The North



The north or the North is one of the constituent regions of Westeros and was a sovereign nation ruled by Kings in the North before Aegon's Conquest. The largest region of the Seven Kingdoms, the dominion of House Stark extends from the border of the New Gift, which is controlled by the Night's Watch, to the southern edge of the Neck far to the south.

The north has been ruled by the Starks for thousands of years from the castle known as Winterfell. The only city in the region is White Harbor, while the most prominent northern towns are the winter town and Barrowton. Notable bannermen of the region include Bolton, Cerwyn, Dustin, Flint, Glover, Hornwood, Karstark, Manderly, Mormont, Reed, Ryswell, Tallhart, and Umber. Bastards of noble origin raised in the north are given the surname Snow.

Geography
While some say the vast north is nearly as large as the rest of the Seven Kingdoms combined, in actuality it is roughly a third of the landmass controlled by the Iron Throne. The region is sparsely populated, with vast wilderness, forests, pine-covered hills and snow-capped mountains, speckled with tiny villages and holdfasts. Its climate is cold and harsh in winter and occasionally it will snow in summer. The north has two major land barriers, the Wall to the north and the Neck to the south. The north is bound on each side by major seas, the Shivering Sea to the east and the Sunset Sea to the west.

Winterfell, the ancestral seat of House Stark, is a large castle centrally located in the north. Nearby is the winter town. The vast wolfswood, the largest forest of the Seven Kingdoms, extends northwest to the Bay of Ice and Sea Dragon Point. Deepwood Motte, the seat of House Glover, lies in the western wolfswood. House Mormont rules Bear Island in the Bay of Ice. The northern mountains extend from the wolfswood to the Wall and are inhabited by northern mountain clans.

South of the wolfswood is hilly terrain with several large lakes. Torrhen's Square, seat of House Tallhart, is located by the largest of these lakes. Farther west along the Sunset Sea is the Stony Shore, which contains fishing villages. Southeast of the Stony Shore and north of Blazewater Bay is the Rills, plains which are ruled by House Ryswell. East of the Rills and south of Winterfell are the barrowlands, hilly plains dotted with the barrows of the First Men. House Dustin rules the large town of Barrowton. There are unnamed rivers which flow south from Barrowton and near Torrhen's Square into the Saltspear, while another unnamed river divides the Stony Shore from the Rills.

South of the barrowlands is the Neck, an isthmus forming the border with the riverlands to the south. A vast swamp and the source of the Green Fork, the Neck is home to the crannogmen; House Reed rules from the moving castle Greywater Watch. The ruined castle of Moat Cailin, located on the causeway near the Fever River, controls access to the north from the Neck. It is here the Kings in the North held off southron invasions.

A large peninsula is located west of the Neck and south of the Saltspear and Blazewater Bay. Flint's Finger, home of House Flint of Flint's Finger, is located on its northern shore, while Cape Kraken and and the Flint Cliffs are located along its western and southern shores, respectively. South of the peninsula are Ironman's Bay and the Iron Islands.

East of the barrowlands is the White Knife, a major river of the north which has its source at Long Lake northeast of Winterfell. Castle Cerwyn, the seat of House Cerwyn, is located near a tributary south of Winterfell. The White Knife runs south to White Harbor, one of the major cities of the Seven Kingdoms and the main port of the north. Southeast of White Harbor is Oldcastle, the seat of House Locke, while farther east are Ramsgate and the Broken Branch, which has its source in the Sheepshead Hills northeast of White Harbor. Widow's Watch, the castle of House Flint of Widow's Watch, is built on an isolated peninsula east of Ramsgate in the Shivering Sea. The Bite separates the southeastern North, much of which is influenced by House Manderly of White Harbor, from the Vale of Arryn.

Hornwood, the seat of House Hornwood, is located in the Hornwood forest north of White Harbor and south of the Dreadfort, the seat of House Bolton. The Dreadfort lies near the Weeping Water, which flows east to the Shivering Sea. Northeast of the Dreadfort are the forested lands of House Karstark. East of their castle, Karhold, are the Grey Cliffs. Located in the Bay of Seals are several islands, including Skagos and uninhabited Skane. The largest, Skagos, is said to be inhabited by cannibals and unicorns and is only nominally controlled by the Starks of Winterfell.

