Jedi Order The Jedi Order was an ancient , monastic peacekeeping organization united in their observance of the Force , specifically the light side . A noble order of protectors noted for their lightsaber s and ability to tap into the power of the Force , the Jedi served as guardians of peace and justice in the Galactic Republic for over a thousand generations . Like the Republic , the Order was headquartered on Coruscant — the political center of the galaxy — where thousands of Jedi Knight s studied , trained and lived within the walls of the Jedi Temple , which additionally housed the Jedi Archives and by extension the Order ' s accumulated knowledge . The Jedi High Council , the highest governing body of the Order , consisted of twelve Jedi Master s including the Grand Master and the Master of the Order . The training of Jedi was one of the most important traditions in the history of the Order , with Padawan s learning the ways of the Force and the Jedi Code from the more experienced Jedi who held the rank of Knight or Master . Over the millennia , the Jedi fought against the Sith — another ancient monastic order , but one whose members harnessed the power of the dark side — until the latter was all but destroyed due to internal fighting approximately one thousand years before the Invasion of Naboo . Unknown to the Jedi at the time , the Sith survived and — governed by the Rule of Two — conspired to gain absolute power over the galaxy by overthrowing both the Jedi and the Republic . Thereafter , the Jedi served , strictly , as peacekeepers by maintaining law and order during a thousand years of peace under the rule of the Galactic Senate . During the final years of the Republic , the galaxy was beset by political instability and social unrest , resulting in a secessionist crisis that ultimately led to the formation of the Confederacy of Independent Systems . In lacking the sufficient manpower needed to protect the galaxy , the Jedi became commanders and generals in the newly - formed Grand Army of the Republic . For roughly three years they commanded armies of clone trooper s in a conflict known as the Clone Wars , engaging the Confederacy ' s battle droid forces led by Count Dooku — a former Jedi Master who became a Sith Lord — and General Grievous . Though the Jedi fought to preserve the Republic , the government that they served had been secretly taken over by Darth Sidious , the Dark Lord of the Sith who rose to power under the guise of Sheev Palpatine , a former senator of Naboo and the last Supreme Chancellor of the Republic . The chancellor ' s machinations culminated in the execution of Order 66 , a secret protocol that turned the Jedi ' s clone soldier s against them , leading to an all but total extermination of the Jedi Order . With the Jedi eliminated , Sidious supplanted a thousand years of democracy with a new government known as the Galactic Empire . In addition , Sidious succeeded in turning Anakin Skywalker — the prophesied Chosen One whom the Jedi believed would bring balance to the Force by destroying the Sith — to the dark side and anointed him Darth Vader . As a Sith Lord , the former Jedi Knight served the self - proclaimed Galactic Emperor by hunting down the few surviving Jedi who dispersed into hiding across the galaxy . In spite of the Sith ' s efforts , however , the Jedi continued to endure . Within a generation of the Empire ' s rise to power , Luke Skywalker — the son of Vader — was trained in the Jedi arts by Obi - Wan Kenobi and Yoda , both of whom survived the initial purge of the Order . Redeemed by his son ' s love , Anakin returned to the light and fulfilled his destiny as the Chosen One , destroying both himself and his Sith Master during the Battle of Endor . In the aftermath of the Galactic Civil War , the Empire dissolved into various remnants and the New Republic rose to power as the dominant galactic government . Luke Skywalker went on to become the Jedi Master of a new generation of Jedi — fulfilling the promise he made to Yoda by passing on what he had learned . Among Skywalker ' s students was his nephew Ben Solo , the son of his twin sister , Leia Organa , and the famed smuggler Han Solo . Ben , however , was seduced by the dark side of the Force at the coaxing of Snoke , an enigmatic figure who spearheaded the Imperial - inspired First Order . As a result , Ben adopted the name and persona of Kylo Ren , a First Order warlord and master of the Knights of Ren . The new generation was betrayed and destroyed by Ren , who left the Jedi training temple burning by the time Skywalker recovered from the attack . Feeling responsible for Ben ' s fall and the massacre of his apprentices , he went into exile and disappeared from the galaxy , leaving only traces of his location on a star map . The First