Where Was Emperor Palpatine During A New Hope?

Palpatine’s Absence from A New Hope

While Darth Vader hunted the stolen Death Star plans, Emperor Palpatine was carrying out a long-planned political power grab. After Princess Leia was captured with the plans, Palpatine dissolved the Imperial Senate, using the Rebels’ theft as a convenient justification. He then handed direct control of local territories to regional governors.

Palpatine expected the Death Star to keep the galaxy obedient through fear. As the narrator jokes, it was the ultimate absentee-landlord move: changing the locks through a property manager without visiting.

The Senate’s Dissolution

The Senate had been allowed to linger for nearly twenty years, but it was mostly a show of public participation. Its existence also gave Rebel senators such as Leia and Mon Mothma some legal cover. Once the chamber was shut down, the Imperial Security Bureau began arresting senators, making the Empire’s remaining opposition’s path much harder.

Mon Mothma had already fled, while Leia was imprisoned aboard the very station intended to replace the Senate’s role.

The Death Star’s Destruction

The Rebels came close to defeat at Yavin, and Mon Mothma had even prepared a surrender speech. But Luke’s attack succeeded, and Grand Moff Tarkin died with the Death Star.

In a post-film comic, Palpatine vents to Vader that the Empire has lost both its Senate and its greatest weapon. He blames Vader for letting the Millennium Falcon escape with a tracking beacon, then makes him answer for the disaster. The video quips that Palpatine turned the Chosen One prophecy into a job description.

Palpatine also promotes General Tag, who had earlier warned that the Death Star was vulnerable.

The Emperor’s Response

The video describes a purge of Imperial officials, with some deaths made public and others kept quiet. It also contrasts current canon with Legends, where the Senate chamber is stormed and mass arrests are described more dramatically.

Palpatine’s exact location during the film is never stated, but the video suggests he was probably at the Imperial Palace on Coruscant.

The Secret Project on Exegol

Beyond the Empire’s official reach, Palpatine was pursuing a secret project: Sith shipyards on Exegol, where a fleet of starfighters was being built without Imperial officers’ knowledge.

The recap closes on the irony that Palpatine dismantled the Senate just before losing the Death Star he intended to use in its place.

Personalities Featured or Discussed

Emperor Palpatine, Darth Vader, Grand Moff Tarkin, General Tag, Admiral Motti, Princess Leia, Mon Mothma, Bail Organa, General Jan Dodonna, Director Krennic, and the mysterious scientist Cylo.