Star Wars: Here’s When & How Siege of Mandalore Happened
The Clone Wars era of Star Wars saw its fair share of many different events that changed different planets or even altered the entire galaxy. One of the most important events ever seen by the Mandalorian people or even the Republic was the Siege of Mandalore. While this event wasn’t exactly the one that destroyed Mandalore, it still contributed to the overall future of the Mandalorians. So, when and how did the Siege of Mandalore happen?
The Siege of Mandalore took place on 19 BBY, just before the events of Order 66. This took place in episodes 9 and 10 of ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars’ season 7. The Siege of Mandalore ousted Maul from power and allowed Bo-Katan Kryze to rule but opened up the planet to Imperial occupation.
We know that many things happened to the planet of Mandalore, but the Siege of Mandalore was one of the events that eventually allowed a foreign power to occupy the planet instead of allowing the Mandalorians to rule their own people. This eventually led to the planet’s downfall and to one of the most interesting stories involving Ahsoka Tano. Now, let’s look at what happened during the Siege of Mandalore.
Who led the Siege of Mandalore?
During the seventh season of ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars,’ many things happened involving our favorite heroes. Of course, the focus of that season was Ahsoka Tano because the events of season 7 coincided with the events of ‘Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.’ As such, it allowed us to see what Ahsoka was doing near the end of the Clone Wars.
After having her own fair share of adventures with the Martez sisters, Ahsoka met up with Bo-Katan Kryze, who tailed her around because she needed help. They both contacted Anakin and Obi-Wan to tell them what Bo-Katan needed, and that was when they agreed to a meeting. It became clear that Bo-Katan wanted help with the things that were happening on Mandalore because Darth Maul was ruling the planet as a shadow leader.
The original plan was for Anakin, Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, Bo-Katan, and the 501st Legion to go to Mandalore to defeat Maul and take him to justice once and for all. But that was when the Jedi Council contacted them and told them about what had happened to Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, whom General Grievous had captured during the Battle of Coruscant.
Anakin and Obi-Wan were the only ones equipped to handle the job of rescuing the chancellor. But while Anakin and Obi-Wan were supposed to be on their way to Coruscant to rescue the chancellor, Ahsoka didn’t want the Mandalorians to suffer under Maul. And that was what prompted Anakin to split the 501st Legion so that they could still help the Mandalorians.
The problem was that Ahsoka was no longer a Jedi, which meant she wasn’t authorized to lead the 501st on a mission. Anakin and Obi-Wan promoted Captain Rex to the rank of commander so that he could lead the mission. Meanwhile, Ahsoka accompanied them as a consultant. As such, Commander Rex officially led the Siege of Mandalore, together with Bo-Katan Kryze and her Mandalorian cell. And Ahsoka was there to act as a consultant even though Rex and the other 501st clones relied more on her leadership.
When did the Siege of Mandalore happen?
As mentioned, the Siege of Mandalore coincided with the rescuing of Chancellor Palpatine during the events of ‘Revenge of the Sith.’ That means that this battle happened during the final days of the Clone Wars on 19 BBY. This was also the last time that Ahsoka saw Anakin before he became Darth Vader, as they parted ways right before both the Siege of Mandalore and the Battle of Coruscant.
Specifically, this happened during episodes 9 and 10 of ‘The Clone Wars’ season 7. Most of the events of the battle took place during episode 10. Meanwhile, episode 11 allowed us to see the aftermath of the Siege of Mandalore as Bo-Katan was now the one who acted as the leader of the Mandalorians, all while Ahsoka and the 501st were on their way back to Coruscant on the Tribunal with a captured Maul.
What happened during the Siege of Mandalore?
The Siege of Mandalore took place because the one who was ruling Mandalore from the shadows was Darth Maul. As such, Bo-Katan and the Mandalorians loyal to her were looking to free their planet from his rule, so they asked the Jedi for help.
During the Siege of Mandalore, the 501st and Bo-Katan’s Mandalorians focused on the ground troops that Maul sent. Meanwhile, Ahsoka was the one charged with taking on Maul, who was far too strong for any other person to take on at that time.
But while Ahsoka was dueling, Maul, the former Sith Lord, tried to explain to her that the person he wanted to see was Anakin because he wanted to warn him about what Darth Sidious was planning to do. Of course, Maul already knew about his former master’s plans, and that was why he wanted to be the one to win Anakin over so that they could fight Sidious together and claim the revenge that he wanted to exact on the Sith.
The problem was that Ahsoka was the one who came. Nevertheless, Maul was looking to win Ahsoka over while telling her they were already too late to stop what was coming, Order 66. But because Ahsoka was not about to start trusting the words of a Sith Lord, she dueled and defeated him with the help of her allies.
Maul’s defeat during the Siege of Mandalore allowed Bo-Katan to become the regent of the planet, while Ahsoka left with a captured Maul just before Order 66 happened. But while Bo-Katan may have become the regent, this only allowed the Republic to occupy Mandalore as well. And we know that the Republic became the Empire, which ultimately became oppressive toward Mandalore and its citizens, prompting Bo-Katan and the other Mandalorians to rebel.
As for Ahsoka, she was in the cruiser called the Tribunal when Order 66 happened. While she removed the inhibitor chip from Rex’s brain and allowed him to return to his senses, the other clones of the 501st weren’t too lucky. A badly damaged Tribunal crashed on a nearby planet just after Ahsoka, Rex, and Maul escaped. The deaths of these clones affected Ahsoka so much that she left her lightsabers there to fake her death so that she could go into hiding.
Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!
