Aldera Royal Palace The Aldera Royal Palace , also known as House Organa , was an elegant , centuries - old building in the heart of Aldera , capital city of Alderaan . In the waning days of the Galactic Republic , it was home to the Royal House of Organa , and the palace from which Queen Breha Organa ruled the planet . The young Princess Leia Organa , the adopted daughter of Queen Breha and Bail Prestor Organa , was raised in this castle , along with her foster sister Winter , her aunts Tia Organa , Rouge Organa and Celly Organa and other members of the extended family . In 0 BBY , the Alderaanian government became a threat to the rise of the ever - rising Galactic Empire . The Royal Palace was presumed destroyed with the planet when Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin demonstrated the power of the Death Star battlestation on Alderaan . In spite of the planetary destruction , a large portion of the Palace had been preserved within the rocky mass of the Asteroid 7785 . History . Relative to the millennia of history of the Alderaanian monarchy , the Royal Palace of Aldera was recently built . It was constructed in the mountains of Aldera around 719 BBY , in the first centuries of the Great Peace of the Republic . In the millennia which preceded its construction , the monarchs of Alderaan had held court in various castle s — including the ancestral home of House Panteer in the Glarus Valley . In the last decades of the Galactic Republic , tensions arose between the nobles as to whether the line of ascent to Viceroy should go to the House of Organa or another family . In 28 BBY , the resulting crisis , known as the Alderaan Ascendancy Contention , was resolved by Jedi Watchman Jorus C ' baoth , who ended the dispute by joining the Organas and the Antilles through marriage . As a result , united members of both houses inhabited the Royal Palace — including the Viceroy Bail Prestor Organa and his wife , Queen Breha Organa , née Antilles . The building itself , however , remained the property of the Organas and was thus referred to as " House Organa . " Following the devastating conflicts of the three - year - long Clone Wars , the royal couple adopted the daughter of the late Senator Padmé Amidala . The young Princess Leia Organa grew up in the Palace with her surrogate parents . Meanwhile , the galaxy still bore the scars of the war , and it was decided that Alderaan would be disarmed completely . The war frigate " Another Chance " was converted into an armory ship in which all the weapons of war of Alderaan were stored . The frigate was programmed to continually jump through hyperspace until recalled on Alderaan by the Council of Elders . The command chamber of the " Another Chance " was hidden within the Royal Palace of Aldera . Around the same period , a series of demonstrations took place around the Palace when the newly formed Galactic Empire attempted to increase the restrictions on the refugees that had found shelter on Alderaan . However , the Alderaanian law enforcement units managed to confine the protestors to a preassigned circuit , and the Royal Palace did not suffer any damage . In 3 BBY , the Palace hosted the festivities of the twenty - fifth anniversary of the Ascendancy Contention , with nobles from other planets being invited by Queen Breha and her husband Bail Organa . On that occasion , Count Adan Dooku of Serenno was murdered by Imperial agent Jahan Cross inside the very walls of the Palace . One year later , the Palace became one of the crucibles from which the rebellion against the Empire emerged : following the Cantham House Meetings , Bail Organa joined with Garm Bel Iblis of Corellia and Mon Mothma of Chandrila to form the Alliance to Restore the Republic . However , in 0 BBY , the Imperial Grand Moff Tarkin grew suspicious of Bail Organa ' s loyalty , and he decided to make an example . Tarkin used the immense firepower of the Death Star , a moon - sized battlestation equipped with a planet - killing superlaser , on Alderaan . The Aldera Royal Palace was presumed destroyed along with the planet itself and its millions of inhabitants . Partial survival . Some time later , a group of Rebels intercepted a message meant for Princess Leia Organa , claiming that the Royal Palace had been found intact somewhere in the Graveyard — an asteroid belt created by the destruction of the planet Alderaan . Following the lead , the Rebel agents reached the Asteroid 7785 , where a significant portion of the Aldera Royal Palace had indeed been preserved . Unbeknownst to them , the message had been sent by Darth Vader , the Supreme Commander of the Imperial Military . By providing such information , Vader hoped he could lure Leia Organa and any other of the survivors of the Battle of Yavin to Alderaan , where the Imperial Captain Janus Bonn waited for them . Vader ' s trap was sprung , but not on its intended victims . While exploring the ruined section of the palace , the Rebels stumbled upon various frightening holograms that had been implanted