Battle of Albertirsa
The Battle of Albertirsa was a battle fought between Syara and Ruvelka in the Ruvelkan city of Albertirsa during the Zemplen War.
As part of Operation Aspis, the Syaran 10th Army under Colonel General Tihomir Orlić was tasked with capturing the closed city of Albertirsa, which sits near the Syaran border and served as a major hub of the Imperial Armed Forces of Ruvelka. Scattered figting around the border near Albertirsa had occurred since June 2008, and the city's airfield had been bombed by the Commonality Air Force during the August Offensive, but the city as a whole was not assaulted until September as part of Operation Aspis.
Surrounded by rough terrain and heavily forested areas, the Syarans struggled to capture the city for several weeks, forced into pitched urban and forest fighting against Ruvelkan defenders that resulted in lopsided Syaran losses. By October the Syaran National Army had been reduced to shelling the city into submission, which finally surrendered on 12 October after the bulk of Ruvelkan troops launched a succesful breakout towards the east. Syaran forces occupied the city and repaired the damaged airfield, returning it to use and employing it as a forward staging area for the CAF for subsequent sorties in southern Ruvelka.
The heavy losses the Syarans suffered during the battle for the city are considered to have forshadowed the costly urban fighting that would later become pivitol during battles like Sagerejo and Soltvadkert. The performance of Syaran General Orlić became the subject of criticism after the war for his usage of frontal assaults on the city, and alleged lack of creativity when it came to capturing Albertirsa. The city was recaptured by the Ruvelkans towards the end of the war as part of Operation Homefront.