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| “ | Sons of the Harpy. They want to put a collar back on my neck. | „ |
| ~ Mossador |
| “ | Meereen would always be the Harpy's city, and Daenerys could not be a harpy. | „ |
| ~ Thoughts of Daenerys Targaryen. |
The Sons of the Harpy are major antagonists in the A Song of Ice and Fire novel series and its television adaptation, Game of Thrones, serving as the secondary antagonists of the Slaver's Bay storyline.
They are a violent underground resistance group that is composed of Ghiscari noblemen from the city-state of Meereen who are in opposition to the reign of Queen Daenerys Targaryen and her abolishment of slavery in said city-state in its domains, which is the source of Slaver's Bay's entire economy. They are allegedly led by someone known as "the Harpy," although the existence of such a leader remains questionable.
Overview[]
The Sons of the Harpy are minor antagonists of Daenerys' POV storyline, after the Wise Masters of Yunkai, Hizdahr zo Loraq, and Quentyn Martell. They are a group of Ghiscari nobles from Meereen, suspected of being supported by old Meereenese slave-master families who oppose Queen Daenerys Targaryen and her occupation of their city, wishing to restore slavery by removing her from rulership. Their name of Sons of the Harpy refers to the way the Ghiscari noblemen refers to themselves, after the Old Empire of Ghis, one of the oldest known nations and ancient cultures in the known world and the resistance's membership may be drawn from those who benefited from the ancient empire.
Since Daenerys took Meereen, the Sons of the Harpy launched a Shadow War where they would mostly engage in night attacks against Freedmen, Unsullied, and Shavepates, who accept Daenerys' rule by shaving off their Ghiscari hairdos as a way of renouncing their old Meereenese customs, which is seen as treachery by the Sons of the Harpy. After they made a kill, they would leave a mark near the murder scene - a harpy drawn from the victim's blood. Their actions caused an insurrection at Meereen and despite the efforts of Daenaerys' soldiers, they failed to capture any of the Sons of the Harpy, as they would disappear into the night to avoid retaliation.
It was suspected that the noble Meereenese families, Loraq, Zhak, Pahl, Quazzar, Uhlez, Ghazeen, Hazkar, Dhazzak, Yherizan, and Merreq are a part of the Sons of the Harpy. They are indirect allies of Yunkai and the Slaver Alliance, which includes Yunkai, Qarth, Volantis, and various sellsword companies, who are also enemies of Daenerys. The identity of the leader of the Sons of the Harpy is still unknown, and that person is mostly referred to as "the Harpy".
Biography[]
A Dance of Dragons[]
Among the victims of the Sons of the Harpy are Stalwart Shield (named White Rat in the TV series) and Mossador, one of Missandei's brothers (not to be confused with another character in the show with the same name). Daenerys first orders an investigation without getting any results. Her Dothraki attempt to subdue the city, while sellswords Ben Plumm and Daario Naharis are out to prepare for an attack from Yunkai and to try to make alliances outside Slaver's Bay. Skahaz mo Kandaq the Shavepate vengefully urges Danaerys to punish the Great Masters and their families for the murders committed by the Sons of the Harpy, while the seneschal Reznak mo Reznak denies that the noble families are connected to the resistance group.
The number of attacks and deaths in the night by the Sons of the Harpy starts to drastically increase, and the resistance movement managed to murder nine fully-armed Unsullied in the streets of Meereen, but this time they also killed freedmen (former slaves). This time, Danaerys allows the Shavepate to torture a wineseller and his daughter. During the second investigation, she orders the Unsullied to restrict themselves to patrolling the walls and imposes a blood tax on the great families of Meereen to fund a new mixed (but equal) force of freedmen and shavepates to patrol the city streets under the control of Skahaz. As the Sons of the Harpy had promised death on anyone who serves Daenerys, which extends towards their families, this caused the newly-formed city watch, called the Brazen Beasts, to wear brass animal masks to hide their identities.