North of Winterfell and the Dreadfort and northwest of Karhold are the lands of House Umber, whose castle of Last Hearth is located in a forest. The Umbers control the Lonely Hills and land along the Bay of Seals. Beginning near Last Hearth, the Last River flows southeast between Karhold and the Dreadfort.

The Wall is a colossal fortification that protects the north from threats beyond the Wall, such as wildlings. It is separated from the northern lands owing allegiance to Winterfell by the Gift, which are lands of the Night's Watch north of the Umbers' lands.

Winterfell and Moat Cailin are located along the kingsroad, which connects Castle Black at the Wall with the riverlands to the south. There are farms, holdfasts, inns, and villages along the road.

In the video game Game of Thrones - A Telltale Games Series, House Forrester lives at Ironrath in the wolfswod. Their rivals, House Whitehill, live at Highpoint between the wolfswood and the northern mountains. The name of Rillwater Crossing, seat of House Glenmore, suggests it may be located in the Rills.

Seasons
The north is strongly affected during the long winters, with thousands of people killed and famine a common occurrence due to poor harvests before winter or the inability to raise crops during the longer winters that last for for years on end. Some greater lords maintain greenhouses at their castles, such as the glass gardens of Winterfell.

Once autumn is declared by the Citadel, the lords of the north store away a part of the grain they have harvested. How much is a matter of choice; between one fifth and one fourth seems prudent, however. Additionally, food is smoked, salted, and otherwise preserved ahead of winter. Coastal communities depend on fish and inland ice fishing is common on the rivers and Long Lake. Poor harvests before winter will mean famine, however.

In winter, snows can fall forty feet deep. Rain falls cold and hard, and sometimes turns into hail that can send men running for cover and ruin crops. Even during summer, snowfalls are not unusual but tend to be brief and not particularly damaging to agriculture.

People
The Old Tongue spoken by the First Men of antiquity has been replaced in the north by the Common Tongue, with the earlier language now only spoken beyond the Wall. Northern accounts can be considered "frosted". Northmen such as Karstarks and Umbers are often large in stature and have thick beards, long hair, and heavy cloaks of wool or fur. Northmen are sometimes referred to as "wolves" by ironborn and southrons.

The constant cold and the iron grip of winter set apart the northerners from the people of the kingdoms south of the Neck. The north's terrain and climate do not easily yield the necessities of daily life. Northmen place less of an emphasis on courtly ritual and culture, and instead prefer hunting and brawling. Their tourneys are often melees and rarely feature jousting. Guest right is treasured in the north. Northmen have long memories, and a lord who does not seek his rightful vengeance threatens to have his own men turn on him.

Some northmen live in remote, distant areas where they act as little more than clans and tribes. These remote folk, such as the crannogmen, the northern mountain clans, and the Skagosi, are still vassals of the Starks, however, and are allowed to maintain their own ways and traditions as long as they remain loyal to Winterfell. Some maesters believe the blood of Cape Kraken's people is closer to that of ironborn than northmen.

Most of the north's people still follow the old gods and their heart trees, and have little inclination for newer religions. There are a few houses who follow the Faith of the Seven, including Houses Manderly, Wells, and Whitehill. Due to its religious aspect, most northmen refuse to take holy orders and thus cannot become knights, although some northern cavalry are knights who still follow the old gods instead of the Seven. Most knights of the north live in the region's southern lands, such as White Harbor and the barrowlands. Heraldry in the north is simpler than that in southern Westeros, showing the lesser influence that chivalry has had there.

Northmen hold the Night's Watch in high regard, and many lords send annual gifts to support the black brothers.

Economy
As the north is largely uncultivated, there are few roads of import there. Most of the inland trade passes by either the kingsroad or the rivers. Trade items from the north include wool, hides, and timber. White Harbor contains silversmiths and the Old Mint.

