Luke Skywalker may be the protagonist of the Original Trilogy, with Anakin the overarching main character of the Skywalker Saga, but you can’t bring up Star Wars without mentioning Princess Leia Organa. One of the three principal heroes in the Original Trilogy, Leia has become one of the series’ most important (and popular) characters within the Star Wars universe itself.
An astute politician, a loving mother, a caring wife, a freedom-fighter bent on the eradication of tyranny, and even a part-time Jedi practitioner, Leia is among the most fascinating individuals within Star Wars. In many ways, her lengthy path to heroism is akin to her twin brother Luke’s journey to becoming a Jedi, complete with her own set of trials and tribulations along the way.
Given Leia’s importance in the Star Wars universe, you’d be right to assume that the former princess of Alderaan has been depicted in a large number of films, TV series, novels, and comic books over the years. From her earliest linear appearance in Revenge of the Sith up to her death in The Rise of Skywalker, here is every chronological appearance made by Leia Organa in Star Wars.
Complete Linear History of Leia’s Appearances in Star Wars
As one of the original heroes of Star Wars’ initial trilogy, Leia – like her brother Luke and her lover Han – has been featured in numerous Star Wars-related media. For a simplified look at each of her main appearances in Star Wars, we put together this chronological guide that tracks her life from infancy onward:
- Leia: Princess of Alderaan (Claudia Gray)
- Star Wars: Princess Leia (Mark Waid)
- Moving Target: A Princess Leia Adventure (Cecil Castellucci and Jason Fry)
- Shattered Empire (Greg Rucka)
- Star Wars: The Princess and the Scoundrel (Beth Revis)
While this guide might be useful to anyone who plans on doing a deep-dive on Leia’s history in the Star Wars, we also thought we’d provide basic information about Leia’s story, from the circumstances of her birth through to her service in the Rebellion and, later, the Resistance.
Revenge of the Sith
In 19 BBY, Leia and Luke are born to Padmé Amidala on the asteroid Polis Massa. After Padmé dies giving birth to the twins, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda, and Bail Organa agree to separate the siblings to prevent them from falling into the hands of the Empire. While Luke is taken to live with his aunt and uncle on Tatooine, the infant Leia is adopted by Organa and his wife Breha, who agree to raise the child as their own on Alderaan.
Obi-Wan Kenobi
In 9 BBY, a 10-year-old Leia is kidnapped by a mysterious crime syndicate, who hold her hostage in the hopes of drawing out the fugitive Jedi Knight, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Answering several distress messages from Leia’s adoptive father Bail, Obi-Wan (now known as Ben) rescues the young Leia from the criminal forces, the two going on a lengthy journey together fleeing from Imperial Inquisitors and Darth Vader himself.
Having averted several precarious situations, Obi-Wan returns Leia to her family on Alderaan, bidding her goodbye. Though upset at the prospect of leaving Obi-Wan, Leia resolves to embrace her family’s influence in the Senate, legally combating the corruption of the Empire as she grows older.
Leia: Princess of Alderaan (Claudia Gray)
Growing into young adulthood, Leia follows in the Organa family’s footsteps, educating herself on the inner mechanisms of the Imperial Senate. Embarking on a variety of humanitarian peace-keeping missions across the far reaches of the galaxy, Leia discovers Bail and Breha’s role in anti-Imperial activities. Becoming disillusioned by the Empire’s treatment of subservient planets, Leia ultimately joins her parents’ cause, effectively joining the Rebellion in 3 BBY at 16-years-old.
Rebels
For the next several, a teenage Leia continues her fight against the Empire in more ways than one. On the surface, she contests the Empire’s burgeoning influence in the far reaches of the galaxy within the Senate, simultaneously conspiring with rebel cells in their own secretive battle with the Empire.
In 3 BBY, a 16-year-old Leia makes contact with the Rebels on Lothal on behalf of her father. Led by Leia, the group steals three valuable ships from the Empire. Inspired by Leia’s stalwart belief in democracy and impressed by her bravery, Lothal’s governor-turned-insurgent Ryder Azadi formally joins the Rebellion, almost entirely based on Leia’s impressive work with the Lothal Rebels.
