The release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, gave audiences a new set of heroes to fall in love with, while also showing audiences that our original Death Star destroyers and rebel fighters were still kicking, and STILL trying to save the universe.
After the Battle of Endor, the adventures were not over for Leia, Han, and Luke. In fact, they were only just beginning. Between the birth of Ben Solo, to the discovery of the First Order, the galaxy went through immense changes in the thirty years in between the two films.
Whether it’s Leia throwing herself into politics and becoming a Senator, or Luke secluding himself and all but completely disappearing, our three protagonists had pretty different priorities once the events of Return of the Jedi concluded.
How these characters acted over the next 30 years are what create the setting for Episode 7 and beyond. Some of the events are well known, which makes sense. Some events are smaller and have not been spoken about as broadly throughout the various forms of Star Wars canon media. Of course, we’ll never know every single thing that happened between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, but we can be sure to spread the information that is known!
So, here are 20 things that you may not have known happened between Star Wars Episode 6 and 7!
19 Ben Solo Is Born
Ben Solo, the son of Han Solo and Senator Leia Organa, and our maybe-totally-evil-but-possibly-redeemable villain of Star Wars episodes 7, 8, and 9, was born EXACTLY one year after the famous Battle of Endor. Solo and Organa were clearly excited about the success of the Rebellion at Endor, and had no hesitations about getting married and starting a family right away! There are rumors about what Leia’s labor was like, some saying that it was DAYS long, and others saying that it was mere hours.
The birth of Ben Solo ushered in a new generation of Jedi
Regardless of her labor length, the birth of Ben Solo ushered in a new generation of Jedi, and Sith, and began the journey of the First Order.
18 Leia Founded The Resistance
Nearing the end of the 30 year span between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, was the birth of the Resistance.
Leia helped uncover the plot to power the First Order, and end the New Republic. However, due to First Order infiltrating the ranks of the New Republic’s Senate, Leia’s voice was not adequately heard.
This led her to realize that something needed to be done and prepared for when the First Order inevitably grew in their power. Because of that, Leia met with some of her strongest friends from her time in the Rebellion and began the Resistance, the only force fighting against the First Order in The Force Awakens.
17 Luke Is MIA For The Majority Of The 30 Year Span
We know a little bit about Luke’s adventures in the 30 years between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens (see below for all of that!), but a large portion of Luke’s activities in that time span is completely blank.
Leia expresses a few times during her time as Senator for the New Republic that she is a little bit frustrated about how easily her twin brother disappears, and how she wishes he was around more. Whether it be to help, or just to be there as a family member, she doesn’t actually say.
Luke had quite a few adventures, and some of them went terribly wrong
What we DO know is that Luke had quite a few adventures, and some of them went terribly wrong, which ultimately led him to secluding himself on Ahch-To, unable to be contacted until Rey found him at the end of The Force Awakens.
16 Mon Mothma Becomes The Leader Of The New Republic
The enigmatic leader of the Rebellion in episodes 4, 5, and 6 continued her growth in the political sphere after the Battle of Endor and rose to the position of First Chancellor of the New Republic Senate through an election. Much to her chagrin, this gave her the same powers that Chancellor Palpatine, also known as the Emperor or Darth Sidious, had during his time as Chancellor of the Old Republic.
Mothma knew that a New Republic would need to be vastly different from its predecessor in order to not have the same fate, and planned to significantly pare down the New Republic Starfleet, once the Galactic Civil War had completed of course, among other drastic peace-oriented changes she hoped to make. Once the Battle of Jakku signaled the final end of the Empire, Mothma could begin to change the galaxy for the better.
15 The Battle Of Jakku
If you’ve seen The Force Awakens, you will have seen the giant wreckage that Rey scavenges through every day in order to eat and survive on the planet where this battle took place. Jakku is a desert wasteland, but it’s also the place of the Empire’s final stand.
The Battle of Endor didn’t signal the complete end of the Empire, but it did signal a significant blow to their power. The scattered remains of the Empire tried desperately to unite after the events of Return of the Jedi through various operations, and they made their final stand at Jakku one year after the events of the Battle of Endor.
While at first, it looked like the Empire’s fleet may win the battle, the New Republic’s starship fleet took control of the battle, and defeated the Empire.
14 Han And Chewbacca Are Separated
Han Solo and Chewbacca truly seem like an inseparable pair. If you look at Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, it looks a little bit like the two always worked together and were never separated.
