Why Does Dooku Want to Destroy the Sith?

Count Dooku was an anomaly in the Star Wars universe.

He started his journey as a Force user in the Jedi Order. He was dedicated and talented. So much so that he rose through the ranks and later became a Jedi Master. 

To the observer, Dooku appeared to be the ideal Jedi Knight, following the expected projection of a Jedi. His comrades had no idea he would defect to the dark side and ascend the hierarchical structure there.

By the end of his life, he had become the Sith Lord, Darth Tyranus. But even while he was on the Sith’s side, it seemed as though Dooku harbored the hatred he had carried for them since his Jedi days. 

So, why is that? Why did he go to the dark side? What were his motives? These questions and more will be answered as we go through this article. 

Why Did Dooku Turn to the Dark Side?

It’s quite rare that a Jedi Master would fall to the dark side of the Force. However, Count Dooku did exactly that. Why?

The Star Wars: Legends novel, Darth Plagueis, had a fair amount of information as to why Dooku made his shift to the dark side. 

In essence, Count Dooku felt disgusted by the corruption of the Senate and the overall incompetence of the Galactic Republic. Therefore, Dooku believed that the only way to cleanse the Republic of its transgressions would be by destroying and restarting it. 

Of course, the Jedi Council did not agree and would never agree with this. As a result, Dooku realized that enlisting the help of Palpatine and the Sith was his best bet. Initially, Dooku did not know Palpatine was a Sith Lord, but when he found out, he turned to the dark side. 

Did Count Dooku Hate the Sith?

Count Dooku did not hate the Sith. He didn’t see them as the Jedi saw them. He believed they just had a more open view of the Force. He did not think that they were inherently evil. 

What’s more, Count Dooku generally did not harbor any hatred or fear. Rather, he just wanted the best for the Republic. Unfortunately, that meant he would do whatever it took to achieve that goal. 

This is why it would be easy to assume that he hated the Sith. 

Perhaps this is something that would have been instilled within him during his early years as a Jedi. Even so, Dooku found out for himself that the Sith weren’t as bad as they were made out to be. 

Why Does Dooku Want to Destroy the Sith?

As we mentioned before, the Galactic Republic was in a horrendously unprofessional state. It was filled with corrupted politics and a bunch of people who would turn the other way while unethical practices took place. 

This was an occurrence that Count Dooku was completely fed up with, so he decided to do something about it. For him, the only way to fix the problems within the Republic would be to destroy it and start fresh. 

Naturally, the Jedi were not on board with this idea, so Dooku went to the next best thing. That is, the Sith. To that end, Dooku put his plan into motion when he had a hand in the onset of Order 66. 

Nevertheless, Dooku still did not care for the Sith. Even though he didn’t dislike them, he had no problem discarding them to achieve his goal.

But what exactly was this goal? The answer to this is coming up next. 

What was Dooku’s Goal?

Count Dooku’s goal began as simply wanting the reform of the Galactic Republic. He knew the only way to do this would be to get rid of the current Republic. 

To that end, he played an integral role in Order 66, which was dubbed the Great Jedi Purge. It was nicknamed this because ninety-nine percent of the Jedi Order were slaughtered in this event.

Theoretically, the Purge worked because it led to the Jedi Order being remade by Luke Skywalker and the other surviving Jedi. 

But that was not the end of Count Dooku’s motives. He wanted to create something far greater than the Galactic Republic. Dooku wanted to create a utopia where all the members were from noble backgrounds. 

He wanted Obi-wan Kenobi to rule as well. Dooku was willing to do whatever it took to get there and was willing to use both the Jedi and the Sith on this mission. 

FAQs

The Star Wars communities are filled with many questions. Certain topics and characters get more questions than others. One such character is Count Dooku. 

Given that many fans view Dooku as a traitor, some questions about him frequently arise. One of which is why he was known as Count Dooku and not a Darth when he joined the dark side. 

Why is Count Dooku Not a Darth?

Dooku was born in Serenno to a noble family who abandoned him. From there, he was taken in by the Jedi and trained. As we established earlier, Dooku did not agree with the methods of the Jedi Order and the Galactic Republic. 

Because of his contempt for them, he left to try and join forces with Palpatine. When he did so, he retook his rightful status as the Count of Serenno. As a result, he was given the name Count Dooku.

This name stuck with him, but eventually, he was granted the title of Sith Lord, Darth Tyranus, by Palpatine.

Conclusion

Count Dooku was a man who had his own idea of what was morally right and wrong. For him, the Galactic Republic was anything but moral. He believed it needed to be restarted, and the best way to do this would be by using the dark side. 

Now, Dooku did not feel the same way towards the Sith as the Jedi. He neither hated them nor wanted to destroy them in particular. 

However, Dooku had no problem hurting some Sith if that meant he could achieve his ultimate goal of an aristocratic society. 

Just as he had no problem playing a part in the annihilation of nine thousand and nine hundred Jedi during the Great Jedi Purge.