The History of the Night's Watch

"The History of the Night's Watch" is a series of featurettes and part of the Complete Guide to Westeros, a special feature present in the blu-ray of both Seasons 1 and 2 of Game of Thrones.

The Season 1 featurettes are narrated by James Cosmo as Lord Commander Jeor Mormont, Donald Sumpter as Maester Luwin, and Charles Dance as Lord Tywin Lannister, respectively. The Season 2 blu ray features only one narration of the History of the Night's Watch, featuring Rose Leslie as Ygritte.

Jeor Mormont's perspective
Lord Commander Mormont opens his narration reciting the oath sworn by those join the Night's Watch, forsaking taking wives, fathering children, wearing crowns, and winning glory.

He then reminds that legend tells of a winter that lasted a generation, and of vast and terrible darkness that fell upon the land. It came to be known as the Long Night. In the midst of this darkness, the White Walkers emerged from the Far North. With their armies of the dead, they waged war against the living, laying waste to villages and holdfasts, leaving terror and destruction in their wake.

After years of brutal conflict and unbearable loss, an alliance of the First Men and the Children of the Forest managed to drive the Walkers and their minions back into the frigid northern wastelands from whence they came. To prevent another invasion, the First Men erected the Wall - a massive fortification seven hundred in height - stretching from the Frostfang Mountains in the west to the Bay of Seals in the East. It was a structure unlike any ever built. Indeed, some say it could only have been completed with the aid of giants, or using the powerful magic of the ancient Children of the Forest.

Men were required to guard and maintain it, and thus the Night's Watch was born. A sworn brotherhood tasked with defending the realms of men against the dark forces that lay beyond. Upon taking his vows, a brother of the Night's Watch serves for life. It is a life of hardship and great sacrifice, so the oath must not be taken lightly. The punishment for desertion is death.

The Night's Watch is divided into three vital branches: the Ranges, the Builders and the Stewards. While all Black Brothers are expected to take up steel should the need arise, the Rangers are the true warriors of the Watch. centuries come and gone, and although the White Walkers have yet to return, another threat has emerged - barbarian tribes known as Wildlings. The Rangers are charged with defending the realm against these lawless savages. The Builders are carpenters, masons, miners, and woosmen, tasked with maintaing the Wall, as well as its various keeps, towers, and structures, which have fallen into disrepair over the years. The Stewards serve as cooks, butchers, and hunters. They tend to the horses and messenger ravens, sew clothing, gather firewood, and bring supplies up from the south.

The Night's Watch is a diverse group - proud volunteers from noble houses stand side by side with petty thieves conscripted from dungeons. Class distinctions are left behind, as are past misdeeds. A man gets what he earns on the Wall and even the lowest guttersnipe can rise high if he proves himself worthy.

For thousands of years, the Brothers of the Night's Watch have stood their lonely vigil. As the seasons changed, as brutal wars raged in the south, as dynasties rose and fell, the Night's Watch has endured. He concludes by saying that they are the swords in the darkness, they are the watchers on the wall, they are the shield that guards the realms of men

Places

 * Beyond the Wall
 * The Frostfangs
 * The North
 * Bay of Seals
 * The Wall

Events

 * The Long Night

Cultures

 * First Men
 * Free Folk

Miscellaneous

 * Wights