Battle of Winterfell (War of the Five Kings)

The Battle of Winterfell is a battle late in the War of the Five Kings, in which King Stannis Baratheon attempts to retake Winterfell from Lord Roose Bolton, the Lannister-backed Warden of the North.

Prelude
As part of Stannis Baratheon's continued attempt to seize the Iron Throne of Westeros, he attempts to rally the North to his side by capturing Winterfell, the former castle of House Stark and the current seat of House Bolton, the Lannister-backed Wardens of the North.

However, the arrival of a large snowstorm delays Stannis's march. This event, coupled with the desertion of the Stormcrows, a sellsword company from across the Narrow Sea, and Ramsay Bolton's nocturnal attack, which destroys his siege engines and destroyed much of their supplies, make Stannis follow Melisandre's request to sacrifice his only daughter and heir, Princess Shireen Baratheon, to the Lord of Light in a desperate attempt to end the snowstorm and thaw the deep snow blocking the path to Winterfell.

However, resorting to such action and the continued hardships of the march break the morale of Stannis's army. Thus, a large portion of the army, among them the rest of sellswords, deserts with all the horses.

With his Queen, Selyse Baratheon, having committed suicide, and Melisandre fled after realizing she had led her king to disaster, Stannis decides to press on to Winterfell on foot.

Battle
After arriving within sight of the castle's walls, Stannis intents to lay siege at sunrise, but the Boltons believe they can match Stannis' weakened army in battle instead of resisting a siege, so they send all of their cavalry against Stannis' army, simultaneously attacking both flanks and successfully surrounding it.



Stannis stoically meets them head on, facing their almost certain defeat at the hands of the superior Bolton army, though much of his army flees to the Wolfswood before the battle even begins.

Stannis and his army break soon after being surrounded and retreat to the Wolfswood, where its last remains are annihilated. Two Bolton men-at-arms find an exhausted Stannis in the cleanup after the battle, and they attempt to kill him. Though they manage to wound him, but are ultimately no match for the experienced warrior.

Aftermath
Having dispatched his attackers, Stannis falls against a tree, his leg injured. He is found by Brienne of Tarth, who abandoned her hideout in the Winter town after being informed of Stannis's impeding attack. After revealing her identity as a former Kingsguard to Renly Baratheon, Stannis admits to having murdered his brother with magic. Broken by the destruction of his army and his daughter's needless sacrifice, Stannis tells Brienne to 'do her duty'.



With Stannis's death, House Baratheon becomes extinct and Tommen Baratheon's claim to the Iron Throne is now unchallenged for the time being, while Bolton supremacy over the North is secured. Stannis's death also brings the War of the Five Kings one step closer to a close, with the exception of King Balon Greyjoy and the remaining Greyjoy occupation in the North.

However, it turns out to be a Pyrrhic victory, since with the castle in chaos over the battle, Sansa Stark manages to escape her ancestral home with the aid of Theon Greyjoy, thus leaving the Boltons in a dubious position with the loss of easily their most powerful political asset.

Numbers
When Stannis's march began he had 6,000 men, composed of his surviving Baratheon army of hardened veterans from the Battle of the Blackwater, bolstered by thousands of foreign sellswords. Stannis told the Iron Bank he had under 4,000 men left, perhaps closer to 3,000 or so by the time of the march due to various losses. Therefore roughly half of Stannis's army were Baratheon soldiers, the other half sellswords. Half of these 6,000 were mounted. After Stannis sacrificed his daughter Shireen, all of the sellswords abandoned him (about 3,000 men) and also half of his regular Baratheon army deserted; those who fled took all of the surviving horses. Thus when Stannis reached Winterfell he only had about 1,300 infantry.

The Bolton army's disposition is unknown, but visually was composed of about 2,000 men, many of them cavalry - it might seem larger because they were spread out in an envelopment while Stannis's infantry were still in a vertical column.

In the books
In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, the Battle of Winterfell, called the Battle of Ice by George R. R. Martin and the fandom, still has yet to take place. It is still in the "Prelude" stage.