Chewbacca decided to go into retirement
While the two eventually found each other again, Han Solo and Chewbacca were separated early on in the time between Episodes 6 and 7. The two set out to help free Kashyyyk and despite being ambushed by the Empire, and Chewbacca being stranded in space, the two successfully aided in the freedom of the planet.
Once Kashyyyk was freed from the Empire, Chewbacca decided to go into retirement to reconnect with his family on the planet! But as you know from The Force Awakens, the two find their way back to each other…
13 Leia Runs For First Senator
After the disappearance of Mon Mothma, the New Republic was thrown into disarray. While they tried to learn from the mistakes of the Old Republic, the New Republic very quickly fell into the habit of never being able to land a concrete decision. This inability to make decisions ultimately left many of the Republic planets needing assistance, and not receiving anything in any form, as their Senator’s could not decide on the right way to handle it.
After much consideration, the Populist and Centrist sides of the New Republic’s senators named one person to potentially become the First Senator, and a vote would decide which of the two would become the First Senator. With ease, the choice was clear for Leia Organa, a war hero and well-established politician. While she hesitated at first, she ultimately decided she could do well as the First Senator and began her campaign. Her campaign, however, was woefully cut short due to the reveal of her parentage…
12 Leia’s Parentage Is Revealed Against Her Will
Senator Leia Organa was brought up as a Princess on Alderaan to Alderaanian parents. She thought that her father was a war hero who lost his life when Alderaan was destroyed. Leia was smart, and knew exactly what would happen if the truth about who her father was became public knowledge. The daughter of the biggest villain in the Empire? There was no way she could be trusted as a Senator.
The daughter of the biggest villain in the Empire?
Even though the actions of a parent do not mean the actions of their child will be the same, Leia had a feeling that people may treat her in such a way. Once the truth was shared without Leia’s consent by another Senator, Leia was still supported as a Senator by Admiral Ackbar and those who knew her best. However, Leia still decided it would be best for her to step down from her role in politics, and this reveal was just the catalyst for this decision from her.
11 Luke Starts A Jedi Academy
While much of Luke’s activity in the 30 years between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens is a secret, one thing we do know is that he established a Jedi Academy.
He did this fulfill the promise he made to Yoda and train more force sensitive children in the ways of the Jedi. One of the students Luke took on at his Jedi Academy was Ben Solo, the child of Leia Organa and Han Solo. If you’ve seen The Force Awakens, you know that something goes wrong during Solo’s time at the Jedi Academy as he grew and developed his force abilities, so did his connection with the dark side…
10 Luke’s Jedi Academy Is Destroyed
Ben Solo’s connection with the dark side was present since he was born, and only grew as his powers with the force grew. While Luke was trying to train him to follow the path of the Jedi, Luke could feel that Ben’s allegiance was shifting towards the dark.
Once Luke felt like there was no way to get Ben back from the dark side, the two had an altercation. This altercation left Luke feeling like he had let Ben down, and left Ben with nothing but the dark side.
That night, Ben Solo became Kylo Ren and destroyed Luke’s Jedi temple.
9 The Senate Is Moved To Hosnian Prime
After the fall of the Empire, the New Republic needed to set up and build a new Senate from the ashes of the Old Republic. The Old Republic’s capital city was on the planet of Coruscant, which made Coruscant the hub of all things before the rise of the Empire.
While it may have been easy for the New Republic to create their capital in the same city, they decided to create their own capital and sever ties with the Old Republic, including the tie of location.
Hosnian Prime was not the first change of location for the Galactic Senate, it had relocated to Chandrila right after the Battle of Endor, but in 28AY, the planet was officially named and voted as the capital of the New Republic.
8 Han Loses The Millenium Falcon
Not much is known about how the Millenium Falcon was lost. In Return of the Jedi, Han Solo has the Millenium Falcon, and in The Force Awakens, it’s rotting away on Jakku. In the first scene, Rey even calls it a pile of garbage, and only chooses it as her and Finn’s escape vehicle once all of the other ships are destroyed.
Rey says that she stole it from Unkar Plutt, who stole it from the Irving Boys, who stole it from Ducain, who Han says stole it from him.
It’s pretty clear the Falcon went though quite a few different owners during the 30 years between episode 6 and 7, but what matters is that it ultimately made it back into the rightful hands of Han Solo.