Forces of Destiny
Leia appears in a handful of episodes of the animated anthology, Forces of Destiny, with the episodes she’s featured in jumping around in the Star Wars timeline. From a linear perspective, her first appearance comes in “Bounty of Trouble.” Set in 3 BBY, the episode features Leia escaping from her Stormtrooper escorts to meet with Sabine Wren, the two handing off a top-secret tape detailing Imperial facilities.
In “Beasts of Echo Base,” Leia and R2-D2 search for Chewbacca after he is captured by a Wampa on Hoth. After Han is frozen in carbonite and delivered to Jabba the Hutt, Leia enlists the help of Han’s old friend, Maz Kanata, who manages to trick the bounty hunter Boussh into arriving on Ord Mantell. Once the bounty hunter is knocked unconscious, Leia steals his armor away, using it to impersonate Boussh and infiltrate Jabba’s Palace.
In “Ewok Escape,” Leia helps her companion Wicket free two Ewoks who’d been pinned down by Stormtroopers on Endor. Later, in “Ewok Escape,” Luke and Leia stop a rampaging monster from harming any Ewoks on the planet. Around the same time, Leia pressures Han to negotiate with Hera Syndulla for some much-needed supplies wanted by the Ewoks in “An Imperial Feast.”
Rogue One
In 0 BBY, the Rebellion seizes an opportunity to exploit a major design flaw in the Death Star’s construction, hoping to acquire the battle station’s classified construction plans to better understand where the Death Star’s weak points are. With the Rebel Alliance launching a full-scale military engagement against the Empire on Scarif, 19-year-old Leia and her flagship, the Tantive IV, participate in the battle.
With the plans relayed to a Rebel command ship, Leia’s crew narrowly avoid the clutches of Darth Vader. The plans now secured on their ship, the Tantive IV escapes into hyperspace, with Leia expressing her belief that the plans carry “hope” in the Rebellion’s fight against the Empire.
A New Hope
Moments after the battle of Scarif, the Tantive IV is intercepted by Darth Vader’s Star Destroyer while orbiting over Tatooine. Slipping the Death Star’s plans to R2-D2, Leia sends R2 and C-3PO planet-side to find Obi-Wan Kenobi, who she believes is the only person capable of delivering the plans to the Rebellion.
Promptly captured by Vader, Leia is then brought onboard the Death Star, where she’s physically tortured by the Sith Lord and made to watch as her homeworld of Alderaan is destroyed before her very eyes. Through it all, she manages to avoid telling Vader and Grand Moff Tarkin the location of the secret Rebel base. Before she can be executed by Tarkin’s troops, Leia is rescued by Luke, Han, and Chewbacca, watching as Obi-Wan is cut down by Vader before fleeing from the Death Star.
Finally delivering the plans to the Rebel base on Yavin IV, Leia remains on the planet as the Alliance launches a desperate last ditch effort to destroy the battle station. After Luke demolishes the Death Star, a joyous Leia presides over a victorious Rebel celebration, awarding Luke and Han with ceremonial medals for their individual acts of bravery.
Star Wars: Princess Leia (Mark Waid)
Immediately after the battle of Yavin, Leia leads a humanitarian mission to rescue the few surviving inhabitants of Alderaan, who have been branded fugitives of the Empire. Working with R2 and Rebel pilot Evaan Verlainem, Leia manages to round up a large contingent of Alderaanians, encouraging them to carry on their homeworld’s cultures and traditions – to the point of electing a new princess – before returning to her friends in the Rebellion.
Star Wars (Marvel)
For the next few years, Leia continues to aid in the Rebellion’s efforts to undermine the Empire, leading several military missions and securing politically valuable alliances with several planets who defect from the Empire. As the Galactic Civil War rages on and Leia’s leadership skills improve, her early romance with Han Solo evolves as well, the smuggler continuously expressing a romantic interest in the former Alderaanian politician, even as Leia appears more concerned with her pressing work in the Rebellion.
The Empire Strikes Back
In 3 ABY, the Empire discovers the Rebellion’s hidden base on Hoth. Overseeing the planet’s defense and evacuation as Vader’s forces arrive on Hoth, Leia leaves with Han onboard the Millenium Falcon. Outrunning Vader – who remains in relentless pursuit of the Falcon – Han pilots the ship in several desperate attempts to get away from the Empire, only for Vader to continuously renew the chase.