Sansa, Brienne and Podrick are not involved in any aspect of the battle by the point the books reached: Sansa is safe in the Vale, totally unaware of the events in the North; Brienne and Pod are at the Riverlands, searching hopelessly for Sansa.

Background
Following Stannis's decisive victory over the wildlings, he plans to continue with his campaign to purge the North of its enemies, starting with the Boltons, and by that to gain the support of the people of North in his claim to the iron Throne. He sends out ravens, calling upon the northern lords to join him, but is disappointed when only Arnolf Karstark (Rickard's uncle and the castellan of Karhold) answers Stannis's summoning, unaware that Karstark only pretends to be Stannis's ally, while he secretly collaborates with the Boltons to destroy Stannis. For that purpose he prompts Stannis to attack the Dreadfort. Luckily, Stannis consults with Jon first. Jon explains Stannis in length that his plan is suicide; the Dreadfort is too well defended for Stannis to take the castle before Roose and Ramsay Bolton's combined armies return from dealing with the Ironborn at Moat Cailin. Instead, he advises Stannis to gain the support of the Northern mountain clans, who are fiercely loyal to House Stark, and to attack the ironborn at Deepwood Motte. Stannis accepts both pieces of advice, and soon his army is on the way to the mountains north of Winterfell. At this point, Stannis has not met yet with Tycho Nestoris, and has not hired any sellswords.

Unlike in the TV show, Davos, Selyse, Shireen and Melisandre do not travel with Stannis: Davos was sent earlier to deal with House Manderly of White Harbor; Selyse and Shireen are at Eastwatch-by-the-Sea; Melisandre remains at Castle Black, since Jon warned her that the old gods are strong in the mountains, and the clansmen will not tolerate insults to their heart trees.

In the meantime, Roose Bolton realizes that Stannis is not going to attack the Dreadfort, and has another plan to lure him into a trap: to hold Ramsay's wedding at Winterfell. Ramsay is not thrilled about the idea to marry "Arya" (actually, Jeyne Poole) in a ruin, but Roose explains him the plan. Roose figures that Stannis is too cautious to come to Barrowton, but he must come to Winterfell, because his clansmen will not abandon the daughter of their precious Ned to a monster like Ramsay. Then, with the assistance of Arnolf Karstark, who will turn traitor at a given signal during the battle, Stannis's host will be destroyed.

Jon receives a letter from the Boltons about the wedding. He suppresses his personal feelings, reminding himself that Arya is no longer his sister, and that he must set an example to his subordinates (although his inner monologue expresses a desire to kill Ramsay Bolton). Melisandre approaches Jon and offers to save Arya. She reveals to Jon that Mance Rayder is alive, secretly rescued from his fate by her magic that switched Mance's appearance with that of Rattleshirt, who died in his place. Jon agrees to send Mance to Winterfell with six spearwives to abduct Arya and bring her back to the Wall.

The march to Winterfell
Thanks to Jon's advice, Stannis manages to secure the support of the northern mountain clans, and liberates Deepwood Motte of the ironborn garrison holding it, capturing its commander, Theon's sister Asha, in the attack. Word of that victory spreads quickly, and his army is reinforced by the Houses Glover, Mormont, half of the forces of House Umber and survivors of Houses Hornwood, Cerwyn, and Tallhart from the failed attempt to liberate Winterfell. Lady Sybelle Glover provides Stannis guides, trackers and hunters sworn to Deepwood with clan names like Forrester and Woods, Branch and Bole. Stannis's army grows to about 5,000 warriors. He sends Jon a message that the army marches to Winterfell, which is about three hundred miles away, intending to destroy the Boltons and save "Arya". The soldiers expect to reach Winterfell within fifteen days, some of them believe it is preferable to winter at Deepwood Motte, while others claim that Robert would have done it in ten days. Stannis announces "We all know what my brother would do. Robert would gallop up to the gates of Winterfell alone, break them with his warhammer, and ride through the rubble to slay Roose Bolton with his left hand and the bastard with his right. I am not Robert. But we will march, and we will free Winterfell… or die in the attempt." From that point, the march is narrated from the POV of one of the captives that Stannis took.

