Difference between revisions of "Sack of Winterfell"

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{{Template:Battlebox
 
{{Template:Battlebox
| image =  
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| image = [[File:T Jedruszek sack of Winterfell.jpg|300px]]
| caption =  
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| caption = artist Tomasz Jedruszek. © Fantasy Flight Games.
 
| battle_name = Sack of Winterfell
 
| battle_name = Sack of Winterfell
 
| conflict = [[War of the Five Kings]]
 
| conflict = [[War of the Five Kings]]
| date = [[299 AL]]
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| date = {{Date|299}}
 
| place = [[Winterfell]]
 
| place = [[Winterfell]]
 
| result = [[House Bolton|Bolton]] victory
 
| result = [[House Bolton|Bolton]] victory
 
| colour_scheme =  
 
| colour_scheme =  
| combatant1 = [[House Stark]]
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| combatant1 = [[File:House Greyjoy.svg|30px]] '''[[King of the Isles and the North|Kingdom of the Isles and the North]]'''/ [[House Greyjoy]]
| combatant2 = [[House Greyjoy]]-[[House Bolton]]
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*[[House Botley]]
| commander1 = Ser [[Rodrik Cassel]]+<br> [[Cley Cerwyn]]+<br>[[Leobald Tallhart]]+
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*[[House Harlaw]]
| commander2 = [[Theon Greyjoy]]<br>[[Ramsay Snow]]
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*[[House Sharp]]
| strength1 = almost 2, 000 men
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| combatant2 = [[File:House Bolton.svg|30px]] [[House Bolton]]
| strength2 = approximately 617
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| commander1 = [[File:House Greyjoy.svg|20px]] Prince [[Theon Greyjoy]]
| casualties1 = Ser [[Rodrik Cassel]]+<br>[[Cley Cerwyn]]+<br>[[Leobald Tallhart]]+<br>force dispersed
+
| commander2 = [[File:House Bolton.svg|20px]] [[Ramsay Snow]]
| casualties2 = 20-30 men
+
| strength1 = 18
 +
| strength2 = 570 or 580<ref>Prior to the sack, Ramsay tells Theon he brought three times as many as the two hundred reinforcements who had been expected, and that he lost twenty or thirty men fighting Rodrik's forces.</ref>
 +
| casualties1 = 16 [[ironborn]] killed: All ironborn except [[Theon Greyjoy]] (POW) and [[Wex Pyke]] <br> Men of Winterfell slain<br>Women and children captured
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| casualties2 = Minimal<ref>[[Black Lorren]] slays a few Bolton men before dying.</ref>
 
}}
 
}}
  
The '''Sack of Winterfell''' was the battle the determined the outcome of the North during the [[War of the Five Kings]]. The battle was fought between forces loyal to [[House Stark]] and those loyal to [[House Greyjoy]]. [[House Bolton]], though sworn to the Starks, switched sides.
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The '''sack of Winterfell''' occurs when [[House Bolton]] has [[Winterfell|the castle]] burned shortly after the [[battle at Winterfell]].{{ref|ACOK|66}}
  
==Background==
+
==Prelude==
With the majority of the northern lords and their hosts in the south fighting in the [[Riverlands]] and the [[Westerlands]], the North was left relatively undefended. [[Balon Greyjoy]] declared himself King of the Rock and ordered his longships to take the north. [[Theon Greyjoy]] was sent to harry the [[Stony Shore]] with [[Dagmer|Dagmer Cleftjaw]]. After completing this task, the two plotted the capture of [[Winterfell]]. Dagmer would besiege [[Torrhen's Square]], the seat of the Tallharts, in order to draw out the garrison of Winterfell, leaving the castle lightly defended.<ref>[[A Clash of Kings]], [[A Clash of Kings-Chapter 37|Chapter 37]], Theon</ref> Theon captured Winterfell in one night.<ref>[[A Clash of Kings]], [[A Clash of Kings-Chapter 46|Chapter 46]], Bran</ref>
+
:{{main|Battle at Winterfell}}
  