Order and the Resistance both sought to acquire the map , but ultimately it was the latter that succeeded due to the actions of the Jakku scavenger Rey . She followed the map to the planet Ahch - To , where the last Jedi had taken refuge in the first Jedi Temple . Description . Overview . The Jedi Knight s were a noble order of Force - sensitive protectors — united by their ability to use the Force — who upheld peace and justice in the Galactic Republic for over a thousand generations . As keepers of the peace , the Jedi Order undertook diplomatic missions on behalf of the Galactic Senate , and pursued interplanetary criminals across the galaxy . In contrast to the Sith , the Jedi ' s historic foes who harnessed the dark side , the Jedi drew their power from the light side of the Force . The Jedi Code , along with a collection of other foundational texts , served as the mantra of the Jedi way of life , governing the behavior of individual Jedi to the philosophy and training regimen of the Order as a whole . As the Jedi were instructed in the ways of the Order and the Force , each member progressed through several different ranks . With the exception of Anakin Skywalker , prospective Jedi were identified a short time after birth by the quantity of midi - chlorian s in their blood , a factor which indicated the level of a subject ' s Force - sensitivity . Training began at the level of the Jedi youngling ; at some point in their training , youngling s were expected to find their own Kyber crystal — the heart of the lightsaber , a distinctive and elegant weapon of the Jedi — in order to pass an ancient rite of passage known as The Gathering . Younglings who succeeded in their trials graduated to the level of Padawan , the apprentice of a more experienced member of the Order such as the Jedi Knights and Jedi Master s . In accordance with the Jedi Code , a Master could instruct only one student in the ways of the Force at any given time . The Padawan braid , a symbol that represented a Jedi apprentice ' s status in the Order , was worn in the hair or head , depending on the Padawan ' s species . The Jedi Trials were a series of tests that ultimately determined whether a Padawan was worthy of the rank of Jedi Knight . After becoming a full - fledged member of the Order , a Jedi could choose to adopt a Padawan of their own as part of the Order ' s tradition in training the next generation of Jedi . The more powerful and legendary members held the rank of Jedi Master . Again , with exception to Skywalker , the Jedi High Council — the highest governing body of the Order — consisted of Masters throughout the history of the Order . Among the Council , the title of Grand Master was conferred on the oldest and wisest member of their group , while overall leadership rested with the Master of the Order . Locations . The Jedi Temple was the home of the Jedi Order on Coruscant , the capital world of the Galactic Republic . Over the millennia , the Temple served as the central hub of all Jedi activities in the galaxy ; it was a school , a monastery , and the headquarters of the Jedi High Council . As a school , the Temple was the largest active Jedi training center in the galaxy where younglings trained to become Padawans and ultimately full - fledged Jedi Knights . The Jedi Archives , the source of all knowledge accumulated by the Order , was located inside of the Temple . A symbol of the Order , the Temple signified the Order ' s status on galactic capital ; and while access to the Temple was not restricted to just the Jedi , all non - Jedi personnel were required to undergo compulsory entry tests before becoming employed at the Temple . Those who worked in Temple often dedicated their whole life to serving the Order . Having sustained extensive damage during the fall of the Jedi , the Temple was renovated and renamed as the Imperial Palace , with only the original structure ' s corpse and five skyscraping towers remaining intact . In addition to the Temple on Coruscant , the Order maintained several ancient temples spread across the galaxy . One such temple was located on Lothal , and was only accessible if both the Master and Padawan were present . The Lothal temple was where Padawans were sent to confront their fear without the support of the Masters , some of whom ultimately died while waiting for their students who never returned , leaving the temple ' s antechambers littered with their skeletal remains . Other Jedi enclaves included the Temple of Eedit on Devaron , the Temple of Vrogas Vas , and the Temple of Ilum where younglings were sent to participate in The Gathering . While Ilum was regarded as the most sacred planet to the Jedi Order , the desert moon Jedha — a holy site and home to one of the first civilizations that explored the nature