From Alderaanian royalty to Dark Lords of the Sith, Star Wars has introduced fans to the leaders of countless planets and systems in a galaxy far, far away. One name that stands out in Star Wars history is Mon Mothma.
Originally a senator for the Galactic Republic, Mon Mothma went on to become the leader of the Rebel Alliance against the Galactic Empire in both canon and Legends. Here's what became of Mon Mothma after her last on-screen appearance in Return of the Jedi.
Chancellor Mothma
As famously depicted in Return of the Jedi, Mothma's Rebel Alliance successfully destroyed the second Death Star and Emperor Palpatine was killed by his former apprentice, Darth Vader. In canon, Mothma led the formation of the New Republic after this victory and became its first chancellor. In this position, she ultimately worked to reduce the powers of the chancellorship in order to prevent another Emperor from taking total control of the government.
Over the next few years, Mothma presided over the ongoing war between the New Republic and the remaining Empire forces. An attempt at peace between the Empire and the Republic was made when the public leader of the Empire, Grand Admiral Rae Sloane, visited Mothma on her homeworld of Chandrila for peace talks. A botched assassination attempt on Mothma ended these talks, with the remnants of the Empire retreating to Jakku.
Mothma later urged the Senate to attack the Empire's forces on Jakku to finally end the war. Although initially outvoted, she won the resolution on re-vote and sent Republic forces to the desert planet. The resulting Battle of Jakku ended in the Republic's favor, with Palpatine's former Grand Vizier Mas Amedda suing for peace. With the signing of the Imperial Instruments of Surrender and the Galactic Concordance, the Imperial government was officially dissolved and the Empire left in shambles. Mothma had finally achieved the peace she had been coveting for decades.
Chancellor Mothma eventually became ill and retired from her position. Her successors failed to keep the Senate together, resulting in the division of the Galactic Senate into two factions: the Populists and the Centrists. Mothma's only other major appearance following her retirement was when she showed personal support for Leia Organa after it was revealed to the public that Leia was the daughter of Darth Vader. Her legacy as the leader of the Rebel Alliance and the first Chancellor of the New Republic lived on following her unseen death, though her demilitarization of the New Republic contributed to it being unprepared to fight the Empire's successor, the First Order.
Chief of State Mothma
Before the depiction of Chancellor Mothma in the new canon, fans were introduced to Chief of State Mon Mothma of the New Republic in the Star Wars Legends continuity. Mothma's troubles in Legends went way beyond just the remnants of the Empire. The Republic reclaimed the capital world of Coruscant from the Empire, only to discover the old regime had left behind a devastating bioweapon called the Krytos virus. The virus affected only nonhumans and required large quantities of bacta to cure, creating an immense problem for the newly formed Republic government to grapple with.
The problems did not end there. Grand Admiral Thrawn made his original debut with no Ezra Bridger to stop him at the time. While battling Thrawn in a campaign that almost destroyed the New Republic, Mothma also had to face a group of Bothans trying to throw her out of office. Just as things finally settled down, Palpatine returned in a clone body and attacked the Republic. Although he was eventually defeated (again), Mothma was left to pick up the pieces of the damage he caused.
Mothma faced one final challenge in her time as Chief of State: a direct attack on her life. Infected with nanomachines by a corrupt ambassador, Mothma retired as the nanomachines worsened her health. She led her council to appoint Leia Organa Solo as her successor. Although she eventually had the nanomachines removed through a Force healing technique, Mothma never recovered her full strength and decided to stay in retirement. She passed away quietly in her sleep just before the start of the Yuuzhan Vong War.
All in all, Mothma's transition from leader of the Rebel Alliance to leader of the New Republic remains relatively the same between Legends and canon. The biggest difference, aside from her title, was the problems she faced while in office. Chancellor Mothma had only a weakened Empire to deal with, whereas Chief of State Mothma had to fight against an Empire that still had Thrawn and a revived Palpatine. In both versions, Mon Mothma proved herself as a hero and capable leader of the New Republic.