7 Han Becomes A Starship Racer
We all know that Han Solo is an amazing pilot, and while he may have departed with the Millenium Falcon during the 30 years between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, he was still a skilled pilot.
Once his time with the New Republic fleet was complete, Solo decided to try his hand at Starship racing.
There were significant periods of time where Han and Leia were unable to communicate
Twenty four years after the Battle of Endor, Han Solo decide to manage the most intensive, and prestigious racing championship, the Five Sabers. During this time, Leia was a Senator on Hosnian Prime and deciding whether or not she would run for First Senator.
As a result of this intensive race, there were significant periods of time where Han and Leia were unable to communicate, leaving each of them to their own devices on opposite sides of the galaxy.
6 Leia Had A Dream About The Dark Side & Ben
Everyone knows that Leia has just a much of a connection with the Force as Luke does. In fact, Yoda actually wanted to train Leia in the ways of the Jedi when the twins were born, as he believed she had more of the soft skills required.
What many people don’t know, is that her connection with the force led her to have the ability to feel Ben in her womb through the force. She would see light, marred by darkness, and was troubled by the darkness that she frequently sensed.
Once Han returned from the Battle of Jakku, Leia elected to not tell him about the strange sensations, instead keeping it a secret.
5 Snoke Specifically Chose Ben Solo
Leia knew of the dark forces that were interested in Ben, and those forces were Snoke.
Snoke was obsessed with the Skywalkers, thinking that their bloodline had always had significant force sensitivity. He also believed that Ben Solo would be the perfect mix of the light and dark side of the force, with his uncle as the famed Luke Skywalker, and his grandfather as the infamous Darth Vader.
It was this bloodline which put Ben Solo in the sights of Snoke, and therefore the dark side. While Luke and Leia both tried to stop the dark side forces from getting through to Ben, it became clear that as he trained at Luke’s Jedi Academy, that Solo had been connected with Snoke and was turning to the dark side.
4 Leia Uncovers The First Order Plot Within The Senate
While Leia, a Populist Senator, and Ransolm Casterfo, a Centrist Senator, did not initially get along, the two developed a strong friendship as they discovered the plot within the Senate to support the First Order in their growth.
Much of their time investigating was away from Hosnian Prime, and initially did not seem like the Senate and the First Order had any relation whatsoever. With that being said, once the two had taken their investigation deeper, they discovered that many of the Centrist senators, who “innocently” idolized the Empire, had actually been working alongside the First Order to help build their strength.
As we see in The Force Awakens, obviously the First Order’s strength continues to grow exponentially, leading us to the powerful villain the galaxy now knows.
3 Lando Returned To Cloud City
After the Battle of Endor, Lando Calrissian continued his missions with the Rebellion as they transitioned into the New Republic. For a year he helped liberate various planets from the Empire, and one of his bigger missions was at the Battle of Naboo.
Once the Battle of Jakku rolled around, Lando headed back to Bespin and Cloud City, seeking to obliterate any of the remaining Empire influences on the planet.
Calrissian, a few Wing Guards, and some solidiers from the New Republic all headed to Cloud City and worked to remove all Empire soldiers. In the end, a dozen Empire solidiers surrendered and were taken into custody by the Wing Guards.
2 The Amaxines And First Order Funded A Cartel
The First Order was not the powerhouse it was in The Force Awakens from the beginning of their creation. The First Order needed aides, and that aid came in the form of the Amaxines, a group of fierce warriors who idolized the Empire.
Together, they helped to funnel money into an unknown cartel owner, Rinnrivin Di, who very quickly became incredibly wealthy and powerful. This cartel allowed for smuggling, spice trade, and illegal gambling in all of the areas where the cartel had power, and also put legitimate New Republic trade on hold on a lot of those planets. This was the goal of the Amaxines and the First Order, and was completed through the cartel of Rinnrivin Di.
1 Chewbacca Came Out Of Retirement
Even while Chewbacca was retired on Kashyyyk and reconnecting with his now liberated family and friends, he still kept an eye out for Han Solo. Ultimately, he decided to step away from his retirement and time with his family on Kashyyyk in order to rejoin Han Solo in his smuggling lifestyle. As Wookies have such long life spans, Chewbacca knew that he could leave his family for a time and still return to them with no problems.
When we meet Han Solo and Chewbacca in The Force Awakens, they are smuggling Rathtars, an incredibly dangerous and scary alien creature which easily kills people. We can only imagine just how many other dangerous things the partners smuggled in the years they were back together.
