The latest addition to the ‘Star Wars’ franchise, the first two episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi introduced a key concept from the extended lore, The Inquisitors. The series is now streaming on Disney+.
One of the first sequences opens with the arrival of a ship and three ominous-looking individuals getting off. They are subsequently referred to as Inquisitors and they claim to be looking for a Jedi in hiding.
It is clear that everyone fears these powerful people and that they have some connection to the Dark Side of the Force but who exactly are the Inquisitors and how many of them are there?
Origin
Darth Sidious, the mastermind behind Order 66 and primarily responsible for turning Anakin Skywalker to the dark side, was acutely aware of the risk posed by the Jedi to his plans, so being the master manipulator that he is set the seeds for something called the Inquisitorius Program.
This program took in Force-sensitive children and brainwashed them against the Jedi. He also targeted disillusioned Jedi who did not agree with the decisions of the Jedi Council and convinced them to fight for his cause in exchange for more power and made them pledge their loyalty to him.
Who were they and how many of them exist?
The Inquisitors were all former Jedi that had fallen to the dark side and pledged themselves to Palpatine. They were governed by the Sith Lord Darth Vader and led by an individual known only by his title, the Grand Inquisitor.
Many Inquisitors joined the dark side due to torture or corruption. Upon joining the ranks of the Inquisitorious, the Force-sensitives effectively lost their identities; they were given numerical designations to represent their entry into an organization that perverted everything the Jedi had stood for.
A Pau’an Jedi Temple Guard, who became the Grand Inquisitor, joined Sidious when the Sith Lord promised him access to the Jedi Archives. The Ninth Sister was the former Jedi Masana Tide. The Tenth Brother was the former Jedi Master Prosset Dibs, who joined Sidious at the end of the Clone Wars. The Second Sister was former Jedi Padawan Trilla Suduri, who was captured shortly after Order 66 and tortured into joining the dark side.
Among the Inquisitors, ranks were Brothers and Sisters, the Second Sister, Third Brother, Third Sister, Fourth Sister, Fifth Brother, Sixth Brother, Seventh Sister, Eighth Brother, Ninth Sister, and Tenth Brother. A female, a red-skinned individual, and a Twi’lek, also served as Inquisitors.
What was their mission?
They were responsible for hunting down the remaining Jedi who had survived Order 66 at the end of the Clone Wars as part of the Great Jedi Purge and were tasked with identifying and either capturing young Force-sensitive individuals or eliminating them, including former Jedi, Padawans, and those originating from other Force-wielding traditions.
Inquisitors also acted as enforcers, eliminating political dissidents and threats such as rebel factions and Old Republic sympathizers. Their nature, objective, and membership were kept secret from most other branches of the Empire
Inquisitors held a high status in the Empire and had discretionary authority to commandeer and command Imperial assets required to complete their mission.
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