Ser [[Rodrik Cassel]] broke Dagmer's force outside of Torrhen's Square and strengthened by [[House Tallhart]] men, he marched on Winterfell.<ref>[[A Clash of Kings]], [[A Clash of Kings-Chapter 56|Chapter 56]], Theon</ref>
+
[[House Greyjoy]] invades the [[north]] during the [[War of the Five Kings]], leading Ser [[Rodrik Cassel]] to take Winterfell's garrison to assist in the defense of [[Battle of Torrhen's Square|Torrhen's Square]]. Since Rodrik is away, [[Theon Greyjoy]] is able to [[Capture of Winterfell|capture lightly-defended Winterfell]] by stealth. While Rodrik is gathering an army to retake Winterfell, Theon allows a previously-imprisoned [[House Bolton]] serving man, "[[Reek]]", to leave Winterfell in search of aid when he promises to find a few hundred reinforcements for Theon.{{ref|ACOK|56}}
  
==Opposing Armies==
+
When Rodrik's scouts approach Winterfell, Maester [[Luwin]] warns Theon his [[ironborn]] will not hold the castle against an assault. [[Urzen]], [[Stygg]], and ten men previously brought by [[Asha Greyjoy]] abandon Theon's cause. He is left with only seventeen followers, including his squire [[Wex Pyke]], [[Black Lorren]], [[Red Rolfe]], [[Kromm]], [[Werlag]], [[Tymor]] and his two brothers, [[Ulf the Ill]], [[Harrag Sharp]], four [[House Harlaw|Harlaws]] (probably including [[Dykk Harlaw|Dykk]] and [[Gevin Harlaw|Gevin]]), two [[House Botley|Botleys]], and [[Kenned]].{{ref|ACOK|66}}
===Stark army===
 
A force totalling less than 2, 000 men<ref>[[A Clash of Kings]], [[A Clash of Kings-Chapter 66|Chapter 66]], Theon</ref>:
 
*The Winterfell garrison under the command of Ser Rodrik Cassel
 
*[[House Cerwyn]] brought 300 men under the command of [[Cley Cerwyn]].
 
*A force from [[House Tallhart]], under the command of [[Leobald Tallhart]]
 
*Banners from Houses [[House Flint|Flint]], [[House Hornwood|Hornwood]], [[House Karstark|Karstark]] and [[House Manderly|Manderly]] were also seen.<ref>[[A Clash of Kings]], [[A Clash of Kings-Chapter 66|Chapter 66]], Theon</ref>
 
  
===Greyjoy force===
+
When the ironborn-held Winterfell is besieged by Rodrik's [[House Stark|Stark]] army of near two thousand, Luwin tries to persuade Theon to surrender and join the [[Night's Watch]]. They are interrupted by the arrival of [[House Bolton guards|House Bolton's garrison]] from the [[Dreadfort]], however, which betrays Rodrik's army and routs it in the [[battle at Winterfell]]'s winter town. The Boltons lose only twenty or thirty men from their force of near six hundred.
*17 men under the command of Prince [[Theon Greyjoy]].<ref>[[A Clash of Kings]], [[A Clash of Kings-Chapter 66|Chapter 66]], Theon</ref>
 
  
===Bolton force===
+
==The Sack==
*The [[Dreadfort]] garrison, roughly 600 men, under the command of [[Ramsay Snow]].<ref>[[A Clash of Kings]], [[A Clash of Kings-Chapter 66|Chapter 66]], Theon</ref>
+
[[File:Ramsay in winterfell by AldoK.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Ramsay Snow during the Sack of Winterfell]]
  
