Outer Rim Sieges

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Outer Rim Sieges

TheOuter Rim Sieges was the final campaign of theClone Wars^[28] between theGalactic Republic and theConfederacy of Independent Systems, being fought in19 BBY, the third and finalyear of the conflict. The campaign occurred when the Confederacy was pushed back to the spiral arms ofthe galaxy. Although the Republic continued to keep the pressure on the Separatists in these territories,^[29] the sieges also encompassed whenGeneralGrievous,^[1] theSupreme Commander of theSeparatist Droid Army,^[19] launched a counteroffensive,^[4] pushing theRepublic Military to the brink. In response to the assault,Jedi Generals were deployed to help theGrand Army of the Republic.^[1] Although there was a stalemate for atime,^[30] the sieges ended up turning the tide of the war in the Republic's favor, making the Confederacy fear they would lose the Clone Wars.^[31]

Prelude[]

The Outer Rim Sieges were fought in19 BBY^[4] as the final campaign of theClone Wars,^[28] a massive conflict between theGalactic Republic andConfederacy of Independent Systems that had been raging acrossthe galaxy since22 BBY.^[4] TheOuter Rim Territories had long-since served as a primary theater of conflict between the Confederacy and Republic. Throughout the war, the Republic struggled to contain Separatist advances throughout the Outer Rim.^[33] Confederate forces, spearheaded by GeneralGrievous, had gained numerous victories against the Republic in the early months of the war, including theMalevolence Campaign,^[34] as well as aseriesof attacks on Republic fleets by the Confederate armada across the Outer Rim, particularly onFalleen andQuell. These Separatist advances throughout the Outer Rim early on in the war further jeopardized the Republic's foothold in vital sectors, and civilian worlds such asRyloth andMandalore suffered greatly due to violence and the closing of Outer Rim trade routes.^[35][36]

Due to the Jedi's attention being diverted to battling the Separatists, many crime syndicates and pirates exploited the war as an opportunity to expand their reign, as well as criminal activities, throughout the Outer Rim.^[37] Criminal groups and organizations such as theOhnaka gang,Hutt clans,Black Sun, and thePyke Syndicate were able to prosper due to the Republic being focused on the war effort. Groups, such as theZygerrian Slave Empire^[38] andDeath Watch,^[39] were able to return to power in the Outer Rim due to backing from Count Dooku and the Separatists. These organizations would sow additional chaos in the Outer Rim as they had free reign during the war. Additionally, as Republic forces continued to be spread thin throughout the Outer Rim, many Confederate planets, such as Geonosis, that were thought to be conquered and secured, began to rise up and overthrow Republic occupation forces, allowing the Separatists to prolong the conflict.^[40]

Cato Neimoidia wasinvaded by the Separatists prior to the Outer Rim Sieges.^[41]Felucia was the site ofseveralengagementsearlier in the war, one of which saw the destruction of a crucial Republic medical station.^[42][43][44] Following the capture of Jedi Master Eeth Koth, Grievous advanced toSaleucami in an attempt to establish a base in the system, but wasthwarted by the Republic,^[33] and the world ofMygeeto had been the sites ofprolongedcampaigns throughout the course of the war.^[12]

However, as the war progressed, the Republic was slowly able to turn the tide of the fighting in the Outer Rim. The Confederacy suffered major setbacks following thedestruction of thedroid factories onGeonosis,^[45] as well as the Separatist Navy and Army being repelled by the Republic at theBattle of Sullust^[46] and theBattle of Mon Cala.^[47] Additionally, the Republic was able to mount victories on key worlds, such as at the Second Battle of Felucia.^[44] Grievous secured a number of victories, but those triumphs were not enough^[48] to stem the coming tide of Republic victory. Even though victory seemed inevitable for the Republic in the final year of the war, however, it would take much longer than anticipated.^[29]

The sieges[]

Republic offensive[]

The Outer Rim Sieges, the name for a Republic offensive campaign^[29] designed to end the war once and for all, began in earnest after the CIS was pushed out of theCore Worlds and Mid Rim Territories.^[48] The Separatists lost the majority of their droid factories^[49] and territory, pushing the CIS back to a few remaining redoubts in the Outer Rim^[50] in the Outer Rim Sieges,^[29] although the campaign also saw fronts open in the Mid Rim^[3] and Colonies.^[1]

Despite the Republic offensive,^[29] Grievous attempted to take control of the Republic shipyards onAnaxes^[51] in a disruption of the sieges' status quo.^[10] Grievous' wish resulted in^[51] a long,^[52] bloody battle led by^[51] Admiral Trench, who moved his droid forces^[20] into the Coreward edge^[10] and launched amassive siege against the Republic shipyards.^[20] However, the battle ended in a victory for the Republic, with Trench killed.^[23]

