What Does The Power Structure Of The Empire Look Like?
Source: Den of Geek
Andor’s first few episodes are just on the horizon, like a Death Star cresting an orange gas giant. From what we know from the trailers, it looks like we are going to get an insight into the murky, devious world of the Imperial war machine…and it’s about time!
By design, Palpatine deliberately made the hierarchy of the Empire almost impossible to unpack, and ensured that all in top positions owed their wealth and power to him. Throw in some encouragement for infighting, plots within plots, and some predictable political intrigue, and it’s frankly impossible to know who is who, and more importantly, who is whose boss.
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So, let’s try clear some of this up, shall we?
The Emperor
Image Source: Den of Geek
The boss man.
The head honcho.
The numero uno.
The clue’s in the name. The Emperor is in charge of everything. And we do mean everything.
Feared, respected, loathed, loved (by himself), whatever your opinion is, he is in charge.
Darth Vader
Image Source: We Got This Covered
While not a lot is known about Darth Vader by even the closest members of the inner circle of Palpatine’s court, the Sith Lord was very much treated with the same fear and respect held by the Emperor. He isn’t really a man to say no to, after all…and rarely asks twice. Still held in the thrall of Palpatine, Vader “must obey his master.”
The Advisors
Image Source: Star Wars Fandom
Even a creature as arrogant as Palpatine realized that he could not run the galaxy alone. In light of this, he handpicked an array of advisors to consult on matters related to their home systems. Given reasonable amounts of autonomy and power from the Emperor, there was obviously a need for checks and balances in place to stop any one of them from becoming too powerful…but this is the Empire, after all. Greed, fear, and bitter rivalries kept these sycophants in check. Otherwise, Palpatine’s black caped Lieutenant would pay them an unplanned and final visit.
Moffs and Grand Moffs
Image Source: Screen Rant
While the title is banded around a lot in Star Wars, these positions are actually quite easy to explain. A Moff is in charge of an entire sector of the galaxy, with a number of subordinates (dependent on the size of the sector). A Grand Moff, hand selected by the Emperor himself, is in charge or 2 or more galactic sectors, usually “priority sectors”. Basically, these areas have money, trouble, resources, or all three. Grand Moffs report directly to the Emperor and usually command a substantial military force. This often causes friction with the sectors’ Moffs and Governors as they feel they are being usurped (and, to be fair, they often are).
Speaking of Governors…
The Planetary Governors
Image Source: Wookieepedia
Planets are big. And star systems are even bigger. And as such, each star system has an Imperial Governor appointed to protect Imperial interests there (and look after its indigenous people as well of course). These Governors are in charge of all Imperial troops and ships in a system, but are often treated like a toddler by the relevant Army and Navy commanders.
The Military
Image Source: Steam
Ah, the Imperial war machine. It consists of the Imperial Army, the Imperial Navy, and the Starfighter Corps, each with their own range of ranks from Private to Grand Admiral and everything in between. At the very top echelon of this hierarchy is Imperial High Command, headed by the Supreme Commander. This command has had many notable members, including Director Orson Krennic, Grand General Cassio Tagge, and Grand Admiral Thrawn…and Darth Vader, of course, despite having no official title. Would you tell him to leave?
COMPNOR
Image Source: Wookieepedia
The Committee for the Preservation of the New Order. Catchy, eh?
This was an oft-overlooked part of the Imperial machine, but essentially was in charge of all Imperial propaganda, “Special Projects”, advanced weaponry, and the terrifying secret police of the Imperial power – The Imperial Security Bureau.
(The rest of this article has been redacted at COMPNOR request.)
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Source: Wookieepedia