==The Battle==
+
After the battle ends, a group of Dreadfort riders approaches Winterfell's main gate. Their leader, whom [[Theon Greyjoy]] dubs "Red Helm" because of his fine armor, has the bodies of [[Rodrik Cassel]], [[Cley Cerwyn]], and [[Leobald Tallhart]] dropped. Theon then allows the Dreadfort men to pass Winterfell's moat and inner gate. Theon recognizes Red Helm to be Reek when he removes his helm, but he is actually [[Ramsay Snow]], the Bastard of [[Roose Bolton|Bolton]]. When Theon balks at relinquishing his bedwarmer [[Kyra]], Ramsay strikes Theon and the Bolton men begin to kill the ironborn, including [[Red Rolfe]], [[Kenned]], and [[Ulf the Ill]],{{ref|ACOK|66}} although [[Black Lorren]] is able to kill a few Boltons before he too falls.{{ref|ACOK|69}} Maester [[Luwin]] is speared and ridden over. Ramsay orders his men to spare the wards from [[House Frey]], [[Walder Frey (son of Jammos)|Big Walder]] and [[Walder Frey (son of Merrett)|Little Walder]], and orders his men to burn Winterfell.{{ref|ACOK|66}}
After a parley between Ser [[Rodrik Cassel]] and [[Theon Greyjoy]] accomplished nothing other than terms being given, the Bolton force under Ramsay Snow attacked the Stark army in the night, leading to fighting in the streets of the winter town. When Ser [[Rodrik Cassel]] offered his hand to Ramsay Snow, Ramsay took his arm off at the elbow. Cley Cerwyn took an arrow to the eye and Leobald Tallhart died too. The Stark army was dispersed and the Bolton force lost only 20-30 men.<ref>[[A Clash of Kings]], [[A Clash of Kings-Chapter 66|Chapter 66]], Theon</ref>
+
 
 +
Unbeknownst to Theon and Ramsay, hiding in the [[crypts of Winterfell]] are [[Bran Stark|Bran]] and [[Rickon Stark]], [[Meera Reed|Meera]] and [[Jojen Reed]], [[Hodor]], and [[Osha]]. The direwolves [[Summer]] and [[Shaggydog]], who are outside of Winterfell, smell the blood and burnt flesh from the battle and ensuing sack, and they hear the Boltons attack the defenseless people of Winterfell and burn its buildings. The next morning the direwolves find only wild dogs, dead bodies, and dying horses amidst the burning winter town.
 +
 
 +
When Bran and his companions leave Winterfell's crypt that morning, they find that one side of the First Keep has fallen away and its interior is burnt. Winterfell's previously broken tower remains standing, however. After being joined by Summer and Shaggydog, they reconnoiter Winterfell. Its granite walls still stand, though somewhat blackened by fire, but the interior is heavily damaged. The Great Hall's roof has collapsed, fires are visible in its cellar and a storehouse, and the glass gardens are destroyed. The stables have burned along with the horses, such as [[Dancer]] and [[Smiler]], while most of the hounds were slain in the kennels. Water from Winterfell's hot springs leaks from the Library Tower. The bridge between the Bell Tower and the [[rookery]] has collapsed, while Luwin's turret is destroyed. The sept built by Lord [[Eddard Stark]] for Lady [[Catelyn Tully]] is burned. The iron portcullis at the Hunter's Gate has been warped by heat.{{ref|ACOK|69}}
 +
 
 +
They find Luwin dying in the [[godswood]], which is mostly unscathed. The group separates after Osha gives Luwin the gift of mercy. As Bran leaves Winterfell, he believes that the castle will survive despite the destruction.{{ref|ACOK|69}}
  
 
==Aftermath==
 
==Aftermath==
The control of [[House Stark]] on the north was shattered. Ramsay entered Winterfell, showed Theon the bodies of the three lords he had killed, and then proceeded to kill the ironmen, sack the castle and return to the [[Dreadfort]]. [[Lothar Frey]] and [[Roose Bolton]], whose houses had allied to betray the [[House Stark|Starks]], later blamed the sack on the Ironborn.<ref>[[A Storm of Swords]], [[A Storm of Swords-Chapter 35|Chapter 35]], Catelyn</ref><ref>[[A Storm of Swords]], [[A Storm of Swords-Chapter 49|Chapter 49]], Catelyn</ref>
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[[File:Burnt Winterfell by Kim Pope.jpg|thumb|600px|Concept art by Kim Pope for ''[[Game of Thrones]]'']]
 +
At [[Riverrun]], [[Lothar Frey]] tells [[Robb Stark]], the [[King in the North]], of a letter the Frey wards wrote to Lord [[Walder Frey]]. The youths claim that Theon's ironmen had burnt Winterfell and put its men to the sword, but that Ramsay had led the surviving women and children to safety at the [[Dreadfort]].{{ref|ASOS|35}} At the [[Twins]] prior to the [[Red Wedding]], Lord [[Roose Bolton]] tells Robb that Ramsay has captured Theon and indicates Ramsay is torturing his captive.{{ref|ASOS|49}}
 +
 
