There's always a choice! Living in fear is no life at all!
—Padmé Naberrie Skywalker
Padmé Naberrie Skywalker of Naboo—born Padmé Naberrie, publicly known by her regnal/political name, Padmé Amidala, as well as Her Royal Highness, Queen Padmé Amidala of Naboo, from 2 ArS to 10 ArS, Her Ladyship, Senator Padmé Amidala of Naboo, from 10 ArS to 16 ArS, Her Ladyship, Vice Chair Padmé Amidala of Naboo, from 16 ArS to 24 ArS, and as Her Excellency, Chancellor Padmé Amidala, from 24 ArS, onwards—was the younger daughter of Ruwee and Jobal Naberrie, and the sister of Sola Naberrie. Naberrie Skywalker was also the secret wife of Anakin Skywalker—the legendary Chosen One of the Jedi Order—and the mother of Luke Skywalker and Leia Naberrie Skywalker.
Naberrie Skywalker was the popularly elected Queen of Naboo, before becoming the Senator of Chommell sector in the Galactic Senate. As the Queen, Naberrie Skywalker fought valiantly to free her people from the oppression levied upon them during the inavsion of her planet by the Trade Federation in 3 ArS, and thusly, upon her rise to the position of Senator in 10 ArS, she became a very respected political figure in the galaxy.
In 11 ArS, before the voting on Military Creation Act—Naberrie Skywalker was one of the proposed act's strongest opponents—attempts were made on her life, and Jedi Padawan Anakin Skywalker was assigned to protect her. During their time together, the pair gradually fell in love, and, ultimately—following the Battle of Geonosis—the two secretly married on Naboo.
Throughout the Clone Wars, Naberrie Skywalker's message of peace was silenced by the weapons of war, and she, herself, was forced into the fighting, on occasion. She also participated in many diplomatic missions during the conflict, some of which were turned into ones of a violent nature.
Before the war entered its final year, Naberrie Skywalker became pregnant with her husband's child. Nine months later, and only a day after the war came to an end, Padmé gave birth to Luke Skywalker and Leia Naberrie Skywalker.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Padmé Naberrie, Princess of Theed, just before her election as Queen.
Born on 9:3:6 BrS, Padmé Naberrie was the youngest daughter of Ruwee and Jobal Thule Naberrie, and the sister of Sola Naberrie. Padmé spent her childhood in an isolated mountain village where her parents fostered ethical virtues like self-sacrifice and care for the socially weak in their children. When her family moved to Theed when she was young, Padmé attended the best schools available to her, enjoying intermittent class retreats to Naboo's lake country.
In her youth, she volunteered for the Refugee Relief Movement, like her father had once done before her, and journeyed to Shadda-Bi-Boran to lend aid in the relocation efforts of the natives. Unfortunately, many of these refugees were unable to survive on other worlds, and died.
Following this, she served the Legislative Youth Program, where she met a young man named Palo. A short, innocent relationship followed, but the pair eventually parted ways when Palo became an artist, and Padmé continued in politics. She never forgot her past or her heritage, however—even after she had ascended to positions of importance to the Naboo government, Amidala still maintained her village's tradition of painting her thumb nail on each hand stark white; a small, but striking sign of her commitment to her family.
Naberrie's rise was astronomical; she had joined the Apprentice Legislature at age eight and became a full Apprentice Legislator by age ten. During this period, she first met Silya Shessaun, her workshop mentor. The two would meet again as Senators, and formed a close bond.
By 2 ArS, at the age of eleven, Padmé Naberrie had become Princess of Theed, and was extraordinarily popular—she became a rallying point for those opposed to the rule of King Ars Veruna.
She was involved in a relationship with Ian Lago, the young son of Veruna's Prime Counselor, Kun Lago. Both families were against the relationship, but it ended of its own accord when Veruna abdicated the throne and Padmé was persuaded to enter the race to succeed the King. Her bid for the throne had been first suggested to her parents, and secretly backed, by Senator Palpatine, who wished to see Veruna removed from power for his own reasons. Her personal popularity and opposition to Veruna's controversial policies ensured her victory in a landslide. She was elected by global popular vote, while all the other candidates were simply excluded, and she never saw Ian again.
