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Why Did the Jedi Think the Sith Were Extinct for a Millennium?

Why Did the Jedi Think the Sith Were Extinct for a Millennium?

We all know about the Jedi Order, right? They’re at the top of their game. 

They’re like the superheroes of the galaxy, spreading peace and justice everywhere. They’re super strong, and people look up to them for their wisdom. 

 However, they held a belief that the Sith, their age-old foes, had been extinct for a thousand years. But what led them to this belief? I’ve got the explanation for you. 

But first, let’s take a step back and delve into the history of Star Wars, where the Sith nearly wiped themselves out.

Ruusan: The Battle that Fooled the Jedi

Darth Bane after a battle

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The New Sith Wars have been raging on for 2,000 years. It’s been a time of intense conflict, with the Sith even gaining control of most of the galaxy at one point. 

But the Jedi, they’re resilient. They form this group called the Army of Light and start taking back the Republic’s lost territory through decades of tough battles.

Now, the Sith, they’re backed into a corner and retreat to this planet called Ruusan. Over two years, they clash with the Jedi in six separate battles. By the end of it, they’re on the brink of defeat.

Then comes the Seventh Battle of Ruusan. This is the big one, the game-changer. Jedi Lord Valenthyne Farfalla plays a crucial role in this battle, but there’s a twist. 

Sith Lord Darth Bane, who wants to destroy the Brotherhood of Darkness and reform the Sith, secretly helps the Jedi. 

He orders the Sith’s Fleet to break formation and engage the Jedi, which throws the Sith off balance and forces them to retreat.

Sith Lord Skere Kaan and his forces retreat to the hideout caves, where Kaan plans to use this superweapon called a Thought Bomb to destroy the Jedi. 

But Bane has tricked Kaan. The thought bomb will actually destroy every Force-sensitive being caught in its radius.

The Sith Remnants Hidden

Darth Bane and his apprentice

The Battle of Ruusan didn’t end with a big cheer. Instead, it quietly started a new time for the Sith. 

The battlefield, once chaostic, is now very quiet. This battle was a big change in the history of the galaxy. 

It marked the end of the Sith as a big group and the start of their secret life under the Rule of Two.

So, that’s how the Battle of Ruusan ended. It was a huge event that changed the direction of the galaxy. 

The Sith, who were once a strong force, were thought to be gone. Their numbers were down to just one – Darth Bane.

The Jedi won, but it cost them a lot. They lost many of their own. But the Sith weren’t really gone. In the shadows, Bane started to rebuild. 

After the Battle of Ruusan, Bane emerged as the only surviving Sith Lord. He took on an apprentice and, with his first apprentice Zannah, he initiated the Rule of Two. 

This marked a new era for the Sith, one of secrecy and subterfuge. They remained hidden, subtly influencing the galaxy from the shadows. 

This period of clandestine operations continued until the rise of Darth Sidious and Darth Vader, who brought the Sith back to the presence of the Galaxy.

The Jedi’s Confidence

Jedi Council

Starting from the inception of the Star Wars universe, specifically from Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Qui-Gon Jin encountered Darth Maul upon his return from a mission on Tatooine. 

Jin reported his clash with a mysterious, highly skilled warrior to the Jedi council, expressing his belief that the Sith had returned.

The Jedi council, however, was skeptical.

Ki Adi Mundi declared it impossible, stating, “The Sith have been extinct for a millennium.” 

Even Mace Windu, one of the strongest members of the council, expressed doubt, saying, “I do not believe the Sith could have returned without us knowing.

Towards the end of the movie, it’s revealed that Yoda is aware of the Rule of Two, which is somewhat perplexing. 

If Yoda knows about the Rule of Two, he should be aware of the Sith’s existence. However, the truth is that Yoda was aware of the Rule of Two through Kibh Jeen, but he didn’t know about the Sith’s existence.

The Jedi council was unsure whether to believe in the Sith’s existence since there was no direct evidence of any surviving Sith.

They were believed to have been eradicated in the Battle of Ruusan. 

However, once Mace Windu confirmed that the mysterious warrior who fought Qui-Gon Jin was indeed a Sith Lord, the council began to accept that the Sith had indeed returned.

 

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