 +
Theon's sister, [[Asha Greyjoy]], visits Winterfell before returning to the [[Iron Islands]]. Finding only wolves eating the corpses and unable to identify Theon's body, Asha thinks the northmen were fighting each other.{{ref|AFFC|11}}
 +
 
 +
[[Wex Pyke]], Theon's squire, survives the sack by hiding in Winterfell's [[godswood]]. Wex later reveals to Lord [[Wyman Manderly]] that Ramsay took Theon and the women of Winterfell back to the Dreadfort.{{ref|ADWD|29}}
 +
 
 +
After being tortured by Ramsay at the Dreadfort,{{ref|ADWD|12}} Theon attends Ramsay's wedding to "[[Jeyne Poole|Arya Stark]]" at Winterfell. Most of the towers and keeps are roofless, and some have collapsed. Roose has squatters build stout new gates and a new roof for the Great Hall, after which he has the squatters hanged. The kitchens, barracks keep, and stables are also rebuilt, although the quality is questionable.{{ref|ADWD|37}}{{ref|ADWD|41}}
 +
 
 +
==Quotes==
 +
[[File:T Jedruszek BastardsRecruits.jpg|thumb|350px|Bastard's Recruits - art by Tomasz Jedruszek. © Fantasy Flight Games.]]
 +
{{quote|Save me the [[House Frey|Freys]], and burn the rest. Burn it, burn it all.{{ref|ACOK|66}}|[[Ramsay Snow]] to his men}}
 +
 
 +
{{quote|All through the night the fires crackled, and once there was a great roar and a crash that made the earth jump under his feet. Dogs barked and whined and horses screamed in terror. Howls shuddered through the night; the howls of the man-pack, wails of fear and wild shouts, laughter and screams. No beast was as noisy as man.{{ref|ACOK|69}}|thoughts of [[Bran Stark]] while in the mind of [[Summer]]}}
 +
 
 +
{{quote|Winterfell. It was Winterfell. It was all on fire. There were horse smells, and steel, and blood. They killed everyone, Meera.{{ref|ACOK|69}}|[[Bran Stark]] to [[Meera Reed]]}}
 +
 
 +
{{quote|If the [[old gods|gods]] are good, the [[Others]] will take them that did this work.{{ref|ACOK|69}}|[[Osha]] to [[Bran Stark]]}}
 +
 
 +
{{quote|The tops of the keeps and towers still stood as they had for hundreds of years, and it was hard to tell that the castle had been sacked and burned at all. The stone is strong, the roots of the trees go deep, and under the ground the [[Kings of Winter]] sit their thrones. So long as those remained, Winterfell remained.{{ref|ACOK|69}}|thoughts of [[Bran Stark]]}}
 +
 
 +
{{quote|'''Aemon''': Your brothers died at the command of [[Theon Greyjoy]], after he [[capture of Winterfell|took Winterfell]] in [[Balon Greyjoy|his father's name]]. When [[Eddard Stark|your father's]] bannermen threatened to retake it, he put the castle to the torch.<br>
 +
'''Grenn''': Your brothers were avenged. [[Ramsay Snow|Bolton's son]] killed all the [[ironborn|ironmen]], and it's said he's flaying Theon Greyjoy inch by inch for what he did.{{ref|ASOS|48}}|[[Aemon Targaryen (son of Maekar I)|Aemon]] and [[Grenn]] to [[Jon Snow]]}}
 +
 
 +
==References==
 +
{{references|2}}
  
 +
{{War of the Five Kings}}
  
==References and Notes==
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[[Category:Battles|Winterfell, Sack of]]
{{references|3}}
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[[Category:House Bolton battles|Winterfell]]
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[[Category:House Greyjoy battles|Winterfell]]
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[[Category:House Stark battles|Winterfell]]
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[[Category:War of the Five Kings|Winterfell, Sack of ]]
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[[Category:Winterfell]]
  
{{Template:War of the Five Kings}}
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[[es:Saqueo de Invernalia]]
  