of the Force — was considered a spiritual home of the Jedi . Like Ilum , Jedha contained the kyber crystal s that the Jedi used to create their lightsaber . It was also a holy site for pilgrims throughout the galaxy , who sought spiritual guidance in the Holy City of Jedha . At one time it was an important world to the Jedi . History . Ancient times . The Jedi Order was founded on Ahch - To at least six thousand years prior to the Battle of Yavin by the Prime Jedi , the first Jedi of the Order . At the dawn of their order , the Jedi came into possession of Ilum , an ancient planet encased in ice and littered with kyber crystals , the heart of the Jedi lightsaber . Considered the most sacred world to the Jedi Order , its ancient Temple would eventually host the Gathering , a tradition that would continue up until the fall of the Order . As the Jedi were spread throughout the galaxy , they acquired a vessel called the " Crucible " that would ferry students to Ilum so that they could perform the Gathering . It would become the base of the architect droid , Professor Huyang , for over a thousand years as he instructed on lightsaber designs and kept records of every single Jedi weapon created . During the Hundred - Year Darkness , the Sith were born . Once brothers in the Force , the Sith Order was founded by a rogue Jedi who had come to the understanding that the true power of the Force lay not in contemplation and passivity , and instead sought abandon and strength through the dark side of the Force . The Jedi Council at the time balked at this new direction , and the fallen Jedi was outcast , but he eventually gained followers to his new order . The power - hungry Sith sought to control the galaxy and opposed the Jedi , against whom they waged a series of wars which brought destruction to many worlds — including the Sith homeworld of Moraband , which the Sith were eventually forced to abandon . On another occasion , the Jedi Order and the Sith fought a battle on the planet Takodana . These wars also saw the construction of ancient superweapon s powered by giant kyber crystals which possessed the power to destroy entire planets . These weapons , along with the crystals , were destroyed and a thousand years later believed by many Jedi to be merely legends . About five - thousand years before the Battle of Yavin , the Order eventually came to be headquartered at Coruscant , wherein they built a Temple that would pose as their main hub for thousands of generations . Underneath the structure lay buried an ancient Sith shrine , the inherent power of which was believed by the contemporary Jedi to have been neutralized and successfully capped . In truth , that power had seeped upward and outward since its entombment , infiltrating the hallways and rooms above , and weakening the Jedi Order for millennia without their knowledge . It was during this time that the Jedi Order came into the service of what would be later called the Old Republic . Promising to uphold its ideals , the Jedi fought to maintain peace and freedom . When the Old Republic outlawed slavery , the Jedi set about to free those held , notably under the Zygerrian Slave Empire . The Jedi declared war on Zygerrian s , whose economic success had resulted from enslaving beings from all corners of the galaxy before selling them at auctions . The Jedi Order managed to put an end to their practices , destroying their empire and exiling them to their homeworld , Zygerria . The Zygerrians developed a fierce hatred for the Jedi as a result . At one point , a Jedi sect known as the Ordu Aspectu broke off from the Jedi Order . Led by the enigmatic Rur and his second in command , Amon , they sought to achieve the secrets to immortality . Eventually , a conflict broke out between them and the orthodox Jedi . The conflict ended with the signing of a peace treaty . The treaty allowed the Ordu Aspectu to continue their research but under Jedi scrutiny . During his experimentation , Rur attempted to copy his intellect into his citadel ' s computer core , only to accidentally transfer his very sentience as well . When the Jedi sought to investigate the computer closer , the computer activated the citadel ' s security droids , killing all members of the Ordu Aspectu and Jedi alike ; but not before it was deactivated by Rur and Amon , before they died themselves , thus ending the Ordu Aspectu . Conflicts also arose between the Jedi and the inhabitants of the world of Mandalore who had rapidly developed into a warlike culture in which strength was valued above all else . Their beliefs of continual warfare went contrary to the Jedi ' s mission of protecting the weak , they quickly mobilized to stop the destructive Mandalorians from expanding in the galaxy . The constant warfare was a strain and , as the