Military strength
The north's exact military strength has not yet been revealed. According to a semi-canon source from 2005, the north can perhaps raise forty-five thousand soldiers, although it would take a long time to gather them from such a large region. According to George R.R. Martin, the north's military strength is about equal to that of the Vale of Arryn, and Dorne. During Aegon's Conquest, King Torrhen Stark raised an army of thirty thousand men. Nearly twenty thousand can be raised on short notice near the start of autumn, while thousands more might be raised from more distant houses, such as the northern mountain clans, if more time is allowed.

A semi-canon source from 2005 places the infantry-to-cavalry ratio at four to one. House Manderly, of southron origins, is known to command the most heavy horse north of the Neck. Mail is the most common armor found in the north. As knighthood is associated with the Faith of the Seven, and the majority of the northmen holds to the old gods, knighthood is rare in the north.

The north has had no strength at sea since Brandon the Burner set fire to the remaining fleet of his father, Brandon the Shipwright.

Dawn Age
The peoples of the north are nearly all descended from the First Men, who settled the land nearly twelve thousand years ago. Little is known of that time, but cryptic runes carved in old stones and the barrows the First Men lived in can still be found in the barrowlands. Ancient forts of the First Men are scattered throughout the north, including a ringfort atop Seal Rock near White Harbor and ruins in Sea Dragon Point. The children of the forest also made weirwood circles.

Kings of Winter
About eight thousand years ago, the legendary Long Night occurred when the Others invaded from the Lands of Always Winter. The event defined and shaped the north, leading to the founding of the Wall, the order of the Night's Watch, the castle of Winterfell and the first Stark Kings of Winter. Brandon the Breaker is said to have allied with Joramun, a King-Beyond-the-Wall, to bring down the Night's King.

The Starks gradually defeated rival kings, such as the Barrow Kings to their south and the Red Kings to their east. During the Andal invasion, the Kings of Winter stopped Andals at Moat Cailin and the eastern shores, the only kingdom in Westeros to do so.

King Jon Stark founded the Wolf's Den at the mouth of the White Knife after driving out sea raiders. His son, Rickard Stark, conquered the Neck from the Marsh King and married his daughter. King Rodrik Stark is said to have won Bear Island from the ironborn in a wrestling match. Two thousand years ago the north warred with the Vale of Arryn after the Rape of the Three Sisters, with the Arryns eventually gaining control of the islands in this War Across the Water.

Thousands of years before Aegon's Conquest, King Brandon the Shipwright attempted to sail across the Sunset Sea, but never returned back home. His son, also named Brandon, burned the northern shipyards in his grief. The north has since lacked strength at sea.

For many centuries the Boltons were bitter rivals of the Starks of Winterfell. The practice of flaying their enemies gave the Boltons a sinister reputation. It is said that a thousand years ago, the Boltons finally swore fealty to the Kings in the North and agreed to abandon their practice of flaying their enemies.

A thousand years before Aegon's Conquest, the Manderlys were driven from the river Mander by House Gardener, the Kings of the Reach, and fled to the north, where they were welcomed by the Starks of Winterfell as their own bannermen. The Manderlys received the Wolf's Den and developed White Harbor, one of the five cities of Westeros and the main northern port for commerce and naval transport. The Manderlys are the most prominent of the few northern noble houses to follow the Faith of the Seven instead of the old gods.

Targaryen Era
The Starks led the north to war during Aegon's Conquest. After the Field of Fire, however, King Torrhen Stark knelt to Aegon the Conqueror rather than face his dragons. The north was included in the Seven Kingdoms and owed allegiance to the Iron Throne of House Targaryen. The Stark Kings in the North became the Lords of Winterfell and Wardens of the North. Some northmen who refused to bend the knee fled into exile in Essos and formed the Company of the Rose.

Queen Alysanne Targaryen convinced her husband, King Jaehaerys I Targaryen, to grant the New Gift to the Night's Watch despite the objections of Lord Ellard Stark.

During the Dance of the Dragons, the Starks supported the blacks against the greens. Lord Roderick Dustin led two thousand northern soldiers, known as the Winter Wolves, during the war, while the Manderlys had knights from White Harbor also support the claim of Rhaenyra Targaryen. Lord Cregan Stark led a great host of northmen to King's Landing, where he briefly ruled as Hand of the King for Aegon III Targaryen during the Hour of the Wolf.