[[Category:Battles|Winterfell]]
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[[zh:围攻临冬城]]
[[fr:Bataille de Winterfell]]
 

Revision as of 13:55, 23 June 2021

Sack of Winterfell
T Jedruszek sack of Winterfell.jpg
artist Tomasz Jedruszek. © Fantasy Flight Games.
Conflict War of the Five Kings
Date 299 AC
Place Winterfell
Result Bolton victory
Combatants
House Greyjoy.svg Kingdom of the Isles and the North/ House Greyjoy House Bolton.svg House Bolton
Commanders
House Greyjoy.svg Prince Theon Greyjoy House Bolton.svg Ramsay Snow
Strength
18 570 or 580[1]
Casualties
16 ironborn killed: All ironborn except Theon Greyjoy (POW) and Wex Pyke
Men of Winterfell slain
Women and children captured
Minimal[2]

The sack of Winterfell occurs when House Bolton has the castle burned shortly after the battle at Winterfell.[3]

Prelude

House Greyjoy invades the north during the War of the Five Kings, leading Ser Rodrik Cassel to take Winterfell's garrison to assist in the defense of Torrhen's Square. Since Rodrik is away, Theon Greyjoy is able to capture lightly-defended Winterfell by stealth. While Rodrik is gathering an army to retake Winterfell, Theon allows a previously-imprisoned House Bolton serving man, "Reek", to leave Winterfell in search of aid when he promises to find a few hundred reinforcements for Theon.[4]

When Rodrik's scouts approach Winterfell, Maester Luwin warns Theon his ironborn will not hold the castle against an assault. Urzen, Stygg, and ten men previously brought by Asha Greyjoy abandon Theon's cause. He is left with only seventeen followers, including his squire Wex Pyke, Black Lorren, Red Rolfe, Kromm, Werlag, Tymor and his two brothers, Ulf the Ill, Harrag Sharp, four Harlaws (probably including Dykk and Gevin), two Botleys, and Kenned.[3]

When the ironborn-held Winterfell is besieged by Rodrik's Stark army of near two thousand, Luwin tries to persuade Theon to surrender and join the Night's Watch. They are interrupted by the arrival of House Bolton's garrison from the Dreadfort, however, which betrays Rodrik's army and routs it in the battle at Winterfell's winter town. The Boltons lose only twenty or thirty men from their force of near six hundred.

The Sack

Ramsay Snow during the Sack of Winterfell

After the battle ends, a group of Dreadfort riders approaches Winterfell's main gate. Their leader, whom Theon Greyjoy dubs "Red Helm" because of his fine armor, has the bodies of Rodrik Cassel, Cley Cerwyn, and Leobald Tallhart dropped. Theon then allows the Dreadfort men to pass Winterfell's moat and inner gate. Theon recognizes Red Helm to be Reek when he removes his helm, but he is actually Ramsay Snow, the Bastard of Bolton. When Theon balks at relinquishing his bedwarmer Kyra, Ramsay strikes Theon and the Bolton men begin to kill the ironborn, including Red Rolfe, Kenned, and Ulf the Ill,[3] although Black Lorren is able to kill a few Boltons before he too falls.[5] Maester Luwin is speared and ridden over. Ramsay orders his men to spare the wards from House Frey, Big Walder and Little Walder, and orders his men to burn Winterfell.[3]

Unbeknownst to Theon and Ramsay, hiding in the crypts of Winterfell are Bran and Rickon Stark, Meera and Jojen Reed, Hodor, and Osha. The direwolves Summer and Shaggydog, who are outside of Winterfell, smell the blood and burnt flesh from the battle and ensuing sack, and they hear the Boltons attack the defenseless people of Winterfell and burn its buildings. The next morning the direwolves find only wild dogs, dead bodies, and dying horses amidst the burning winter town.

