Order of the Black Hand

The Order of the Black Hand, or the Black-Handed Knights, were a secret military order of the Palpatinian Church that was established alongside the Emperor's cult in 4 ABY. Comprised of a number of elite Force-sensitive warrior-monks, the order served as the clandestine enforcers of the church and Palpatine's will. Few within the galaxy had ever heard of them, for knowledge of their existence was a secret trusted only to the highest echelons of the Palpatinian clergy.