With the Dance of Dragons and the devastating losses it inflicted upon Westeros still looming over the northernmost part of the continent, the emergence of Rickon Stark would usher in a new era of unity and joint prosperity in the cold, desolate land that is the North. Relationships between bannermen flourished and trade, through the substantial help of White harbor would increase and be doubly profitable for the region at large for the years to follow.

This era of stability and reform would last for a number of years, though isolated skirmishes would foreshadow the crisis that was bound to eventually rear its head over the horizon. Through Lord Rickon Stark, The North would enter a golden age of wealth and protection. A sturdy man, the son of the famed Lord Cregan Stark had large boots to fill, but the ever diligent and fair Lord remained ever inclusive of his banners and made a point of spreading familial ties from The Neck to the northernmost points of his region. Infighting between banners had calmed almost to null, while the hard men of the North saw little to quarrel about under his leadership.

During the year 158AC, Lord Rickon accompanied by a host of his own cavalry and those of Barrowtown, The Banefort, Whiteharbor, and Hornwood accompanied the newest batch of recruits personally to The Wall. Upon arrival Lord Commander Carlon Dustin informs them each of the growing Wildling issues, strewn across its vast wealth of ice. Many took to climbing the wall between castles, hoping to pillage the South and find better lives further downwind, in the warmer climate. To this, the Lords of The North decided to ride the length of The Wall with what little Knights they had, and several men of the Night’s Watch were also committed to the task.

Word begins to spread thereafter of a King beyond The Wall going by the name of Argyll Clubfoot, a man said to have been large in size with feet enough for two full deer skins to enclose them throughout wintertime. This petty King and his small, but the sturdy group had positioned themselves just east of Icemark, between its holdfast The Nightfort.

The men of the merry band were in the accompaniment of Rodrik Snow, a celebrated young soldier, and bastard of House Hornwood, who despite his heritage would come to know both battle and song. Young as he was, and largely inexperienced in the ways of politics, he could command men. He’d unhorsed the [name] Man-At-Arms at a mere ten-and-five, and was considered top of his class with a sword. Hardly bookish, Rodrik Snow spent time learning the ways of tact upon the field and held an understanding of warfare. After Rickon and his men would leave Castle Black in search of Argyll, Rodrik Snow was left at Castle Black to ensure a message could get South, should they not return.

Rickon and his men would track Argyll for some four days and nights before coming upon him, though much to the surprise of the wolf and his men, it had been Clubfoot himself who had sprung a trap. They’d been tracking the group in return, ambushing them just North of Queenscrown. The Northern Lords and their cavalry, most of whom were made up of household guards and men of the black alike had been greatly outnumbered and many presumed to die that day in amidst the frozen wasteland to remain undiscovered. Lord Hornwood himself was cut down mere moments into the fight by a rogue Thenn. By dawn, and still heavily shrouded in darkness, few were left until horns sounded in the distance. Many wildlings, those knowing the sound, broke ranks and ran only to find themselves cut down by swords upon horseback. Rodrik Snow had come to his father’s aid with Lord Commander Dustin and a secondary force of men clad in black, only to find Lord Hornwood buried deep within the snow, an axe buried equally as deep into his nape.

Years 160 to 163 AC With the petty king’s uprising in the past, the lords of winter turn their attention toward the improvement of commerce within the North and set themselves to the task of improving the roads and attempting to build new ones from The. Neck to Barrowtown and Whiteharbor. The task of building became a joint venture with the likes of Lord Umbers son and his men chopping trees with Lord Bolton. Others including the newly pronounced Lord Hornwood oversaw the workforce and aided in keeping the new roads safe.

During 160AC a union between House Glover and House Tallhart of Torrhen’s Square further gathered the North beyond a common peace and ensured the continued safety of the lands West of the White Knife. Every attempt to thwart the building of the new roads was made by bandits and petty bandit kings, eventually succeeding only in their common goal but not by method. The brewing Northern civil war and death of Lord Rickon Stark that would eventually come to pass would shatter the united front of the northern kingdom and with it all attempts at opening more civilized and safe commerce.

