Fallen War

The Fallen War was a brief conflict between 20-19 BA that ended the Galactic Rebellion. Lead by Fallen, an armada of ships appeared along the outer rim of the galaxy and pushed into both Rebel and Imperial space. Due to the strain of the Rebellion on the Empire and Rebels, both sides were defeated in several key naval battles and nearly defeated. Reaching a peace settlement, the Empire and Rebel Alliance joined forces and defeated Fallen at the Battle of Rhen Var.

History
The Fallen War began in 20 BA when Fallen appeared with an armada of capital ships along the Outer Rim. Initially, Fallen's fleets targeted Rebel controlled systems, striking with brief, though devastating raids. Even though the Rebels had nearly defeated the Empire in the previous months, their supply lines were exhausted and fronts were stretched thin. Using this to his advantage, Fallen was able to take over several systems within a short period of time.

With Fallen only targeting Rebel controlled systems, the Empire contacted him and sent envoys to negotiate an alliance in order to save what power they still had. Rebuking the negotiations, Fallen turned on the Empire. It wasn't until the brink of defeat that both the Empire and Rebel Alliance officially called a ceasefire. Signing a peace treaty, both sides combined their forces and began to push Fallen back out of occupied territory.

Fallen was eventually pushed back to Rhen Var, the unofficial capital where most of his fleets were staged. Using the momentum from their previous victories, the Empire and Rebel Alliance launched a final assault against Fallen's forces. The two sides successfully cornered the fleet and prevented any form of mass retreat. While some of Fallen's forces were able to escape, the majority of his armada was destroyed, effectively ending the Fallen War. Fallen himself was considered MIA after the war as neither side had a confirmed capture or kill.

Restructuring
By the end of the war, both the Empire and Rebel Alliance were too exhausted in both supplies and manpower to resume any form of hostilities still left over from the Galactic Rebellion. Both sides agreed to keep the ceasefire. While this move was seen as a political victory on both sides, tensions rose as the galaxy was effectively shattered among its star systems.

During this time, aided by the uneasy, but stable peace, both the Rebel Alliance and Empire underwent restructuring which was a direct result of both conflicts. The Empire, unable to hold control over many of its original territories, condensed and reformed into the Imperial Remnant. At the same time, with more systems under its control than when the Rebellion started, the Rebel Alliance underwent massive governmental changes and formed into the New Republic.

Emerging Factions
Even though the Empire had lost more territories during the Galactic Rebellion than the Rebel Alliance, the Fallen War effectively broke up both Imperial and Rebel controlled systems. While both sides were able to reclaim lost space, many star systems separated themselves and began to self govern. Some of these systems eventually formed their own factions, most notably the Dominion Empire from Imperial territories that were lost during both conflicts. Others would either come under influence of the newly reformed Imperial Remnant and New Republic or would continue to stay neutral in galactic politics.

Civilian Consensus
Many people considered the Fallen War as an extension of the Galactic Rebellion even though it was accepted that both events were separate. Both Imperial and Rebel controlled systems that were taken during the Rebellion were accepting of Fallen's forces as long as it meant being separated from their original occupiers. Those that opposed Imperial or Rebel occupations and fighting shared the same feelings with Fallen. By the war's end, the general consensus of the galaxy was that it only prolonged conflict when the Empire appeared to be defeated.