Naberrie is crowned Queen of Naboo.
Prodigiously talented, Naberrie was one of the youngest Queens of Naboo to ever be elected. Once crowned, Padmé took the regnal name Amidala, and amended the constitution to limit the rule of elected monarchs to two terms, in light of Veruna's long and unpopular rule.
As Queen Amidala, Padmé she appeared regal and austere, but, in reality, she was headstrong and compassionate. Her birth name, Naberrie, was not public knowledge. In a lengthy communiqué compiled by Supreme Chancellor Valorum's aide in 3 ArS, the Republic diplomats and Intelligence officers who contributed listed Padmé as one of the Queen's handmaidens, and only referred to the Queen as "Amidala." The notion that the handmaidens' true purpose was to serve as decoys for the Queen, suggested by a Senate security officer based on irregularities in the Royal Starship's passenger lists, was dismissed as "outrageous." Even the Jedi were unaware of the fact that Padmé and Queen Amidala were one in the same.
Naberrie's cadre of handmaidens, young women of a similar age and with a striking similarity in physical appearance to her, acted as bodyguards, decoys, and confidantes to their mistress, roles devised by Naberrie's head of security, Captain Panaka, who insisted the new Queen be trained in self-defense and weapons usage. While Padmé was Queen, her handmaidens included Sabé, Eirtaé, Rabé, Yané and Saché. During her term as Senator, Amidala's handmaidens included Dormé, Cordé, Versé, and, later, Moteé and Ellé.
Queen of Naboo (2—10 ArS)[]
Invasion of Naboo (3 ArS)[]
A Time of Crisis[]
Shortly after her election in 2 ArS, Queen Amidala was confronted with what would become one of the most significant occurrences in Naboo history. In protest of the Galactic Senate's decision to tax users of the galactic trade routes, Viceroy Nute Gunray of the Trade Federation blockaded Naboo, Naberrie's home-world. Having little resources of its own, Naboo was dependent on imports, and the blockade served as a perfect example of how planets in the Republic relied upon trade.
Naberrie, during the Invasion of Naboo.
Naberrie attempted to utilize both diplomatic and political means to end the Trade Federation's blockade, but it was all for naught. The Viceroy—who was secretly taking orders from the Sith Lord Darth Sidious—avoided direct diplomatic efforts, going so far as to order his troops to assassinate the Republic ambassadors that Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum had secretly dispatched. Unfortunately for him, the ambassadors were Jedi—Master Qui-Gon Jinn and his Padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi were able to foil the assassination attempts against them, and flee down to the planet. Shortly after their escape, Gunray was ordered to sabotage all of Naboo's communications systems and deploy his troops for an invasion of Naboo.
Although Naberrie refused to allow a course of war for her planet, the Federation invaded anyhow and easily swept aside the RSF defense. When the Federation took Theed, Naberrie was captured at the Palace, but in the guise of a handmaiden—her double, Sabé, had assumed the guise of the Queen during this time. As instructed, the decoy refused to sign a treaty authorizing the Federation's occupation of Naboo, and so they were sentenced to be placed in detention camps. On their way to detention facilities, the entourage—consisting of the false Queen, her handmaidens, Governor Sio Bibble and Captain Panaka—was freed by Jinn and Kenobi, as well as a Gungan named Jar Jar Binks. Though reluctant to leave her people, Naberrie—via Sabé—accepted the Jedi's offer to escort her to Coruscant, the Republic's capital world, where she could appear before the Galactic Senate, and petition for Republic intervention. Bibble and two handmaidens remained on Naboo.
Naberrie with R2-D2, Anakin Skywalker, Qui-Gon Jinn, and Jar Jar Binks in Mos Espa.
