For more than four decades, fans of Star Wars have rallied behind the Rebel Alliance and their cause. No one can deny the emotions evoked of their victories against the evil galactic Empire, but few have stopped to consider what exactly is being depicted on screen.
More than a story of good versus evil, and heroes and villains, Star Wars is at its core the account of a group of insurgents, dedicated to overthrowing an established government. Nowhere has this been more prominently detailed than in the recent live action series, Andor.
In Andor, we learn how this character’s circumstances lead him to the doorstep of the Rebellion, in its infancy. We are given a glimpse at the founders, their plans, and how they finance their war against the Empire.
More importantly I think, is the curtain being pulled back on just how dirty warfare can be. No longer can we see the Rebellion as a righteous movement for freedom, with unsung heroes at every turn.
Now we must come face to face with the often brutal and disfigured cost of warfare, and it’s mortal toll. For us to begin to come to terms with this harsh reality, we must first learn what an insurgency is, how it is carried out, and what its objectives are.
Merriam-Webster defines an insurgency as “a condition of revolt against a government that is less than an organized revolution and that is not recognized as belligerency.” An insurgency often begins with just a handful of individuals, who come together in agreement to the fact that the established government has violated their freedoms and way of life.
This is often the case when a dictatorship initiates a planned coup, and usurps the current government with a new form of rule. That is exactly what occurred during Order 66 on Coruscant. The Emperor spent years strategically planning his rise to power, and carefully positioning himself, as well as other assets, who would do his bidding.
On a larger scale, he manipulated the Jedi Order, the Senate, and the governments of entire star systems. He orchestrated a galactic wide war, to use as both a distraction, and political tool to become chancellor. Once in power, he sealed his position with the downfall of the Jedi Knights.
In the case of the Rebel Alliance, their objective was to restore the Old Republic, and its democratic rule over the galaxy. Doing so was the only way to ensure that freedom and security for all species was returned. How that would be accomplished was a decades long endeavor.
To begin, the Alliance to restore the Republic did not start as a well-organized, equipped, and trained force. It started with just one person refusing to accept the Empire’s rule on their world. It could be witnessing innocent civilians being beaten, interrogated, or even killed, as in Andor.
It would begin with people from different backgrounds, ethnicities, and even socio-economic status. They would share a common belief and objective, and over time they would discuss and eventually plan to rebel against the Empire’s presence. Just as in Andor, common people would reach their breaking point and take action.
That would become the catalyst to build upon, and over time the insurgency which begins on one world like Ferrix, would use propaganda to spread word of their actions, and recruit others to their cause. Soon an entire world would have cells of operatives joining the movement.
What began as an isolated act of defiance, would over time evolve into a complex and organized insurgency on a galactic scale. This is what is known as Asymmetric Warfare, when a smaller, less capable force of insurgents engage a larger, established military force.
In this type of combat, the insurgents will carefully examine and exploit their enemy’s weaknesses strategically, in an effort to demoralize them, and destabilize their operations. Such conflicts are highlighted by unconventional tactics and techniques, such as hit and run missions on critical infrastructure, command, control, and communications nodes, or supply routes.
In so doing the insurgent forces are often able to infiltrate enemy installations, gain valuable intelligence, and even steal supplies and weapons. In essence, they often turn their enemy’s own resources against them, which they use to their advantage. In the case of the Rebel Alliance, they did just this, first on isolated planets, and then across the galaxy.
As more people joined their cause, the Alliance was able to exploit the access and assets which they acquired through established connections. Equipment, food, fuel, weapons, and ships are just some of the necessities that they acquired through clandestine donations, forgeries, and thefts. Their established financial network paid for what they could not steal, because in every galaxy, money talks.
The Rebellion would have established a network of informants, as well as trained assets to tie up loose ends. War is a dirty business, but the end justifies the means. This the Rebel Alliance that Cassian Andor, Jyn Erso, Luke Skywalker, and many others find themselves joining.
Over the course of decades what began as a small group of home-grown insurgents, evolved into a very capable and organized military capable of taking the fight to the Empire. As they become the foundation of a New Republic, their tactics may change, but their history remains the same.
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