Hosnian Cataclysm The Hosnian Cataclysm , also known as the destruction of Hosnian Prime or the destruction of the Hosnian system , was the destruction of the Hosnian system at the hands of the First Order in 34 ABY — thirty years after the Battle of Endor . The event took place during the cold war and marked the annihilation of Courtsilius , Raysho , Hosnian , Cardota , and Hosnian Prime , the capital of the New Republic . Its destruction was carried out by Starkiller Base , a superweapon capable of destroying entire star system s . With the destruction of Hosnian Prime came the destruction of the Galactic Senate and the home fleet of the New Republic Defense Fleet . The massive sub - hyperspace ripple created by the destruction of the system caused the event to be visible in real time around the galaxy , including the planet s of Takodana and Vardos . In the aftermath of the event , General Leia Organa of the Resistance organized a counterattack to destroy the First Order superweapon . The Battle of Starkiller Base ensued , resulting in the base ' s destruction moments before Starkiller was ready to fire on D ' Qar , the location of the Resistance base . However , the extermination of the Galactic Senate and a large part of the Republic fleet , as well as the massive loss of life , left both the New Republic and the Resistance in a vulnerable position while the armed forces of the First Order moved to take control of the galaxy . Prelude . At the end of the Galactic Civil War , the Galactic Empire was left defeated by the New Republic , the government formed by the Alliance to Restore the Republic after the death of the Emperor during the Battle of Endor . The Empire officially signed a treaty , the Galactic Concordance , with the Republic , keeping the remnants of the Imperial confined to their territories in the Core Worlds and the Inner Rim . What remained of the Imperial Starfleet , however , retreated into the Unknown Regions and ultimately formed the First Order , a successor force with the goal of destroying the New Republic and bringing order to the galaxy . As part of their plan , the First Order built a fleet in the shadows of the Unknown Regions and constructed a new superweapon called Starkiller Base , one capable of destroying entire star system s . The construction of the Starkiller weapon marked the culmination of efforts by the Old Empire to research dark energy translations and hyperspace tunneling , and it was a successor to the Death Star and the Death Star II superweapons that came before it . During the conflict that had only just begun to spark between the First Order and the Resistance , Supreme Leader Snoke , the leader of the First Order , considered Luke Skywalker to be an existential threat to the designs of the First Order . Snoke believed that if Skywalker , the last of the Jedi , returned from the exile he imposed on himself after the destruction of his new generation of Jedi and aided the Resistance , a new Jedi Order could arise to threaten him . Kylo Ren , apprentice to Supreme Leader Snoke , attempted to find the last piece of a map that they needed to locate Skywalker , but his efforts at first proved unsuccessful . General Armitage Hux , commander of the Starkiller , argued in favor of using the weapon to destroy the Republic and eliminate the government he believed was illegitimate and ill - equipped to lead the galaxy . Hux argued that without the Republic , the Resistance would no longer be a threat . Snoke agreed and gave his permission to fire the weapon . The Hosnian Cataclysm . On Snoke ' s command , Hux prepared the Starkiller weapon to be fired against the Hosnian system in the Core Worlds , the capital of the New Republic . When the weapon was ready , Hux addressed the legions of stormtroopers under his command who assembled to witness the destructive firepower of the weapon . Hux promised that this day would be the end of the New Republic and ultimately , the Resistance , the culmination of everything the troops had worked towards . Hux then commanded that the weapon be fired , and massive beams of energy were fired across the galaxy towards the Hosnian system . When they arrived , the astronomical bodies of the system were destroyed , including Hosnian Prime . With the destruction of Hosnian Prime , the capital planet of the Republic , came the destruction of the Galactic Senate and the home fleet of the New Republic Defense Fleet . The casualties on Hosnian Prime included Chancellor Lanever Villecham and Korr Sella , an envoy from the Resistance sent by General Leia Organa to warn the Senate about the threat of the First Order — a warning that came too late . The firing of the Starkiller weapon released sufficient energy to create a temporary rip in sub - hyperspace . This caused the destruction of the Hosnian system to become visible from across the galaxy , causing terror and shock on countless worlds who had no idea of what was happening . The famed smuggler s Han Solo and Chewbacca , along with stormtrooper defector Finn , witnessed the system ' s destruction from Takodana , in the Inner Rim . The sight led to confusion on Takodana , but Finn told Solo and Chewbacca that what they were seeing was the First Order using the Starkiller to destroy the Republic capital . Ex - Imperial and member of Inferno Squad Iden Versio also witnessed it from her home planet of Vardos . Resistance member Shriv Suurgav , who was also present , immediately knew that it was the First Order but was unable to work out what they had done until they were captured by First Order officer Gideon Hask ; while Shriv was staggered and horrified , Hask referred to the system ' s destruction as a thing of beauty . Aftermath . After the destruction of the Hosnian system , the Resistance put a plan in motion to destroy the Starkiller before it could destroy D ' Qar , the world the Resistance called home . Finn , Solo , and Chewbacca were sent to the weapon first to disable its shields , while Commander Poe Dameron led a starfighter assault against the base ' s thermal oscillator , which contained the energy that it drained from star s in order to power its weapon . The Resistance forces were able to successfully destroy the weapon but at the cost of a number of Resistance lives , including Solo and many starfighter pilot s . The Hosnian Cataclysm led to a complete shift in the galactic status quo . Although the New Republic had never had the size or influence of the Galactic Republic at its height , it had been the dominant galactic power since the Battle of Jakku . Now , with its political structure decimated and its important fleet in ruins , the First Order had established itself as the primary power in the galaxy , with resources sufficiently important to conquer it . Systems and planets across the galaxy , that had been tempted by the First Order ' s promises of security , instantly capitulated , while several others were taken by conquest . A few Senators had survived the destruction of the New Republic , as had several units of the military . However , the remaining taskforces had been dissolved by the Senators , who redirected the last forces of the Republic fleet to protect their homeworlds from the First Order . In the Resistance ' s estimate , the First Order would seize the Core Worlds in a matter of weeks . Behind the scenes . The destruction of the Hosnian system was depicted in the 2015 film . It was suggested by Pablo Hidalgo , creative executive of the Lucasfilm Story Group , that the reason the blast from Starkiller Base could be immediately seen from Takodana was due to a " sub - hyperspace rip side - effect " of the Starkiller .