by the Imperials to instil fear in the visitors . After defeating Janus Bonn and his henchmen , the agents of the Alliance discovered the hidden room from which the frigate " Another Chance " could be called back . Layout . External layout . Built at the heart of the city , the Royal Palace lay on a slight rise at the edge of Aldera , overlooking the vast lake . It was a compound of multistoried buildings and turrets , surrounded by ramparts and defensive moats filled with water . The Palace appeared as an assemblage of shallow domes and tall , sharp spires that gleamed white and gold in the daylight . A beautiful ensemble of orchards and gardens surrounded the castle ’ s outer enclosure , and several terraces were built on various levels , providing the inhabitants with fresh air and light . The North tower was equipped with a lofty balcony , from which the old moats and the palace ' s ramparts could be seen unobstructed . Viceroy Bail Prestor Organa viewed a series of demonstrations from this tower in 19 BBY . The way to the main gates of the Palace went through a twisting path in the middle of a blooming garden , lined with majestic dark golden trees . The front entrance itself was a wide wood en door ornamented with intricate carvings . There were other entrances to the castle , including one in the curved South wall , another in the East wall , and another gate the royal family used to enter and exit their private wing in the back of the castle . Since no weapons were allowed on Alderaan , the security measures around the palace were almost non - existent . The palace had been conceived as an open place , where any Alderaanian could ask for access . While the defensive moats had once been in use , they were considered obsolete in the last decades of the Republic . However , following the end of the Clone Wars , the outside of the Palace was protected by the Royal Guards . Internal layout . The multistory building included kilometers of winding corridors and all manner of bedrooms , ballrooms and reception rooms . The Palace featured a Grand Reception Room contained within a dome - shaped structure , a Grand Ballroom with a marble staircase , a throne room , a bridge - spanned reflecting pool , and Bail Organa ' s study — which overlooked the lake and was surrounded by gardens . The palace ' s most formal room was topped by a domed ceiling and paneled with wood . There was no furniture inside , and a massive , sun - shaped lighting fixture hung from the ceiling . The Royal family would discuss their most ceremonial affairs in this space . One of the Palace ' s entrances led to the First Hall , one of the many ceremonial chambers located within the Palace . The First Hall was long hallway decorated with statues , holo - art and sculptures . It provided access to a series of offices , most of which were occupied by low - ranking bureaucrats . One of those hosted the Alderaan Department of the Arts ; various holoposters and four desks with data viewers were placed in that office . By walking past the suite of offices , visitors could reach the Grand Hall , an ornately decorated chamber , the Grand Hall in which the royalty of Alderaan held court . That second hallway was lined with pillars and featured a grand staircase that led to a lower level . Down the steps of the Grand Hall lay another series of chambers , which included a map room that contained a holomap of the Republican space . There were also a meeting chamber , a steam bath room , the dining hall and the lounge of the Council of Elders and the Amphitheater . That final room not only hosted the official gatherings of the Elders , but also contained the only possible access to the castle ' s best kept secret : the hidden chamber from which the armory ship " Another Chance " could be called back . The private wing of the Royal family was located at the back side of the Palace . This private compound contained a room nicknamed the " inside - outside room . " It was equipped with transparisteel doors marching along a wall so that the surrounding gardens would be seen in full display . The Royal family often gathered in this room in the mornings and evenings because the sunset light made it gleam like a flower . The bedroom in which Princess Leia slept had a window which opened on the palace grounds , and a tree with low - hanging branches allowed the young girl to go over the wall at night . " Killik Twilight " , a moss painting by the famous Alderaanian artist Ob Khaddor , usually hung outside the Princess ' bedroom — although it could be borrowed for art exhibits . In addition to their bedrooms , ladies of the court like Rouge Organa could also possess their own boudoir . Honored guests had the benefit of their own wing , which was located a long distance from the main reception room of the castle . One such guest suite was prepared for Count Adan Dooku shortly before his assassination . Those particular chambers featured a balcony , scarlet floor tiles , wide windows an a large , round bench settee .