Editing Siege of the Inner Colonies

{{Status|Canon}}
{{Under construction}}
{{Battle infobox
|name=Siege of the Inner Colonies
|image=[[File:Fall of Reach 1.jpg|315px]]<br>[[Reach]] falls in [[2552]]
|prev=[[Massacre of the Outer Colonies]]
|conc=[[Battle of Meridian|Meridian]], [[Second Fall of Arcadia|Arcadia (II)]], [[Battle of New Jerusalem|New Jerusalem]], [[Battle of Installation 04|Installation 04]], [[Battle of Installation 05|Installation 05]]
|next=[[Battle of Installation 00|Installation 00]]
|conflict=[[Human-Covenant War]]
|date=[[2536#June|June 1, 2536]]<ref name="HWTimeline">''[[Halo Wars]]'', collectible, [[Halo Wars Timeline Events]]</ref>-[[2552#December|December 3, 2552]]{{Ref/Note|Id=battleend|While no official date has been given to the end of the Battle for Earth, the currently last known engagement during the battle, the [[Operation: MARSH FLASH]] in [[Arizona]], took place on December 3, although it's still possible that other engagements on some other countries or continents was still occuring after the [[URNA Southwest Campaign]] ended.}}<ref name="hlcnavalrecords">''[[Halo Legendary Crate]]'', [[:File:LC 002 Doc 3.jpg|Naval Records Archives 1]]</ref>
|place=[[Inner colonies]], [[Orion Arm]], [[Milky Way galaxy]]
|result='''Pyrrhic UNSC-Sangheili Victory'''
*Discovery of [[Halo Array]]
**Covenant loyalists driven to [[Installation 00]]
*Loss of a number of the inner colonies, including [[Reach]]
*Billions of civilian and miltary casualties
|side1=
*{{Icon|UNSC HCW}} [[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]]
----
*{{Icon|Covenant FB}} [[Covenant separatists]] {{C|post-Great Schism}}
**[[Fleet of Retribution]]
|side2=*{{Icon|Covenant FB}} [[Covenant Empire|Covenant]]
|commanders1=
*[[UNSC High Command|HIGHCOM]]
**[[Fleet Admiral|FADM]] [[Terrence Hood|Lord Terrence Hood]]
**[[Admiral|ADM]] [[Preston Cole]]† {{C|[[Missing in action|MIA]], assumed [[Killed in action|KIA]]}}
**[[Admiral|ADM]] [[Margaret Parangosky]]
**[[Admiral|ADM]] [[Michael Stanforth]]†
**[[Admiral|ADM]] [[Danforth Whitcomb]]†
----
*[[Fleet of Retribution]] {{C|post-Great Schism}}
**[[Arbiter]] [[Thel 'Vadam]]
**[[Shipmaster]] [[Rtas 'Vadum]]
|commanders2=
*[[Hierarchs]]
**[[Prophet of Truth|High Prophet of Truth]]
**[[Prophet of Regret|High Prophet of Regret]]
**[[Prophet of Mercy|High Prophet of Mercy]]
*[[Covenant Fleet]]
**[[Special Operations Commander]] [[Rtas 'Vadum]]ee {{C|pre-Great Schism}}
**[[Supreme Commander]] [[Thel 'Vadamee]] {{C|pre-Great Schism}}
**Supreme Commander [[Rho 'Barutamee]]†
**Supreme Commander [[Luro 'Taralumee]]
|forces1=*[[Second Fleet]]{{Ref/Note|Id=homefleet|Part of the Home Fleet after Sept. 5, 2552}}
*[[Third Fleet]]{{Ref/NoteReuse|homefleet}}
*[[Fifth Fleet]]{{Ref/NoteReuse|homefleet}}
*[[Seventh Fleet]]{{Ref/NoteReuse|homefleet}}
*[[Sixteenth Fleet]]{{Ref/NoteReuse|homefleet}}
*[[UNSC Home Fleet|Home Fleet]]
*[[Epsilon Eridani Fleet]]
----
*[[Fleet of Retribution]] {{C|post-Great Schism}}
|forces2=*[[Truth's fleet|Truth's]]
*[[Fleet of Sacred Consecration|Sacred Consecration]]
*[[Fleet of Particular Justice|Particular Justice]]
*[[Fleet of Valiant Prudence|Valiant Prudence]]
*[[Fleet of Righteous Vigilance|Righteous Vigilance]]
*[[Fleet of Holy Respite|Holy Respite]]
*[[Third Fleet of Glorious Consequence|3rd Glorious Conequence]]
|casual1=Incredibly devastating losses
*Many [[UNSC starship]]s
*Over 23 billion civilian and military casualties, billions of more during the [[Battle for Earth]].
*Several [[planet]]s [[glassing|glassed]]
Moderate Sangheili casualties
|casual2=Heavy losses
*Many [[Covenant starship]]s
*Hundreds of thousands of infantry
}}

