Jedi Knight

Jedi Knight

AJedi Knight referred to amember of theJedi Order, who had completed theirJedi training as astudent in theJedi academy, in addition to one-on-one training as aPadawan and the completion of theJedi Trials.

As a Knight and a full member of the Order, these individuals received assignments from theJedi Councils and strove to find peace, and maintain order within theGalactic Republic. Making up the majority of the Order's members, the public was familiar with this title more than any other, and, thus, many addressed any Jedi as "Knight".^[1]

Overview and history[]

Seven hundred and thirty years after the Order's founding onTython in the earliest days of galactic civilization, the Jedi Knights were brought into theGalactic Republic, working as peacekeepers for the fledgling government.^[4] A loose band of both philosophers and warriors, these early Knights had no central leadership, nor any formalized training at an academy; instead, they completed a series of tasks set by their master, who would then bestow upon them the rank of a Jedi Knight.^[1]

As the Order grew more centralized with the foundation of theJedi High Council, following theGreat Sith War, and the Republic's donation of theSacred spire onCoruscant for use by the Knights, residing at the capital, the role of Knights in the Republic became more defined. Working as peacekeepers, diplomats, and investigators during peace time, the Knights helped to establish peace following the war. However, due to the High Council's seemingly complacent attitude during theMandalorian Wars, many Knights turned away from the Order and joined theRevanchist'smovement, which would eventually lead to theJedi Civil War.

When the Order recovered, the training of Padawans to Knighthood resumed more formally until theNew Sith Wars and the creation of theArmy of Light forced the Order to, once again, take on a militaristic way of life. When theBrotherhood of Darkness was defeated, and theRuusan Reformation put into effect, formal training began again and the Order flourished.^[1]

As theSith returned, and theClone Wars swept across the Republic, all active Jedi Knights becameJedi Generals, and were required to lead theGrand Army of the Republic on the front lines against theConfederacy of Independent Systems. However, the Order was betrayed by theSupreme Chancellor, whom they served, who was in reality theDark Lord of the Sith,Darth Sidious. Sidious used his position asSupreme Commander Palpatine to issueExecutiveOrder 66, which demanded the slaughter of all Jedi and began thesecond major Jedi Purge. Loyal to the Republic, the troopers of the Grand Army cut down their generals without hesitation, while the501st Legion, under the command of afallen Jedi Knight,Darth Vader,stormed theJedi Temple on Coruscant, and slaughtered theinstructors and Initiates stationed there. While there were several Knights that survived the initial wave of what became known as the Great Jedi Purge, Vader, the newly-anoitedSith Lord, took personal charge of hunting down those Jedi who had escaped to theOuter Rim.^[5] Eventually, during theBattle of Endor, Anakin Skywalker left the dark side, conquered Darth Vader from within and then saved his son,Luke, by destroyingPalpatine tobring balance to the Force in fulfilling an ancient Jedi prophecy.

After several decades of hiding at near extinction, the Order wasreformed under Luke Skywalker, who, after theGalactic Civil War ended, established a newJedi Praxeum onYavin 4 and began using the basic skills taught to him by the formerGrand Master,Yoda, to train the next generation of Knights. For a time, Knighting was much less formal as it had been in the past during times of rebuilding, but eventually, Skywalker led the Order to flourish, and adapted many of the Old Order's customs on knighthood.^[1]

Service to the Order[]

Following the successful completion of a decade or more of one-on-one instruction from a master, Jedi Padawans were expected to pass theJedi Trials and beraised to the rank of Knight. Only the High Council could promote a Padawan to the rank of Knight, though this rule was not always observed, especially in times when the Order was spread extremely thin or the Council could not be contacted for a great period of time. For those Jedi who did join this elite group of individuals, they were no longer attached to their master and were in charge of their own destiny. Knights were expected to continue their study in the Force, choosing between one of three fields of specialization so as to hone their personal strengths into the swords and shields of the Order. Either becoming aGuardian,Consular, orSentinel, the Knights would accept solo missions from one of the fourJedi Councils that made best use of their skill sets.^[1]