Old Republic crumbled , the Mandalorian warriors sacked the Jedi Temple on Coruscant , an event during which Pre Vizsla ' s ancestors stole the Darksaber . Prior to 1032 BBY , the galaxy entered an era known as the Dark age . During this time the Jedi – Sith war occurred . Early on in the war , the Sith attacked and captured Coruscant and with it the Jedi Temple . Towards the end of the war the Jedi reclaimed the Republic capital and their temple during the Liberation of Coruscant . Even as the Old Republic collapsed , the Jedi emerged victorious from their wars with the Sith . In their constant thirst for power , the Sith had weakened themselves through infighting until only one Dark Lord of the Sith remained : Darth Bane . Setting out a new guiding principle for the Sith called the Rule of Two , Darth Bane declared that there could be no more than two Sith in existence : a master and an apprentice , to prevent the infighting of the past from ever destroying the Sith again . Despite discovering his principles , when he was defeated , the Jedi believed in their hubris that , with Darth Bane dead , the Sith were extinct from the galaxy . Keepers of the peace . It was after these events that the Galactic Republic was formed and ushered in a new era of democracy , peace , and prosperity under the Galactic Senate and its elected leader , the Supreme Chancellor . Due to the Galactic Republic ' s demilitarization , the Jedi Order fully embraced their responsibilities as peacekeepers and rejected their roles as soldier s . Assisted by the Republic Judicial s , the Jedi were responsible for maintaining law and order , namely by mediating conflicts to bring about peaceful solutions between various rival factions and planets , as well as serving as interplanetary law enforcement by pursuing wanted and dangerous criminals , pirate s , and smuggler s . While they ultimately collapsed , the Galactic Republic and the Jedi Order were able to preside over a thousand years of peace sustained without major warfare . One of their philosophical sayings was " " the simplest gesture of kindness can fill a galaxy with hope . " " However , as the Republic reached its zenith and disputes became more common between the Republic ' s member worlds , tensions arose between Jedi Master Sifo - Dyas and the rest of the High Council . Foreseeing an upcoming full - scale conflict , he started advocating for the creation of an army for the Republic . His fellow councilors deemed his ideas too extreme and Sifo - Dyas was removed from his position . Even though the other Jedi had rejected his project , he found a way to carry it out without their consent . Sifo - Dyas contacted the Kaminoan s , who were reputed for their clone hatcheries , and secretly commissioned them to grow a clone army for the Republic , which he pretended was a request of the Senate . Unbeknownst to Sifo - Dyas , the Sith Lord , Darth Sidious , plotted a conspiracy with the Prime Minister of Kamino , Lama Su , to implant a control chip in all clones so that they would turn against the Jedi and bring about the destruction of the Jedi Order when the time was right . To silence Sifo - Dyas , Jedi Master Count Dooku , who had fallen to the dark side and had become one of Sidious ' apprentices under the name of Tyranus , paid the Pyke Syndicate to kill Sifo - Dyas on his mission to Oba Diah as assigned by Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum . When Sifo - Dyas was assigned to a mission on Felucia and his negotiations with the Pyke s were postponed , he and Aide Silman left Oba - Diah for Felucia . Subsequently , the Pykes shot down their shuttle over the moon . Although the crash killed Sifo - Dyas , Silman survived ; captured by the Pykes , they kept his survival a secret in case they needed leverage . The Pykes turned over Sifo - Dyas ' s corpse to Dooku , who brought the body to Felucia . There , the tribal inhabitants cremated his body . The Jedi Council , being led to believe that Sifo - Dyas had been killed by the Felucian s , closed the case . Invasion of Naboo . In 32 BBY , the Jedi Order was requested by Chancellor Valorum to assist in negotiating a dispute between the planet Naboo and the Trade Federation that had resulted in a blockade of the world . The Council dispatched Jedi Master Qui - Gon Jinn and his Padawan , Obi - Wan Kenobi , to negotiate with the Trade Federation . However , Darth Sidious , whose public persona was Senator Sheev Palpatine of Naboo , insisted that the Trade Federation , which was under his sway , initiated an invasion of Naboo and overwhelmed the Royal Naboo Security Forces . Circumventing a trap by the Federation , Jinn and Kenobi were able to escape to Naboo and arrive in Theed in time to rescue the Naboo Queen , Padmé Amidala , who was being held