Naboo

A decade before the Clone Wars, the Trade Federation escalated a seemingly routine trade dispute by blockading the peaceful Mid Rim planet of Naboo with warships. Republic Chancellor Valorum sent two Jedi to end the blockade, but the Trade Federation – manipulated by the Sith Lord Darth Sidious – responded by trying to kill the ambassadors.

The Trade Federation then cut off communications to Naboo and invaded the planet with armies of battle droids. Naboo’s citizens were placed in internment camps, and the Trade Federation tried to force the planet’s young Queen Padmé Amidala to sign a new treaty on its terms.

The Jedi ambassadors Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi had secretly ridden down to the planet’s surface with the invasion force, and sought help from the Gungan leader Boss Nass in the underwater city of Otoh Gunga. But the Gungans resented the Naboo and refused to help – though they did lend the Jedi a bongo sub and the questionable talents of Jar Jar Binks.

The Jedi survived a perilous journey through Naboo’s monster-plagued planet core and arrived at the capital city of Theed, where they freed Amidala. They then fled with her aboard her royal starship, eventually reaching Coruscant.

The Senate proved powerless to act, though Naboo’s Senator Palpatine did become a candidate to succeed the politically weak Valorum as Republic chancellor. Amidala chose to return to Naboo. At the Gungan Sacred Place, she humbled herself before Boss Nass, begging for the Gungans’ help against the Trade Federation.

The Naboo and the Gungans devised a plan to take back their world. The Gungan Grand Army drew the droid forces out of Theed to battle on the plains, while Amidala and the Jedi raided the city in hopes of capturing Trade Federation viceroy Nute Gunray and forcing him to end the fighting.

The plan succeeded thanks to the bravery of the Gungans and the fancy flying of young Anakin Skywalker, who destroyed the Droid Control Ship and turned the Trade Federation’s soldiers into inert metal. Palpatine was elected chancellor, and Amidala and the Gungans celebrated their victory and newfound friendship.

A decade later, Padmé had stepped down as queen but now served Naboo as its Senator. With assassins targeting her, she retreated to her homeworld accompanied by Anakin, now a Padawan in the Jedi Order. The two decided to wait out the trouble at a retreat in the Lake Country, dotted with beautiful meadows and waterfalls.

During this forced idyll, the two found themselves falling in love – which violated Anakin’s Jedi vows and threatened Padmé’s Senate career. Unable to resist their feelings, they returned to Naboo after the outbreak of the Clone Wars and were secretly wed.

Palpatine’s ascent to the Chancellor’s post made Naboo a tempting target for the Separatists during the Clone Wars. When Padmé and Jar Jar investigated reports of battle-droid scouts and a virus loose on the planet, they discovered a Separatist bioweapons lab hidden beneath the swamps.

The Separatists tried to turn the Gungans against the Naboo, using the wily politician Rish Loo to lay the groundwork for a Separatist invasion. The invasion failed, with the Gungans capturing General Grievous. But a chance to end the Clone Wars was lost when the Separatists seized Anakin, leading to a hasty exchange of prisoners.

Supreme Chancellor Palpatine returned to his homeworld for Naboo’s Festival of Light, a celebration of the planet’s admission into the Republic. While there, a team of bounty hunters hired by the Separatist leader Count Dooku targeted him. Warned of the attack, the Republic and Jedi took extraordinary precautions to protect the Supreme Chancellor.

Padmé died shortly after the Clone Wars ended, and was laid to rest at a solemn state funeral in Theed, with Naboo and Gungans alike turning out to pay their respects to the woman who had served them so ably as Queen and Senator.