The darkest era of the Star Wars Legends continuity had the Jedi use a title infamously associated with their ancient enemies, the Sith. While there are various ranks and titles that a Jedi and Sith may have, the most famous blanket terms used for them are Jedi Knights and Sith Lords. These titles are fitting, as the Jedi are servants of the Force, the Republic, and the innocents of the galaxy, hence their Knighthood. The Sith seek control over the Force and the galaxy itself through their use of the dark side, tying them to a twisted form of Lordship.
The Jedi-Sith War plunged the galaxy into the Republic Dark Age over 1,000 years before the events of the Star Wars saga. These so-called “New Sith Wars” had all but destroyed the Republic, with countless worlds falling under the control of the Sith Lords. With galactic civilization on the verge of collapse, the impotent shell of the once-proud Republic became more reliant than ever on the Jedi Knights, who had become more involved in the Republic’s military and politics than ever before.
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The End Of The New Sith Wars Saw The Jedi Become “Lords”
The weakened Republic lacked the resources and personnel to properly protect and govern its member systems outside the Core Worlds during the Republic Dark Age, and thus Jedi became Jedi Lords. Jedi Lords, who would also use titles like Baron or King, depending on how much territory they controlled, were de facto leaders of Republic planets, systems, and even galactic sectors. Unlike Sith Lords, who assumed their title out of malicious intent to wrest control, Jedi Lords assumed Lordship reluctantly, as they were the crumbling Republic’s last hope against the growing influence of the Sith.
Once the Sith were seemingly destroyed at the end of the Ruusan campaign, the Republic underwent a rebirth via the Ruusan Reformation. Among the revitalized Republic’s many reforms was the dissolving of Jedi Lordship, though some Jedi Lords held onto their title and leadership roles after the reformations. The modern Star Wars canon implies that Jedi Lordship had a similar history in the newer continuity, with High Republic-era Jedi referencing it as a bygone title that had fallen into antiquity long ago.
Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope
The film that began the Star Wars franchise, Episode IV – A New Hope tells the story of wistful Force-sensitive Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), who longs to leave his home planet of Tatooine to fight the evil Empire. After inheriting his Jedi father’s weapon, a lightsaber, Luke sets off under the tutelage of Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness) with smuggler Han Solo (Harrison Ford) to join the Rebellion and face the evil Darth Vader.
If There Are Jedi Lords… Are There Also Sith Knights?
Naturally, one might wonder if there is also such a thing as a Sith Knight. Incredibly, Sith Knights do exist as an exclusive Sith title in the Star Wars Legends continuity. There is little information about Sith Knights, with the title being used in the Old Sith Wars era by Sith who faithfully served their masters as warriors, predominantly. Fascinatingly, the title would return in the Clone Wars era, with some Dark Acolytes – unofficial Sith underlings of Count Dooku – claiming the ancient title of Sith Knight as they served Lord Tyranus and the Confederacy of Independent Systems.