captive by Federation forces . Together with the Queen ' s Handmaidens and her close security detail , the Jedi fled the planet but their ship was damaged in the escape , causing them to land on the desert planet of Tatooine . While stranded on Tatooine , the two Jedi discovered a young slave named Anakin Skywalker , whom Jinn believed to be the Chosen One . While betting on the boy winning the Boonta Eve Classic , Jinn was able to secure both Skywalker ' s freedom and the needed parts to repair the Queen ' s ship to reach Coruscant . It was after this that Jinn was attacked by Darth Maul , apprentice to Darth Sidious , who had dispatched Maul to kill the Jedi . As the Sith had been believed by the Jedi to be extinct , Jinn was at first unsure of who Maul was except that he had been trained in lightsaber combat . Arriving at the Jedi Temple on the Coruscant , the Council refused to accept Skywalker for being too old according to the Code , and sent Jinn and Kenobi to keep protecting Queen Amidala on her return to Theed . At the same time , Amidala called for a Vote of No Confidence in Chancellor Valorum , which would eventually end in the election of Palpatine to the chancellorship . Jinn and Kenobi then assisted Amidala and her forces during the ensuing battle against the Trade Federation , when Maul killed Jinn in combat , only for the Sith to be defeated by Kenobi . Given the status of Jedi Knight afterwards , Kenobi took Skywalker as his apprentice , despite Yoda ' s reluctance , and the Jedi Order was left in the dark as to what the Sith ' s actions were for ten years . Separatist Crisis . Having broken all ties to the Jedi Order , secretly replacing Maul as Sidious ' apprentice , Dooku was believed to be a mere " political idealist " by his peers at the Jedi Order . For eight years , Dooku was scarcely heard about until he staged a theatrical return to public life by delivering a rousing speech that condemned the Republic and essentially set the stage for the Separatist Crisis . At the same time , he fomented political turmoil in many worlds , including Ryloth , Kashyyyk , Sullust , and Onderon , or tried to convince their leaders to leave the Republic , as in Eriadu ' s case . Soon enough , Dooku became the face of the Confederacy of Independent Systems , convincing several thousand systems to leave the Republic . As the Jedi Order was overwhelmed , whose limited numbers made it difficult for them to maintain peace and order in the increasingly volatile galaxy , the Republic ' s Senate debated a Military Creation Act to form a standing army for the Republic ' s protection against the Separatist threat . As the vote to decide for the Republic became imminent , assassin ation attempts on Senator Padmé Amidala ― who opposed the army ' s creation ― soon led Jedi Knight Obi - Wan Kenobi to trace bounty hunter Jango Fett to Kamino , where he discovered the clone army ' s creation at the request of Sifo - Dyas , and reported it to the High Council . After a small confrontation , Kenobi followed Fett to Geonosis , where his capture and intel on a Separatist droid army prompted the Senate ( with the High Council ' s approval ) to give Chancellor Palpatine emergency powers so as to raise the Grand Army of the Republic . Soon enough , a Jedi task force and a contingent of clones troopers , led by Mace Windu and Yoda respectively , arrived to participate in the Battle of Geonosis against the Confederacy ' s army , marking the beginning of a galaxy - wide conflict known as the Clone Wars . The Clone Wars . With the Republic now at war with the Separatists for control over the galaxy , the Jedi Masters and Knights were dispatched as Generals , and their Padawans as Commander s , leading the armies from the front . During the Clone Wars , the Jedi were victorious in battlefields such as Christophsis , Ryloth , Umbara , and Geonosis . By the last year of the war , many Jedi had been killed , and several had turned to the dark side , such as Pong Krell and Barriss Offee , who arranged a bombing at the Jedi Temple , believing the Jedi had deviated from their course as peacekeepers , and framed fellow Padawan Ahsoka Tano . She , in turn , left the Jedi Order unable to trust the Council after turning its back on her during her trial . Eventually , the High Council came to be aware of Dooku ' s hand in the creation of the clone army , and of the lies and mistrust that surrounded them , both inside the Temple and the Senate . Grand Master Yoda even foresaw that the Jedi would not win the Clone Wars , just as public support for the Jedi weakened due to their management of the conflict . The war would come to an end in 19 BBY , following the rescue of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine and the death of Count Dooku aboard the " Invisible