Warrior's Sons
| Noble and Puissant Order of the Warrior's Sons | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Symbol | A rainbow sword on black |
| Type | Military chivalric order |
| Seat |
Chapters at Oldtown, Lannisport, Gulltown, Stoney Sept and King's Landing (original Faith Militant) Great Sept of Baelor (reformed Faith Militant) |
| Region | Seven Kingdoms |
| Allegiance | Faith of the Seven |
| Current Leader |
High Sparrow Commander Theodan Wells |
| Founded | Before 1 AC |
| Disbanded | ~58 AC (original Faith Militant) |
| Reorganized | 300 AC (reformed Faith Militant) |
The Noble and Puissant Order of the Warrior's Sons is an order of Westerosi knights sworn to the Faith of the Seven. They are part of the Faith Militant, and are also known as the Swords. Their counterparts are the "Stars", also called the Poor Fellows. The Warrior's Sons obey and answer to the High Septon, as they believe the High Septon speaks for the Seven.[1]
Contents
Customs
Appearance
The Warrior's Sons of old wore rainbow cloaks and inlaid silver armor over hair shirts. They bore star-shaped crystals in the pommels of their longswords.[2]
The recent Warrior's Sons wear swordbelts and cloaks striped in the seven colors of the Faith.[2][3] They have crystals adorning the pommels of their longswords and the crests of their greathelms, and carry kite shields displaying the ancient badge of the Swords: a rainbow sword shining bright upon a field of darkness.[4][5] Their armor is made of silver plate, and polished to a mirror sheen. Underneath, the Warior's Sons wear a hair shirt, as did the Warrior's Sons of old.[5]
Vows and Duties
The Warrior's Sons are all anointed knights. Most in the revival of the order had been household knights or hedge knights before joining the military order, while some are of higher birth.[4] Upon joining the Warrior's Sons, they take vows, giving up their lands and gold. The Warrior's Sons of old were said to have been holy men, ascetics, fanatics, sorcerers, dragonslayers, and demonhunters, implacable in their hatred for all enemies of the Faith.[2]
Organization
Before their disbandment during the reign of King Jaehaerys I Targaryen, the Warrior's Sons were permanently stationed at chapterhouses in several major cities and towns. The Warrior's Sons had one overall commander known as a Grand Captain.
At the outbreak of the Faith Militant uprising in 41 AC, the major chapters were:[6]
- Gulltown[6][N 1]
- King's Landing: Home to seven hundred Warrior's Sons, this chapterhouse was commanded by Ser Damon Morrigen, Grand Captain of the Warrior's Sons, at the start of the reign of King Maegor I Targaryen. All were killed by Maegor during the burning of the Sept of Remembrance.[6]
- Lannisport: commanded by Ser Joffrey Doggett, who later replaced Damon Morrigen as Grand Captain after Morrigen died.[6] Home to at least one hundred Warrior's Sons, as Ser Joffrey rode with a hundred men to seek the blessing of the High Septon.[6]
- Oldtown: Home to at least two hundred Warrior's Sons. In 43 AC, when King Maegor and Dowager Queen Visenya Targaryen threatened to burn Oldtown and the Starry Sept, two hundred Warrior's Sons spilled from their chapterhouse to defend the High Septon at the Starry Sept, under the command of Ser Morgan Hightower. Arrested on the orders of Lord Martyn Hightower, and given a trial at Oldtown by Maegor.[6] Three-quarters decided to take the black, the others were executed.[6]
- Stoney Sept: Home to at least two hundred Warrior's Sons, who marched to the Battle at the Great Fork in 43 AC.[6]
White Harbor, despite being one of the only five settlements in Westeros large enough to be considered a "city", did not host a chapterhouse of the Warrior's Sons, even though House Manderly follow the Seven.
History
The Faith Militant rebelled against King Aenys I Targaryen when the king married his eldest daughter to his eldest son and heir in 41 AC.[7] After Aenys and his family fled King's Landing to Dragonstone, the King's Landing chapter of the Warrior's Sons seized the gates of the city, giving them control over who may enter or leave the capital, and drove the workers from the unfinished Red Keep. They also fortified the Hill of Rhaenys, ensuring the Sept of Remembrance could withstand the Targaryens.[6][7]
Following the death of King Aenys I on Dragonstone in 42 AC, his half-brother, Maegor I Targaryen, claimed the crown. Maegor traveled to King's Landing, where Dowager Queen Visenya Targaryen challenged those who questioned her son's right to rule. The captain of the Warrior's Sons, Ser Damon Morrigen, met this challenge, and the parties agreed to a trial of seven. Maegor was the only survivor of the fourteen combatants.[8]
With Maegor declared as the winner, the Warrior's Sons who witnessed the fight dropped their knees in submission and returned to the Sept of Remembrance, where they began to pray and debate whether to accept Maegor as their king, since the gods had granted him victory, or to fight on as they were bound by oath to the High Septon. Twenty-nine days after the trial of seven, the Sept of Remembrance and all the Warrior's Sons in it were burned down by Maegor with his dragon, Balerion.[6]
Thirteen thousand Poor Fellows and hundreds of knights of the Warrior's Sons joined forces with rebel lords of the riverlands and westerlands to fight against Maegor's forces at the Stoney Sept. During this fierce battle at the Great Fork of the Blackwater, the Faith lost when Maegor and his dragon, Balerion, left death in their wake.[8]
In 43 AC, the order elected Ser Joffrey Doggett as its new Grand Captain, who rode for Oldtown to seek the blessing of the High Septon. Meanwhile, Maegor raised a set of laws which outlawed the orders of the Faith Militant,[6] and forbade holy men from carrying arms.[3][9] That same year,[N 2] the Warrior's Sons of Oldtown surrounded the Starry Sept to protect it from the impending arrival of the King Maegor, Queen Dowager Visenya, their dragons, and the royal army. However, when they arrived by dawn, they found the city gates open and the High Septon suddenly dead. All of the Warrior's Sons were disarmed and arrested under orders of Lord Martyn Hightower, who opened the gates before Balerion and Vhagar could burn the city.[1][6]
