This has been bugging me for along time. How was Darth Vader seen in the Empire, officially? I know that the Galactic Empire basically wiped out any history of the Jedi and the Force in general. However, was it known that Darth Vader was a Force user and was previously known as Anakin Skywalker? I mean, some people would have had to notice that Vader used a lightsaber, which was the historic weapon of a Jedi.

In the EU it doesn't seem that Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader is widely known. It's hard enough to imagine nobody in the Rebellion ever commented to Luke Skywalker "Hey, are you any relation to Anakin Skywalker, the Jedi Hero?" without adding "Hey, are you any relation to Anakin Skywalker, the Jedi Hero who now calls himself Darth Vader and is working for Emperor Palpatine?" For that matter, Obi-Wan Kenobi telling Luke that Darth Vader "destroyed" Luke's father would be pretty damn pointless if the first person with a knowledge of recent history and current events said "Dude, so your dad's Darth Vader? That's gotta be awkward."

Vader himself was instantly recognized by Leia, and she doesn't seem to expect much in the way of subtlety out of him -- "Vader. Only you could be so bold." Darth Vader seems to be a terror weapon, much like the Death Star but on a more personal level. At the same time, Anakin Skywalker would be pretty useful to Palpatine as a dead martyr -- "Skywalker moved against the Jedi when he discovered their treason against the Republic, and was subsequently murdered."

Having Skywalker as a "martyr" and Darth Vader is a terror weapon nets Palpatine all the advantages of having "Skywalker the Hero" support him, while having Darth Vader to threaten people with and do the dirty deeds the Empire doesn't want to take care of himself.

James Luceno's novel "Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader" dealt with this. Anakin's official status in Imperial records was that he died on Mustafar -- which, in a sense was technically true.

The populace didn't know what to make of Vader when he first came onto the scene, with his clear Force potential and lightsaber training; IIRC, the Clone were uncomfortable with this given their role in Order 66. Once Vader established his reputation, however, the galactic citizens knew better than to ask. But they didn't find out Vader had been Anakin until after Endor.

As to everyone else, Yoda and Obi-Wan were the only Jedi survivors who initially knew Anakin had become Vader; others learned or figured it out. The ones who didn't thought he had been one of Dooku's acolytes.

The Imperial military didn't know either. Steve Perry and Michael Reeves' novel "Death Star" showed that even Grand Moff Tarkin didn't know -- at least not officially. He had a good idea who was under the mask based on the evidence (the timing of Anakin's official death, the environment of Mustafar, Vader's official emergence and his injuries), but he knew better than to try to prove his theory.

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"A vigilante is just a man lost in the scramble for his own gratification; he can be destroyed, or locked up. But if you make yourself more than just a man, if you devote yourself to an ideal, and if they can't stop you, you become something else entirely... a legend, Mr. Wayne."

-- Ducard, Batman Begins --

Depending on how powerful or connected one was, it's possible to know Vader's real identity. Prince Xizor knew Vader was originally named Skywalker, for instance.

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"He may look like an idiot and talk like an idiot, but don't let that fool you. He really is an idiot."

"Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero."

I knew I was forgetting someone; thanks, TC

Also, Bail Organa knew. I don't remember if Breha Antilles knew, but IIRC, Bail confided in the Tantive IV's captain, Raymus Antilles.

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"A vigilante is just a man lost in the scramble for his own gratification; he can be destroyed, or locked up. But if you make yourself more than just a man, if you devote yourself to an ideal, and if they can't stop you, you become something else entirely... a legend, Mr. Wayne."

-- Ducard, Batman Begins --

Xizor though is depicted as the most powerful and connected person short of Vader and the Emperor though, and Xizor had his fued with Vader going on so it must have taken a devoted effort on Xizor's part to uncover Vader's true identity.

FWIW, the above was reiterated in the second book of the Coruscant Nights Trilogy when Captain Typho was researching the details of Amidala's death.

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It's okay to kiss a nun; just don't get into the habit.

I haven't read the trilogy yet; I keep meaning to get around to it.

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"A vigilante is just a man lost in the scramble for his own gratification; he can be destroyed, or locked up. But if you make yourself more than just a man, if you devote yourself to an ideal, and if they can't stop you, you become something else entirely... a legend, Mr. Wayne."

-- Ducard, Batman Begins --

It's an interesting "film noir" perspective on Coruscant's lower levels. If you haven't read them yet, I'd suggest reading Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter and the Medstar duology first. Those books set up a number of events and characters that feature prominently in the Coruscant Nights trilogy, though said items are decently recapped in the trilogy as well.

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It's okay to kiss a nun; just don't get into the habit.

Errr, correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't the novel say he dies in the Jedi Temple?

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Let him land on any Lyran world to taste firsthand the wrath of peace loving people thwarted by the myopic greed of a few miserly old farts- Katrina Steiner

And in Matt Stover's Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor.

You're right; it's been a while since I've read Dark Lord. I was going off of Tarkin's musings in Death Star; looks like Perry and Reeves made a continuity goof.

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"A vigilante is just a man lost in the scramble for his own gratification; he can be destroyed, or locked up. But if you make yourself more than just a man, if you devote yourself to an ideal, and if they can't stop you, you become something else entirely... a legend, Mr. Wayne."

-- Ducard, Batman Begins --

Or it could be that Tarkin has heard rumors that say he was not really at the Jedi temple when he died.
It's plausible.

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I am the Purple Cube from beyond. Seek not to understand me for thau shalt fail.

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It may also indicate some ambiguity in the records themselves. In the Coruscant Nights trilogy Typho had to go to some lengths to get the records indicating Anakin's last known location was Mustafar. It was not common knowledge at the time (shortly after RotS). Likewise, in the CN trilogy it was noted that the general public didn't even know for sure if Vader was a Force user, much less a former Jedi. Speculation about Vader ranged from Dark Jedi to badass cyborg. I don't recall how that correlates with the other books.

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It's okay to kiss a nun; just don't get into the habit.

No, that pretty much correlates with Dark Lord at least; I'm not sure about the comics or the Last of the Jedi series.

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"A vigilante is just a man lost in the scramble for his own gratification; he can be destroyed, or locked up. But if you make yourself more than just a man, if you devote yourself to an ideal, and if they can't stop you, you become something else entirely... a legend, Mr. Wayne."

-- Ducard, Batman Begins --