Even as the hope for survival seems desperate, Leia slowly begins to reciprocate Han’s romantic feelings, the two sharing several passionate moments alone on the Falcon. Out of options, Han turns to his old friend, Lando Calrissian, landing the Falcon on Bespin. Initially welcomed by his estranged friend, Han and his friends are betrayed and apprehended by Vader. Before freezing Han in carbonite and handing him over to Boba Fett, Leia finally admits her true feelings for Han, telling the smuggler. “I love you,” to which Han replies, “I know.”
Escorted away from the carbonite chamber by Imperial forces, Lando frees Leia, Chewie, and C-3PO, aiding them in their attempt to rescue Han before he’s taken away by Boba. Though they ultimately fail in saving Han, Leia overhears a psychic message from Luke through the Force, turning the Falcon around and rescuing Luke after his disastrous duel with Vader. Reunited again, the Rebel band regroups in the midst of an Alliance fleet, resolving to save Han together.
Moving Target: A Princess Leia Adventure (Cecil Castellucci and Jason Fry)
Looking back on her life as an older political figure in the New Republic, Leia remembers a momentous mission in between the events on Bespin and the Rebellion’s victory on Endor. In particular, she details the Alliance first discovering that the Empire was rebuilding the Death Star, as well as the early formulation of their plan to destroy the station’s shields on Endor.
To rally as many Rebel ships to their cause as possible, Leia travels the galaxy on a mission dubbed Operation Yellow Moon, recruiting Rebel ships wherever she can. At the end of the mission, she learns that Han’s frozen body is currently being held on Tatooine, and begins mapping out a plan to save him alongside Luke.
Return of the Jedi
In 4 ABY, a 23-year-old Leia helps her friends infiltrate Jabba’s Palace on Tatooine, masquerading as the bounty hunter Boussh to get inside. Once there, she unfreezes Han, leading to an emotional reunion between the two that is cut short by Jabba. Capturing them, Jabba enslaves Leia and condemns Han, Luke, and Chewie to execution via the Sarlacc Pit. Brandishing a lightsaber, Luke manages to free himself, cutting down most of Jabba’s henchmen as Leia uses her chains to personally strangle the infamous Hutt gangster.
Together once again, the group rendezvous with the Rebel fleet, who finalize their plans to destroy the Death Star II. Joining a Rebel tactical team sent to the forest moon of Endor, Leia encounters a tribe of Ewoks on the planet, securing a strategic alliance between the Rebellion and the moon’s natives. Speaking with Luke, Leia learns that he is actually her long-lost twin brother, coming to terms with her own familial relationship to Vader in the process.
As Luke departs to face Vader and Palpatine on the Death Star, Leia and Han lead the Rebellion’s mission to destroy the shield generator. Though personally wounded in the battle, the Rebels are successful in demolishing the generator. Watching the Death Star’s destruction from the ground, Leia informs Han of her connection to Luke, the two embracing together as a couple. Later, Leia once again meets with Luke on Endor, joining their fellow Rebels and their Ewok allies as they celebrate their victory over the Empire.
Shattered Empire (Greg Rucka)
Rebounding from their loss on Endor, the Empire mounts a furious counteroffensive in the wake of the Emperor’s death. Now on the defensive, the Rebels are forced back into combat against the vengeful Imperial fleet, with Leia working with her close friends in the Alliance, Shara Bey and Kes Dameron, the parents of Leia’s future lieutenant, Poe Dameron.
Star Wars: The Princess and the Scoundrel (Beth Revis)
Winning the battle of Endor and fending off a rampant Imperial counter-attack, the Rebels are fully able to embrace their victory. With the end of the Galactic Civil War in sight, Leia is confronted with a choice: Either she follow in Luke’s footsteps and train as a Jedi, or marry Han after he formally proposes to her. Despite wanting to study the ways of the Jedi, Leia chooses the latter, marrying Han in 4 ABY.
Bloodline (Claudia Gray)
Jumping ahead in the timeline, Leia’s military career in the Rebellion has concluded, the Alliance having taken control over the galaxy and reforming itself into the New Republic by 28 ABY. Now 47-years-old, Leia’s efforts to rebuild the galaxy is mired by continuous factional fighting within the Senate. A shoo-in for a powerful administrative position, Leia’s chances at election are sabotaged by a rival political party, who reveal to the galaxy at large Leia’s true connection to Darth Vader.
