Declaration of the Rebel Alliance The Declaration of the Rebel Alliance was a declaration by Senator Mon Mothma to rally the various rebel cells that formed the early rebellion into the Rebel Alliance . After a daring pursuit by Imperial forces , Senator Mon Mothma made a speech from the rebel VCX - 100 light freighter " Ghost " , on all rebel communications channels and on HoloNet broadcasts where rebel forces could slice into , in which she resigned from the Imperial Senate and condemned the actions of the Galactic Emperor Sheev Palpatine . She continued the speech and called for an alliance to restore the Galactic Republic , vowing to not rest until the Empire had been defeated . Following the speech , dozens of rebel starship s emerged from hyperspace above the planet Dantooine , answering the call to action . In the time following the Declaration of the Rebel Alliance , the newly created Alliance to Restore the Republic sent the Declaration of Rebellion to Emperor Palpatine , formerly declaring the rebellion against the Empire . Subsequently , the Galactic Civil War erupted , and by its end the Empire was defeated , Emperor Palpatine was dead , and the Alliance had reorganized into the New Republic . In the decades following the end of the war , the First Order , formed from remnants of the Galactic Empire , revealed itself , and was countered by the Resistance , an organization determined to protect the New Republic . It was during this time that the Rebel Files , a central archive depository was recovered , which contained highly sensitive Alliance documents and notes , including Mothma ' s account of the moments prior to the Declaration of the Rebel Alliance . Prelude . Seeds of resistance . As the Clone Wars between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems entered its final stages , Supreme Chancellor of the Republic , Sheev Palpatine , continued to gain emergency powers from the Galactic Senate . By the final actions of the war , displeased senator s formed the Delegation of 2 , 000 , to counter Palpatine ' s growing political power , regularly partaking in the Cantham House meetings , a set of meetings between members of the Delegation of 2 , 000 during the Clone Wars . Eventually , Palpatine declared the Jedi , keepers of peace and justice in the galaxy , and leaders in the Republic military , as traitors , and quelled a supposed Jedi rebellion . Palpatine , secretly the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Sidious , sent his newly christened Sith apprentice , Darth Vader to Mustafar to destroy the Separatist Council and shut down the droid armies of the Separatists , effectively ending the war . Chancellor Palpatine , taking the opportunity of a devastating war and the eradication of his Jedi enemies , proclaimed a new order , and reformed the Republic into the first Galactic Empire , with Palpatine as its Galactic Emperor . One day after the formation of the Empire , Imperial Intelligence cracked down on political rivals of Palpatine , conducting a mass arrest which resulted in the arrest of 63 senators , several of which belonged to the Delegation of 2 , 000 . Senators such as Mon Mothma and Bail Organa , who continued to work in the Imperial Senate , continued to politically oppose the Emperor , as well as beginning to monitor early resistance movements against the Empire , such as the Raada resistance . Years later , more and more rebel cells began to form , and began working together . By 5 BBY Bail Organa regularly conducted surveillance on these resistance groups , with " Fulcrum " , secretly the former padawan of Anakin Skywalker , Ahsoka Tano , who also these cells missions . After a skirmish above Mustafar , operating strategy changed , with these rebel cells operating more closely together , such as Phoenix Cell and the Spectres . Insurgencies were also taking root in the Atrivis sector , with the Liberators and the Atrivis Resistance Group . The Liberators were devastatingly defeated by the Imperial Navy after they seized a garrison on Mantooine . After much deliberation , the Atrivis Resistance Group decided to join Mon Mothma in a rebel group that she nicknamed " the Alliance . " Relentless pursuit . After years of being unable to limit Palpatine ' s power and the occurrence of atrocities such as the Ghorman Massacre , an incident which witnessed the slaughter of peaceful protestors , Mon Mothma denounced the Emperor ' s actions and resigned from the Senate , quickly becoming a target for the Imperial Military and designated a traitor , with the Imperial Security Bureau issuing an alert for Mon Mothma in an attempt to capture her . ISB agents also visited Cantham House on Coruscant , the meeting place of the Cantham House meetings , based on suspicions they had , and questioned Leia Organa and several others there . Under orders from Senator Organa , Captain Hera Syndulla , Lieutenant Commander Ezra Bridger , and Captain Garazeb Orrelios onboard the " Ghost " , a modified VCX - 100 light freighter owned by the Spectres of Phoenix Squadron , rendezvoused with Gold Squadron of Massassi Group , who were escorting Mon Mothma to safety onboard the " Chandrila Mistress " in order to refuel the vessel . Earlier however , the " Ghost " was discovered by an Imperial E - XD infiltrator droid , sent by Grand