Mid 160AC with King Daeron’s call to arms, Lord Rickon responded with steel in hand and horses at the ready. The winter lord and his banners rode south for Dorne to join the King in his conquest over the Dornish people; an attempt that had been considered the closest to victory that House Targaryen had ever come. Upon the sands of The Boneway Lord Stark, who sired no heirs was slain and the North wept, for what came after was turmoil. Lord Rickon’s young wife, a lady of House Dustin herself, sat his mantle for four months and ruled in his stead only in name until his first nephew came of age. For the following years House Stark of Winterfell would be passed to the nephew of Rickon, one of whom died prematurely of consumption. Many claimed it to be stress related.

Tensions between North and South only increased in the months and years after the Dornish conquest when no compensation was given for the Lord's death, and the memory of Rickon seemed to all but fade within the minds of the other kingdoms of the realm. The roads had come to a halt while the North rebuild itself and took the time to mourn such heavy losses. Perhaps only a quarter of the men who left with the Wolf returned, while the rest were buried beneath the sand. Those who weren’t set up new lives in the warmer southern realms during the journey back. With the soldiers and workforce’s heavily slashed in the wake of war, many lords decided they could not spare men to simply build roads and that the dream had been nullified to meager dirt tracks and grassy paths that went nowhere.

Years 163 to 165 AC Of the new roads that sat incomplete, confusion caused perhaps more death than it had good. Beneath a traitors banner, many of the men who had worked on those roads and knew them well saw an opportunity to make use of them. Half overgrown and leading to dead ends and fields as far as they eye could see, a new bandit clan of once proud northern cavalry had been formed under the tutelage of a man styling himself as ‘White Wyatt of The Night and his men of the Black Ice’, for the Night’s Watch cloaks they adorned themselves in; clad all in black. This would prove to be the first test of the newest Lord Stark’s rule.

Understanding that these roads went nowhere they made the most of unknowing strangers and independent merchant bands by attacking them on the roads and slowing both the progress of commerce within the north and the safe reputation they had attempted to garner. Even the northernmost part of Kingsroad itself slowed near to a halt at the prime of White Wyatts criminal activity. With growing concerns over the welfare of his people, the new Lord Stark set __ Snow to the task of clearing the roads of bandits indefinitely by calling to arms all hedge knights, lords and cavalry alike who would volunteer. A group of some two hundred warriors was then formed with Lord Starks two sons at the helm alongside the likewise young in age Snow of House Hornwood, famed for Having saved Rickon Stark in years gone by.

Up and down The North this fellowship of 200 rode in aid of merchants and one common goal, disposing banditry within their region almost entirely, and they had almost succeeded in plummeting the number of lost shipments to less than a quarter within half a year. The task turned out to be a long and trying one, with many of the Black Ice men slipping their grasp at many turns, while lesser bandit companies were slain in the process. With frequent returns home, these petty excursions were not single hit victories, but rather as mercenaries might strike out with Intel in hand. At times the group was away from home for a month, and other times a mere fortnights turn.

In the meantime Lady Mormont secured the westernmost coast of The North with what little ships she had to spare, paranoid that perhaps the ironborn would strike out while their kingdom was yet wounded and recovering. Too fierce for her own good she was oft called, with a painted face and her raven hair tied in knots upon her crown of a skull, but she had been what The North needed when she took to personally slaying White Wyatt and thereafter ending any notion of the Black Ice company. Rumors circulated after that she removed his head and lashed it to the helm of her flagship as a prize to return home with.

Years 166 and 167 AC Lord Seymour ‘twice scorned’ Cerwyn rides for Kings Landing upon the request of Lord Stark to treat with Lord Manderly and assess the trade negotiations throughout the North with the ports reopened on the back of a harsh winter. Necessary wealth would once again have to be spread with many houses having gone without due to such thick snow cover.

Seymour and his Northern host are welcomed but the air is thick with an unexplainable contempt. He feels unsafe, wary and perhaps not as welcome as the Seven pretenders had initially insisted.

