The Five Worst Mistakes the Jedi Order Made

Let’s face it. As much as we like to root for the Jedi in literally everything they do, the Jedi Order during the era of the prequels was severely flawed. Behind their claims of being peacekeepers, there were a good deal of corruption and bad motives. Even plain people saw this. Take for example Trace Martez, who lost respect for the Jedi after they were indirectly responsible for the death of her parents and offered no help. Or Commander Tarkin (yes, Tarkin, before he was a Grand Moff in the Empire), who complained about how involved the Jedi had become in the affairs of the Republic. Even Anakin Skywalker himself.

So without further ado, here are the five dumbest things the Jedi Order did (I’m mostly using events that took place during the prequel era). These aren’t in any particular order of importance, but I guess I’ll put them in chronological order. That’s definitely a favor. You’re welcome.

Joining the Republic

This is the only thing I’ll mention that isn’t from the prequel era, as this took place around 5,000 years before the Battle of Yavin. But it’s a pretty big deal. Before this, the Jedi were pretty much independent, and didn’t work for a government. They were much more pure. But when they came to Coruscant, they built their temple over an ancient Sith temple, thinking it would help them, but it ended up severely diminishing their power and clouding their judgment. Eventually they became overly involved in the affairs of the Republic, and when the Clone War came around they became warriors more than peacekeepers. All this led the Jedi to become blind to the threat of the Sith and Order 66 and caused more Jedi to fall away or leave (Prosset Dibs, Pong Krell, Anakin Skywalker, Ahsoka Tano, etc). While they still held to the Jedi Code, they got so caught up in the war that they ignored the places where it was being broken, and forgot to keep their own members accountable. And when they did remember, it didn’t often go well.

Keeping Qui-Gon Jinn from the Council

Since you’re reading this and are subscribed (hint hint), you’re a part of the High Council, but don’t take that for granted. Qui-Gon Jinn, arguably the most knowledgeable Jedi of his time, wasn’t even allowed on the Jedi Council. As we learn from The Phantom Menace, this was because he was more “independent” than most of the Jedi, didn’t adhere strictly to the Jedi code, and sometimes disobeyed orders and took matters into his own hands. However, the Council was simply blind to what he could really do for them. Qui-Gon dedicated his life to searching and discovering the ways of the Force and sought to understand it as perfectly as possible. He knew more about it than any other Jedi, even Yoda. This is why he knew Anakin was the Chosen One when the others were skeptical (and it’s also why they should have listened to him). By not allowing Qui-Gon on the Council, the Jedi were digging a hole for themselves that they would never get out of.

Making Anakin Padme’s personal guardian

Of all the Jedi you could have sent, you used the one who had an obvious crush on her? Even at this point Obi-Wan knew Anakin “had feelings” for Padme, and he told Mace Windu, but the issue was pretty much just dismissed. Even if they were “testing” him, doing it this way was clearly a terrible idea, and as all of you well know, it ended up going...poorly.

Maybe things would have been better if he liked sand.

Kicking Ahsoka out of the Order

This is probably the saddest sequence in The Clone Wars, and maybe the one that most clearly shows the ignorance of the Jedi Order. Ahsoka Tano, Anakin’s padawan, was framed for the bombing of the Jedi Temple. However, instead of deeply considering the matter and talking to her, the Jedi were quick to take a small piece of evidence from the Republic, convict Ahsoka, and remove her from the Order. They trusted neither her nor Anakin, the only one trying to defend her. If they had only opened their minds, learned not to do every single thing by the book, and looked at the individual, perhaps they would not have been so ignorant. Instead they gave in to the pressure from the Republic now enslaving them. Worst of all, when Ahsoka was found innocent and invited back into the Order, the Council did not even acknowledge that they had failed, but rather claimed the matter was a test: a “trial of the Force.” And Ahsoka, realizing she could not trust them anymore, decided to leave for good.

Sending the Jedi they did to Arrest Chancellor Palpatine

When they found out Chancellor Palpatine was a Sith lord, the Jedi Order (particularly Mace Windu) decided to send Windu, Agen Kolar, Kit Fisto, and Saesee Tiin to arrest him. All four were skilled Jedi Masters, but this was an incredibly obvious mistake. Mace Windu was a good choice, sure. He just about defeated Palpatine single-handedly. But the other three? Not so much. Their Force powers paled in comparison to those of the Sith lord. They were masters at their own respective forms of combat while he was a master of every single one. Not to mention his Force scream rendering them much less powerful. Personally I think Yoda would have made a much better addition to the team, as he held his own against Palpatine for a long time soon after. He was tied up on Kashyyyk, but with a matter this urgent and significant, surely he could have come back to Coruscant. Another major factor, of course, was the reason Mace didn’t kill Palpatine at the end of their fight. The Council should have kept a closer eye on Anakin around then, but that’s for another time.

I hope you enjoyed reading this! Please let me know in the comments what explanations you might have for some of these issues, and what defenses could be given for the Jedi. As always, may the Force be with you.