Sith

The Sith is an organization in the fictional Star Wars universe. It is an ancient interstellar kratocratic government led by those who seize power through force or cunning. Sith characters are frequently depicted as amoral, sadistic and violent. The Sith Order established several Sith Empires and have undergone numerous incarnations throughout their existence. The Banite Sith Order, as depicted in the Original trilogy and Prequel trilogy, was founded by Darth Bane; this sith dynasty lasted between circa "1,000 BBY-4 ABY"; (Before Battle of Yavin/After Battle of Yavin; "0 ABY" being the destruction of the first Death Star) ending with the death of Palpatine and Darth Vader. During this "Banite dynasty" there existed only two sith members at a time: a master and an apprentice.

Overview

The Sith are dedicated to sith philosophy and to mastering the dark side of the Force. The Sith members, known as Sith Lords or Dark Lords of the Sith, traditionally use the title Darth-prefix before their Sith name. The Sith are the archenemies of the quasi-religious Jedi and, like them, their main weapon is the lightsaber. While Jedi are subservient to the Force and aid the Galactic Republic by utilizing the Force for peace, knowledge and defense, the Sith prefer to exploit the Force for power, aggression or personal gain; desires that inevitably led to both imperial conquest and their own self-destruction.

Star Wars

Star Wars is an American epic space opera franchise, centered on a film series created by George Lucas. It depicts the adventures of various characters "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away".

The first film in the series, Star Wars (later subtitled Episode IV: A New Hope), was released on May 25, 1977 by 20th Century Fox and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon. It was followed by the similarly successful sequels The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983); these three films constitute the original Star Wars trilogy. A prequel trilogy was later released between 1999 and 2005, which received a more mixed reaction from critics and fans, compared to the original trilogy. All seven films were nominated for or won Academy Awards, and were commercial successes, with a combined box office revenue of $4.38 billion, making Star Wars the fourth highest-grossing film series. The series has spawned an extensive media franchise—the Star Wars expanded universe—including books, television series, computer and video games, and comic books, resulting in significant development of the series's fictional universe. Star Wars also holds a Guinness World Records title for the "Most successful film merchandising franchise." In 2012, the total value of the Star Wars franchise was estimated at USD $30.7 billion, including box-office receipts as well as profits from their video games and DVD sales.