The Galactic Civil War – the battle between the Empire and the Rebellion – began in the first Star Wars movie, but it turns out it didn’t really begin with the Death Star at all. The last few years have seen Star Wars explore the origins of the Rebel Alliance, especially with Tony Gilroy’s Andor.

This has placed the Death Star center-stage in the story of galactic history; it certainly seems as though the Galactic Civil War began when Luke Skywalker sH๏τ the planet-destroying superweapon down. But the truth is subtly different; the Galactic Civil War really began in a different moment of George Lucas’ first movie.

Mon Mothma Only Planned To Go To War When The Senate Was Shut Down

It Gave The Rebellion Legitimacy

Jody Houser, Oscar Bazalduna, and Emilio Laiso’s Star Wars: Rogue One Adaptation provides context for the beginning of the rebellion. In one key scene, Mon Mothma (played by Genevieve O’Reilly in Andor) reveals her plans; “As long as the Senate stands, we must try diplomacy first,” she insists.

By this time, Mon Mothma surely knew Palpatine would never step down; still, it’s notable that in Rogue One‘s novelization and comic book adaptation, she’s convinced political opposition to Palpatine is still valuable. She was initially determined to avoid war, but by this time considered it inevitable – and politics could stave the moment off for as long as possible.

In truth, the disbanding of the Senate was a symbolic moment for the Rebel Alliance rather than anything else. War was inevitable, and the Rebels had long had skirmishes with the Empire, and had even had battles at Chopper Base and Lothal, previous to the completion of the Death Star. But waiting for this moment gave the rebellion legitimacy.

Palpatine Knew This Was The Deciding Moment

But He Thought He Was Safe

The Death Star was supposed to be Palpatine’s way of ᴀsserting full dominance over the galaxy. Any planet that opposed him would be systematically eliminated. Because the Death Star was the ultimate weapon to force the galaxy into submission, Palpatine thought he didn’t need the Senate to maintain power any longer.

Palpatine believed the Death Star’s completion meant the pretense of democracy was no longer necessary. He believed he did not need to fear the rebels; but the destruction of the superweapon meant he had miscalculated. In truth, this was the real defining moment of Star Wars – a single decision with galactic repercussions.