The Boltons come to Winterfell with many guests of Houses Frey, Ryswell, Dustin, Slate, Locke, Cerwyn, Hornwood, Flint and Stout (whose loyalty, except the Freys, is uncertain), as well as the nominal support of House Manderly (who actually supports Stannis, and wishes to avenge his son's death), and the other half of Umber forces. They are about 8,000 soldiers. Mance, introducing himself as Abel the Bard, is allowed to attend the wedding with the six women.

Stannis's host covers great distance in the first three days of the march. The troubles start on the fourth day: it begins to snow, heavier with each passing day. While the mountain clans are not affected much by the bad weather, the southern lords and their soldiers suffer a lot, especially the baggage train. With every day, more men and horses die ("the cold count", as the soldiers call it). There are reports of missing men, maybe deserters, but unlike in show - Stannis's army is not weakens significantly by that.

On the fifth day, several southron lords urge Stannis to camp until the storm has passed. Others urge him to make a sacrifice to R'hllor, claiming that the old gods of the north have sent that storm. Stannis refuses both suggestions. The march continues, slowing to a stagger, then a crawl. They cover no more than two miles per day.

The village
On the 32th day, Stannis's host camps at an abandoned village, about three days from Winterfell. The blizzard is so thick that they cannot go further. The village is a very poor choice for a battle station: it is located between two lakes, a few huts, a longhall, and a watchtower. As someone comments, there is no high ground there, no walls to hide beyond, no natural defenses. An entire army can surprise them, hidden by darkness and swirling snow.

The Boltons do not send any scouts to obtain information about the location of Stannis's army and its condition. Instead they receive updates by ravens from Arnolf Karstark, including a report about the location of the village.

It appears that Roose's scheme is working out, but then there is an expected turn of events that may turn the tables on him: Alys Karstark (Rickard's daughter and Arnolf's great-niece), who learned about her great-uncle's treachery, escapes from Karhold to Castle Black.

Shortly after Selyse, Shireen and Tycho Nestoris come to Castle Black, Alys Karstark arrives and tells Jon that her great-uncle is in league with the Boltons. Immediately, Jon sends Tycho with guides to warn Stannis of the traitor. He keeps asking Melisandre about Stannis, but her answer is "When I search for him, all I see is snow".

In the meantime, the snow at Winterfell is so thick that the guards fail to see Mors Umber and his men digging trap pits outside. Tension grows inside Winterfell, particularly between Houses Frey and Manderly, especially as a result of series of murders, with Roose and his more loyal vassals desperately trying to keep the peace. It is then when Theon notices a look in Roose's pale eyes that he has never seen before - an uneasiness, even a hint of fear. Perhaps Roose has second thoughts about leaving the well-fortified Dreadfort that could have stood against Stannis for very long.

Theon is brought before "Abel", who demands Theon to join them in the rescue plan. Theon has no wish to act against his cruel master (what can cost him more body parts), and does his best to dissuade Abel, but to no avail. Theon, however, does not reveal the only fact that can surely make Abel give up the whole idea: "Arya"'s true identity.

After a very bloody brawl between the Freys and the White Harbor men, Roose Bolton sends them to attack Stannis. He takes a great risk doing so, reducing the forces in Winterfell almost by half, but has no choice: the hostility between the occupants of Winterfell has grown too far. Roose keeps the Dreadfort troops in Winterfell, hoping that if the troops he sent do not defeat Stannis, they will weaken his host enough for him to finish the job. Unbeknown to Roose, he has made a mistake that can be critical: he gave Lord Manderly a convenient opportunity to join Stannis. If the White Harbor men reach the village before the Freys (it is likely they will, since the Freys are delayed due to Mors Umber's trap pits), Stannis's chances will improve. Morever: the Freys are the only that Roose could fully count on to take sides with him in case the other guests in Winterfell turned against him. Sending the Freys away has left the Boltons in a very inconvenient position.

Abel and the spearwives take advantage of the distraction, take Theon and go to save Jeyne. Theon is very reluctant but cooperates. They manage to pass the guards, take Jeyne and reach the Battlements Gate. While fighting the guards, Jeyne screams and gives away their position, forcing the spearwives to stay behind. Theon, who knows full well what Ramsay will do to them if they are recaptured, grabs Jeyne and they jump from the castle walls.

