- The Republic's Great Manifest period (20,000–17,000 BBY) marked an increased movement into the Rimward territories of the Slice, which became known as the Expansion Region."
- ―From the text of The New Essential Chronology by Voren Na'al
Culturally, the Republic was undergoing change, as well. Vianism, a religion that had developed among the Core Worlds, became non-extant on its generative planets; however, it spread into the expanding regions of the galaxy and took hold within the Kanz sector. Additionally, the famed Shawken Spire saw its destruction during the Great Manifest Period, an event that was remembered over 8,000 years later. All the while, outside of Republic space, the two planets Neona and Kamino underwent dramatic climate changes. These events, which began during the Great Manifest Period, caused extinction for the native species of Neona and forced adaption of the Kaminoan species. Nevertheless, the era and its corresponding boom were brought to an abrupt end by internal strife in the form of the First Alsakan Conflict.
Proem
See also: Expansionist Era
As the years passed, the Republic continued to expand. Exploration into the regions colloquially known as "Wild Space" and the blazing of new hyperspace routes were regarded as dangerous endeavors. The risks notwithstanding, the Republic was expanding into the area of space that later became known as "the Slice." By 100 years before the Great Manifest Period began, many worlds in the Inner Rim and Colonies had been settled.[2] Additionally, some cultures had begun Rimward migration during this time. Among them, the Etti had fled the Core Worlds as a reaction to persecution at the hands of the what they viewed as the Republic's oppressive and tyrannical government. These people had terraformed the planet Etti IV and relocated outside of the Republic boundaries—and Coruscant's bureaucracy.[5]
The galaxy during the Great Manifest Period
Commerce and politics
Early expansion and bureaucratic growth
The Great Manifest Period of the Galactic Republic began in 20,000 BBY. Planets such as Alsakan, Corellia, and Coruscant continued the trend of expansion and settlement deeper into "the Slice," populating the Expansion Region.
The colonization and expansion had become institutionalized during this
time, with companies and planets vying for resources and settlements.
Corellia and Coruscant were able to stake claim to the choicest
locations along hyperspace routes, however, prompting resentment to
brood on Alsakan. Within the Slice proper, colonists and corporations
from Alsakan and Coruscant aggressively competed for new systems in which to establish their hold, while Corellia largely staked its claim south of the galactic center.[2]About 20,000 BBY, the Core World planet Metellos was experiencing the domestic problems of overpopulation and a lack of trade. The planetary government commissioned a new hyperspace route to connect eastward, to Coruscant, with the intent of easing its struggle.[6] Additionally, the planet hoped that the new hyperspace route would extend west of the Core in a manner analogous to the super-routes of the Perlemian Trade Route and the Corellian Run, which connected far-flung regions of space with the Core.[2] When the route reached its completion, the new Metellos Trade Route connected eastward to Coruscant as desired,[6] but the trail only extended westward to Orooturoo due to anomalous eddies within hyperspace west of the Core. Ultimately, trade with Coruscant marginally increased, but commercial traffic saw the most growth between Metellos and Orooturoo.[2]
As the Republic burgeoned, so did its bureaucracy. With the growth of Republic space, new sectors were created and gained representation in the Galactic Senate, increasing the size of the governing body. Existing sectors also grew, in spite of the "Rule of Fifty"—a Republic law designed to limit the number of star systems in a single sector at fifty. As the growth of the Great Manifest Period continued, the rule was largely ignored, and some sectors became so large that they were rendered ungovernable.[2]
The expansion of the Republic, combined with the increase in hyperspace travel and commerce among its member worlds, prompted the creation of the Bureau of Ships and Services (BoSS).[2] The organization, created within the bureaucracy of the Republic, was designed to track movement of ships and goods through space, along with assigning transponder codes and tracking vessel ownership.[7] The BoSS was said to have been created more than 1,000 years prior to the end of the Great Manifest Period,[2] although it had also been remarked that the Bureau was created slightly later.[7]
Prelude to conflict
As the Great Manifest Period unfolded, the differences between Core stalwarts Coruscant and Alsakan reached a pivotal juncture. Cultural and socio-political differences in the Core were being reflected in the Rimward reaches of the Republic. The citizens of Alsakan and daughter colonies neither viewed the Republic as the pinnacle of achievement nor aligned with large mega-corporations. They preferred and retained a more aristocratic philosophy and sought for less bureaucracy and greater local or planetary independence. At the same time, Coruscant and its corporate-political interests sought to attain a foothold as much of the Slice as possible in an effort to amass a stockpile of natural resources. The Slice largely divided into an Alsakani-dominant northern portion, including worlds along the Perlemian Trade Route, and a Coruscant-controlled southern half that became known as the "Exploitation Region."[3]The corporate conglomerates of Coruscant aggressively pushed further into the Rimward systems and acted against the Alsakani colonial efforts in their exploitation of the new-found worlds. The merchants evicted many of the colonists, who took refuge in Alsakani-aligned worlds along the Perlemian. Alsakan's envy of Coruscanti control, combined with a belief that the Republic was both too strong and centralized, prompted a deeper colonization campaign. Alsakan-led warships accompanied colonial efforts on resource-rich worlds, to which the so-called "Grand Companies" resisted. As a result, armed freighters of Duros merchants skirmished with the Alsakani vessels. The Coruscant-based Republic government backed its corporate interests and open conflict began in 17,018 BBY with the Republic assault and capture of the Alsakan colony Virujansi.[3]
Culture
The early years of the Great Manifest Period marked the end of the religion Vianism
within the Core Worlds. Vianism was an ancient belief system that
originated in the Core Worlds and centered on worship of the goddess Via and her two likeness: the Beatific Countenance and the Glorious Radiance. Even though the religion died out in the Core, it was retained among the ancestors to the Argazdan civilization. These peoples then sent missionaries throughout the worlds of the Kanz sector, where the religion was revived with the conversion of the Lorrdians and Sipsk'ud.[8]
On the Core World Shawken, the massive structure known as the Shawken Spire had reached low-orbit altitudes. Made from ancient building materials since its foundations over 700 years prior, the structure had grown in renown across the known galaxy. In 18,780 BBY, the iconic edifice that predated the Republic met its destruction.[2] Also in the Core Worlds, the competition between Alsakan and Coruscant spilled over into linguistic usage. Alsakan was promoting the usage of the High Galactic language and alphabet, in place of Basic and Aurebesh, which were used on Coruscant.[9]
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