Retention

The Retention was an Interdictor cruiser in service to the remnant of the Imperial Navy's Seventh Fleet during the Galactic Civil War. In 3 ABY, at a point when the remnant had been partially exiled from Imperial operations, the Retention took part in an ambush of a Rebel Alliance convoy at the astronomical object Derra IV.

Alongside the Imperial-class Star Destroyers Vigilance—commanded by Vice Admiral Rae Sloane—and Dark Omen, the Retention was able to isolate the convoy, enabling its destruction. Following the ambush, which was considered one of the greatest Imperial successes of the war, the Imperial leadership involved were folded back into mainstream Imperial operations. The battle, including the Retention's vital role, was reflected upon by historian Beaumont Kin in the book The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire.

Description

Classified as a cruiser, the Retention was an Interdictor vessel.^[1] This type of starship could use its gravity well projectors to prevent other vessels from entering hyperspace and pull starships traveling at lightspeed back into realspace.^[2]

History

Exile

During the Galactic Civil War, the Retention served in the remnant of the Imperial Navy's Seventh Fleet, which had previously been commanded by Grand Admiral Thrawn prior to the liberation of^[1] the Outer Rim Territories^[3] planet Lothal^[1] in 1 BBY,^[4] where much of the fleet had been lost along with Thrawn himself. Following the battle, the remnants of the fleet, consisting of a few capital ships and support vessels that had not been present at Lothal, were placed under the command of Vice Admiral Corf Ferno and sent to patrol the Outer Rim by General Cassio Tagge. Subsequently, the fleet was partially exiled from mainstream Imperial operations and, as such, cooperated with the similarly exiled Vice Admiral Rae Sloane aboard^[1] the Imperial-class Star Destroyer^[5] Vigilance.^[1]

Disrupting supplies at Derra IV

At this time, the Alliance to Restore the Republic was moving supplies through the Derra system in the Outer Rim. Containing weapons, equipment, food, and medicines, the majority of these supplies were delivered to the Alliance's hidden base on the planet Hoth, while some stockpiles were sent to other rebel cells. Although the Empire did not yet know of the base's location, it was aware that disrupting this supply line would increase the chance of a wider strategic victory. To accomplish this, Sloane and the Seventh Fleet established likely candidates for rebel shipping routes in the Expansion Region, ultimately isolating the astronomical object Derra IV.^[1]

In 3 ABY, Sloane led an attack against a significant rebel convoy at Derra IV from the Vigilance, which was ably supported by the ISD Dark Omen and the Retention. The Imperial forces ambushed the Rebel Alliance's vaunted Renegade Squadron and, during the action, the Retention was responsible for isolating the rebel convoy, enabling its destruction. This led to a near-perfect victory for the Empire, resulting in Sloane being promoted to full admiral and her and the other Imperial leaders being reincorporated into mainline Imperial operations.^[1]

Legacy

Information on the ambush, including the role of the Retention, was detailed in the file Interrogations 143 in the "Imperial Prisoners" section of the New Republic Archives.^[1] In 35 ABY,^[6] the historian Beaumont Kin mentioned the Retention when covering the action at Derra IV in^[1] his^[7] book The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire, using Interrogations 143 as a source. According to Kin, the Retention played the most important role in the battle, which itself was among the greatest Imperial successes of the Galactic Civil War.^[1]

Behind the scenes

The Retention was mentioned in Star Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire, a 2024 reference book authored by Dr. Chris Kempshall.^[1]

Sources

• Star Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire (First mentioned)

Notes and references