When the Royal Starship made its attempt to break through the Federation blockade, the ship's escape, as well as it's avoidance of total destruction, was because of the astromech droid R2-D2, whom "Amidala" commended. Unfortunately, the ship had endured massive damage in the escape, so the group was forced to land on the remote planet of Tatooine to repair their ship. Disguised as a Handmaiden, Naberrie accompanied Jinn, Binks, and R2-D2 into the spaceport of Mos Espa to find the parts needed to rebuild the Royal Starship. It was there that she met a nine-year-old slave, Anakin Skywalker, and formed a close bond with him that would last the rest of her life. Skywalker offered to participate in the Boonta Eve Classic, a podrace, to win the group enough credits to obtain new parts and reach Coruscant. Though she liked Skywalker, Naberrie questioned Jinn's wisdom in putting Naboo's fate in a child's hands. However, when Skywalker won, she changed her mind.
Appearance Before the Galactic Senate[]
When she arrived on Coruscant, Naberrie resumed her role as Queen Amidala. Before appearing before the Senate, Senator Palpatine, Naboo's elected representative, warned her of the corruption within the Senate; he was proven correct when Naberrie could not get instantaneous assistance from the Republic for her people.
Naberrie pleads for the lives of her people before the Senate.
Accepting that the Senate was plagued by the venal and the unscrupulous, and that Finis Valorum was a Chancellor who was so mired by this corruption that he could not solve any major crisis, and that a stronger leader—one who could keep the power of the bureaucrats in check—was needed, Naberrie called for a Vote of No Confidence in Valorum's leadership. Shortly after this, Palpatine, was nominated in the race to succeed Valorum, and eventually won the special chancery election, as he had planned.
Naberrie, realizing that she was on her own in Naboo's time of need, decided to return to her home planet, and lead a rebellion against the Trade Federation, paying no heed to Palpatine's requests that she remain on Coruscant.
Retaking Theed[]
On the way back to Naboo, Naberrie told Jinn and Kenobi that she planned to forge a union between her people with the Gungans, with whom the Naboo had had strained relations in recent years. Traversing Naboo's swamps, and escorted by a the two Jedi and a small band of Naboo security guards, Naberrie encountered several battle droids, as well as Royal Security Force personnel scattered through the swamp. Naberrie and her party eventually boarded a group of naval transports, which took them to the Gungan sacred place.
Naberrie and Jinn in combat during the Second Battle of Theed.
Coming before the leader of the Gungans, Boss Rugor Nass, Sabé—still acting as Naberrie's decoy—tried to convince the Gungans to unify in an effort to drive the Trade Federation from the planet. Seeing that this attempt was making no progress, Naberrie, as a show of trust, decided to reveal her secret identity. At this, Nass agreed, and the two quarreling cultures put an end to their long dispute to concentrate on a more urgent matter—the Federation's occupation of their planet.
Naberrie later unveiled her developed strategy to the Jedi, Nass, and Panaka. The plan would involve Naberrie leading a strike force into the Royal Palace and capture Viceroy Gunray, while, at the same time, the Gungan Grand Army would lead a ground assault in order to draw the droid armies away from the Palace.
Though the plan indeed met with success—thanks, in no small part, to Skywalker destroying the Droid Control Ship, and a distraction by Sabé, which gave Naberrie the opportunity she needed to capture Gunray—it came with a great cost—Jinn, in a lightsaber duel with the Sith Lord Darth Maul, was killed, although Kenobi was able to ultimately fell the Sith.
Naberrie, at a celebration following the Trade Federation's invasion.
Her actions throughout the invasion made her even more popular than she had been before the crisis, and the Naboo and the Gungans became officially united during a celebration in Theed, attended by Palpatine, the newly-elected Supreme Chancellor, and the Jedi High Council. After the celebration, Padmé was approached by Grand Master Yoda who, on behalf of the Jedi Council, and in agreement with the Supreme Chancellor, requested that she keep her knowledge of the Sith's return a secret.
