The Timeline of A New Hope

You’ve taken your first step into a larger world.

Hello there, Star Wars fans, and welcome back to Galactic Chronologist! Today, I’m starting a new series of articles dedicated to analyzing how much time passes during the events of each Star Wars movie. Let’s begin, of course, with A New Hope.

Before we start, here are some rules of the game:

• My timelines will use standard time, or Coruscant time, essentially identical to real-world Earth time.
• Star Wars is space fantasy, not hard sci-fi. There are no relativistic effects and no concept of simultaneity that transcends classical physics.
• Generally, I will not consider the planets’ different rotation periods: a day on Tatooine is the same as a day on Coruscant.
• The information in my articles comes from several canon media, including reference books. In the case of inconsistencies, however, I will prioritize narrative-based media and, within these, the omniscient narrator rather than the unreliable characters.

It is a period of civil war.

First of all, let’s find out what chronological references we can get from watching the film.

The events of A New Hope begin, of course, on Day 1. Here, we witness the boarding of the Tantive IV and the capture of Princess Leia Organa above Tatooine. Meanwhile, C-3PO and R2-D2 escape to the planet aboard an escape pod before being captured by the Jawas. In this case, there is a clear transition from day to dusk to night and finally to the following morning.

On Day 2, the Jawas sell C-3PO and R2-D2 to Owen Lars. Later, Luke Skywalker discovers Leia Organa’s message for Obi-Wan Kenobi, and R2-D2 escapes in search of the Jedi Master. The day ends with the famous binary sunset.

On Day 3, Luke and C-3PO find R2-D2, and Sandpeople attack them. Obi-Wan rescues them, and R2-D2 shows Leia’s hologram. Meanwhile, Darth Vader chokes Admiral Motti and interrogates Leia. Imperial stormtroopers attack the Jawas’ sandcrawler and kill Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru. Eventually, Luke, Obi-Wan, and the droids leave for Mos Eisley.

From now on, the timeline of A New Hope becomes less transparent and more challenging to decode. Fortunately, the events of the movie have been retold in many literary works, allowing us to understand the chronological progression better.

So what I told you was true…

The junior novel The Weapon of a Jedi: A Luke Skywalker Adventure shows that Obi-Wan, Luke, and the droids arrive at Mos Eisley on Day 4:

Luke’s first lesson had come just hours after the murder of his aunt and uncle by stormtroopers, when Luke and Ben had stopped for the night on their way to Mos Eisley¹.

This is confirmed by the reference book Complete Locations, New Edition:

On the journey to Mos Eisley, Ben, Luke, and the droids shelter overnight in Bestine.²

So the confrontation with Dr. Evazan and Ponda Baba, the meeting with Han Solo and Chewbacca, the death of Greedo, the appearance of Jabba the Hutt, and the escape of the Millennium Falcon from Mos Eisley all take place on Day 4.

The movie clearly states that the Millennium Falcon arrives in the Alderaan system on Day 5. At the same time, the junior novel A New Hope: The Princess, the Scoundrel, and the Farm Boy suggests that the destruction of the planet occurs shortly before:

«How much longer until we reach the Alderaan system?»

[…]

«About twenty minutes?»³

Thanks to the short story Of MSE-6 and Men, from the anthology From a Certain Point of View, we can place almost all the other events of the film. Timestamps for the MSE-6 droid‘s records show that the story takes place over four days, starting on Day 3 and ending on Day 6.

A reference to Leia’s interrogation proves that the short story begins on Day 3:

«As for your prisoner, Vader will be down to interrogate her presently…but of course…only once you’ve had adequate time to prepare the interrogator droid».⁴

Two days later, on Day 5, the mouse droid MSE-6-G735Y detects the presence of a Wookiee (Chewbacca) and notices that the stormtrooper TK-421 is over 12 cm shorter than expected (it is, in fact, Luke in disguise):

09:59.07…IDENTIFY BIOFORMS: 1. Wookiee, designation unknown.

[…]

09:59.10…TK-421 BIODATA IN CONFLICT WITH STORED IMPERIAL NETWORK BIODATA. HEIGHT VARIANCE: -12.7 cm. ATTEMPTING TO RECONCILE⁵

Then, on Day 5, the Millennium Falcon arrives in the Alderaan system and is drawn aboard the Death Star; Luke, Han, and Chewbacca rescue Leia, while Obi-Wan confronts Darth Vader and sacrifices himself. Finally, the Falcon departs for Yavin 4.

On Day 6, the Battle of Yavin occurs:

«I want you to know they will…they will pay. In mere seconds, this station will annihilate the last pitiful dregs of the Rebellion, and your master will be avenged».⁶

The movie’s last scene is the Royal Award Ceremony, in which Luke, Han, and Chewbacca receive the Medal of Bravery for their actions during the Battle of Yavin. Thanks to A New Hope: The Princess, the Scoundrel, and the Farm Boy, we know the ceremony occurs the following day, or Day 7.

