Sheev Palpatine was born on the Planet Naboo. Unknown to most, he is also a Sith Lord named Darth Sidious.
Palpatine represents the small, outer-rim planet Naboo in the Galactic Senate as a senator. As Darth Sidious, he arranges for the Trade Federation to invade Naboo, knowing that procedural red tape in the Senate will prevent Chancellor Valorum from taking any action on the invasion. His plan is to use this failure to act to discredit Valorum in the Senate, and elevate himself to the Chancellorship. Valorum sends two Jedi Knights, Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi, to Naboo. They rescue Queen Amidala the newly-elected leader of Naboo, and bring her to Tatooine after their spaceship was damaged. They meet Anakin Skywalker and his mother, who were slaves owned by a Toydarian named Watto. After winning a pod race, Anakin is freed from slavery and the pod is sold for money for parts to repair their spaceship.
When the Queen returns to Coruscant, Senator Palpatine quickly takes advantage of the situation by convincing the Queen to call for a vote of No Confidence in Chancellor Valorum's leadership. Afterward, Senator Palpatine is in the running to be elected as the new Chancellor.
Darth Sidious' apprentice, Darth Maul, kills Qui-Gon Jinn in a lightsaber fight, and is killed by Obi-Wan Kenobi. After learning about Anakin Skywalker destroying the Droid Control Ship during Battle of Naboo, newly-elected Chancellor Palpatine tells him he will watch his career with great interest. A funeral is held for Qui-Gon Jinn, and the next day, the Celebration of Peace.
Ten years later, Anakin Skywalker has grown into a young adult, and Chancellor Palpatine has maintained a friendship with him. As Chancellor, he is forced to deal with a Separatist movement led by former Jedi Knight Count Dooku, who years before had been Qui-Gon Jinn's mentor. Unknown to most, Count Dooku was, in fact, Darth Sidious' new apprentice, Darth Tyranus. Darth Sidious planned to use the Separatist movement to create a war, and use the war as a pretext to gain more executive power and have his own private army of clones. The outbreak of the Clone Wars gives Sidious the power he wants.
A few years later, he arranges for himself to be kidnapped by Count Dooku and General Greivous, laying a trap for Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, who come to rescue him. Sidious intended to use this incident not only to test Anakin's willingness to use the Dark Side, but also to rid himself of Count Dooku - especially after he cut off Anakin's lower right arm in a lightsaber fight. Anakin uses his lightsaber to cut off BOTH Count Dooku's arms in their last fight, along with obeying Chancellor Palpatine's order to kill him.
At first, Anakin is shocked at what he did, but Chancellor Palpatine believed Count Dooku's death was necessary. During the next several days, they talk about the Light and Dark Sides of The Force, and how the Dark Side can heal. Anakin resists at first, until Chancellor Palpatine tells him it will save his wife's life. He then tries to convince Anakin to join him, and Anakin, realizing he's a Sith Lord, activates his lightsaber, but can't bring himself to kill him.
Anakin tells the Jedi Order about Chancellor Palpatine being a Sith Lord, and they're shocked. When they try to arrest him, he activates his lightsaber and fights back. In the fight, Sidious's force lightning is deflected by Mace Windu's, lightsaber and is face becomes permanently disfigured. Anakin comes to help, reminding Mace Windu that he needed to stand trial, and kills him after he refuses to listen to him.
Anakin Skywalker tells Darth Sidious to help him save Padme, that he couldn't live without her, and he would do anything he asked, and he accepted Anakin as his new apprentice and renames him Darth Vader. He orders Darth Vader to kill all the Separatists, and at the next session of the Senate, declares himself Emperor. Master Yoda confronts him, and the two engage in a lightsaber fight, but Yoda loses his lightsaber and goes into exile. Sidious then travels to Mustafar to rescue Darth Vader, who has been seriously burned and injured after a lightsaber fight with his former Jedi Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi. He calls for an immediate medical capsule, and "rebuilds" his damaged body, including a special breath mask. When Darth Vader asks about Padme, he answers: "It seems in your anger, you killed her."
Many years later, Darth Vader learns about his son, Luke Skywalker and talks to Darth Sidious about converting him to the Dark Side of The Force so he could be their ally. In reality, Darth Vader wants Luke to help him kill the Emperor so they can rule the galaxy together as father and son. After cutting off his right hand during their lightsaber fight, he tells Luke he's his father, but Luke doesn't believe him, and refuses to join him.
A few years later, Darth Sidious arrives over Endor to oversee the final stages of the construction of the second Death Star, and to witness the destruction of the alliance. As expected, the Rebel Alliance sends a strike force to Endor to deactivate a shield generator that is protecting the Death Star. When Vader tells him that Luke is with them, he instructs him to bring Luke to him so that they can finish converting him to the Dark Side. Unlike his father, Luke stands firm, declaring himself a Jedi, and Darth Sidious uses force lightning to kill him, but his father changed back into Anakin Skywalker by grabbing the Emperor and throwing him into the power core, killing him. The rebels destroy the second death star. The Empire falls.
Trivia[]
Reportably Sidious was based on historical leaders such as Julius Caesar, Augustus, Napoleon Bonaparte, Adolf Hitler, and Richard Nixon.