So, there’s Palpatine, also known by Darth Sidious, pulling the strings behind the Order 66. As the Jedi Order starts to crumble, you can almost feel the dark side getting stronger, like a storm picking up speed.
Palpatine’s plan was working perfectly, but deep down, he was got a nagging feeling, a wish for something more.
Palpatine Wanted to Witness the Jedi Purge Himself
By the time Palpatine gives Order 66, the Jedi have already lost. They just do not know it yet. They are scattered across the galaxy, leading clone armies into battle, still believing those soldiers are their allies.
That is where Matthew Stover’s Revenge of the Sith novelization adds one of the darkest details about Palpatine.
In the book, Palpatine is not portrayed as hesitant or conflicted in any way. After years of secretly manipulating both the Republic and the Separatists, this is the moment he has been waiting for. The Jedi are spread thin across the war, with clone troopers right beside them, completely unaware that the soldiers under their command are about to turn on them.
And when Palpatine finally gives the order, the novel makes something very clear: he enjoys it.
Stover describes Palpatine feeling satisfaction as the final stage of the Sith plan unfolds. The Jedi are being wiped out all across the galaxy at the same time, betrayed by the clone troopers they trusted. According to the novel, Palpatine’s only regret is that he cannot personally stand beside every Jedi and watch them die himself.
To the Jedi, the Clone Wars had been a desperate conflict to protect the Republic. But to Palpatine, the war was always theater. Every battle, every death, and every victory had been carefully arranged to lead to this exact moment. The Jedi spent years fighting for a Republic that was already under Sith control, and they never fully realized it until the trap closed around them.
And in Palpatine’s eyes, the cruelest part was not simply killing the Jedi. It was the betrayal itself. The Jedi died surrounded by clone troopers they had trusted, still believing they were fighting to save the Republic while the Republic itself had already become the Empire.
Why Palpatine Couldn’t Watch It Himself
As much as Palpatine wanted to witness the Jedi Purge in person, he could not simply leave Coruscant and follow the clones across the galaxy.
At that exact moment, the most important part of his plan was still unfolding at the center of the Republic.
Anakin Skywalker had only just fallen to the dark side, and Palpatine still needed to fully secure him as Darth Vader. The attack on the Jedi Temple was happening at the same time as Order 66, and Palpatine needed Anakin there leading the assault, destroying the Jedi from within their own headquarters.
But even bigger than that, Palpatine was already preparing the birth of his new Empire.
The Jedi were about to be blamed for treason, the Republic was about to fall, and Palpatine needed to control the political narrative immediately. For years, he had carefully built his image as the leader protecting the galaxy during the Clone Wars. Now he was preparing to use the Jedi Purge as the final justification to transform the Republic into the Galactic Empire.
That is why he remained on Coruscant.
While Jedi across the galaxy were being betrayed and killed, Palpatine was already overseeing the next stage of the plan. The clone troopers were carrying out Order 66, Vader was attacking the Jedi Temple, and Palpatine was preparing the speech that would introduce his new Empire to the Senate.