Why does Luke Skywalker have no memories of his mother, Padmé Amidala, despite her having interacted with him when he was born? We explore this theory.
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith opened up a load of theories of why things pan out the way they do. One plot point from Return of the Jedi that never made sense was why Princess Leia has faint recollections of her biological mother, Padmé Amidala, while her twin brother, Luke Skywalker, has no memories.
During the scene where Padmé gives birth, the second Obi-Wan introduces her to Luke; she takes her son’s hand. Leia had not been born at that point and was a few minutes later. It makes no sense that, being as strong in the Force as he is, he has no recollection of this. Sure, he was a newborn, but his sister didn’t have the same problem.
Luckily, we have a couple of reasons why Luke has no memories of Padmé.
Luke Doesn’t Use His Force Abilities Passively
Luke followed in Anakin‘s footsteps and became a Jedi, meaning he would have to use the Force more physically. Leia, meanwhile, used her abilities passively. She rarely entered combat as she grew into her role as a Resistance leader and politician.
Perhaps the Force had a way of determining which Skywalker twin would their powers defensively. Luke’s one interaction with Padmé might not have registered with him if this was the case.
Leia Was In The Womb Longer
It’s common for multiple births for one twin to remain in the womb longer. So, perhaps Luke has no memories of Padmé because he was born first. Leia, meanwhile, might’ve had enough time to form a faint memory of how her mother was feeling at the time of her death.
If this is true, it would explain why Luke tells Leia when he reveals to her that they’re twins that he has no memories of their mother.
Erased Memory
It could be possible that Luke did share Leia’s memory of Padmé, but perhaps it was erased by either Obi-Wan or Yoda. Why would they do this, though?
Perhaps, they had a feeling that the boy would be similar to his father, who had a habit of clinging to past events. So maybe they thought the best course of action was to erase the memory from his mind so he wouldn’t be fixated on it.
