Summary

• As the leader of the Separatists, Count Dooku committed many atrocious war crimes during the Clone Wars.
• Dooku ordered several genocides and blamed them on the Jedi, solely to sway public opinion in his and the Separatists' favor.
• Dooku personally tortured prisoners, including Jedi Quinlan Vos, and encouraged those who worked with him to torture prisoners as well.

These are 10 of Count Dooku's worst war crimes in Star Wars, and each one shows how evil this Sith Lord was. Count Dooku is one of Star Wars' most popular villains. First introduced in Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones, he began as a Jedi. He was Grandmaster Yoda's Padawan and Qui-Gon Jinn's Jedi Master. He remained a respected member of the Jedi Order for years, only turning to the dark side and becoming a Sith apprentice after Qui-Gon Jinn's death. However, his years of being a Jedi didn't stop him from becoming one of the most dangerous Sith.

While Palpatine was the true mastermind behind the Separatists and Sith Empire, and here are 10 of the worst ones he committed.

10 Count Dooku Blamed The Jedi Council For His Own Genocide

The Atrocity on Mahranee

In Christie Golden's canon novel Dark Disciple, it is revealed that Count Dooku ordered the genocide of Mahran refugees in an event that became known as the Atrocity on Mahranee. The Separatists targeted Mahranee because of its resources, plunging the world into war and chaos. The Mahran people asked the Jedi for help, and the Jedi obliged by sending in Jedi General Chubor and a clone trooper task force to assist.

Tragically, the Republic forces didn't get there in time to prevent the Separatists from destroying Mahranee's capital city. Instead, they tried to transport as many Mahrans as they could off-world. Dooku, not wanting any survivors, massacred the remaining Mahrans along with the Jedi and clones. To make it even worse, as he did so, he sent a message to the Jedi Council, telling them that the massacre was their fault since they refused to bow to him.

9 Count Dooku Had The Nightsisters Wiped Out

The Nightsister Purge

Order 66. Only around seven Nightsisters survived the genocide.

8 Count Dooku's Actions Toward Mina Bonteri & The Peace Talks

Separatist Senator Mina Bonteri's Murder

Senator Mina Bonteri was a longtime friend of Pé Amidala who also happened to be a Separatist. In the Star Wars: The Clone Wars TV show, Pé and Ahsoka sneak behind enemy lines to the planet Onderon to meet with Senator Bonteri. In the episode, they resolve to work together to push their respective governments toward peace talks. This appears to be working, as some in the Separatist parliament were open to the idea. Dooku agreed to a vote but secretly had Mina Bonteri murdered. He successfully blamed it on the Republic, sabotaging the peace talks.

7 How Count Dooku Turned General Grievous Into A Separatist Warrior

General Grievous' Cyborg Transformation

General Grievous was born Qymaen jai Sheelal. He was a Kaleesh warlord who developed a hatred for Jedi after they took the side of the Kaleesh's enemies in their civil war, resulting in many Kaleesh dying. He was targeted by Dooku and Palpatine for his skill and potential threat. Dooku secretly planted a bomb on Grievous' ship, leaving the Kaleesh seriously injured. He then took Grievous and gave him a new cybernetic body against his will. Dooku then warped Grievous' mind until he submitted and became an agent of the Separatists, never knowing that Dooku was the one who bombed him.

6 Count Dooku Tortured Prisoners Personally

The Torture Of Quinlan Vos

There are many instances of Dooku torturing prisoners throughout the Clone Wars. In Dark Disciple, he personally tortured Jedi Quinlan Vos. Even when Vos answered his interrogation questions honestly, Dooku would continue to torture him anyway. Quinlan Vos was tortured so horrifically that it caused him to turn to the dark side.

5 How Count Dooku Recruited Planets To The Separatists

The Murder Of Miraj Scintel & Others

When Dooku wanted to recruit a planet to the Separatist Alliance, he would begin by acting almost charmingly. He would put on a show of diplomacy, honor, respect, and sincerity that couldn't be further from the truth. He would keep up the ruse as long as the leaders of those planets cooperated. However, if they didn't, he would have them killed and replaced with someone of his choosing. He did this to Miraj Scintel, Queen of the Zygerrian slave empire.

4 Count Dooku's Attempted Murder Of Lux Bonteri

Dooku Tried To Hide His Crimes

When Lux Bonteri, the teenage son of Mina Bonteri, publicly accused Dooku of murdering his mother, Dooku had his droids drag Lux away. He had them bring Lux to a quiet area where Dooku confronted him via hologram. He then ordered Lux's death to shut the boy up, but Lux was saved at the last minute by Ahsoka Tano.

3 Count Dooku's Policy Towards Prisoners

Dooku The Encouraged Torture Of Captives

As the leader of the Separatist army, Dookue was the one who made and approved the policies. As a Sith Lord and Palpatine's apprentice, he believed firmly in power by any means. As such, he approved - and even encouraged - the torture of prisoners for various reasons. As with Quinlan Vos, he often both oversaw and ordered the continuous torture of captives.

2 Count Dooku Ordered The Kidnapping Of Jabba's Son

The Kidnapping Of Rotta The Hutt

In the Star Wars: The Clone Wars movie, the Republic is attempting to make a deal to travel through Hutt space. To sabotage this, Dooku orders the kidnapping of Jabba the Hutt's infant son, Rotta. He blames it on the Jedi and almost succeeds in turning the Hutts to his side before Ahsoka Tano shows up with Rotta. It was a good thing that Ahsoka got to Rotta when she did, because the boy had fallen ill during his time in captivity. Without Ahsoka, it's entirely possible that Rotta would've died - and Dooku would've blamed that on the Jedi as well.

1 Count Dooku Worked With Terrorist Groups

Dooku Colluded With Death Watch

While they later fell out, Dooku aided Pre Vizsla and his Mandalorian terrorist group Death Watch for a time as they tried to take over Mandalore. As shown by what he did to Queen Miraj Scintel, Dooku liked to have people in power who owed him - people he could control. The ruler of Mandalore, Duchess Satine Kryze, was a sworn pacifist. Dooku funded a terrorist group to try to depose the rightful ruler of a peaceful world, all so that he could drag the Mandalorians into fighting for Star Wars' Separatist cause and have control of the planet and its resources.

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