Azulon

"fire"

- You dare suggest I betray Iroh? My first born? Directly after the demise of his only beloved son? I think Iroh has suffered enough. But you, your punishment has scarcely begun!

Fire Lord Azulon was the son of Fire Lord Sozin, and the Fire Lord before Ozai. He was husband to Fire Lady Ilah, father to Iroh and Ozai, and grandfather to Prince Lu Ten, Prince Zuko, and Princess Azula.

Like Iroh, Azulon was a general in The War years before becoming the Fire Lord and once searched for the Avatar as his father, second son and grandson did. His granddaughter Azula is named after him.

History


Azulon was the ruler of the Fire Nation for 75 years until he mysteriously died five years before the start of the series at the age of 95. A frightening man who demanded perfection, Fire Lord Azulon ran the Fire Nation much like his father did – with an iron fist. Following his father's death, Azulon took charge of the Fire Nation at the age of 20 to continue his father's quest for world domination. Eventually, he married Ilah, and together, they produced two children: Iroh (his mothers namesake) and Ozai. Like every Fire Lord, Azulon was a master Firebender - in his time, he was considered one of the best in the world and no one would dare cross him. Ozai notes that Azulon had been a Firebending child prodigy, like his granddaughter. Despite his strong leadership, Azulon cared very little for the people of his nation and was more interested in world domination, a quality he passed down to Ozai and inherited from Sozin. However, he did have some sympathy for his family, as shown when Iroh's son, Lu Ten is killed. Some of his greater military successes included the conquest of the Hu Xin provinces in the Western Earth Kingdom and the Battle of Garsai.

Early in his reign, he commissioned the Great Gates of Azulon to protect the entrance to the Fire Nation Capital.

Death


Five years ago, shortly after the death of Iroh's son, Lu Ten, Ozai demanded that Iroh be passed over for the throne and incited his father's fury. Ozai declares Iroh is a quitter and unworthy for letting death get in his way of winning Ba Sing Se. He also declared that the bloodline should not continue with the death of Lu Ten. However, Azulon was outraged at the very thought of betraying his firstborn Iroh, as well as his younger son's ambition, and promised to punish Ozai terribly. Azula who spied on the conversation claimed that Ozai was ordered to kill his first born son, Zuko, so that he would know his brother's pain.

Ozai had every intention of carrying out the execution. However, Ozai's wife, Ursa, discovered the plan and plotted with Ozai so that he would become Fire Lord while Zuko would be allowed to live. Ursa committed "vicious, treasonous things that night", according to Ozai, and presumably was the one who was responsible for Azulon's death that night. Ursa was then banished from the Fire Nation, meaning that it is very possible that she is still alive. It is unknown how Ursa, or anyone else for that matter presumably killed him, considering he was the most powerful Firebender of his time, although it can be speculated that he might have been killed during his sleep or by poison.

Trivia

 * Azulon's name is probably derived from a combination of the words azure and lóng 龍(the Chinese word for "dragon"). In Ancient Chinese astrology, the Azure Dragon (or Qīng Lóng 青龍) is the Eastern constellation.
 * Azulon is known to have been Fire Lord for the longest time during the War, for about 75 years as opposed to his father, Sozin, who ruled for 20 years during the war, and his son, Ozai, who ruled for 5-6 years during the war.
 * Azulon is the only known Fire Lord not to have met an Avatar or Airbender. He is also the only known Fire Lord not to have lived during the arrival of Sozin's Comet or to have derived power from the comet, though it is possible he was a newborn baby during the arrival with which Sozin started the war.
 * In his official portrait, Azulon stands on top of a turtle, an animal that lives both on land and in water, to signify his military successes over both the Earth Kingdom and the Water Tribes. He also holds up two fireballs, reflecting his legendary power in Firebending.

Relatives
See Fire Nation Royal Family Tree
 * Sozin (father)
 * Ilah (wife)
 * Iroh (elder son)
 * Lu Ten (eldest grandson)
 * Ozai (younger son)
 * Zuko (older grandson)
 * Azula (younger granddaughter)
 * Ursa (daughter-in-law)

Feuerlord Azulon Azulon