During the campaign, thehomeworld ofCountDooku,Serenno, became afocus for the Republic, but multipleattacks against both theD'Astan sector and theSerenno system itself failed to take the world.^[7] Abattle on Metalorn was waged at one point. The Republic alsobesieged the Separatist-controlled world ofSaleucami.^[10] For atime, the sieges were in a stalemate.^[30]

Grievous's counteroffensive[]

In the aftermath of the Battle of Anaxes,^[4] a new component of the sieges opened when Grievous launched^[1] a counterattack. Grievous's counteroffensive^[4] pushed the Republic's forces,^[1] already stretched across the Outer Rim in its offensive,^[54] outside of the Core into a breaking point.^[1] Indeed, while the Outer Rim had been a front of the Clone Wars since their beginning,^[55][35] theAkivanNorra Wexley, while walking through the aftermath of theBattle of Akiva, later recalled the CIS as "bringing" the war to the Outer Rim in its final years.^[53]

In these desperate final hours,^[4] to defend against the the Confederate assault, the Republic and the Jedi Council deployed their generals throughout the Outer Rim to halt the Separatist advance.^[1] However, with the Jedi and most of the experienced officers away from the Core fighting in the sieges, Grievous would exploit this vulnerability^[29] and launch asurprise assault on Coruscant with thousands of warships from the Separatist Navy.^[3]

The sieges continued to take place until the finaldays of the Clone Wars.^[3] Grievous personally commanded an attack on the planetFrong, leaving ash in his wake.^[2] Battles that took place during the late sieges included theFourth Battle of Mygeeto,^[12] theBattle of Felucia,^[14] the Conquest of Kaller, and theBattle of Yerbana.^[1]Jedi MasterObi-Wan Kenobi and his former apprenticeJedi KnightAnakin Skywalker fought in the Outer Rim Sieges,^[3] culminating in their service in theBattle of Yerbana,^[1] before being recalled for the Battle of Coruscant.^[3]

Final hours[]

Though the Confederacy had stretched the Jedi and clone armies thin throughout the Outer Rim, the Republic had continued to fight back,^[1] turning the tide of the fighting to the Republic's advantage^[31] and putting the Confederacy on the defensive.^[54] In the final days of the war, the droid army and the Separatistfleet were severely diminished.^[17] In addition to continued losses in the sieges, the loss of Count Dooku and a portion of the armada atCoruscant would continue to diminish not only the Separatist's ability to wage war in the Outer Rim, but also morale among the Separatist leaders, includingViceroyNute Gunray, and lead them to doubt the Confederacy's chances of winning the war.^[3]

Following the rescue of ChancellorPalpatine, Grievous retreated to the Outer Rim world ofUtapau, where he deployed the already severely depleted droid army across numerous systems in hopes of pushing the Republic back.^[17] With Separatist forces spread thin over many Outer Rim sectors, it became increasingly difficult for the Jedi Council to track General Grievous, who assumed the position of Head of State of the Separatist Alliance following the death of Count Dooku, making him a priority target for the Republic to bring the war to an end. There was grave concern among Republic politicians, including the Chancellor, that the war would not end until Grievous was killed.^[3] In hopes of finding the general,JediIskat Akaris,Sunghi Silpari, andTualon Yaluna were dispatched on amission to Frong with acompany of clone troopers.^[2] In the end, the Republic tracked the general to Utapau and the subsequentbattle and death of Grievous would bring further destabilization of the Separatist command structure, and followingOrder 66, theexecution of theSeparatist Council onMustafar and the deactivation of the droid armies, the sieges, and the war as a whole, came to an end.^[3]

Appearances[]

• Star Wars: Galactic Defense
• Star Wars: The Prequel Trilogy – A Graphic Novel
• Inquisitor: Rise of the Red Blade(andaudiobook)(Indirect mention only)
• Catalyst: A Rogue One Novel(andaudiobook)
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "The Bad Batch"
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "A Distant Echo"
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Unfinished Business"
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Old Friends Not Forgotten"
• Star Wars: Episode IIIRevenge of the Sith(First appearance)
• Star Wars: The Bad Batch — "Aftermath"
• Kanan 2(Vision toCaleb Dume)
• Star Wars Galaxy of Adventures — "Chewbacca - Wookiee Warrior"(In flashback(s))
• Kanan 1
• Star Wars Outlaws(Indirect mention only)
• Aftermath(andaudiobook)(Indirect mention only)
• Galaxy's Edge 2(In flashback(s))

Non-canon appearances[]

• LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga

Sources[]

Notes and references[]