly, in The Journal of Master Gnost-Dural, a compact in-universe book included in collector's editions of The Old Republic.
- Timeline 6: Onslaught of the Sith Empire on The Old Republic's official website (article) (backup link) (First mentioned)
- The Journal of Master Gnost-Dural (Indirect mention only)
- Star Wars: The Old Republic Encyclopedia