The Empire knew Mandalore would be a threat to their rule and decided to strike first. Here’s everything that happened to the planet Mandalore.
Throughout The Mandalorian, Din and Bo-Katan mention that Mandalore is poisoned and is now uninhabitable. There are mentions of The Great Purge, which has left the remaining Mandalorians splintered into different groups and roaming the galaxy trying to survive.
Mandalore is usually split into different factions, limiting its full power as long as a single leader doesn’t bring the various factions together. Shortly after the Empire rose to power, Bo-Katan wielded the Darksaber and untied most of Mandalore, and announced independence from the Empire. The Empire knew the strength of a united Mandalore and decided to strike quickly to keep this from being a further problem.
Night Of A Thousand Tears
The Night of A Thousand Tears refers to the night when the Empire mounted a full-scale attack on Mandlore, killing most of the people on the planet; this night is also referred to as the Great Purge. The Empire used Tie Fighters and Bombers to decimate the Mandalorian armies from the skies, as Mandalorians are known for their incredible combat prowess. The bombing was relentless and planet-wide, wiping out citizens and soldiers alike, with the goal of killing everyone on the planet. After relentlessly bombing the planet, KX-Series Security Droids were dispatched along the planet’s surface to wipe out anyone who survived the initial bombing.
Many groups of recruits and foundlings (children being initiated into soldiers) were mercilessly killed, leading the few remaining Mandalorians to refer to the attack as the Night of A Thousand Tears. While many of the older soldiers survived and escaped, the next generations of Mandalorian culture were completely killed. This attack was also known as the Great Purge, as much of Mandalore’s people and culture were wiped out, with only a few survivors escaping and on the run from the Empire.
Mandalore And The Survivors
Bo-Katan wielded the Darksaber before the attack, and as she didn’t win it in combat per Mandalorian culture, it was seen as a curse that led to the Purge. This led to the remaining Mandalorians breaking off from Bo-Katan, seeing her actions as the cause of the Purge. The Darksaber was also lost in the Purge, eventually being found by Moff Gideon, who was a high-ranking officer leading the Night Of A Thousand Tears.
With the intense bombing and heavy superstitious nature of Mandalorians, the rumors have spread that the planet was not only decimated, but the intense bombing and attack from the Empire left the planet poisoned and forever uninhabitable. The full extent of the damage to possible poisoning of the planet has yet to be explored, but the surviving Mandalorians and anyone who heard about the Great Purge furthered the rumor, making it common knowledge around the galaxy.