WHEN THE SUN ROSE golden and bright the next morning, it wasn’t just on the ancient temples of Yavin 4 but on a new galaxy—one shining with possibilities.⁷

Help me, Galactic Chronologist. You’re my only hope.

At this point, let us summarize the information we have so far:

• Day 1: Boarding of the Tantive IV, capture of Princess Leia, C-3PO and R2-D2 escape on Tatooine and are captured by the Jawas.
• Day 2: Uncle Owen buys C-3PO and R2-D2, Luke discovers Leia’s message, R2-D2 escapes in search of Obi-Wan Kenobi.
• Day 3: Luke and C-3PO find R2-D2 and Obi-Wan, Darth Vader chokes Motti and interrogates Leia, Imperial stormtroopers kill Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru. Luke, Obi-Wan, and the droids leave for Mos Eisley.
• Day 4: Luke, Obi-Wan, and the droids arrive at Mos Eisley, confront Evazan and Ponda Baba, and meet Han Solo and Chewbacca. Han kills Greedo and meets Jabba the Hutt. The Millennium Falcon escapes from Mos Eisley.
• Day 5: The Death Star destroys Alderaan. The Millennium Falcon arrives in the Alderaan system and is drawn aboard the Death Star. Luke, Han, and Chewbacca rescue Leia, Obi-Wan confronts Vader and sacrifices himself. The Falcon departs for Yavin 4.
• Day 6: Battle of Yavin.
• Day 7: Royal Award Ceremony.

If we consider Day 6, on which the Battle of Yavin takes place, as the first day of the year 0 ABY (After the Battle of Yavin), we can convert all other days as follows:

• Day 361, 1 BBY: Boarding of the Tantive IV, capture of Princess Leia, C-3PO and R2-D2 escape on Tatooine and are captured by the Jawas.
• Day 362, 1 BBY: Uncle Owen buys C-3PO and R2-D2, Luke discovers Leia’s message, R2-D2 escapes in search of Obi-Wan Kenobi.
• Day 363, 1 BBY: Luke and C-3PO find R2-D2 and Obi-Wan, Darth Vader chokes Motti and interrogates Leia, Imperial stormtroopers kill Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru. Luke, Obi-Wan, and the droids leave for Mos Eisley.
• Day 364, 1 BBY: Luke, Obi-Wan, and the droids arrive at Mos Eisley, confront Evazan and Ponda Baba, and meet Han Solo and Chewbacca. Han kills Greedo and meets Jabba the Hutt. The Millennium Falcon escapes from Mos Eisley.
• Day 365, 1 BBY: The Death Star destroys Alderaan. The Millennium Falcon arrives in the Alderaan system and is drawn aboard the Death Star. Luke, Han, and Chewbacca rescue Leia, Obi-Wan confronts Vader and sacrifices himself. The Falcon departs for Yavin 4.
• Day 1, 0 ABY: Battle of Yavin.
• Day 2, 0 ABY: Royal Award Ceremony.

Which in terms of the Gregorian calendar, we could write as:

• December 27, 1 BBY: Boarding of the Tantive IV, capture of Princess Leia, C-3PO and R2-D2 escape on Tatooine and are captured by the Jawas.
• December 28, 1 BBY: Uncle Owen buys C-3PO and R2-D2, Luke discovers Leia’s message, R2-D2 escapes in search of Obi-Wan Kenobi.
• December 29, 1 BBY: Luke and C-3PO find R2-D2 and Obi-Wan, Darth Vader chokes Motti and interrogates Leia, Imperial stormtroopers kill Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru. Luke, Obi-Wan, and the droids leave for Mos Eisley.
• December 30, 1 BBY: Luke, Obi-Wan, and the droids arrive at Mos Eisley, confront Evazan and Ponda Baba, and meet Han Solo and Chewbacca. Han kills Greedo and meets Jabba the Hutt. The Millennium Falcon escapes from Mos Eisley.
• December 31, 1 BBY: The Death Star destroys Alderaan. The Millennium Falcon arrives in the Alderaan system and is drawn aboard the Death Star. Luke, Han, and Chewbacca rescue Leia, Obi-Wan confronts Vader and sacrifices himself. The Falcon departs for Yavin 4.
• January 1, 0 ABY: Battle of Yavin.
• January 2, 0 ABY: Royal Award Ceremony.

This will be a day long remembered.

That’s a wrap! I hope you enjoyed this article and ask you to let me know what you think about it. I invite you to follow my blog and Twitter account (Galactic_Chrono) and actively participate in comments, suggestions, and discussions. May the Force be with you, and fortune on your side!

1. The Weapon of a Jedi: A Luke Skywalker Adventure, Chapter 2: The Call of the Force. ↩︎
2. Complete Locations, New Edition, Episode IV, Tatooine III. ↩︎
3. A New Hope: The Princess, the Scoundrel, and the Farm Boy, Chapter 9. ↩︎
4. From a Certain Point of View: Of MSE-6 and Men. ↩︎
5. ibid. ↩︎
6. ibid. ↩︎
7. A New Hope: The Princess, the Scoundrel, and the Farm Boy, Epilogue. ↩︎