At the abandone village, the condition of Stannis's host worsens. The cold count reaches eighty, and the number of horses has dwindled from 800 to 64. The soldiers catch fish from the nearby lakes, but fewer every day. There are unpleasant exchanges of words between the southron and northern soldiers: the former accuse "You northmen brought these snows upon us, you and your demon trees. R’hllor will save us"; the latter respond "Red Rahloo means nothing here". These arguments do not lead to brawls, nor do they cause a division among Stannis's troops, though. Stannis spends most of the time alone at the watchtower, and it seems to some of the people that he is lost and crying out for help.

As food becomes scarce, four of Lord Peasebury men are caught eating a dead body (apparently they were not to the only ones, but only they were caught). Stannis orders to burn them alive as a sacrifice to R'hllor, and although they beg for mercy, no one of his host objects or deserts as a result. Some of the northern soldiers are displeased, claiming that sacrifice will only make the old gods angry, while some southron who believe in R'hllor think that a sacrifice of four baseborn churls is like a beggar's offering. The weather does not improve at all. Stannis returns to the watchtower, while the soldiers gather at the longhall. They argue whether to return to Castle Black, remain in the village until the weather improves or to continue to Winterfell. For obvious reason, the treacherous Karstarks are in favor of attacking Winterfell. Two people exit the longhall, and are surprised to see a small group of riders arriving, one of them is Tycho Nestoris.

The Bastard Letter
Back at Castle Black, just as Jon arranges a rescue party to Hardhome, he receives a taunting letter from Ramsay:

Your false king is dead, bastard. He and all his host were smashed in seven days of battle. I have his magic sword. Tell his red whore. Your false king’s friends are dead. Their heads upon the walls of Winterfell. Come see them, bastard. Your false king lied, and so did you. You told the world you burned the King-Beyond-the-Wall. Instead you sent him to Winterfell to steal my bride from me. I will have my bride back. If you want Mance Rayder back, come and get him. I have him in a cage for all the north to see, proof of your lies. The cage is cold, but I have made him a warm cloak from the skins of the six whores who came with him to Winterfell. I want my bride back. I want the false king’s queen. I want his daughter and his red witch. I want his wildling princess. I want his little prince, the wildling babe. And I want my Reek. Send them to me, bastard, and I will not trouble you or your black crows. Keep them from me, and I will cut out your bastard’s heart and eat it.

Instead of sending scouts to verify the contents of the letter, Jon announces that he will go to Winterfell and kill Ramsay himself. For Bowen Marsh and others, who have grown dissatisfied with Jon's conduct as the Lord Commander (especially about adding the wildlings to the watch), this is the final straw. They attack Jon and stab him, but it is left unclear whether or not Jon has been killed.

At the point the fifth book ends, it is unknown whether the contents of the letter are true, and what is the status of Stannis's host.

A sample chapter from The Winds of Winter reveals Stannis to still be alive and preparing for battle; he meets and signs an agreement with Tycho Nestoris, gaining access to the Iron Bank's coffers in exchange for Stannis's pledge to repay the Iron Throne's debts to the bank when he takes the throne, before dispatching the banker back to the Wall and one of his knights to travel across the Narrow Sea to hire sellswords with the Iron Bank's gold (with the addendum that even if he is killed, the army of sellswords is still to be hired, with the intent of placing Shireen on the Iron Throne). Stannis also (now aware of their treachery) has Arnolf Karstark, his son and grandsons arrested and flatly tells them they will be executed for their planned treason, though whether they are beheaded or burned depends on their willingness to confess. Stannis then learns of the strength of Roose Bolton's forces both within Winterfell and those coming to do battle with him; he is told that the approaching forces are likely commanded by Ramsay and Ser Hosteen Frey, after Hosteen's predecessor in command, Ser Aenys Frey, rode into a pit trap outside Winterfell and broke his neck. Stannis is surprisingly delighted by this news, since Hosteen is an idiot and Ramsay has never fought in open battle before, and intimates that he has a plan to turn matters to his advantage. It is unknown, however, whether this chapter takes place before or after Ramsay sends the letter to Jon.