The '''Siege of the Inner Colonies'''{{Ref/Reuse|HWTimeline}} was the series of [[Human-Covenant War|engagements]] taking place in [[humanity]]'s [[Inner colonies]] that made up the '''late Human-Covenant War'''{{Ref/Site|Id=Xbox.com Halo Storyline|URL=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo/storyline.htm|Site=Xbox.com|Page=Halo Storyline|D=24|M=04|Y=2008|LocalArchive=Archive:Xbox.com/Halo/Timeline|Detail=(Additional copy on [http://halo.bungie.org/misc/mstimeline2.html HBO Forums])}}{{Ref/Note|Due to the name, and the stated scope of the Siege, Halopedia assumes all of the Inner Colonies attacked after June 1, 2536 fall within this overarching battle.}} and roughly corresponds to the time between the implementation of the [[Cole Protocol]] and the end of the war.{{Ref/Book|Id=mythos80|Halo Mythos|Page=80-81}}

There would be a handful of human victories through the Siege, though they were only minor setbacks for the Covenant.{{Ref/Book|Id=mythos82|Halo Mythos|Page=82-83}} Typically these victories were won in costly ground campaigns, with [[Space warfare|space combat]] still largely in the Covenant's favor.{{Ref/Reuse|HWTimeline}}{{Ref/Reuse|Xbox.com Halo Storyline}} Although the pace of destruction did not match the Massacre of the Outer Colonies,{{Ref/Reuse|mythos80}} colonies still fell one-by-one.{{Ref/Reuse|HWTimeline}}{{Ref/Reuse|Xbox.com Halo Storyline}} [[Propaganda]] and willful ignorance kept the innermost colonies detached from the actual horrors going on.{{Ref/Reuse|mythos82}}

==Background==
===Outer Colony slaughters===
{{Main|Massacre of the Outer Colonies}}
Following the loss of the [[Outer Colonies]], the UEG gave new emergency powers to the UNSC and martial law was declared in numerous areas.{{Ref/Book|Enc22|Page=52}}

==Battle==
From June 1, 2536, onwards, the Covenant would press into the Inner Colonies.{{Ref/Reuse|HWTimeline}}

Eight years afterward, the Inner Colony of [[Miridem]] would [[Battle of Miridem|fall]] to the Covenant.{{Ref/Reuse|encyc299}} This would eventually result in the capture of [[Catherine Halsey]].<ref>''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', Adjunct (2010)</ref> In [[2545|May 2545]], [[Actium]] was discovered by the Covenant, resulting in the month long [[Battle of Actium]].<ref>''[[Halo Waypoint]]'', [[Heroes Never Die]]</ref>

In May of 2552,{{Ref/NoteReuse|ilbTroy}} the colonies of [[Troy]] and [[Harmony]] in the [[Hellespont system]] were [[Massacre of Troy|attacked]].