Hand " in the Battle of Coruscant , and the death of General Grievous in the Battle of Utapau , as carried by the Jedi Generals Anakin Skywalker and Obi - Wan Kenobi . However , Skywalker ' s turmoil clouded his judgment . Though he informed Windu of his discovery of Palpatine ' s identity as Darth Sidious , allowing Windu to assemble a team composed of himself , Kit Fisto , Agen Kolar , and Saesee Tiin , to arrest Palpatine , the young Jedi Knight intervened in their duel against the Dark Lord of the Sith . Skywalker chose to save Sidious , leading to Windu ' s death , and became his apprentice as " Darth Vader " to save his secret wife , Padmé Amidala . Fall of the Order . Branding Windu ' s actions as " treason " , Palpatine declared the Jedi to be enemies of the Republic and sent Vader to kill the ones who still were in the Jedi Temple , including the Initiates , and later to eliminate the Separatist Council on the Mustafar system . Palpatine soon personally contacted clone commanders and told them to execute Order 66 , causing them to turn on their Jedi Generals and execute them on the spot . Throughout the galaxy , thousands of Jedi were killed by the obedient clones including Ki - Adi - Mundi on Mygeeto , Aayla Secura on Felucia , Plo Koon on Cato Neimoidia , Stass Allie on Saleucami , and Depa Billaba on Kaller . Of an estimated number of ten - thousand Jedi , barely a few survived to see the proclamation of the New Order , marking the inception of the Galactic Empire and the rise of Palpatine as its Emperor . Survivors included Yoda , Obi - Wan Kenobi , Caleb Dume , Ahsoka Tano , and at least initially , Uvell , Luminara Unduli , and Shaak Ti . During their self - imposed exile , Kenobi and Yoda , along with Senator Bail Organa , hid Vader ' s newborn children , the Force - sensitive twin s Luke and Leia , from the Sith , hoping that in time they would become the key to the Jedi Order ' s future . According to Imperial Admiral Rae Sloane , the Jedi that had survived Order 66 made a last stand on Madar or Morad . In the matter of short five years since the Order had been eradicated , with the Empire ' s policy of silence about the Jedi , the extensive hunt by the Inquisitorius that followed Order 66 , and the generalized destruction of their temples , the Jedi already seemed a distant memory . Educational studies concerning the Jedi were prohibited , with instructors who specialized in Jedi history ( such as Sava Korin Pers of the University of Bar ' leth ) losing their positions . Any Jedi survivors were captured and brought to Mustafar for interrogation and execution , but also to the Spire on Stygeon Prime , wherein the body of Luminara Unduli was preserved to lure out any surviving Jedi . Among the last reservoirs of knowledge of the Order were Antron Bach ' s vault in an abandoned colony , created at Uvell ' s behest , and Grakkus the Hutt ' s private collection on Nar Shaddaa . Safeguarding holocrons , lightsabers , journals , archives , and other artifacts , they partially preserved the teachings of the fallen Order . Fugitives from the Empire . Eight years after the end of the Clone Wars , Caleb Dume , who had assumed the identity of Kanan Jarrus , joined forces with the Twi ' lek rebel fighter Hera Syndulla . Together , the two established a small rebel cell based on the starship " Ghost " . Fifteen years into the Imperial era , a number of inaccurate tales about the Jedi started to appear . For example , the bounty hunter duo Gowski and Fissol were under the impression that Jedi aged backward , were able to fly , and had unusually dense bone s . About five years before the Battle of Yavin , Kanan took on a Force - sensitive teenager named Ezra Bridger as his apprentice . Kanan ' s decision to ignite his lightsaber on Kessel drew the attention of the Grand Inquisitor ; whom Vader had tasked with hunting down Jedi and recruiting the " children of the Force . " Under Kanan ' s tutelage , Ezra trained as a Jedi while evading the Grand Inquisitor and other Imperial agents . Ezra completed his Jedi Trials at the Lothal Jedi Temple under the guidance of Master Yoda , who also counseled Kanan to continue training Ezra . At the instigation of Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin , the Grand Inquisitor and Agent Kallus concocted a trap that captured Kanan . However , Ezra and the other rebels mounted a mission to rescue Kanan and killed the Grand Inquisitor . In the process , they encountered other members of the rebellion including the former Padawan Ahsoka Tano , who had become a key rebel leader . Return of the Jedi . For over nearly twenty years , the Empire was able to expand without opposition of a disbanded Jedi Order . A few of its former members , however , stayed true to their code of honor and