Corellia: From Shipyards To Slums

Corellia: home of fast ships and daring pilots, the capital of the Corellian Sector. It is the birthplace of many starships in the galaxy. It is also where smugglers and scoundrels take their first steps into the lucrative underworld. Notable Corellians (other than our illustrious Han Solo) include Senator Garm Bel Iblis, General Crix Madine, Captain Wedge Antilles, the bounty hunter Dengar, and of course Han’s old paramore Qi’ra. The Corellians are known for their wanderlust. They are daring people who are not afraid to leave their homes to explore the unknown. You can usually find them congregating together in foreign spaceports. For this reason, there is usually a Corellian cantina at major spaceports. While humans make up more than half the native population of Corellia, other species that inhabit the planet include Drawlls and Selonians.

Most people think of factories and shipyards when they think of Corellia. However, a big part of the planet is made up of lush forests, rolling hills, and grassy plains with pleasant temperate weather. About 15,000 years before the films, the pollution brought about by all the industrialization on the planet caused three centuries of ecological disasters. Temperatures rose, sea levels rose, deserts grew, rain became caustic, and famines and diseases ravaged the planet. In order to save their world, the Corellians worked to move their entire industrial infrastructure to the planet’s orbit, eventually having a huge metal net of factories, foundries, refineries, and shipyards spread over half of Corellia’s orbit.

How did Corellia come to dominate the shipbuilding industry? Their oldest written history states that the ancient Corellians slaved under the brutal Rakata rule. While they labored in the factories, the Corellians learned all they could about technology and engineering. When the Rakata became afflicted with a mysterious plague, the Corellians were able to rise up against their oppressors. The Rakata fled, leaving behind their factories and advanced technology. The Corellians were then able to reverse-engineer the hyperdrive technology. Once they discovered hyperspace flight, the they began exploring the galaxy. The Corellian Run is a major hyperspace trade route running from Coruscant to the Outer Rim regions, passing through major sectors of the Core worlds, and the Inner and Middle Rim territories along the way.

For the role they play in Corellian society, businesses like Corellian Engineering Corporation hold the real power in the government. Due to their influence on the galactic economy, Corellia was able to maintain a degree of independence under Galactic Empire rule. The Corellian navy was autonomous from the Imperial navy. The Imperial Moff of the Corellian sector only kept a loose grip on the planet, allowing legitimate and criminal businesses to operate mostly unimpeded. The Corellian Security Force (CorSec), the law enforcement agency on Corellia, still operated independently on the planet, even though they were attached to the Imperial Security Bureau (ISB). Still, the Empire held garrisons and rooted out rebels on the planet.

Coronet City is the capital city of Corellia, and essentially of the entire Corellian System. A postcard picture of the city depicts tall beautiful buildings by the blue water. The production crew of Solo: A Star Wars Story envisioned it as “industrial Venice.” The modern metropolis is a melting pot of cultures as sentient species from different parts of the galaxy pass through here. A highly efficient transit system consisting of maglev, subway, and speeder bus connect different parts of the buzzling city.

Blue Sector is the shady underbelly of Coronet City. CorSec has given up patrolling the area, ceding control to local swoop gangs. Despite its less than stellar reputation, it is a popular destination for tourists and locals alike. Here you will find cantinas, tattoo parlors, shabby hotels, and run down residences. The Treasure Ship Row in the Blue Sector is a popular large open-air market. Part legitimate business, part black market, if you cannot find it in The Row, it does not exist, so the saying goes. However, you can also join the scrappers in scavenging through “The Pit” or Coronet City Waste Disposal Center. After all, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.

This concludes our tour of Corellia. We hope to see more of it onscreen in the near future. With many Corellians playing a major role in the Star Wars story, it is only a matter of time before we do.

Written By Apinya Wong

Source(s): Star Wars: Edge of the Empire: Suns of Fortune, Wookieepedia

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