Three Thousand of Qohor

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Three Thousand of Qohor
Battle of Qohor.jpeg
Art by Roman Papsuev
Date Early during the Century of Blood[1][2]
Place Qohor
Result Qohorik victory
Combatants
Dothraki Qohor
Commanders
Khal Temmo unknown
Strength
25,000 Dothraki screamers Garrison of Qohor
3,000 Unsullied
Second Sons (fled battle)
Bright Banners (fled battle)
Casualties
~12,000 Qohorik garrison
2,400 Unsullied

The Three Thousand of Qohor[1] were a force of Unsullied hired by Qohor during the early part[2] of the Century of Blood that followed the Doom of Valyria. The strongly outnumbered Unsullied successfully defended the Free City from a Dothraki khalasar.[1]

History

Prelude

During the Century of Blood after the Doom of Valyria, the Dothraki first rode out east of the Dothraki sea.[3] Khal Temmo's khalasar consisted of at least fifty thousand Dothraki, half of whom were braided warriors with bells in their hair. Temmo led these twenty-five thousand screamers in sacking and burning every town and city in his path.[1] Aware of the khalasar's advance, the Qohorik strengthened their walls, doubled their garrison, and hired two mercenary companies, the Bright Banners and the Second Sons. They also sent an envoy to Slaver's Bay to purchase three thousand Unsullied, the eunuch slave soldiers of Astapor.[1]

Battle

The Dothraki prevailed in the first day of fighting. Though the Qohorik forces inflicted over five thousand losses on the Dothraki, their garrison and heavy horse were shattered and nearly destroyed.[4] The Second Sons and the Bright Banners had fled. The victorious Dothraki retired to their camps to drink and feast, and it was expected that they would return the following day to sack the city.[1] That evening, the reinforcement of three thousand Unsullied reached the city. Come dawn, they awaited the Dothraki horde, arrayed in battle formation before the city gates.[1]

According to Jorah Mormont, the Dothraki could have outflanked such a small force, but in their contempt for infantry, the Dothraki riders launched a direct frontal assault instead, in an attempt to simply ride down the heavy infantry.[1] In total, the Unsullied repelled eighteen Dothraki charges and three attacks by Dothraki archers.[1][2][3] The Dothraki halted their attacks after more than twelve thousand of their fighters had been killed, including Khal Temmo, his sons, and his bloodriders. Out of the three thousand Unsullied, only six hundred remained. Four days after the fighting began, the new khal led his remaining khalasar past the city gates of Qohor in a stately procession. Each man cut off his braid and threw it down before the Unsullied.[1][2]

Aftermath

Since the victory of the Three Thousand of Qohor, the city guard of Qohor has been made up entirely of Unsullied. Each soldier carries a spear with a braid made of human hair attached to it.[1]

Recent Events

A Storm of Swords

Ser Jorah Mormont tells the tale to Daenerys Targaryen to persuade her to buy Unsullied warriors.[1]

Behind the Scenes

The Three Thousand of Qohor bear similarities to the Battle of Thermopylae during the Greco-Persian Wars, where three hundred Spartan famously held a narrow pass for three days against an Eastern invader.

References

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 A Storm of Swords, Chapter 8, Daenerys I.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 The World of Ice & Fire, The Free Cities: Qohor.
  3. 3.0 3.1 The World of Ice & Fire, Beyond the Free Cities: The Grasslands.
  4. Jorah Mormont mentions that the Dothraki had 25,000 warriors in total, but had only 20,000 when facing the Unsullied (A Storm of Swords, Daenerys I).