continued to fight the Empire ' s injustice , albeit in different ways . Though former Padawan Ahsoka Tano had become disillusioned by the Council ' s actions , and no longer identified as a Jedi , she came into contact with Bail Organa from Alderaan , with whom she worked to coordinate the efforts of a rebellion under the codename " Fulcrum , " fifteen years after the fall of the Republic . Under her advice , Hera Syndulla and former Padawan Kanan Jarrus operated in Lothal , where Jarrus met the Force - sensitive Ezra Bridger , whom he mentored to pass along the teachings of the Jedi Order . During a mission , they inspired not only the people of Lothal to fight the Empire , but also the early " Alliance " to finally organize and to bring several Rebel cells together , paving the way for the Alliance to Restore the Republic . An underground faith known as the Church of the Force emerged in support of the Jedi and their ideals , believing that only their return could restore balance to the Force . In 0 BBY , Obi - Wan Kenobi emerged from his exile on Tatooine , not only to help deliver the plans of the Death Star to the Rebel Alliance as requested by Rebel leader Princess Leia Organa , but to begin training Luke Skywalker to become a Jedi Knight , in the hopes that Skywalker would be able to defeat both Vader and the Emperor . Through Skywalker , with Kenobi ' s guidance , the Rebel Alliance achieved a significant victory in the Battle of Yavin , which meant a turning point for the Alliance in the Galactic Civil War . In 3 ABY , Skywalker received training from Yoda on Dagobah , allowing him to defeat and redeem his father , Darth Vader , and bring about the death of Emperor Palpatine during the Battle of Endor . Hailed as " the last of the Jedi , " Skywalker was told by Yoda to pass on what he had learned , so that the legacy of the Jedi Order could go on . After the Battle of Jakku , the Empire were officially surrendered to the New Republic by way of the Galactic Concordance , which put strict provisions on the rump state . In the Unknown Regions , however , fleeing Imperial officer s and noble s conspired to rebuild their armies and fleet s , culminating in the rise of the hermetic First Order . In the meantime , Skywalker gained a new ally in an individual named Lor San Tekka , a member of the Church of the Force during the dark times , who believed the return of the Jedi was necessary to have balance in the Force and aided Skywalker in retrieving lost Jedi lore . A new generation . Following the Battle of Endor , the Alliance General Han Solo and the former Prince ss of Alderaan , Leia Organa , were married and after the defeat of the Empire at Jakku , they had a son named Ben Solo . Ben was Luke Skywalker ' s nephew , as Organa was his twin sister , a fact Skywalker only learned from the Force spirit of Obi - Wan Kenobi following Yoda ' s death . Skywalker initially offered Organa to train her as his first student , but she declined her brother ' s offer as she thought that the future of the New Republic was too important . In addition , she would not devote herself to the extended isolation of the classic training method of the Jedi , but ultimately allowed Skywalker to train her son . Apart from Ben , Skywalker recruited several other students during his visits to many worlds over two decades . From the shadows , an enigmatic individual called Snoke , the Supreme Leader of the First Order , plotted to make Ben Solo his personal apprentice and , over time , seduced him to the dark side of the Force . When Organa noticed this , she sent the young Solo to be trained by her brother in an effort to have her son become a Jedi and remain on the light side of the Force . During this time , Solo was trained in lightsaber combat and became skilled with the Jedi weapon . Skywalker and his Jedi trained together in at least one Jedi Temple during this time . One fateful night , Skywalker , sensing the growing darkness in his nephew , went to confront his nephew in his hut . While he slept , Skywalker used the Force to look into Solo ' s mind , seeing his darkness and the machinations of Snoke . As he came to sense the destruction , death , and despair that his nephew would bring , Skywalker , in a brief moment of pure instinct , activated his lightsaber . He was quickly overcome by shame in what he had thought to do , but it was too late : Solo , awoken by Skywalker , reached for his blade and razed the hut using the Force , collapsing it in on his uncle . Solo turned to the dark side of the Force and became an apprentice of Snoke , joining the First Order and the Knights of Ren in the process and taking on the new identity of Kylo Ren . Ren betrayed his fellow Jedi students , and , due to Ren ' s skills with his lightsaber , he killed most