The Hutt Cartel

The Hutt Clan, also known as the Hutt Cartel and sometimes simply as the Hutts, is one of the most powerful crime families in the galaxy. It was governed by the Grand Hutt Council, whose members were the heads of the five Hutt families. The Clan itself was one of the members of the five syndicates. During the Clone Wars, the clan aligned itself with the Galactic Republic, and briefly with Darth Maul's criminal empire, the Shadow Collective. They now have an unsteady alliance with the Empire. Before the Clone Wars
During the Republic Era, the influence of the Hutts was great enough to warrant a political faction of the Galactic Senate of the Galactic Republic, the Militarists, to advocate for a standing, centralized military to check Hutt expansion, pirates and organized crime. The Clone Wars
During the Clone Wars, the Hutts' influence and power over the Outer Rim, specifically its hyperspace lanes, was sought by both the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems. The chaos of the war allowed the Hutts to seize opportunities it provided to expand their influence to the far reaches of the galaxy. In particular, the Hutts extended Hutt Space from its traditional holdings in the Outer Rim all the way into the Expansion Region to the edge of the Mid Rim. With Republic forces busy engaging Separatist forces elsewhere, it was left to inadequate local system governments to defend themselves against Hutt influence. However, much of the Hutts territorial expansion was itself contained by large swatches of Separatist space. Also during the war, the Black Sun and Pyke Syndicate were considered rivals to the Hutt Clan. Early into the war, Rotta, the son of Jabba, was secretly kidnapped by the Separatists. The plot was meant to discredit the Jedi Order and scuttle negotiations between the Republic and the Hutts, but the Jedi were able to rescue Rotta from the Separatists. The crime lord had promised his support to whomever returned his son, and when the Separatists and Jabba's uncle, Ziro, were revealed to have orchestrated Rotta's kidnapping, Jabba pledged his support to the Republic. This allowed the Republic to navigate essential Hutt hyperspace lanes and circumvent Separatist space. The Hutt Clan ended up backing the Shadow Collective led by Sith Lord Darth Maul in his attempt to takeover Mandalore. The Hutts ended up withdrawing support when infighting in the Shadow Collective began.

Imperial Rule

The unexpected declaration of the Galactic Empire and its rapid rise to power undid many of the Hutts’ gains. After the Clone Wars, the Imperials pushed the Coreward border of Hutt Space back toward the Rim once again. At the Spinward end, the Empire seized the Kreetan Narrows, including the Periphery, in the pursuit of Separatist holdouts. On the Rimward side of Hutt Space, the Empire organized new sectors from Hutt Space and Wild Space systems. The Imperial military became a power that the Hutts could not ignore, forcing the Hutts to obey its rules, at least in appearance. Officially, Hutt Space was governed by an Imperial Moff from the Teth system. Once part of Wild Space, Teth became the central system of the newly created Baxel sector. In reality, the Empire had little practical control, and virtually no bases or military presence in the newly reduced Hutt Space. However, the powerful Imperial Fleet was a very real threat when required to make a lasting impression on the Hutts. As they had for centuries, the Hutts maintained substantial influence even in the systems they lost. The Empire demanded the appearance of submission more often than the actual act. The Hutts appeased the Empire when necessary to protect their business interests, sacrificing others if needed to satisfy Imperial anger or politics. The Hutts soon learned that some Imperial officers and Moffs were just as willing to take bribes as previous Republic politicians and officials had been, and they put their credits to good use.