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Padmé Amidala
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Born
Padmé Naberrie, Queen Amidala was the formal name of the royal leader of Naboo.
As a child, Amidala was prodigiously talented and extremely well educated. She
had long been interested in public service, volunteering in the Refugee Relief
Movement in her youth. Her efforts helped in the Shadda-Bi-Boran exodus. At the
age of eight, she joined the Apprentice Legislature and became an Apprentice
Legislator at age 11. By 14, she was elected Queen of Naboo.
During the
Trade Federation siege of Naboo, the scheming Neimoidians tried to force the
strong-willed Amidala to sign a treaty that would legitimize a brazenly illegal
occupation. Amidala refused, and was sentenced to a prison camp. En route to
incarceration, Amidala was freed by Jedi ambassadors, who took the Queen and
part of her retinue to Coruscant, to plead her case before the Senate with the
help of Naboo's galactic representative, Senator Palpatine.
On Coruscant,
Amidala learned of the inefficiencies of galactic politics, watching as Trade
Federation political maneuvering stalemated her plea. Following advice from
Senator Palpatine, Amidala called for a Vote of No Confidence in Supreme
Chancellor Valorum.
Fed up with
the Senate, Amidala returned to Naboo. She requested aid from the native
Gungans in freeing her captured capital. During the Battle of Naboo, Amidala
infiltrated her own palace, and forced Neimoidian Viceroy Nute Gunray to end
the occupation. The cowardly Neimoidians, having their armies defeated,
capitulated and freedom was brought back to Naboo.
While Queen
Amidala was the ruler of Naboo she had a large staff of advisors and aides that
handled the day-to-day affairs. Sio Bibble, for instance, was Naboo's governor.
Captain Panaka was Amidala's loyal bodyguard and head of security. Ric Olié was
the pilot of the Queen's gleaming Royal Starship and leader of Bravo Flight.
Perhaps most
important in Amidala's entourage were her five handmaidens. Saché, Yané, Rabé,
Sabé and Eirtaé not only helped the Queen with her intricate gowns, hairstyles
and make-up, but they were also trained in self-defense. When in danger, Queen
Amidala disguised herself as one of her handmaidens, and adopted her less
formal name of Padmé. When disguised as Padmé, Sabé assumed the role of Queen
in her place.
When her terms
ended, Amidala was constitutionally obligated to step down as Queen, though the
public would have easily backed an amendment allowing her to serve longer.
Though she had every right to retire and concentrate on her personal life,
Amidala continued to be passionate about public service. At the request of the
new Naboo monarch, Queen Jamillia, Amidala served as Senator of Naboo, taking
the position once occupied by Palpatine. In a galaxy undergoing tumultuous
changes, her outspoken nature shone as a beacon of reason and rationality in an
increasingly fragmented Senate.
With the rise
of a Separatist movement that threatened the stability of the Republic, Amidala
was one of the few championing a peaceful resolution to the crisis. Alarmist
Senators tried to create a military force to protect the Republic, but Amidala
led the opposition against the Military Creation Act. She believed such a
measure would inevitably lead to hostilities against the Separatists.
On the day of
the Military Creation Act vote, Amidala's starship was attacked upon arriving
at Coruscant. Seven people, including her decoy Cordé, died in the explosion.
Though some suspected that disgruntled spice miners from the moons of Naboo
were the culprits, Amidala believed that it was actually Count Dooku, leader of
the Separatists, behind the attack. In truth, it was an old enemy, Nute Gunray,
who was behind the bounty hunters hired to finally silence the young woman from
Naboo, though that would go undiscovered for some time.
At the behest
of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, Amidala was placed under the protection of the
Jedi Knights. Amidala was once again reunited with Obi-Wan Kenobi and his
apprentice Anakin Skywalker, whom she had not seen in a decade. A second
assassination attempt by the bounty hunter Zam Wesell revealed just how gravely
in danger Amidala was.
Anakin was to
escort Padmé to Naboo, where she would be sequestered while the Jedi
investigated the attacks against her. In moments of quiet solitude against the
beautiful landscape of Naboo's Lake Country, Anakin and Padmé bonded,
rekindling an affectionate friendship that had been interrupted ten years ago,
and falling into a deeper love.
It was a love
forbidden to both. As per the tenets of the Jedi Code, Anakin could not enter
into a romantic relationship, and Padmé needed to focus on her career. Despite
their strong feelings, it was Padmé who remained the realist, rebuffing
Anakin's overtures while attempting to still her own heart.
Anakin's love
for Padmé was not all that was troubling him. He suffered from terrible
nightmares of his mother in danger. When he could bear it no more, Anakin
returned to Tatooine, with Padmé in tow, to find Shmi Skywalker.
Anakin did
find his dying mother, and lashed out in vengeance against the Tusken Raiders
that had tortured her. When he returned to Padmé, he confessed his actions, and
he collapsed with shame and despair over what he had done. Padmé saw the
wounded, sobbing youth, and let her compassion guide her heart as she comforted
him.
Shortly
thereafter, Anakin and Padmé voyaged to Geonosis, to rescue Obi-Wan who had
been captured by Separatist forces. Padmé hoped to use her diplomatic skills to
parley with the Separatists, but she and Anakin were captured by the
Geonosians. Placed on trial for espionage, Amidala and Anakin were sentenced
for execution.
Faced with
overwhelming evidence of her mortality, Padmé lowered her emotional guard and
professed her love to Anakin. The two were then placed in an execution arena
alongside Obi-Wan, and three deadly beasts were unleashed upon them, much to
the delight of the Geonosian spectators. Though sustaining a glancing slash
from a ferocious nexu, Padmé held her own, and disappointed her would-be
executioners.
The spectacle
was cut short with the arrival of Jedi reinforcements, and then the opening
battle of the historic Clone Wars. Despite her initial objections to a Republic
army, Padmé nonetheless fought alongside the newly created clone troopers
against the Separatist droid forces.
After the
Battle of Geonosis, Anakin escorted Padmé Amidala back to Naboo. There, at a
secluded lake retreat, the same place where their forbidden love began to
blossom, the two were quietly wed in a ceremony witnessed only by C-3PO and
R2-D2. This tranquil expression of love preceded some of the darkest moments to
be faced by Amidala and by the galaxy as a whole.
Amidala
continued to serve the Senate faithfully, though she was often distracted by
the growing career of her secret husband. Anakin was becoming a war hero known
throughout the Republic, and while the citizens thrilled at his exploits, she
was deeply worried for his safety. The few moments they could snatch together
were all too brief. The war was concentrated in the Outer Rim, far from Coruscant,
and Padmé saw very little of Anakin. By the time the Outer Rim Sieges ended,
Padmé had stunning news to deliver to Anakin --- he was to be a father.
The war years saw the continued transformation of the
Republic. To efficiently battle the Separatists on numerous fronts, Chancellor
Palpatine enacted executive decrees that saw more power funneled to his office,
stripping away the last of the Senate's lackluster ability to wage war. Many
welcomed the handover of power, particularly the corrupt politicians. But Padmé
became the moral center for a number of idealistic Senators who grew wary of
Palpatine's amendments. Favoring a diplomatic solution within the boundaries of
the law, Padmé began collecting the pledges of what would become the Delegation
of 2,000, a group of disaffected Senators formally critical of Palpatine's
rule.
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