During the year 167AC, with trade talks all but finished and Lord Manderly in accordance with the terms, Lord Cerwyn is called upon by King Baelor The Blessed for a walk through the streets of his city. Cerwyn is questioned heavily about his old beliefs and it is implied throughout that Baelor is, in essence, attempting to convert him. Once the realization is met, the king forces Seymour to wash the feet of poor men, smallfolk and the sick and dying alike. This is taken as an insult, and that same night Lord Cerwyn departs Kings Landing on horseback, headed for Winterfell.

Years 168 and 169 AC In 168AC, with Lord Cerwyns report fresh from his tongue, an enraged Lord Stark calls upon his Lords and declares the North to be an independent, united region and one that has cut itself off from Westeros at large. With the death of Rickon in Dorne throwing the region into disarray, and now the insult upon one of his closest friends and bannermen, it seemed that Lord Stark had the North’s best interests at heart, to begin with. Many of the Northern houses name him a king in his own right; The King in The North. A lack of response from Baelor prompts even the lowliest, newest and poorest of the Northern banners to celebrate these claims and they swiftly unite; all but for House Manderly and those fearing that a lack of trade from Westeros and the port city of White Harbour will end their houses prematurely. The North is split thereafter, with many followers of Winterfell naming themselves ‘The True North’, and out of spite they named anyone who followed Lord Manderly to be ‘Andal North’.

The Civil War in The North that followed would see meaningless blood douse Northern soil for the next three years. There were no clear decisions on whether a war should or shouldn’t take place, but rather skirmishes and accounting parties removed the choice from any Lords' hands before they could even declare; often coming upon one another and falling into fights and battles. Many of these skirmishes ended in one or two dead on either side to begin with, while Lords Stark and Manderly would have it that their men were in search of bandits and mountain men to keep them from ravaging their caravans. Others would suggest that such large scouting parties were set toward only one thing — a warning upon the boundaries of each Lord's holdings.

With a rising hostility between split northern forces, it came as surprise to nobody when the first of only two major battles during the civil war came to pass. Lord Mormont, fearing for his position so far set from the mainland, sent soldiers through the Wolfswood to White Harbor in support of House Manderly and its allies. Each unit contained men enough to take to foot, and they were put to use against the forces of Karhold and Deepwood Mott, in what many suggest was ‘lashing out’ at the Andal North for siding with The Seven despite the death of their liege and insults over the Old Gods at the hand of Baelor after word reached Lord Stark by way of House Glover that the bears were on the move.

In what would be aptly dubbed ‘The Battle of The Red Knife’, both forces would clash upon the White Knife on foot with Lord Karstark at the head of the combined army of Glover and Karstark men. On the opposing side, Lady Mormont lead the charge of Umber, Mormont and Manderly forces after Houses Glover and Karstark were late to intercept. They had little choice but to face off in a larger scale battle. Many suggested later that blood ran through to the Three Sisters for days following the bloody clash of swords, which only ended when riders from Houses Stark and Bolton rode the field, late to battle but in numbers too vast for already tired arms to defend against. House Manderly and it’s forces were lead back to White Harbor where the gates closed for the next quarter year. During the battle, Lord Manderly’s eldest son was killed, and his second taken by Lord Stark as a hostage. This, however, did not seem to deter the mermen from further taking up tridents against their liege in a bid for primacy in accordance with King Baelors beliefs.

Years 170 and 171 AC Once the Stark Forces had moved back to Karhold, The Banefort and Winterfell to resupply, House Manderly saw the opportunity to strike back and make a grab for power and rallied their men, taking to foot. Once more Lady Mormont took the helm and had Mormont ships meet them at the Stony Shore. The minds of Lady Mormont and Lord Manderly combined had set thought toward aid and dominion. House Ryswell declared for Manderly and marched its own force to Stony Shore upon the promise of garnering its land and titles for themselves. Lord Ryswell sent his son to battle, treating with Mormont ships and Manderly men before invading Stony Shore.