===Attacks in the Epsilon Eridani system===
{{Main|Fall of Reach|Battle for Tribute}}
On July 23, 2552, the [[Fleet of Valiant Prudence]] deployed [[Sangheili Zealot]]s to disable the [[Visegrád Relay]], effectively cutting [[Reach]] off from the UNSC.<ref name="reachbegin">''[[Halo: Reach]]'', campaign levels, [[Noble Actual]] and [[Winter Contingency]]</ref>

By [[2552#August|August 30, 2552]], nearly a dozen Inner Colony worlds were passed over by the Covenant in order to attack Reach.{{Ref/Novel|TFoR|Chapter=32|Quote=I see. Very well, your squad might as well hear this now, too. I don’t know how they found Reach—they bypassed a dozen Inner Colony worlds to get here.}}
{{Expand-section}}

===Fighting in the Sol System===
{{Main|Battle of Mare Erythraeum|Battle for Earth}}
{{Expand-section}}
==Aftermath==
A number of Inner Colonies managed to survive the war.<ref>''[[Halo: First Strike]]'' (2010), Adjunct: [[Petra]]</ref><ref>''[[Halo: Mortal Dictata]]'', p. 481</ref>
===The Lesser Ark===
{{Main|Battle of Installation 00}}
The joint UNSC and Sangheili forces were deployed to the Ark after discovering the portal.{{Ref/Level|H3|[[The Ark (level)|The Ark]]}}
{{Expand-section}}
==Timeline==
===2544===
*The [[Third Fleet of Glorious Consequence]] [[Battle of Miridem|attacks]] [[Miridem]].<ref name="encyc299">''[[Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition)]]'', p. 299 (2011)</ref> [[Dr. Halsey]] is captured while evacuating the planet.<ref>''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', Adjunct (2010)</ref>
*The Third Fleet of Glorious Consequence is trapped in a stellar magnetic field, preventing them from leaving [[Ascon]] via [[slipspace]]. The UNSC, unwilling to let Dr. Halsey fall into enemy hands, enacts [[Operation: WARM BLANKET]] to recover her.<ref name="Pack">'''[[Halo Legends]]''': ''[[The Package (animated short)|The Package]]''</ref>
===2545===
*'''January 10, 2545''': The Covenant arrive in the [[Draco system]] and quickly destroy the UNSC defenses surrounding [[Invasion of Draco III|Draco III]]. However instead of using their typical tactic of glassing all major settlements, the Covenant spare some of the cities of Draco III from destruction for use as a hunting ground to feed their starving Unggoy and Kig-Yar populations.<ref name="EVG">'''[[Halo: The Essential Visual Guide]]''', ''page 26''</ref><ref name="nb19">'''Halo: New Blood''', ''pages 19-20'' (Google Play edition)</ref> Spartan-IIs retaliate by killing every Covenant remaining on the planet, at the expense of being unable to save any civilians.
*'''May''': A month long [[Battle of Actium|campaign]] on [[Actium]] takes place between the Covenant and UNSC. The UNSC is defeated and the planet is eventually glassed by the Covenant, but not before the UNSC forces destroy three of the largest Covenant staging areas on record.<ref name="Waypoint">[http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/intel/featured/video/herocourage/c2ada678-e9ce-4db9-9ce9-1864070bd198 ''Halo Waypoint'', Hero - Courage] (Defunct)</ref> 
*'''July 3, 2545''': [[Operation: TORPEDO]] is undertaken by UNSC Spartan-IIIs to eliminate a Covenant fuel refinery. The refinery is destroyed, at the cost of all but two of the 300 Spartan-IIIs.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', ''page 25-26''</ref>
===2546===
*The Covenant [[Battle of Camber|return to]] [[Camber]] in full force, bypassing the UNSC's early warning systems and quickly destroy it.{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22P50|Enc22|Page=50}}
*[[Battle of New Llanelli|New Llanelli]] is attacked and glassed.<ref>'''[[Halo: Glasslands]]''', ''page 133''</ref> 
