Following Order 66 and the destruction of the Jedi Order in Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Darth Sidious and his new apprentice, Darth Vader went about rebuilding the galaxy in their image. And while the Jedi were decimated, there were still a fair number of them running around looking to cause problems for the new Galactic Empire. To deal with them, the two Sith lords took some of the more morally dubious Jedi who survived, as well as Force-sensitive children and created The Order of Inquisitors. Induction to the program depended on the person. Some were happy to serve, while others had to be tortured before they agreed to join.
The Order of Inquisitors made their debut in “Spark of Rebellion,” the first episode of Star Wars: Rebels, and instantly captured the imagination of the fans. Their double-sided lightsabers that spin, their awesome uniforms and masks, and, perhaps most interestingly, their naming convention — each member is given a sibling status and number (Tenth Brother, Seventh Sister) — made the Inquisitors mysterious and dangerous right out of the gate. Adding to it all is that, to this day, no one knows how many Inquisitors there are. There have been at least 16 Inquisitors in Star Wars canon so far, but no movie, show, book, or comic, has ever stated exactly how many Inquisitors are out there.
But the greatest mystery surrounding the Inquisitors is what happened to them. While these Force-wielders are not explicitly Sith, they worked for the Sidious and spent the period between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope hunting down the remaining Jedi, but then they just upped and vanished, never to be seen again (aside from one who just adds to the mystery of it all). So where did the Inquisitors go?
The Inquisitors Were All Killed Before A New Hope Began
The best hint as to what happened to the Inquisitor corps appears in Star Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire. The book, written by Dr. Chris Kempshall, a very real World War I historian, is an in-universe historical novel that is — again, in-universe — was written by Beaumont Kin, a member of the Resistance and a historian himself. Kin appears in the sequel trilogy, played by Dominic Monaghan, firmly setting him within Star Wars canon. In the book, Kin writes about the Inquisitors, saying:
“Though it is impossible to accurately judge the number of Jedi who became victims of the Inquisitorius, it is nonetheless clear the Inquisitors were highly successful in their assigned task.”
Kin goes on to theorize about the Inquisitors, suggesting that the Order was very good at their job of hunting down and killing the remaining Jedi, ensuring that the once powerful group of galactic peacekeepers would never be able to regroup and challenge the Empire. In fact, as Kin points out, they Inquisitors had all vanished before the Battle of Yavin, and the only hint at what happened to them comes from Sidious’ personal records, which were found on Exegol. The only thing the former emperor says about the Inquisitorius is that they had become “obsolete.”
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From here, Kin presupposes that, no longer seeing a need for them since, as far as they knew, there were no more Jedi in the galaxy, Sidious and Darth Vader killed the Inquisitors to ensure the group — however many there may have been — would not rise up against them. But, as Kin notes in The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire, “Given that the exact number of Inquisitors is still undetermined, we cannot be sure if any survived the fall of the Empire.” As seen in Ahsoka, one Inquisitor did survive. Or more likely, was resurrected.
The First Brother Was Also The Last Inquisitor (That We Know Of)
Marrok wielding a red lightsaber while preparing to attack Maul in Maul – Shadow Lord
Marrok, also known as First Brother, was, as his name suggests, one of the first Inquisitors. The character made his on-screen debut in Ahsoka working for the Nightsister Morgan Elsbeth. The moment Marrok’s spinning lightsaber appeared, fans knew he was an Inquisitor, but this only created more questions, the main one being “where had he been for the original trilogy?” A few episodes later, it would become clear that Ahsoka creator and George Lucas’ former mentee Dave Filoni already had an answer for that.
When Ahsoka killed Marrok, he let out an unearthly scream and turned into a green mist. This suggests that Marrok was already dead and had been brought back by Elsbeth to help her achieve her own goals. How Marrock originally died remains a mystery, but it looks like it may be one that gets answered in Maul: Shadow Lord. Marrok played a major role in the first season, and it seems like a safe bet that he and the Eleventh Brother – who will also die by Ahsoka’s hand at some point – will be in the second season as well.
Still, Marrok’s appearance in Ahsoka, even if he is little more than a reanimated corpse, makes him the last known Inquisitor. And, as one of the first of the group, he is also the longest lasting. How much more fans will learn about him — and the other Inquisitors — remains a mystery.
TV Show(s)
The Mandalorian, Andor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, The Acolyte, Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, Lando, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels, Star Wars: The Bad Batch, Star Wars: Resistance, Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures, Star Wars: Visions
Cast
Mark Hamill, James Earl Jones, David Prowse, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Ian McDiarmid, Ewan McGregor, Rosario Dawson, Lars Mikkelsen, Rupert Friend, Moses Ingram, Frank Oz, Pedro Pascal
Movie(s)
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back, Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi, Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens, Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi, Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise of Skywalker, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi, Star Wars: New Jedi Order