The attacks of the Sons of the Harpy keep going while Danaerys refuses to listen to Hizdahr zo Loraq's advice to reopen the fighting pits of Meereen. The Queen receives a visit from Xaro Xhoan Daxos, one of the Thirteen in the commercial city of Qarth. Xaro warns her of the danger the Sons of the Harpy pose and informs Daenerys that Pyat Pree and the rest of the Qartheen warlocks are seeking revenge after the destruction of the House of the Undying and the deaths of the Undying Ones. Xaro tells Daenerys that her attempt to abolish slavery is not working and that Qarth is willing to trade in slaves with Meereen before offering her 30 galleys if she leaves for Westeros. Meanwhile, Astapor is facing a siege from the forces of Yunkai, but Daenerys refuses to leave Meereen to defend Astapor and leaves it to its fate. As she refused Xaro's offer, this made him hostile towards her, and he admits that he should have killed her and promises her that she will die screaming at the hands of the Masters before returning to Quarth. The next day, Qarth declares war against Daenerys.
The Green Grace Galazza Galare advises her to marry Hizdahr zo Loraq. Though the two have no love each other, they agree to a pact; Hizdahr promises to put an end to the Sons of the Harpy's attacks in 90 days, and if successful, he and Daenerys will marry. The pact was met with disapproval by Ser Barristan Selmy, Daenaerys' Hand of the Queen, who sees Hizdahr as untrustworthy. Daenerys has many children of the powerful families of Meereen taken to the Great Pyramid as well-treated hostages, as while they are made to be cupbearers, they continue on with their education. Despite the crimes of the Sons of the Harpy, Daenerys forbade the Shavepate from harming them to send a message, as Daenaerys' had grown fond of the children.
Hizdahr Zo Loraq manages to put an end to the attacks of the Sons of the Harpy after visiting the 11 pyramids of the noble families. Though there has been no new attack in 26 days, Daenerys and the Shavepate began to suspect Hizdahr; however, this time Daenerys wants to leave him and the other slave masters alone, as she prefers this silence over an open rebellion in the city. She also refuses to take hostages from the powerful families, not wanting to incite their anger.
While the Sons of the Harpy had gone quiet, Daenerys learns of the Fall of Astapor from refugees/survivors, who had gone into hiding when the city was sacked by Yunkai and its sellswords. Daenerys came to regret on having not aided Astapor’s ruler, King Cleon. As many of the refugees have been infected with the bloody flux, they were denied entry into Meereen until the epidemic has passed. The Astapori refugees set up camp at the gates of Meereen and Daenerys refused to unleash her dragons against the incoming army and the slaver alliance.
The Sons of the Harpy still haven't resumed their activities, while the Yunkish forces, with their Supreme Commander Yurkaz zo Yunzak, arrive at the gates of Meereen, massing more ships and building siege weapons; the Qartheen fleet and camel corps from Qarth, and forces from the island city of Elyria and the port city of Tolos are among the Yunkai'i. Prince Quentyn Martell, his friends and Westerosi sellswords of the Windblown meet with Daenerys. During their private meeting, Quentyn propose to marry her as she'll receive the support of Dorne in return for her conquest of Westeros. However, Daenerys refused and reveals her upcoming marriage to Hizdahr Zo Loraq, which will eventually occur, as ninety days of peace had passed, due to Hizdahr successfully halting the Sons of the Harpy's attacks. In celebration of the marriage as well as the newly-forged peace between Yunkai and Meereen, Daznak's Pit, the biggest and most extravagant fighting pit in Meereen, was reopened.
At Daznak's Pit, the Wise Masters, the Great Masters, the sellsword companies, and the rest of the citizens attend the gladiatorial fightings between mercenaries, free warriors, and slaves. It's on this day that despite Hizdahr halting their attacks, the Sons of the Harpy decided it's time to help Yunkai by killing Daenerys Targaryen via assassination, in which they will kill her by poisoning her food, a bowl of fried locusts; however, Strong Belwas, a former slave to Illyrio Mopatis and one of Daenerys' Queensguard, inadvertently (and unknowingly) foils the plot when he eats the locusts instead, causing him to get sick. Hizdahr tried to convince Daenerys to eat the food, telling her the locusts are tasty, which Daenerys ignores. The Sons of the Harpy were unable to make another attempt at Daenaerys' life when her dragon Drogon appears, as he has been drawn by the smell of blood and the screams coming from Daznak's Pit. He joins in the fighting and starts burning the pit fighters and the wild animals, causing chaos in the process. During the ensuing anarchy, an animal handler Daenerys tries to calm Drogon with a whip, which only annoys him. He allows her to mount him and flies away from Meereen with his mother on his back. Because of Daenerys' sudden disappearance, Hizdahr zo Loraq seized power as King of Meereen.