Recovery period (3—10 ArS)[]
Following the end of the Trade Federation invasion, Naberrie quickly began the task of rebuilding her planet; although many cities were left intact by the Federation, and casualties were mild, its occupation created psychological scars for many civilians, who had been subject to imprisonment in detention camps.
One of the Queen's first acts was to create memorials for those who lost their lives during the crisis; from Naboo's capital, Theed, to Harte Secur, statues and monuments were erected. Another of Naberrie's decrees included an effort to improve the livelihood of citizens, especially those who had been most affected by the invasion. Finally, Naberrie authorized the creation of a massive charity fund, based on donations, especially from the upper class.
Meanwhile, Naberrie pursued a legal course of action against Trade Federation Viceroy Nute Gunray for his actions. Royal House of Naboo v. Trade Federation quickly reached the Supreme Court of the Republic, but there were many complications surrounding the case—four trials were held. The first trial resulted in a mistrial, due to a hung court. The subsequent trial also resulted in a mistrial with the death of both the prosecuting and defense attorneys. In the third trial, the court ruled that it lacked jurisdiction over the case. Finally, in the fourth trial, the court ruled that the Trade Federation had to pay reparations to Naboo's people and demilitarize. However, Gunray remained Viceroy, and, in secret, the Federation rearmed.
As this phantom menace endured, Naboo prospered—the poverty rate plunged, its middle-class inhabitants led happy and pleasurable lives thanks to a booming economy, and those in the upper class continued to donate to the classes below them, while remaining in the upper class.
In 10 ArS, Amidala ended her second term as Queen. Though some on Naboo suggested amending the constitution to allow her to serve a third term, she stayed true to her belief that "popular rule is not democracy." Thereafter, Amidala gave up the throne to her elected successor, Queen Jamillia.
Senator (10—16 ArS)[]
Although Naberrie had planned to retire into a family life, as her sister Sola had, at the urging of Queen Jamillia, she chose to become Naboo's representative in the Galactic Senate, succeeding Horace Vancil as the Senator from the Chommel sector. Naberrie retained an elaborate fashion sense and an ever-changing wardrobe, and, due to her enormous support on Naboo, she continued to be granted all the formalities usually restricted to the elected monarch, including distinctive chrome-plating on all of her starships.
Though she preferred to remain on Naboo, when on Coruscant, the Republic's capital, Padmé lived in a small penthouse apartment in the Senate Apartment Complex. Though the interior was modest in size and decor compared to other Senatorial residences, the apartment's large veranda boasted a private landing platform as well as a number of luxurious Naboo artifacts.
Soon, she was one of the leaders of a faction opposed to the establishment of an army to quell the growing Confederacy of Independent Systems, for she believed that the promise of violence only invited violence in return.
Naberrie was also appointed by Supreme Chancellor Palpatine to the Loyalist Committee, an exclusive group of Senators who would act as advisers to the Chancellor during the Separatist Crisis. She also served on a team of Republic diplomats that attempted to negotiate a peace with the Separatists, but, unfortunately, a number of terrorist attacks thwarted the negotiations. Amidala suspected that Maxon Dooku, the Count of Serenno, leader of the Confederacy, and a former Jedi Master, was behind the very attacks that ended the negotiations.
Assassination Attempts[]
11 ArS, Padmé was targeted for assassination by an unknown enemy, whom she believed to be Dooku. An attempt on her life was made by the Clawdite bounty hunter Zam Wesell, resulting in the deaths of Naberrie's decoy and handmaiden, Cordé, her handmaiden Versé, and numerous other security guards on the landing platform where the attempted assassination took place.
