Star Wars: Why Did The Mandalorians Hate Jedi?

Despite their status as the galaxy's peacekeepers and defenders of the innocent, the Jedi make countless enemies throughout their "Star Wars" existence. Aside from perhaps their most well-known adversaries, the Sith, the Mandalorians are also known to despise the Jedi. Throughout various pieces of media, it has been documented that the light side Force-users and armored warrior people have been far from friendly over the years. Speaking specifically to the current canon, there's one major reason for the animosity most Mandalorians have shown toward the Jedi.

Long before conflicts like the Clone Wars and the Galactic Civil War, Jedi Order and Mandalorians come to blows during the aptly named Mandalorian-Jedi War. The two sides fight in a series of smaller conflicts that culminate in one last battle on the surface of Mandalore. Dubbed the Mandalorian cataclysm, this clash renders the planet uninhabitable, and Mandalorian forces are scattered. Many flee to the moon of Concordia, where the ruthless Pre Vizsla (Jon Favreau) consolidates his forces and attempts to take Mandalore during the Clone Wars from Dutchess Satine Kryze (Anna Graves) and her pacifist government.

Even though the Jedi and the Mandalorian people have a messy history, with the latter's home planet ending up obliterated, that hasn't stopped them from collaborating in the aftermath of the Mandalorian-Jedi War.

Though many Mandalorians remain hostile toward Jedi in the centuries after the Mandalorian-Jedi War, there are times when representatives from both sides work alongside each other. One of the more notable examples stems from the Siege of Mandalore, where Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) seeks to regain control of Mandalore from Darth Maul (Sam Witwer) and his Shadow Collective. Bo-Katan calls on longtime Jedi Ahsoka Tano (Ashley Eckstein) to help out, so the two lead Mandalorian and Republic clone forces in the successful apprehension of Maul. Before they part ways, Bo-Katan and Ahsoka even share a moment of reflection and express mutual respect.

In fact, Ahsoka and Bo-Katan's alliance endures beyond the Imperial era, as seen on "The Mandalorian." After the fall of the Empire, Bo-Katan comes into contact with a fellow Mandalorian, Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal), who needs her help. He has become the protector of a child and former Jedi youngling named Grogu, and he wants to return him to his fellow Jedi. Bo-Katan points him to Ahsoka (Rosario Dawson), though Luke Skywalker (Max Lloyd-Jones, Mark Hamill) is the Jedi who takes Grogu under his wing. Ultimately, though, Grogu chooses to become a Mandalorian instead of a Jedi, remaining by Din's side. He even uses his connection to the Force to help Bo-Katan reclaim Mandalore, this time from Imperial remnants.

Overall, Mandalorians have good reason to be distrustful of the Jedi. The Jedi annihilated their home and scattered their people in a lengthy, brutal war. That's all hard to reconcile, but, evidently, not impossible.