- "One curiosity that did continue into the Empire was the emergence of amateur historical reenactments of key Clone Wars battles, complete with costumed "clone troopers" and de-militarized droids. [...] It is noticeable that this was one of the few ways in which the imagery and uniforms from the Republic were permitted in civilian life."
- ―Beaumont Kin, The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire
The Clone Wars reenactment movement was the trend of amateurs reenacting famous battles of the Clone Wars during the Imperial Era. This activity was particularly prominent in the Core Worlds. Participants would dress up as clone troopers and engage in mock battle with de-militarized droids, thus representing the Grand Army of the Republic and the Separatist Droid Army respectively. Despite Alderaan's history of pacifism, the planet was home to a a sizeable group of Clone Wars reenactors.[1]
The reenactments were a rare instance of the Galactic Empire allowing Republic symbolism to be publicly displayed. In an interview with Clone Wars Quarterly, Colonel Toln Yurak stated their belief that the reenactments provided young people with training that would be beneficial to them in serving the Empire. Decades later, the historian Beaumont Kin mentioned the reenactments in his book The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire. While uncertain as to how prominent opinions like Yurak's were, Kin referenced the interview while discussing his thoughts on why the Empire tolerated the reenactments and speculated that they were allowed because they helped translate public support from the Republic military to the Imperial Army.[1]
Behind the scenes
The Clone Wars reenactment movement was mentioned in the 2024 reference book Star Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire, which was written by Dr. Chris Kempshall utilizing the character Beaumont Kin as the work's in-universe author.[1] Kin was originally created for and appeared in the 2019 film Star Wars: Episode IX The Rise of Skywalker in which he was portrayed by Dominic Monaghan.[2]
Sources
- Star Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire (First mentioned)