In a dysfunctional republic undergoing a devastating civil war, a panicked Senate votes providing unprecedented forces to one of its members in the hope of reaching a swift end to the crisis. Soon, the war is over, but the senator and his bodyguards who have gained the support and personal loyalty of the Republic’s generals is appointed Caesar. Obviously, this is all done in the name of bringing peace to the empire.
Wait, is this a description of the fall of the Roman Republic or the background to the Star Wars series? Is the Senator in question Julius Caesar / Augustus or Emperor Palpatine? Are the bodyguards the Pretorian Guard of Ancient Rome or Palpatine’s Red Guard?
It is easy to see the similarities between the fall of the Roman Republic and the fall of the Galactic Republic, although the latter occurs “long in the past and in a very distant galaxy.” If you also focus on the twins, Lia and Luke, escape from their evil father to a hiding place, you notice that it is similar to the commonly known Greek mythology motif. Same goes for the spacecraft race in the fourth film, which contains clear elements from the “Ben Hur” chariot race.
These are not random similarities. In the 2012 Lucas Films approved book “Star Wars and History”, (founded by George Lucas, the creator of the series), it is conveyed that various aspects of human history inspired Star Wars films. Not surprisingly, the Star Wars universe is largely based on the history of the Roman Empire. It is also worth noting that Nazi Germany was also a central element, as can be easily understood from the creators of the series “storm troopers”.
However, in my opinion, the greatest similarity between the Galactic Empire and the Roman Empire is that, like the Galactic Empire, which did not hesitate to destroy an entire star in order to impose its will (Grand Moff Tarkin: “Fear will keep the local systems in line ….”), the Roman Empire did not reject the destruction of entire cities and nations in order to restore the “Roman peace”. In any case, “May the Force Be With You” or more precisely “sit vis tecum”.