The captive Warrior's Sons were given a choice by Maegor: renounce the order and be permitted to join the Night's Watch or die as martyrs of the Faith. Three-quarters of the captive chose the Wall, while the remainder died. Seven of their number, famous knights and sons of lords were given the honor of having Maegor behead them himself with Blackfyre. The rest were beheaded by their own former sworn brothers. Only one of the condemned received a pardon: Ser Morgan Hightower, brother of Lord Martyn and commander of the local chapter of the order. The pardon has led to rumors still persisting today, suggesting he had murdered the High Septon at his brother's request,[1] as he had been seen entering and leaving the chambers of the High Septon in the night of his death.[6]
The new High Septon disbanded the Stars and Swords, while Maegor granted the surviving members of the Faith Militant til the year's end to surrender their weapons and give up their rebellion.[6] Afterward, those who remained defiant would find bounties on their heads: a gold dragon for the head of any Warrior's Son, and a silver stag for the scalp of each Poor Fellows.[10]
In 46 AC, Maegor brought two thousand skulls from his campaign against the Faith back to King's Landing, claiming they were the heads of Warrior's Sons and Poor Fellows. However, many suspected they were the skulls of innocent smallfolk.[8]
The end of the Warrior's Sons began following the death of Maegor I and the ascension of Jaehaerys I Targaryen in 48 AC. Although much reduced in numbers, the Warrior's Sons and Poor Fellows were still present. They remained restless and eager to restore their orders. King Jaehaerys sent Septon Barth to Oldtown to speak with the High Septon. Eventually, it was agreed that the Iron Throne would always protect and defend the Faith, if the last few Stars and Swords would put down their weapons, and if the Faith agreed to accept justice from the Iron Throne instead of the Faith. As a result, the Faith Militant was disbanded.[9]
Recent Events
A Feast for Crows
After the War of the Five Kings in 300 AC, the ruling King Tommen I Baratheon, under the edict of his mother and Regent Cersei Lannister, overturns Maegor the Cruel's law which forbade holy men from being armed, and the orders of the Faith Militant are reborn.[2] Over a hundred knights have so far pledged their swords and lives to the Warrior's Sons and obey the new High Septon, known by many as the High Sparrow.[4] Lancel Lannister, Lord of Darry, renounce his titles, land, and bride to serve the Warrior's Sons and the Faith of the Seven.[11] Cersei observes the Warrior's Sons' rainbow-striped robes,[3] rainbow stripes on their swordbelts,[4] and crystals on the crests of their greathelms.[4]
A Dance with Dragons
Warrior's Sons and Poor Fellows escort Cersei during her walk of atonement. The knights of Ser Theodan Wells wear silver plate atop hair shirts, and their kite shields depict the crystal sword.[5]
Known members
- Ser Theodan Wells, known as Theodan the True, commander of the Warrior's Sons.[12]
- Ser Lancel Lannister, former Lord of Darry and head of House Lannister of Darry.[12]
Historical members
- A younger son of Lord Manfred Hightower.[13]
- Ser Morgan Hightower, a commander during the Faith Militant uprising.[1]
- Ser Damon Morrigen, also known as Damon the Devout, the Grand Captain of the Warrior's Sons in 42 AC.[8][6]
- Ser Joffrey Doggett, elected Grand Captain after Damon's death.[6]
- Ser Lyle Bracken.[6]
- Ser Harys Horpe, called Death's Head Harry.[6]
- Ser Aegon Ambrose.[6]
- Ser Dickon Flowers, known as the Bastard of Beesbury.[6]
- Ser Willam the Wanderer.[6]
- Ser Garibald of the Seven Stars, called the septon knight.[6]
Quotes
Holy men, ascetics, fanatics, sorcerers, dragonslayers, demonhunters … there were many tales about them. But all agree that they were implacable in their hatred for all enemies of the Holy Faith.[2]
—Cersei Lannister's thoughts
Notes
- ↑ The chapter of Gulltown is not mentioned during the Faith Militant uprising. As Lord Hubert Arryn gained his lordship thanks to Maegor's actions in the Vale, he most likely supported him against the Gulltown Warrior's Sons.
- ↑ Earlier prints of The World of Ice & Fire erroneously state that this event and the death of the High Septon took place in 44 AC (The World of Ice & Fire, The Reach: Oldtown). The Sons of the Dragon gives the correct date of 43 AC. The High Septon elected as a replacement dies a year later.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 The World of Ice & Fire, The Reach: Oldtown.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 A Feast for Crows, Chapter 28, Cersei VI.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 A Feast for Crows, Chapter 43, Cersei X.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 A Feast for Crows, Chapter 36, Cersei VIII.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 65, Cersei II.
- ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 6.16 6.17 6.18 6.19 6.20 6.21 Fire & Blood, The Sons of the Dragon.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 The World of Ice & Fire, The Targaryen Kings: Aenys I.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 The World of Ice & Fire, The Targaryen Kings: Maegor I.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 The World of Ice & Fire, The Targaryen Kings: Jaehaerys I.
- ↑ A Feast for Crows, Chapter 33, Jaime V.
- ↑ A Feast for Crows, Chapter 30, Jaime IV.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 A Dance with Dragons, Appendix.
- ↑ Fire & Blood, Aegon's Conquest.
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