Realizing how corrupt and ineffective the New Republic has grown since its formation, Leia willingly leaves her government post, reuniting with several former Alliance members and creating an underground movement known as the Resistance. Around the same time, Leia and Han’s son, Ben, has joined Luke’s restored Jedi Order, learning the ways of the Force under his uncle. Unfortunately, due to what he sees as an attempt on his life made by Luke, Ben turns to the Dark Side, disappearing and joining the New Republic’s foremost enemy, the First Order. In the wake of the tragedy, Luke disappears, with Leia and Han deciding to end their marriage after several decades together.
Resistance
For the next six years, Leia and her Resistance movement hunt down the shadowy threat of the First Order, formed primarily by remnants of the old Empire and idealistic believers in the Imperial cause. By 34 ABY, the Resistance has grown fairly sizable, with Leia joined by her most trusted subordinate, Poe Dameron, who acts as her second-in-command.
The Force Awakens
In 34 ABY, a map to Luke’s location becomes available, causing both the First Order and the Resistance to launch a far-ranging manhunt to find the missing Skywalker. Racing against her son – who’s since taken on the moniker of Kylo Ren – Leia sends Poe on a mission to find her brother. Aware that BB-8 is carrying the map to Luke’s location, Leia launches a Resistance offensive on Takodana, preventing Rey, Han, and Finn from being captured by the First Order.
Reuniting with Han for the first time in years, Leia expresses her belief that good still remains in Ben, and that there’s still a chance he can return to the Light Side of the Force. Volunteering for a dangerous assignment to land on the First Order’s Starkiller Base to rescue Rey and sabotage the battle station internally, Han confronts his Ren, who – after a moment of internal struggle – kills him. Though the base is destroyed thanks to the combined efforts of Rey, Finn, and Poe, a grieving Rey meets with Leia after the battle’s conclusion, the two mutually comforting one another for their shared loss. Leia then personally sees Rey, Chewbacca, and R2-D2 off on their mission to find Luke, reminding them all that “the Force is with them.”
The Last Jedi
Immediately after the Starkiller Base’s destruction, Leia orders the Resistance headquarters on D’Qar to be evacuated. Threatened by the emergence of a large First Order fleet, Leia oversees the Resistance armada’s attempt to outrun the clutches of the enemy. Early on in the armada’s flight, the bridge of Leia’s flagship, the Raddus, is fired upon by First Order pilots, sending Leia into space. Utilizing her brief Jedi training under Luke, Leia uses the Force to escape from certain death, pulling herself back onboard the ship.
Though temporarily left out of action from the ordeal, Leia wakes up to prevent a planned mutiny by Poe, escaping with a small cadre of Resistance troops on transport carriers to the planetary surface of Crait. Stalling the First Order’s ground assault, the Resistance prepares for their sure destruction, only for a projection of Luke to appear. Reuniting with Leia, Luke apologizes for his failure in teaching Ben, biding time for the Resistance to escape before passing away. Onboard the Falcon once again, Leia and Rey grieve Luke’s death, with Leia expressing hope that the Resistance can carry on the fight against the First Order.
The Rise of Skywalker
Over the course of the next year, Leia resumes Rey’s Jedi training, succeeding her brother’s place as the young woman’s master. At this time, it’s revealed that Leia ceased her own Jedi training under Luke after she experienced a vision of Ben’s death. As Rey faces Ren on Kef Bir, a dying Leia uses the Force to distract her son, the effort ultimately causing her to lose her own life at the age of 54. In homage to her former master, Rey uses Leia’s lightsaber in her battle against the resurrected Palpatine, allowing her to best the deposed emperor and permanently destroy him.
With the First Order demolished, Rey travels to Tatooine, venturing to the abandoned farmstead of Luke’s youth. There, she buries the lightsabers of both Luke and Leia. After a passer-by asks her who she is, Rey – seeing a vision of Luke and Leia, reunited together through the Force – Rey replies, “Rey Skywalker,” assuming her former masters’ name out of respect and reverence.
Richard Chachowski is a freelance writer based in New Jersey. He loves reading, his dog Tootsie, and pretty much every movie to ever exist (especially Star Wars).
