The Empire had been carefully constructed with him at its center. A great deal of time, effort, and violence had been spent ensuring that nobody but Palpatine could ever sit upon the throne. He had no intention of sharing that power in life, he had even less interest in bequeathing it to another in death. There was no heir apparent, partly because Palpatine did not intend to ever die. But, in the event that he did, he was not going to have his Empire presented to someone else. He intended to burn it, and the rest of the galaxy, to the ground in punishment.