When Bran and his companions leave Winterfell's crypt that morning, they find that one side of the First Keep has fallen away and its interior is burnt. Winterfell's previously broken tower remains standing, however. After being joined by Summer and Shaggydog, they reconnoiter Winterfell. Its granite walls still stand, though somewhat blackened by fire, but the interior is heavily damaged. The Great Hall's roof has collapsed, fires are visible in its cellar and a storehouse, and the glass gardens are destroyed. The stables have burned along with the horses, such as Dancer and Smiler, while most of the hounds were slain in the kennels. Water from Winterfell's hot springs leaks from the Library Tower. The bridge between the Bell Tower and the rookery has collapsed, while Luwin's turret is destroyed. The sept built by Lord Eddard Stark for Lady Catelyn Tully is burned. The iron portcullis at the Hunter's Gate has been warped by heat.[5]

They find Luwin dying in the godswood, which is mostly unscathed. The group separates after Osha gives Luwin the gift of mercy. As Bran leaves Winterfell, he believes that the castle will survive despite the destruction.[5]

Aftermath

Concept art by Kim Pope for Game of Thrones

At Riverrun, Lothar Frey tells Robb Stark, the King in the North, of a letter the Frey wards wrote to Lord Walder Frey. The youths claim that Theon's ironmen had burnt Winterfell and put its men to the sword, but that Ramsay had led the surviving women and children to safety at the Dreadfort.[6] At the Twins prior to the Red Wedding, Lord Roose Bolton tells Robb that Ramsay has captured Theon and indicates Ramsay is torturing his captive.[7]

Theon's sister, Asha Greyjoy, visits Winterfell before returning to the Iron Islands. Finding only wolves eating the corpses and unable to identify Theon's body, Asha thinks the northmen were fighting each other.[8]

Wex Pyke, Theon's squire, survives the sack by hiding in Winterfell's godswood. Wex later reveals to Lord Wyman Manderly that Ramsay took Theon and the women of Winterfell back to the Dreadfort.[9]

After being tortured by Ramsay at the Dreadfort,[10] Theon attends Ramsay's wedding to "Arya Stark" at Winterfell. Most of the towers and keeps are roofless, and some have collapsed. Roose has squatters build stout new gates and a new roof for the Great Hall, after which he has the squatters hanged. The kitchens, barracks keep, and stables are also rebuilt, although the quality is questionable.[11][12]

Quotes

Bastard's Recruits - art by Tomasz Jedruszek. © Fantasy Flight Games.

Save me the Freys, and burn the rest. Burn it, burn it all.[3]

Ramsay Snow to his men

All through the night the fires crackled, and once there was a great roar and a crash that made the earth jump under his feet. Dogs barked and whined and horses screamed in terror. Howls shuddered through the night; the howls of the man-pack, wails of fear and wild shouts, laughter and screams. No beast was as noisy as man.[5]

—thoughts of Bran Stark while in the mind of Summer

Winterfell. It was Winterfell. It was all on fire. There were horse smells, and steel, and blood. They killed everyone, Meera.[5]

If the gods are good, the Others will take them that did this work.[5]

The tops of the keeps and towers still stood as they had for hundreds of years, and it was hard to tell that the castle had been sacked and burned at all. The stone is strong, the roots of the trees go deep, and under the ground the Kings of Winter sit their thrones. So long as those remained, Winterfell remained.[5]

—thoughts of Bran Stark

Aemon: Your brothers died at the command of Theon Greyjoy, after he took Winterfell in his father's name. When your father's bannermen threatened to retake it, he put the castle to the torch.
Grenn: Your brothers were avenged. Bolton's son killed all the ironmen, and it's said he's flaying Theon Greyjoy inch by inch for what he did.[13]

Aemon and Grenn to Jon Snow

References

  1. Prior to the sack, Ramsay tells Theon he brought three times as many as the two hundred reinforcements who had been expected, and that he lost twenty or thirty men fighting Rodrik's forces.
  2. Black Lorren slays a few Bolton men before dying.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 A Clash of Kings, Chapter 66, Theon VI.
  4. A Clash of Kings, Chapter 56, Theon V.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 A Clash of Kings, Chapter 69, Bran VII.
  6. A Storm of Swords, Chapter 35, Catelyn IV.
  7. A Storm of Swords, Chapter 49, Catelyn VI.
  8. A Feast for Crows, Chapter 11, The Kraken's Daughter.
  9. A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 29, Davos IV.
  10. A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 12, Reek I.
  11. A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 37, The Prince of Winterfell.
  12. A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 41, The Turncloak.
  13. A Storm of Swords, Chapter 48, Jon VI.