With mass production of fisheries, produce, nets and trade, the location was prime in sending food to the North throughout the dispute, further angering Lord Manderly who wished to take sole ownership over trade throughout the region. With his leave, House Fisher was extinct during the invasion; a small yet vital house in the war efforts. Ryswell had been promised that when Baelor saw Manderly for his efforts in converting the North to The Seven and he was named Lord Paramount, he would offer Stony Shore to them for their aid. House Ryswell held Stony Shore with a host of men thereafter the invasion and intercepted any man attempting to take food and supplies to the armies of the opposition.

Having heard this, Lord Karstark with reinforcements from Houses Poole and Locke set their mind toward Last Hearth, but were denied by Lord Stark any opportunity to attack. With a house now extinct, the noble Wolf has begun to second guess war upon his own soil and instead set his purpose toward that of a treaty and fair punishment. He wrote to Lord Manderly imploring him to leave the warm comfort of his office in Kings Landing to come North and make amends for his misdeeds. He would be forgiven if he swore fealty back to House Stark and retired his position on the king's council. While angered by this, many of the Northern lords did, in fact, see sense and push back any plans for attack until a response had been given. With his own ward in the form of Lord Manderly’s son, Lord Stark expected a quick response and that Manderly would bring it in person.

Months past and itchy fingers became all the more itchy, when instead of Manderly, instead there was a scout from Cerwyn claiming that White Harbor had been gathering a larger force than they had previously, and intended to attack Winterfell itself within the coming months. Lord Stark saw little choice than to execute the son of Lord Manderly for his father’s misdeed, and as such swung the sword himself and beheaded the fellow Northerner with his ancestral sword, Ice. Mixed views would later suggest that this, in fact, was to cause the second, and final clash of armies of the civil war, while many others still claim that Lord Manderly should have recognized his place and surrendered.

Reinforcing Winterfell, Lord Stark fathered his men along with Cerwyn, Bolton, Poole and Locke armies brought down from Karstark. The army was vast, but Lady Mormont also held a sizeable force of her own, on behalf of the old merman of House Manderly. They met upon the open plains beyond Winterfell where commanders spoke terms and attempted reason. No accord could be made, however, though Lord Stark was noted to have expressed his admiration for Lady Mormont, despite his disappointment over her choices. Thusly it came to be that a great battle took place, spanning the course of days with neither side looking to bow. Neither pressed a retreat, and neither retreated too far. It became rumored that they had seen too many of their own men, Northern men dying for a cause that seemed well and truly lost that the fight had all but left them. Now, they more swung the sword for show than to cleave and mortally wound. Claims were made that each night, Lord Stark wept for the fallen and mourned them each; even those of opposing force.

On the fifth night of battle, riders in the night met both war camps with letters from The Hand of The King, imploring each army to return home. Notably, the letters stated that King Baelor had died of his fasting and that the beliefs of the North were recognized by the realm. Without an heir, sole parenthood over the realm fell upon him until a new King could be named, and many claimed that he feared Northern frustrations would move South in the wake of the bloodshed. With the aging Hands word, the conflict was put to a standstill. Lord Stark told each man to return home and rest well, while Lord Manderly finally took the time to mourn his fallen sons.

Present day In the aftermath of the Civil War, and with the death of King Baelor hot upon the mouths of every noble and smallfolk alike both within The North and outside of its borders, Lord Stark removes himself from his own court to reevaluate how to mend his heavily broken kingdom. In his stead, to attend the funeral and seek out Lord Manderly over peace talks, Lord Stark has sent both of his eldest sons alongside __ Snow, and many others. They go with instruction to make certain the Lord Hand is good on his word, and that the religions and customs of The North are recognized and continue to be so, without insult. Others, such as Lady Mormont, Lords Hornwood and Dustin also travel South though perhaps not all with the same intent. With Lord Manderly still seated upon the Small Council, short a number of sons due to war, many believe the tensions to still heavily exist between certain Northern families.

Quotes
"They say those northmen are a savage folk, and their woods are full of wolves."

- John the Fiddler to Duncan the Tall

"In the south, the way they talk about my Seven Kingdoms, a man forgets that your part is as big as the other six combined."

- Robert I Baratheon to Eddard Stark

"The north is hard and cold, and has no mercy."

- Eddard Stark to Catelyn Tully