Military Intelligence, abbreviated as MI, was an espionage organization of the Galactic Empire that provided services to the Imperial military, the high command, and Emperor Palpatine. It had oversight of the operations of the Naval Intelligence Agency which was briefly made its own separate organization before being folded back under Military Intelligence. The more domestic focused Imperial Security Bureau, which was under COMPNOR, was a rival to Military Intelligence over resources, abilities, and areas of responsibility.
Description[]
Military Intelligence was the espionage service of the Imperial military of the Galactic Empire. Military Intelligence focused on issues regarding the Imperial Navy such as threat reports, analysis, managing assets who gathered information, and providing briefings to the high command and Emperor Palpatine. Military Intelligence's specific purview meant that it had to refer other intelligence matters to the Imperial Security Bureau causing friction between the two organizations. A part of Military Intelligence, the Naval Intelligence Agency was briefly made its own separate organization, though it continued to be referred to as "Military Intelligence," before being folded back under Military Intelligence.
The organization was also at odds with Imperial Intelligence, which was focused on espionage in general, not just for the military. The civilian and military intelligence services constantly quarreled.
By 1 ABY, members of the Military Intelligence wore distinct blue uniforms, unlike other officers.
History[]
Military Intelligence was organized out of Republic Intelligence after the formation of the Galactic Republic into the Empire at the end of the Clone Wars. Five years later, when Governor Wilhuff Tarkin and Darth Vader visited Murkhana on an investigative mission, former Republic Intelligence officer Berch Teller and a few of his accomplices, including Anora Fair, hijacked Tarkin's vessel, the Carrion Spike. They killed the ship's captain and comms officer, along with two stormtroopers, before taking off. The Imperials forced a local Sugi crime lord to give up his ship to them, and attempted to stop the captured Spike. However, Teller and his crew got away. After the successful hijacking, the insurgents of the Carrion Spike went on a campaign of destruction against various Imperial targets, such as the Galidraan Station. Military Intelligence attempted to track and analysis their activities in order to capture them. The hijacker's information, however, was supplied to them by Vice Admiral Rancit, the Deputy Director of the Naval Intelligence Agency. However, Rancit was revealed as a traitor and executed on Vader's orders. He was replaced by Wulff Yularen and Naval Intelligence was brought back under Military Intelligence.
Later in 1 ABY, the director of Military Intelligence was Grand Moff Vylor Sarkan, a former Republic governor who was actually dissatisfied with the rule of Palpatine. He plotted to remove the dark siders from power all together in the Empire. The director founded the Free Officers Movement, in which many members were officers of Military Intelligence. Sarkan recruited members for this resistance organization from throughout the military. They attempted a coup against the Emperor, but it failed, and most members were killed (including Sarkan) or were forced to flee.