Admiral Thrawn , who was tasked with finding Mon Mothma . After refueling most of the ships however , they were ambushed by Imperial forces , resulting in the destruction of the " Chandrila Misstress " and the rebels being force to take the Archeon pass . Soon , however , the rebels were ambushed by a second Imperial force , which included the new TIE / D Defender , pressuring the rebels to flee through the Archeon Nebula in order to lose their Imperial pursuers , resulting in the rebels shaking off the Imperials , at the disadvantage of the " Ghost " and two remaining Y - Wing bombers being separated . Two " Imperial I " - class Star Destroyers , led by Governor of Lothal Arihnda Pryce and Admiral Kassius Konstantine , soon arrived and captured the " Ghost " in a tractor beam . Imperial forces were defeated when the two bombers , piloted by Ezra Bridger and Gold Leader Jon Vander launched Proton torpedo s at the Nebula resulting in a release of energy , damaging the Star Destroyer s and allowing the surviving rebels to escape . The declaration . After the skirmish , the " Ghost " , with the two Y - Wings docked with it , exited out of hyperspace above the Outer Rim forested world of Dantooine . As the " Ghost " ready to transmit , the rebels gathered in the cockpit and Mon Mothma began her speech . Mon Mothma ' s speech was broadcast on all rebel communications channels , as well as available HoloNet channels that were sliced by satellite s , so that her call to arms could be heard by trillions of beings across the galaxy , as well as established resistance groups such as Phoenix Cell , Massassi Group , and the Lothal resistance . In the moments following Mon Mothma ' s call for an alliance , a CR90 corvette exited hyperspace , followed soon after by several other CR90s and " Sphyrna " - class corvettes , eventually with many vessels exiting hyperspace , including " Home One " and " Phoenix Nest " . Aftermath . Following the Declaration of the Rebel Alliance , the Alliance to Restore the Republic was created and its branches and units were organized and structured . The Alliance was divided into two sections , the Alliance Civil Government with Mon Mothma as its Chancellor and Chief of State , and composed of civilian bodies such as the Alliance Cabinet and Propaganda Bureau , and the Alliance Military , with Mon Mothma serving as the Commander - in - Chief and led by Alliance High Command and its sub - units . A document , the Declaration of Rebellion , was sent to the Emperor to declare open resistance between the Alliance to Restore the Republic and the Galactic Empire . Eventually , the Galactic Civil War broke out between the Alliance and the Empire when during the Battle of Scarif , a successful attempt by the Alliance to steal the plans for the Death Star , a moon - sized battle station capable of destroying entire planets , which was subsequently destroyed by the Alliance during the Battle of Yavin . Although the Alliance faced many major defeats , such as the Mid Rim Retreat and the Battle of Hoth , they were able to continue their campaigns against the Empire , who had constructed a second Death Star . The second Death Star was then destroyed in the following Battle of Endor , which witnessed the defeat of the Imperial Navy , the death of Emperor Palpatine , and the Declaration of a New Republic , marking the creation of the formal New Republic government . Despite Imperial operations such as , which sought to devastate loyal Imperial worlds , and the fragmentation of the Empire into various Imperial remnants , the Empire was defeated in the final action of the war , the Battle of Jakku , between the New Republic and the Jakku Imperial remnant , the largest remnant of the Empire led by Counselor to the Empire Gallius Rax . After the defeat of Rax and his forces , Grand Vizier Mas Amedda , who had been left powerless by Rax , signed the Galactic Concordance and the Imperial Instruments of Surrender , effectively ending the war and the disbanding the Galactic Empire , instead forming into numerous independent governments such as the Coruscant provisional government . Decades later , the First Order rose from pro - Imperial factions , including a faction formed after the Galactic Concordance . The First Order would evade notice from the New Republic , building up its forces in the Unknown Regions , and destroying the New Republic in one swift stroke , leaving a paramilitary force , the Resistance , led by General Leia Organa , adoptive daughter of Bail Organa , to oppose the First Order , and although the Resistance was defeated and suffered heavy losses , opposition against the First Order remained steadfast . It was during the fight against the First Order that General Organa received the Rebel Files , a central data archive containing various documents and notes , including a note by Mon Mothma recording the moments prior to the Declaration of the Rebel Alliance . Behind the scenes . The Declaration of the Rebel Alliance first appeared in the eighteenth episode of the third season of " Star Wars Rebels " , Secret Cargo , airing in 2017 . It was officially named and marked as an event in the boxed reference set " " . The Corellian Treaty was an accord that marked the official formation of the Rebel Alliance in " Star Wars " Legends , appearing in " " .