On their own, Knights were responsible for maintaining the Order's public appearance as they traveled throughout the galaxy, floating along the currents of the Force as they sought to provide justice to suffering worlds. Taking on their own path of studying, Knights learned the third and final discipline of the Force known asAlter: which allowed the user to manipulate objects and others' minds with the application of the Force. Following the mastery of the Alter discipline and the completion of the study on specialized skills, a Knight might find themselves desiring to teach the next generation of Jedi. While not a mandatory practice, Knights could attendtournaments at the Temple to see potential Padawans' exhibit their skills with the Force and a lightsaber. The Jedi of old warned against taking on an apprentice strictly out of duty, for this might ultimately lead to an irreconcilable incompatibility of Jedi and apprentice, leaving a Padawan without the proper guidance to gain a sufficient knowledge of the Force and Jedi Order skillsets in order to be successful during the Trials. Deeply focused meditation was performed before a selection was made, and while many Knights did choose to take on this sacred responsibility, there were a few that were unable to find a trainee who they felt would be the right fit or had no desire to take on such an all encompassing commitment.^[1]

Following successfully training a Padawan to knighthood, the High Council would consider raising the Knight to the rank ofJedi Master; though this was not always the case. Many Knights just simply were not promoted to Master if the Council did not feel that they had attained a knowledge of the Force that warranted the bestowment of such a title, or if the Force willed some other destiny for them. While some were promoted in old age, some Knights never ascended in rank. Because of the nature of the title and the importance of the Council, only Masters were elected to the Councils. On occasion a Knight would sit on the Council in the transition period between ascension in rank, though this was a simple technicality.^[7] The most unusual case was that of KnightAnakin Skywalker's appointment to the High Council bySupreme ChancellorPalpatine during theClone Wars. While the Council reluctantly accepted the appointment, they refused to raise Skywalker in ranks, maintaining their stance that he had not mastered his emotions entirely.^[5]

When the Order was disbanded during the reign of theGalactic Empire, no Knights were promoted as the majority of the Order had been slaughtered. It wasn't untilLuke Skywalker rebuilt the Order that the term Knight was reused. Due to the informality of the Order in its early years, many of the old traditions were not observed simply out of ignorance to their existence. Rudimentary Trials were established at theYavin 4Jedi Praxeum without knowledge of the Order's traditional tasks; these included demonstration of mastery of a set of skills and the ability to construct a lightsaber. Skywalker's inaugural class graduated in12 ABY and were dispatched out into the galaxy to assist theNew Republic in its endeavors to drive the Empire from civilized space.^[8] As more apprentices were taken, their masters would consult with Master Skywalker and could be granted permission to bestow the rank of knighthood following a successful mission that proved one's mettle; such was the case ofJaden Korr whose master,Kyle Katarn, thought that hissuccess onVjun proved he had taught all Korr needed to know.^[9]

The first recorded public knighting ceremony was in24 ABY when Master Skywalker knightedAnakin Solo,Jacen Solo,Jaina Solo,Zekk,Tenel Ka,Lusa,Raynar Thul, andLowbacca for their year of service in aiding in the defeat of theDiversity Alliance andBlack Sun. Held at theGreat Temple in front of the entirety of the Order and representatives of the Republic, the ceremony consisted of a lightsaber salute and a ballad by MasterTionne Solusar.^[10]

Several years later, following theYuuzhan Vong War and the procurement of several importantholocrons anddocuments, formal knighting ceremonies likened to that of the Old Order were reincorporated into the way of the Jedi. With the CoruscantTemple rebuilt, ceremonies were once more held here in theHall of Knighthood.^[11]

Behind the scenes[]

The Jedi Knights were first mentioned in thenovelization ofA New Hope, ghostwritten byAlan Dean Foster and published in1976. TheJedi Knight is also a class in the Star Wars MMO,Star Wars: The Old Republic. This class is further customizable by selecting either the Sentinel or Guardian advanced classes.The Jedi Knights commonly appear in fan films' plots, including in the famousStar Wars: Renaissance, which introduces several fanon Knights.

Lucas himself has compared the Jedi Knights to various real world religious and spiritual orders, citing Christian or Buddhist monks and priests and the Knights Templar.^[12]The Making of Star Wars reveals that the Jedi were at one point named the Jedi Templar, indicating that specific order may have been an influence.

Wizards of the Coast ran a league for theStar Wars Trading Card Game calledJedi Nights, a word play on Jedi Knights.^[13]

Appearances[]

Non-canon appearances[]

• LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game
• LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
• LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga
• "The Betrayal of Darth Revan"(Unlicensed)
• "You can't hit the brakes in space" onLEGO'sofficial website(article) (content obsolete)(Posted on StarWars.com)
• LEGO Star Wars: The Padawan Menace
• The Epic Continues(Canceled)

Sources[]

Notes and references[]