Hours later, Naberrie appeared in the Grand Convocation Chamber of the Senate Building, to prove that reports of her death were false, and criticize her political opponents, as well as supporters of the Military Creation Act, which she strongly opposed. After a brief conference with the Supreme Chancellor, members of the Loyalist Committee and numerous members of the Jedi High Council—including Grand Master Yoda and Master of the Order Mace Windu—it was decided that Naberrie be placed under protection of the Jedi while the matter was investigated. Padmé held firm to her belief that Dooku was behind the attack, but the Jedi—believing a former Jedi to be incapable of murder—did not agree with her accusation.
Later that day, Naberrie was reunited with Anakin Skywalker, now a Padawan to Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi, who had been assigned to protect her. After a second assassination attempt by Zam Wesell—who had, under the orders of Jango Fett, placed poisonous kouhuns in her bedroom, which Skywalker and Kenobi were able to prevent from killing her—the Jedi Council determined that Skywalker would escort Naberrie to her home world of Naboo for protection, while Kenobi continued the investigation. As the vote on the Military Creation Act was fast approaching, Chancellor Palpatine had to issue an executive order to force a stubborn Padmé to return to Naboo.
To maintain the illusion that the Senator was still in the capital, Captain Gregar Typho and the handmaiden Dormé stayed behind, the latter acting as Naberrie's decoy.
Disguised as a refugee couple from the Iego system, Naberrie and Skywalker traveled discreetly on a freighter to Naboo. During the trip, they discussed the sacrifice that Anakin's mother made by giving him up so that he could train as a Jedi. Hoping to alleviate his sorrow, Padmé told Anakin that a parent should want his or her child to be given the chance to have a better life than he or she had.
After a meeting with Queen Jamillia, as well as a meal with Naberrie's family, she and Anakin took refuge at Varykino, the Naberrie family lake retreat. There, the two gradually fell in love. It was a forbidden romance—Anakin was sworn to celibacy by the Jedi Code—but this was love that could not be denied; even so, Padmé feared what would happen to both her and Anakin's careers if such a relationship was allowed to exist—she felt that being in love with a Jedi was a risk that was not worth taking.
Return to Tatooine[]
What you did was wrong—it was a great moral failing—but you recognize that. The darkness hasn't consumed the Jedi within you; it hasn't consumed the good being that is Anakin Skywalker.
—Padmé Naberrie, to Anakin Skywalker
After Skywalker had a vision of his mother dying, Naberrie accompanied him to Tatooine to help him find her. While on Tatooine, they learned that Shmi Skywalker was no longer a slave, and that married a moisture farmer named Cliegg Lars, during Anakin's ten-year absence. Arriving at the Lars homestead, Anakin learned that Shmi had been kidnapped by Tusken Raiders, about a month before his return, and that—after a disastrous search and rescue attempt—all hope for her was lost. Unwilling to give up, Skywalker traveled into the desert to rescue her, leaving Naberrie in the care of the Lars family.
Anakin returned the next morning, carrying the lifeless body of his mother. Skywalker was deeply distraught over Shmi's death, but this was not the only agony he faced—Anakin confessed to Padmé that he had massacred every single member of the Tusken Raider tribe that had held his mother captive. Naberrie—though shocked by his act of vengeance—attempted to comfort him by telling him that while he had committed a horrible atrocity, he had come to regret it; a sign that the light within him prevented his darkness from utterly consuming him.
Battle of Geonosis[]
You call this a diplomatic solution?"
"No; I call it agressive negotiations.
—Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala
During Shmi's funeral, R2-D2 informed Naberrie that a message sent by Obi-Wan Kenobi had been received. After saying goodbye to the Lars family, the pair viewed the message, only to discover that Kenobi had been captured by droidekas on the planet of Geonosis. The message also revealed Count Dooku's involvement in the assassination attempts made on Naberrie; the Count was apparently trying to fulfill a deal that would see Padmé's former enemy, Nute Gunray of the Trade Federation, officially join the Separatist movement. Twisting Mace Windu's orders for Skywalker to remain with her, Naberrie resolved that if Anakin wished to protect her, he would have to follow her to Geonosis in her attempt to rescue Skywalker's Master.