Earth Kingdom Royal Palace

The Earth King's Palace is the home of the Earth King and the seat of Earth Kingdom's government. Located within the Upper Ring at the center of Ba Sing Se, the Palace and surrounding grounds served as the spiritual and governmental center of the entire Earth Kingdom until it fell to the Fire Nation in 100 ASC. The palace is a superb example of traditional Earth Kingdom architecture, and its massive scale makes it unlike anything else in the world.

History
Though it is unknown when the current Earth King's palace was built, it dates back at least 400 years to the time of the 46th Earth King; in all likelihood, it is as old as the current city which surrounds it. It was the home of all known Earth Kings and their families until the Fire Nation coup which deposed the 52nd Earth King; after this, it became the home of Joo Dee as the city's Supreme Bureaucratic Administrator.

The Earth Kingdom Royal Palace is situated over the ruins of Old Ba Sing Se, an underground city which was the site of the first settlement at Ba Sing Se.

Description
The Royal Palace is almost certainly the largest palace compound in the world; with its myriad buildings, gardens, and plazas, it is very nearly a city unto itself. The palace was designed so that it was located at the figurative heart of Ba Sing Se, and by extension the Earth Kingdom. It is surrounded on all sides by the Upper Ring, home to the central government ministries and the mansions of the city's wealthiest citizens, bureaucrats, and civil servants. The palace is arranged on a north-south axis which extends beyond its walls to form the central axis of the Upper Ring.

Walls and gates
The palace compound its surrounded by a vast circular wall, made of stone and covered with red-painted plaster. The wall is pierced at each cardinal direction by a gate and studded with numerous guard towers. The gates and towers are the only parts of the palace visible to the public. The palace's South Gate, its largest and most ornate, serves as the main entrance to the compound and is an iconic symbol of the Earth Kingdom and the strength of its king. Heavily fortified, the South Gate has three arches and is topped by a two-storied pavilion. Two wings support double-eaved guard towers to both sides of the gate.

Outer Court
The Earth King's palace can be divided into two parts; the outer court, encompassing the important ceremonial buildings at the front and center of the palace, and the Inner Court, which contains the living quarters of the royal family, numerous pleasure gardens, kitchens, and servant's quarters. The most important buildings are located on the palace's north-south and east-west axes.

Directly through the south gate is an immense plaza which dominates the Outer Court. This plaza contains defensive positions for the king's Royal Earthbender Guards, and is marked down the center by a long ceremonial lined at the end by ornamental pillars known as huabiao. At the north end of the plaza is a stream which runs east-west the entire diameter of the palace. This stream is crossed by three stone bridges.

Main Hall
Beyond the square lies the enormous Main Hall, which is both spiritually and physically the heart of the Earth Kingdom - not only is this where the Earth King holds his court, the building itself is located at the very center of Ba Sing Se. By far the largest and most impressive building in Ba Sing Se, the Main Hall holds the king's throne room and is the spiritual heart of the Earth Kingdom. Hundreds of steps lead up to its entrance. The buildings building has quadruple eaves and huge stone pillars holding up its roof. The exterior is primarily colored in shades of red and gold, while the interior is green. The main building also contains the Throne Room.

Throne Room


The Throne Room is located at the center of the Main Hall. 18 large stone pillars run down the entire length of the hall, each topped with intricately painted brackets and supports a corbel from which hangs a large green lantern. Diaphanous curtains are hung throughout the hall to draw attention to the Earth King's throne, situated on a dais near the back of the room and accessed by nine stairs. The throne is surmounted by a massive stone Badgermole clutching the Earth Kingdom's emblem, and in front of a screen painted with scenes of deer, cranes, and mountains on a gold leaf background; above the throne is a large caisson, also colored in gold.

To each side of the Main Hall is a large square centered on a round, multi-tiered temple atop a two-tiered terrace. A gate behind the Main Hall leads to the Inner Court.

Royal Shrine
The Royal Shrine is a temple reserved for the sole use of the Earth King and his wives. All others are forbidden entry to its sacred grounds.

Inner Court
Set off from the rest of the palace by walls and some forested areas, the inner court of the palace is where the day-to-day life of the royal family plays out. Many buildings line the road leading to the palace's North gate. These buildings hold the living quarters of the Earth King and his family, as well as storhouses, kitchens, and servant's quarters.

Palace Grounds
The Palace grounds are consist of numerous ceremonial temples, quarters to house the king's servants, intricate gardens, and the King's menagerie of rare, exotic animals. In the northeast section of the palace is a large ornamental lake with a pavilion in the center. A large part of the palace's ground is forested, and there are several groves of ornamental cherry trees.

Tea Palace
The Tea an elegant tea room surrounded by lush gardens, and is where tea is brewed and served to the Earth King and his honored guests. This small wooden pavilion has a light and airy design, and features brightly painted beams and pillars; the Earth King, when visiting guests, sits on a low throne on top of a raised platform, complete with a small table for holding cups and two large metal urns. The decorative screen behind the Earth King's throne serves as a focal point for the room, and features a relaxing landscape of lofty, mist-shrouded peaks and pines.

Ba Sing Se Prison
In addition, the palace grounds contain the Ba Sing Se Prison, a maximum-security jail made entirely of solid metal in order to prevent Earthbenders from escaping. Long Feng claimed that he built the prison as a solution to the growing crime epidemic within Ba Sing Se and believes that the criminals it holds are a direct threat to the Earth King, but in reality, he uses the jail to imprison those who oppose him and the Dai Li and the criminals themselves are actually political prisoners punished for speaking the truth. Ironically, Long Feng eventually ended in one of the prison's cells.

Security
Only servants and the highest-ranking citizens of Ba Sing Se are allowed entry into the palace grounds, and even they are never permitted to enter the personal quarters of the Earth King. Common citizens are forbidden from entering the Earth King's walled domain, unless they receive a personal invitation from the King himself.

The Royal Palace and the Earth King are personally protected by the King's Guards, an elite force of guards who act as sentries against intruders. Though not on par with the Dai Li, their Earthbending ability allows them to send impressive stone projectiles from the palace towers, enabling them to easily crush any would-be invaders.

Trivia

 * The Earth Kingdom Palace is based on the Forbidden City and other Chinese buildings and compounds.
 * In "The Awakening" it is briefly seen when Fire Nation Tanks were driven to the palace where soldiers hung up a flag symbolizing the palace was under the Fire Nation's control, yet in Sozin's Comet, Part 4: Avatar Aang, Iroh burned the flag, symbolizing that the palace was once again under the Earth Kingdom's control.
 * The structure and architecture of the South Gate is very similar, and probably based on the Meridian Gate that is the entrance to the Forbidden City. This makes sense, as the Forbidden City in China was home to the royal family, and the Earth Kingdom Royal Palace probably got its inspiration from the Forbidden City.