Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin was one of the most powerful Imperial officers in the original Star Wars trilogy and beyond and commanded important military power and resources as a result. In canon, we see him use these resources and military powers to bring about the effective destruction of more than one planet. Why did Tarkin choose to destroy these planets, and how did he go about it?
Here’s what you need to know.
Contents
Why did Tarkin destroy Kamino?
While the Kaminoans had proven invaluable to the Republic during the Clone Wars, by the time the Galactic Empire had assumed control, the planet’s clone exports were starting to lose relevance, eventually not being needed. As such, the Kaminoans, who had bought a seat in the Senate through the deal brokered for their Clone Troopers, fell into disfavor in the eyes of those higher up the Empire’s control hierarchy.
For this reason, it was decided that the Kaminoans would be destroyed.
While the Empire had no further need for the Kaminoans, they were still a highly advanced civilisation with quivering loyalty and a propensity for political intrigue, so leaving them was not a viable option.
After every Imperial asset had been extracted from the planet’s lone city, Tarkin prepared to have it destroyed after first confirming that Chief Medical Scientist Nala Se had been extracted as well, just in case the Empire ever needed the Kaminoans expertise in cloning and other biological technology.
After receiving all the necessary confirmation, Tarkin handed down the order to Vice Admiral Rampart to fire on Tipoca City, the floating capital of Kaminoan society, destroying it before moving on to all other known settlements and leaving all remnants of the culture they once housed to sink into the endless Kaminoan sea.
Why did Tarkin destroy Scarif?
Scarif was an important part of the Imperial machine despite being largely uninhabited, housing top-secret projects that could make or break the Empire’s military domination. The prime example of this was the schematics for the Death Star, the Empire’s planet-killing ultimate weapon.
These schematics would catalyse a rebel infiltration and, subsequently, the planet’s destruction.
When the rebel covert ops team known as Rogue One infiltrated the planet to steal the Death Star plans, the arrival of Rebel fighters as backup turned the clandestine mission into an all-out battle. Tarkin and other Imperial officers were also aware of the transmission that the Rebels had started.
One of the rebels in Rogue One was Cassian Andor, and you can find out the difference between Andor and Endor here.
The information contained in the archives on Scarif was far too valuable to let the rebels acquire, causing Tarkin to order the Death Star to fire on the Citadel on the planet’s surface.
The blast destroyed the planetary shielding and the Citadel, completely leveling it while also scarring the planet’s surface with burns and boiling the oceans all over Scarif. While Tarkin’s actions on Scarif didn’t manage to stop the transmission and destroyed valuable research data that Tarkin himself was loath to let go of, he did manage to kill his old rival Krennic.
Why did Tarkin destroy Alderaan?
In one of the most iconic scenes from the first film and an important moment that helped set the stakes for the entire trilogy, Tarkin ordered the destruction of Alderaan, a core world famous for its beauty and civil society.
There are 3 interconnected reasons why Tarkin destroyed the planet, and these reasons are also the reason why Alderaan’s fate was more final in its execution than all others.
#1 As Punishment for Supporting the Rebellion
Having suspected the elite on Alderaan of supporting the revel upswell that had given the Empire such a hard time of late, Tarkin’s suspicions were all but confirmed when Sith Lord Darth Vader brought Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan to him after she had been caught red-handed assisting the Rebels.
This gave Tarkin a motive to strike out against the planet, which had seemingly masqueraded itself as a docile planet while actually fermenting radical elements.
Possibly reasoning that the planet was a likely host for the rebel base he was seeking, Tarkin decided to destroy the planet. This also fed into his second reason for doing so.
#2 To Spite Princess Leia
Tarkin had questioned Leia about the location of the rebel base and had been unable to get her to give him the information he was demanding. As a result, he confronted her with his plans to destroy her home world, pinning the blame on her for it being chosen for his experiment. This seemingly had the desired effect, distressing her enough to elicit a surrender of the information.
#3 As a Deterring Example to the Rest of the Galaxy
While Leia eventually caved enough to give a false location, Tarkin noted that the remote planet of Dantooine was not auspiciously placed enough to serve as an effective deterrent to other planets.
Despite believing that he now had the location of the Rebel base, Tarkin still destroyed Aldeeran to serve as an example.
Conclusion
Tarkin’s role as the authority figure that oversaw the destruction of important planets served the double and cyclical purpose of both bolstering his portrayal as a powerful member of the Imperial machine. As a result, this increased the threatening nature of the Empire as a whole, which then fed back into Tarkin’s position.
His place as the trigger for several impactful events makes him a memorable character despite his plain nature. This allowed the otherwise plain man to stand out in a world with aliens, droids, and lightsaber-wielding warriors.
As one of the most important Imperial officers for the Empire, you can find out if Tarkin actually outranked Vader here.
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