Saw Gerrera’s Partisans receive little attention in the legends that emerged
from the Alliance to Restore the Republic. The story of the Rebellion is instead that
of disparate cells that nobly battled the Empire before coming together into a cohesive
whole. This narrative is perhaps necessary to sustain the legitimacy of the New Republic,
but fails to recognize the actions of those who fought the Empire
on their own terms, without whom, victory might not have been possible.
The Partisans emerged from the Clone Wars as a direct successor to the Onderon Resistance
Movement. During the conflict, this group had fought a lengthy and costly campaign
to overthrow King Sanjay and his Seperatist backers, and eventually succeeded in aligning
the world of Onderon to the side of the Galactic Republic. The transition of the Republic into the
Galactic Empire however, was seen as a betrayal of all that had been won during the Clone Wars,
and the Onderon Resistance was reformed by one of its central figures: Saw Gerrera.
The group was quickly labeled insurgents due to their vocal opposition to Emperor Palpatine’s
Proclamation of the New Order. Concerned that their heroic reputation as freedom
fighters during the Clone Wars might now undermine the nascent Imperial regime,
Admiral Wilhuff Tarkin ordered Gerrera and his group be hunted down and killed.
In spite of numerous attempts to capture him, Saw Gerra eluded Imperial authorities
and began operating in the Outer Rim Territories. Through his dealings with sympathetic mercenaries,
smugglers and defectors, his group, now known as the Partisans, were able to inflict significant
damage on Imperial personnel and facilities. Among the group’s most renowned exploits was
the successful extradition of the scientist Galen Erso and his family off of Coruscant.
The Partisans were later active on Kashyyk, attempting to interrupt the
Empire’s exploitation and weaponization of the world’s natural resources.
Despite these successes, the tactics of the Partisans were extreme and often involved
significant civilian casualties. The Partisans were known to torture captured Imperial personnel,
deliberately target high ranking Imperial officers and slaughtered those who attempted to surrender.
A massacre committed at Saw’s order at the Sakoola blossom festival was particularly ruthless,
and led to many of his followers abandoning the Partisans for less extreme Rebel cells.
Yet where the cruel actions of the Partisans turned away many,
they also appealed to those who had suffered under the rule of the Empire. At its height,
the Partisans grew to encompass several smaller subunits, and most notably a squadron of X-Wing
and U-Wing starfighters known as the Cavern Angels. Notable future Rebel leaders Benthic
“Two Tubes” and Jyn Erso would be among those who served with the Partisans during their peak.
Gerrera’s growing mental instability, linked to the death of his sister during the Clone Wars,
combined with the Partisans unrepentantly savage actions, led to a growing rift with the mainstream
Alliance leadership. Gerrera reportedly castigated later New Republic Chancellor Mon Mothma
as a coward and the Partisans were officially censured and denounced by the Rebellion in return.
Completely severed from the mainstream Alliance, Saw relocated the Partisans to Jedha,
hoping to leverage that world’s significant religious importance to serve his own motives.
His arrival galvanized the local resistance elements,
leading to increasingly fierce skirmishes with the Imperial garrison.
Saw Gerrera and many of his partisans were killed when Jedha was fired upon by
the DS-1 Battle Station. While Saw’s final actions would ultimately contribute to the
destruction of that same weapon, the Partisans never recovered from the death of the leader.
Multiple groups attempted to carry on Saw’s legacy, namely an extremist cell
known as the “Dreamers” before they were destroyed by Imperial special forces.
The rhetoric of the Alliance was always that their rebellion had been built on hope. Yet the
Partisans were a dark reminder that fear, anger and hatred were not the tools of the Empire alone.
Perhaps the greatest tragedy of their struggle was that the Partisans had no place in the
future they had fought to win, destined to be swept away by the progress of history.