*'''September 21, 2546''': The [[Battle of Sargasso]] takes place.<ref name="today in halo">[https://twitter.com/bsangel/status/646031686484934657 '''Jessica Shea's Twitter''': ''Today in Halo - 9/21/2546'']</ref><ref name="sargasso">'''[[Halo: The Essential Visual Guide]]''', ''page 184''</ref>
===2547===
*[[Skopje]] is [[Battle of Skopje|attacked]] by the Covenant.<ref>''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]'', "[[Dirt]]", p. 171-172</ref>
===2548===
*The [[Battle of Meridian]] begins.<ref name="h5 glassed">'''[[Halo 5: Guardians]]''', campaign level ''[[Glassed]]''</ref>
===2549===
*[[Algolis]] is quickly [[Algolis Invasion|invaded]] and destroyed by the Covenant.{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22|Enc22|Page=50}}
*[[Estuary]] is [[Battle of Estuary|destroyed]] by the Covenant.{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22|Enc22|Page=50}}
*[[Paris IV]] is [[Siege of Paris IV|attacked]] and glassed by the Covenant.{{Ref/Book|Id=enc37|[[Halo Encyclopedia (2011 edition)]]|Page=37}}
*'''September 9, 2549''': The Covenant [[Second Fall of Arcadia|return to Arcadia]], and it is quickly glassed by an overwhelmingly large fleet.<ref name="timeline">'''[[Halo Wars]]''', ''[[Halo Wars Timeline Events|Timeline Events]]''</ref>
===2550===
*[[Minab]] is [[Battle of Minab|glassed]] by the Covenant.{{Ref/Comic|Id=HE17|[[Halo: Escalation]]|Issue=[[Halo: Escalation Issue 17|#17]]}}
===2551===
*[[Concord]] is attacked by the Covenant, but are [[Defense of Concord|repelled]] by UNSC forces.<ref name="h4">'''[[Halo 4]]''', ''Venator armor description''</ref>
===2552===
*'''January 8''': [[Operation: FIRESIDE]] commences on the planet [[Ariel]]. A rare tactical victory occurs and the planet is left unglassed.<ref name="is1">'''[[Halo: Helljumper]]''', ''[[Halo: Helljumper Issue 1|Issue 1]]''</ref><ref name="is2">'''Halo: Helljumper''', ''[[Halo: Helljumper Issue 2|Issue 2]]''</ref>
*'''April 22''': [[Fumirole]] is [[Battle of Fumirole|attacked]] by the Covenant.<ref>''[[Halo: The Essential Visual Guide]]'', p. 105</ref>
*'''May''': The [[Massacre of Troy|Massacre]] of [[Troy]] in the [[Hellespont system]] takes place.{{Ref/Note|Id=ilbTroy|The last [[i love bees]] [[Axon]] chapter contains the start of the Covenant invasion of Earth, a set date, and each chapter is set a week apart. In the first chapter, axon [[:file:ILB Receipt.ogg|receipt]], Herzog refers to the evacuation as "three months" ago.}}
*'''July 17''': The Covenant are [[Battle of Sigma Octanus IV|detected]] on approach to [[Sigma Octanus IV]]. The battle is fought and concluded on the following day with Sigma Octanus IV remaining unglassed, but the Covenant now in possession of a Forerunner artifact and having tracked at least one UNSC ship.<ref>'''Halo: The Fall of Reach''', ''page 170''</ref>
*'''July 25''': The [[Visegrád Relay]] is taken down by Covenant Zealots, [[Timeline of the Fall of Reach|beginning]] the [[Fall of Reach]].{{Ref/Reuse|reachbegin}}
*[[Mare Erythraeum]] is [[Battle of Mare Erythraeum|attacked]] by the Covenant.<ref>''[[Halo: Uprising]]'', [[Halo: Uprising Issue 3|Issue #3]]</ref>
===Unknown===
*[[Imber]] is attacked by the Covenant. [[Operation: DEVIL FREEDOM]] takes place there.<ref>''[[Halo 5: Guardians Limited Edition]]'' - Kelly-087's profile card</ref>
*[[Ballast]] is [[Battle of Ballast|attacked]] at an unknown point.<ref>''[[Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition)]]'', p. 300 (2011)</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:UltraMythos.jpg|A [[Sangheili Ultra]] and other Covenant forces on [[Reach]].
</gallery>

==Notes==
{{Ref/Notes}}

==Sources==
{{Ref/Sources}}

{{Human-Covenant War}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Inner Colonies}}
[[Category:Battles of the Human-Covenant War]]
[[Category:UNSC victories]]