As Daenerys doesn't return, many fear her dead, and her Dothraki mounted a search for her across the Worm River. Strong Belwas, while being treated by the Blue Graces, is still in mortal danger from the poisoned locusts. Sometime later, a confectioner working for Hizdahr was arrested, he admitted to poisoning the locusts, having been blackmailed into doing so by the Sons of the Harpy, who had taken his daughter hostage, and they swore that they'd return her unharmed once Daenerys was dead. However, as she had survived, the Sons of the Harpy murdered the confectioner's daughter as punishment for his failure before cutting her body into nine pieces and sending them back to her father. This caused Skahaz to report to Ser Barristan his suspicions that the Sons of the Harpy had poisoned the locusts in an attempt to kill Daenerys and suspects Hizdahr of being the so-called "Harpy," the leader of the Sons of the Harpy. Ser Barristan, the Shavepate, and Grey Worm conspire against Hizdahr and plan to attack the unsuspecting Yunkai'i before the fleet from Volantis can arrive to take the city and enslave all of Daenerys' people. If Hizdahr is found guilty, then Ser Barristan plans to kill him personally. The Shavepate also believes that the deaths of Yurkhaz and Groleo were all arranged by the Wise Masters to give Hizdahr a pretext to kill Daenerys' three dragons before the Volantene fleet arrives. Ser Barristan wants to seize Hizdahr, order the Yunkai'i to return their remaining hostages, and have them withdraw their armies from Meereen.
That night in the Great Pyramid, Barristan questions Hizdahr about his role among the Sons of the Harpy and the attempted assassination of Daenerys, only for Hizdahr to make up a lame excuse for the subject. That same night, because he had failed to secure an alliance with Daenerys, Prince Quentyn Martell, with the aid of the Windblown, tries to tame Viserion and Rhaegal so he could take one of them to Dorne. Unfortunately, however, the attempt failed and Quentyn was fatally burned while the two dragons escaped. Meanwhile, Ser Barristan demands Hizdahr if he is the Harpy. Angered, the latter tries to play it tough by ordering him to leave Meereen but Barristan just draws his sword in response. Frightened, Hzdahr calls in his bodyguard, the pit fighter Khrazz. Ser Barrister kills him before seizing the begging Hizdahr zo Loraq and imprisoning him in a cell, where he will remain until Daenerys returns.
With Hizdahr's imprisonment, Meereen is now ruled by the Hand of the Queen and the ruling council, formed by Barristan himself, Grey Worm and more of Daenerys's loyalists, until she returns. Strong Belwas managed to survive being poisoned, though he's now a bit weaker. Because Quentyn had unintentionally freed Viserion and Rhaegal, who left mass death and destruction in their wake, this caused outrage amongst the Meereenese and the Sons of the Harpy, who are also angry over Hizdahr's arrest. An angry mob soon gathered outside the pyramid, demanding his release and that both dragons be destroyed. Soon after Hizdahr was arrested, the Sons of the Harpy retaliated by resuming their shadow war. In contrast to their previous kills and one recent kill during the day, they were successsful in claiming more victims, managing to kill a total of 29, which shocked Ser Barristan.
This time, aside from leaving their signature mark, the Sons of the Harpy now left behind chalked messages, such as "Dragons must die" and "Death to Daenerys". One message even hails the "hero" Harghaz, a Ghiscari animal handler and would-be dragonslayer, who nearly succeeded in killing Drogon during the chaos in Daznak’s Pit but died in the process, causing him to be seen as a hero by the Sons of the Harpy, Yunkai, and half of Meereen. Despite Skahaz's insistence, Ser Barristan Selmy still refuses to kill the hostages in retaliation for the murders. Ghiscari priestess Galazza Galare tries to persuade Ser Barristan to release Hizdahr so he could make peace with Yunkai and stop of the Sons of the Harpy from claiming more victims. The old knight, however, insists that Hizdahr should remain imprisoned until his innocence is proven.
