The Clone Army was the backbone of the Galactic Republic’s military force against the
Separatists’ droid armies, with a majority of the troopers willing to do anything to
serve their commanders, including sacrificing their own
lives without second thought if duty called for it.
This commitment to serve with absolute loyalty stemmed directly from their upbringing on
Kamino, where they were bred and trained from birth to become perfect soldiers.
So what was this upbringing like, and how were they treated
by their creators while they were children and
later teens?
The life of Clones during their childhood and teenage years was one of dehumanization
and near-constant combat training.
Right upon a Clone’s birth, they were assigned a letter and
number identification, and were treated by the Kaminoans as nothing more than livestock
that required to be raised as soldiers.
A mindset even shared by Jango Fett, who held no emotional
attachment to the Clones aside from his son Boba Fett.
Their accelerated aging not only cut their lives in half of the typical Human lifespan,
but was also said to have caused physical pain to the Clones
during their adolescent years, as their bodies’ natural growth spurts were artificially sped
up, causing painful complications that lasted until
they were fully grown adults.
The very moment a Clone was around the age of 5, or 10 years physically, was when they
began their training.
Said training was nonstop and it involved: hand to hand combat, rapid
education of military tactics, and programs that cemented their loyalty to the Republic.
While still young, some Clones were known to misbehave and be disobedient.
Those that acted out were punished by being placed in retraining
pods, where they were isolated for long periods and forced to undergo tedious mental exercises
until they were released.
Clones that continued to misbehave were threatened by the Kaminoans of being disposed, a
threat they were known to carry out until the involvement of the Jedi Order.
While in their youth, the education the Clones underwent was intense, requiring them to
memorize countless information ranging from battlefield tactics to military command protocols.
The helmets they wore enhanced their focus, as well as recorded their results.
During this education, they were also taught teamwork and competitiveness.
This was done by separating the classes into two groups during
examinations, divided by gold and blue fitted helmets.
Those with the same colors were required to work together in solving various problems
in rapid succession, attempting to outperform the other group.
Very little time was given for leisure, of which Clones used to form bonds between their
bunk mates which later evolved to them viewing
each other as family.
As teenagers, Clones participated in sports and games, but these activities were primarily
done to prepare them for future combat practice,
as they resembled some aspect of battle scenarios they would encounter later in their training.
By their mid to late teens, Clones were fully trained to handle blasters along with other
weaponry, and they honed their skills in numerous battle simulations.
Clones during training were not allowed to go out of the Kamino facilities, with most
never seeing the outside until they were deployed
to combat.
This later changed during the outbreak of the Clone Wars, where Clone Cadets were known
to leave Kamino and be stationed on either Republic
Outposts or Cruisers to observe and practice on.
Overall, the Clones' childhood and teenage years consisted almost entirely of training
to become soldiers, with even recreational events
such as the sports they participated in being done so to only prepare them for their final
purpose.
With their entire lives dictated to them by their creators and any resistance curbed out
early on, few ever imagined a life outside of being
a soldier they were bred and trained to become.
Before we end, we want to give a special shout out to Beka Morgan for allowing us to use
her artwork of the young clone cadets for the
video.
Be sure to check out her other Star Wars fan creations at her website along with her other
artwork.
Links to her pages will be in the description below!