Siege of Ba Sing Se

The 600-day Siege of Ba Sing Se was a massive battle fought between the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom six years before the current events in the Avatar World. It is one of the largest battles of the later stages of the century-long War.

History
The Siege of Ba Sing Se was an attempt to expand Fire Nation territories further into the Earth Kingdom, started by Firebender armies being led by the now-retired General Iroh. He had hoped that, by conquering the mightiest city in the Earth Kingdom, he would finally secure victory for the Fire Nation.

Battle
Around 94 ASC, General Iroh and his army besieged the Earth Kingdom capital of Ba Sing Se. The siege was initiated after Fire Nation infantry began attacking the outer wall of the city, hoping to breach the walls in order to secure a path for an invasion. The defending Earthbenders of Ba Sing Se fought back, managing to hold them off for a long period of time. The turning point of the siege came when General Iroh finally breached the walls. After a long period of battle, the Fire Nation secured the foothold that they desired. The breach in the wall paved the way for invasion, and after Iroh's victory at the Outer Wall, the General defending it surrendered.

The Fire Nation advanced into the agrarian zone and fought against the defenders. However, General Iroh's morale was crushed upon receiving news that his son, Lu Ten, had been killed in battle. Heartbroken and demoralized, Iroh lost his will to fight, and realizing that he had lost many troops and that their morale was wavering, he withdrew from the battle. The attempted invasion was lost, though the Fire Nation has since mounted many assaults trying to recapture the city in vain once more.

The overall siege and its scale is never clarified, but the given information suggests that the Fire Nation mustered and made use of many of their available resources, and that the Fire Nation used a few divisions according to the maps shown in the past as well as the pile of scrolls near Iroh's office.

Aftermath
The Siege of Ba Sing Se resulted in victory for the Earth Kingdom, and the Outer Wall was eventually repaired. Despite this victory, the long siege left many bitter feelings toward the Fire Nation and Iroh, specifically. This is displayed when the unnamed Earthbender Captain captured Iroh, longing for vengeance for the chaos and violence he and his Nation had wrought during the Siege. Iroh was derided by his people for letting his own emotions interfere with the outcome of the battle. However, many in the Fire Nation who served under his command, despite the ultimate failure of Iroh's siege and even after his overt treachery in Ba Sing Se, praise him as "a great leader and a great man". While his nephew Prince Zuko, Princess Ursa, and his father, Fire Lord Azulon, sympathized with Iroh's loss, Princess Azula and Prince Ozai were disgusted by Iroh's decisions. Ozai, who was Iroh's younger brother, intended to take advantage of Iroh's losses and the failure of the siege by requesting that his father Azulon let him take the throne in Iroh's place, claiming that Lu Ten's death would have left Iroh without a proper heir. Azulon was infuriated by this proposal and swore to punish Ozai. However, before this could be done, Azulon died suddenly and Ursa disappeared. Iroh, emotionally wrecked, was too upset to fight for his throne, and therefore Ozai became Fire Lord on Azulon's supposed dying wish. Iroh lost his birthright and his son as a result of the siege, and Ba Sing Se would not fall until Zuko, Azula and her recently acquired Dai Li agents overthrew the Earth King six years later.

Trivia

 * In The Last Airbender, the Siege of Ba Sing Se was shortened to only 100 days instead of 600.

Appearances

 * Winter Solstice Part 1: The Spirit World
 * The Siege of the North, Part 1
 * Zuko Alone
 * The Serpent's Pass
 * The Drill