Yaddle is a minor character in both the 1999 film Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace and the 2021 novel The High Republic: Out of the Shadows and the main antagonist of the Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi episode "The Sith Lord".
She was an ancient and legendary Jedi Master who lived through nearly half of the Republic Era and periodically maintained a seat on the Jedi High Council. She was a member of the same enigmatic long-lived species as Jedi Grand Master Yoda and the Mandalorian foundling Grogu.
In Tales of the Jedi, she was voiced by Bryce Dallas Howard, who played Claire Dearing in Jurassic World, Katherine Brewster in Terminator Salvation, Grace Meacham in Pete's Dragon and Bella in A Dog's Way Home.
Personality[]
One of the most revered members of the Jedi Order, Yaddle's fellow Jedi would often consult her for her wisdom and knowledge on many subjects. She came to be known as one of the most compassionate and thoughtful Jedi Masters. Yaddle was so compassionate that she helped the people of Koba rebuild their society even though they had trapped her in a cave for a century.
Yaddle was also a mentor to many of the students in the Jedi Order, offering advice to troubled students. She was also known to have turned a blind eye to any pranks the younglings would make, and even to have slipped sweets in their pockets.
Yaddle rarely spoke, but when she did, she spoke in anastrophe, the same unusual way as fellow council member Yoda. Yaddle used as few words as possible when speaking on the Jedi High Council, and had the habit of summing up conclusions that the other Council members would have reached eventually.
Biography[]
Yaddle was born in 509 BBY during the middle of the Republic Era and belonged to an enigmatic species characterized by their diminutive size and long lifespans. As a young Force-sensitive, Yaddle was taken to the Jedi Grand Temple on Coruscant to train in the ways of the Jedi. She eventually reached adulthood and, as a Jedi Master, was given a seat on the Jedi High Council that governed over the whole Jedi Order. Although she often committed herself to scholarly endeavours and spent a lot of time in the Jedi Archives, Yaddle was also an accomplished warrior and Force user whose deeds earned her recognition as a living legend.
Over the centuries, Yaddle trained a number of Jedi Padawans, one of which was Oppo Rancisis who later became a Master himself and also joined the Council. By the High Republic Era, the period in which the Jedi Order and the Galactic Republic were at their zenith, Yaddle had become an overseer of the Jedi Grand Temple's crèche where the Jedi younglings were raised. She was very fond of her position in the crèche, as she enjoyed nurturing the future generations of Jedi. Among the children she cared for was Vernestra Rwoh. By 231 BBY, Yaddle took a sabbatical from her Jedi duties to Kronk, but, due to missing the younglings in her care, she returned early.
Yaddle was present on the Jedi Council when Master Qui-Gon Jinn claimed he found a boy named Anakin Skywalker who believed to be the destined Chosen One. Yaddle and the Council tested the boy and found that he was incredibly gifted in the ways of the Force but close to the dark side.
After the Council meeting, Yaddle walked with Jinn through the halls of the Jedi Temple. As they approached an elevator, they were greeted by Dooku, who, despite having left the Order, was still privy to Jedi affairs. Dooku told the Jedi that he had been warning the Council about a forthcoming darkness for years, and that they had repeatedly disregarded his claims. Although she believed Jinn's claim to be true, Yaddle also agreed with her fellow Council members that caution should be observed before making any moves against the potential Sith Lord.
The Lost Jedi[]
A Loss of Faith[]
Not long afterwards, Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi encountered the same Sith Lord on the planet Naboo. Both Jinn and the Sith Lord (who was later identified as Darth Maul) were killed in a lightsaber duel against each other. In the dogma of the Sith, a master and apprentice ruled together, and so the Jedi theorized that Maul had been the apprentice of a more powerful Sith Lord hiding behind the scenes. Realizing that Dooku had been right all along about the Jedi's arrogance and complacency and the return of the Sith, Yaddle became disillusioned with the Jedi High Council and stepped down from her seat on it.
Shortly after Jinn's death, Yaddle approached the Great Tree, a sacred tree located in the Jedi Temple, to see Dooku. Dooku, who was stood by the tree alone, reminisced about how much Jinn had adored the Great Tree as a child because he had been born on Coruscant, a planet of steel and stone. Yaddle was saddened by Dooku's pain, and reported to him that the Jedi Council had departed for Naboo where Qui-Gon Jinn's funeral was going to be held. Dooku told Yaddle that he wouldn't be attending because of his conflict with the Council, and that he was already prepared to make peace with Qui-Gon's tragic demise.
Duel Against the Dark[]
Yaddle knew Dooku well, and thought there was something he was concealing. When Dooku left the Jedi Temple in a speeder, Yaddle secretly followed him to see what he would be doing instead of attending Qui-Gon's funeral. Dooku eventually docked in a hangar in a rundown facility in the Works district of Coruscant. Quietly parking her own vehicle, Yaddle snuck into the hangar and discovered that Dooku was meeting with a cloaked man, who she soon identified as being Darth Sidious the Sith Lord the Jedi were searching for and the master of Darth Maul. Dooku was angry that Sidious's apprentice had killed his former apprentice Qui-Gon Jinn.
Sidious reassured Dooku that Jinn's death was a necessary evil in their plans to reform the Galactic Republic into an institution built around their ideas of peace and order. Dooku was wavering however, as he had already secretly committed atrocities in the name of his new master's cause. Yaddle was shocked by what she discovered, but nevertheless resolved to end the Sith plot before it could cause any more pain. Revealing herself from the shadows, Yaddle tried to appeal to Dooku to redeem himself by taking her side and fighting Sidious together. Although hesitant, Dooku resolved himself and drew his lightsaber against Yaddle.
Yaddle drew her own lightsaber to defend herself and was quickly pressed on the back foot by Dooku's fast and precise strikes. Using her acrobatics, Yaddle was able to escape into the shadows by breaking Dooku's line of sight. She tried to reason with Dooku as he searched for her, stating that she agreed that the Jedi had given themselves over to conceit and that Jinn's death hadn't been necessary. However, Dooku had already made his mind up and continued pressing his attack once he found her. Yaddle was driven back to the entrance of the hangar, where she briefly considered making a break for her ship so she could warn the Council.
Instead of giving up, she overcame her exhaustion and reengaged Dooku one final time. Dooku pushed Yaddle back further and used the Force to bring the heavy hangar door down on her, seemingly crushing her in the process. Yaddle used the rest of her strength to open a slit in the heavy door, allowing herself to slip through it. Dooku and Sidious were both taken aback by her extraordinary resolve as she collapsed to the ground with her power spent. Yaddle told Dooku that his twisted idea of peace and order had already caused so much suffering. Realizing he truly had no other choice, Dooku executed Jedi Master Yaddle with his lightsaber.
Legacy[]
Yaddle's vacant seat on the Jedi Council was filled by Jedi Master Shaak Ti. Yaddle's efforts to reach Dooku were ultimately in vain, as were her attempts to stop the Sith, though she was eventually avenged by Anakin when he reluctantly killed Dooku. Thirteen years after her demise, Darth Sidious was able to reform the Galactic Republic into a tyrannical Galactic Empire. The Jedi were systemically hunted down and executed by the Empire, and many in the galaxy experienced fear and oppression in the new Imperial Era.
Gallery[]
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Trivia[]
- Despite being the same species as him, Yaddle does not speak like Yoda.
- Yaddle's has two different deaths in each continuity:
- In "Legends", she dies protecting people.
- In the current canon, she is killed by Count Dooku.