of them while taking the rest with him , essentially destroying Skywalker ' s new Jedi and his hopes of fully restoring the Jedi Order . Among the ranks of the First Order , Ren quietly became known as the " Jedi Killer . " Ren had become obsessed with fulfilling the legacy of his grandfather , but recognized him by his dark persona of Darth Vader rather than that of the redeemed Anakin Skywalker . Skywalker was unable to stop the massacre , having regained consciousness and rising from the rubble of his nephew ' s hut only after the deaths or fleeing of his Jedi students , witnessing only the burning of his Jedi temple alongside his astromech droid , R2 - D2 , afterwards . Skywalker felt responsible for the ordeal and decided to exile himself , although those closest to him learned that he was also searching for the first Jedi Temple . Skywalker only left traces of his location in a single star map , with the remaining data being present in old Imperial records . Skywalker eventually found the first Jedi temple on the aquatic world of Ahch - To , where he took up refuge and lived in exile as a hermit . The Awakening . As Luke Skywalker ' s efforts to rebuild the Jedi Order had seemingly failed , the Jedi Master ' s fabled return became a symbol of hope for those who believed in him and the Jedi . For others he remained a myth , but he also posed a threat for those who feared his reappearance , such as Supreme Leader Snoke and the First Order , who believed Skywalker ' s return would also mean the rise of the new Jedi . While Skywalker ' s location was unknown to the galaxy at large , his old ally , Lor San Tekka , came into possession of the map some thirty years after the Battle of Endor . When the Resistance , in an effort against the First Order led by Leia Organa , learned of this , they attempted to retrieve the map from San Tekka ' s residence on Jakku . The First Order , however , also seeking Skywalker in an effort to destroy the last of the Jedi , likewise learned of San Tekka ' s findings and attacked Jakku in an effort to retrieve it . An astromech droid named BB - 8 , with the map in tow , successfully escaped from Jakku with the aid of a Force - sensitive scavenger named Rey and a former First Order stormtrooper named Finn . They met and traveled alongside Han Solo and his Wookiee partner , Chewbacca , in a journey to return BB - 8 to the Resistance . After a devastating attack against the New Republic ' s capital by the First Order ' s Starkiller Base , the Resistance sought to destroy the First Order superweapon . Once there , Han Solo attempted to turn his son back to the light , but he was killed by Ren instead , who was attempting to fully commit to Snoke and the dark side . Rey subsequently defeated Ren in a lightsaber duel and Starkiller Base was destroyed , after which the Resistance finally pieced together the map to Skywalker with help from R2 - D2 . Organa , relieved to finally find her brother , sought to bring him home . She sent Rey , along with Chewbacca and R2 - D2 , to Ahch - To , where the young girl found Skywalker among the refuge of the first Jedi temple . There , Rey presented the Jedi Master with his father ' s lightsaber — which he had lost on Cloud City decades prior — as a symbol of the only hope the galaxy had left in defeating Kylo Ren , Snoke , the First Order and Knights of Ren by bringing about the return of the Jedi Order . Behind the scenes . The Jedi Order first appeared in . The lore of the Jedi Order and of the Force was greatly expanded upon during the . The role of the Jedi Order in preserving the peace of the Republic and later the controversy of them stepping into the role of military leaders is a pivotal plot point that eventually leads to the Order ' s downfall in . Prior to that they had been mentioned indirectly as the Jedi in the original trilogy as Luke Skywalker encounters Jedi Master Obi - Wan Kenobi and later Master Yoda . In " , " Yoda charges Luke with carrying on the lessons and legacy of the Jedi Order . The Jedi Order originated in the rough draft of " Star Wars " as the Galactic Emperor ' s bodyguard . They became affiliated with the " Republica Galactica " in the second draft . Later , when composing background information for licensees in 1977 , George Lucas described the Jedi Order as being " several hundred thousand " strong before the Purge . For the word " Jedi , " Lucas took inspiration from the term " , " which refers to a drama set during the of Japanese history , when were still in activity . Luke Skywalker ' s new generation of Jedi was first mentioned in the 2015 film , along with the film ' s and . Further background details about the Jedi and their massacre , which saw the end of Luke ' s students , can be found in the reference book " " by Pablo Hidalgo .