The Second Siege of Meereen starts before dawn with the forces of Meereen, led by Barristan, defending the city from the Slaver Alliance. The Brazen Beasts man the walls of the city in the absence of the Unsullied and the sellswords, defending the streets from the Sons of the Harpy. With the siege ensuing outside and Meereen almost completely destroyed and less defended, the Sons of the Harpy might try to attack the Great Pyramid and take control of the city, as Ser Barristan and his forces are outside preoccupied with the fighting and have no time to deal with the Sons of the Harpy.
Game of Thrones[]
A member of the Sons of the Harpy slits the throat of White Rat, an Unsullied, when the latter approaches a prostitute and pays to be embraced by her. The assassin, who was in league with the prostitute, leaves his mask at the brothel as a revindication of the Sons' responsibility. The murderer is later caught by Daario Naharis, who finds him hiding in a wall. Daenerys pays heed to Ser Barristan Selmy's insistence that the man should have a trial for his crimes. However, a slave named Mossador believes the man does not deserve a fair trial, which leads him to find his prison cell and kill him. Following a coordinated attack by the Sons of the Harpy, in which Ser Barristan is killed and Commander Grey Worm is heavily injured, Daenerys decides to make peace with the Great Masters by reopening the fighting pits and arranging her own marriage to Hizdahr zo Loraq. As expected, the Sons of the Harpy stopped their attacks following the betrothal, which led Daario to suspect Hizdahr's involvement with the group.
However, at the reopening of the fighting pits in Daznak's Pit, the Sons of the Hapry mounted an ambush; When a Son of the Harpy attempts to stealthily assassinate Daenerys, Ser Jorah Mormont noticed him and impales him with a spear. At this, the Sons of the Harpy revealed themselves in the audience and began going on a murderous rampage, in which they murdered Hizdahr zo Loraq as well as many Unsullied and Civilians. During the attack Daenerys, Jorah, Daario, Missandei, and Tyrion try to escape the assassins by crossing Daznak's Pit while being defended by a small phalanx of surviving Unsullied. In turn, the group is quickly surrounded by more of the Sons of the Harpy. Though it looked like they had the upper hand, Drogon unexpectedly intervened, burning and mutilating many of them. While the remainder of them retreated, Daenerys flies off on Drogon's back, leaving her advisors and allies in awe. While Jorah Mormont and Daario Naharis track Daenerys down, Tyrion Lannister, who was with the group, is chosen to take charge over Meereen and deal with the Sons of the Harpy until Daenerys returns, as he is the only one with experience in governing a city.
In the aftermath of Daenerys' disappearance, Tyrion and Varys learn that the Sons of the Harpy are funded by the masters of Yunkai, Astapor, and Volantis. After Tyrion negotiates a fragile peace between the fractions, the Sons of the Harpy once again cease their attacks.
When the Masters laid siege to Meereen via sea and attacked the city during the Second Siege of Meereen, the combined forces of the Sons of the Harpy lay in wait before the gates of the city. Once people started swarming out of the gates to escape the chaos in the city, the Sons of the Harpy attacked and slaughtered them. However, while they are murdering the refugees, Daario Naharis rides towards the city with a large horde of Dothraki in tow. They then swarm over the Sons of the Harpy, routing them out of the city gates.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- The identity of the alleged leader of the Sons of the Harpy, the "Harpy," has not been revealed yet. While most of Daenerys' supporters suspect Hizdahr zo Loraq to be the Harpy, some readers believe he might be a red herring and speculate possible candidates to be the leader of the Harpy's Sons, most of whom are Daenerys' own Ghiscari supporters and members of her Ruling Council. Among the most notable suspects among the readers are Skahaz mo Kandaq and Reznak mo Reznak. But others speculate the Harpy could likely be a woman, possibly the Green Grace Galazza Galare, the high priestess of the temple, who has been the nicest Ghiscari ally to Daenerys.
- The Sons of the Harpy's political goals and their status as a group who commit terrorism against former slaves in opposition to the abolishment of slavery are reminiscent of the Ku Klux Klan, an American white supremacist and far-right terrorist organization. In the television series, they also might have been inspired by ISIS, an Islamic terrorist group who committed various atrocities around the same time the show was airing.
External Links[]
- Sons of the Harpy on the A Wiki of Ice and Fire.
- Sons of the Harpy on the Game of Thrones Wiki.
