Hother Umber

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House Umber.svgHother Umber
Whoresbane
House Umber.svg
HotherUmber.jpg
Hother Umber Drawing by Robert O'Leary

Aliases
  • Hother Whoresbane[1]
  • The Whoresbane[2]
  • Whoresbane[3]
  • Whoresbane Umber[4]
Titles
Allegiance House Umber
Culture Northmen
Born In or before 241 AC[5]Last Hearth[6]
Father Hoarfrost Umber
Books

Hother Umber, nicknamed Whoresbane, is a member of House Umber and is the uncle of Lord Greatjon Umber. Hother is the joint castellan of Last Hearth with his older brother, Mors.[7]

Appearance and Character

Hother is old and gaunt with flinty eyes and a long white beard. His face is hard as winter frost.[8] Catelyn Stark considers Hother and his brother Mors to be hoary old brigands.[9]

History

Hother Umber is the youngest son of Hoarfrost Umber, former Lord of Last Hearth. His father believed that Hother had the making of a maester and therefore sent him to study at the Citadel in Oldtown around 250 AC. While in Oldtown a whore tried to rob him, so Hother disemboweled the whore, earning him the nickname "Whoresbane." The story is told in whispers because the whore was probably a man.[3] Hother appears to be a widower.[9]

Recent Events

A Game of Thrones

Hother is made joint castellan of Last Hearth, together with his brother, Mors Crowfood, by Lord Greatjon Umber when the Greatjon marches south to answer the call to arms of Robb Stark.[7]

A Clash of Kings

Hother attends the harvest feast at Winterfell with his brother, Mors. He asks for ships to defend the Bay of Seals from the wildlings slipping past the Wall and the Night's Watch. He is ordered to work with Lord Wyman Manderly to build a fleet. Hother reports that the Greatjon took so many of the Umber men south with Robb, that they lost half of their harvest because they have too few men to swing the scythes.[7] During the feast, Hother blows a silver warhorn during a performance of "The Night That Ended".[10]

A Storm of Swords

At Riverrun, the Greatjon tells Robb that his uncles wish to remarry. Robb considers the possibility of Hother marrying a daughter of Lord Walder Frey.[9] Robb is killed and the Greatjon is captured during the Red Wedding at the Twins.[11][12]

A Dance with Dragons

Hother begrudgingly swears allegiance to the Dreadfort because his nephew, Lord Greatjon Umber, is a captive of the Freys at the Twins.[3] However, Mors Umber offers to join Stannis Baratheon on the condition that Stannis pardon Hother and pledge that the Umbers will not fight against one another.[3]

Roose Bolton, the new Warden of the North, does not trust Hother's allegiance and suspects that he plots betrayal.[13] Hother and Arnolf Karstark are seated next to Ramsay Bolton during the feast held at the Dreadfort before Ramsay marches on Moat Cailin.[8][14] Hother recognizes "Reek" as Theon Greyjoy when he is brought before them and recommends to Ramsay that he slit Reek's throat, as he will most likely betray Ramsay as he did Robb Stark with the capture of Winterfell.[8] Hother leads three hundred spears and a hundred archers south for the siege of Moat Cailin.[2]

Hother is present at the wedding of the fake Arya Stark to Ramsay at Winterfell.[4] He remains at Winterfell during the storms that follow the wedding. During a breakfast, Theon spots him talking quietly with Lord Harwood Stout. Among the snowmen that squires built along the battlements of Winterfell, one has an icy beard to depict Hother.[15] Whoresbane predicts that a freerider thrown over the wall will join Stannis.[15] According to Lady Barbrey Dustin, Hother would love to kill Ser Hosteen and Ser Aenys Frey, who are also attending the wedding, but will not do so while the Greatjon remains a captive at the Twins.[16]

The Winds of Winter

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Warning
This information has thus far been released in a sample chapter for The Winds of Winter, and might therefore not be in finalized form. Keep in mind that the content as described below is still subject to change.

Theon Greyjoy reveals to Stannis Baratheon that the majority of Hother's forces are old men and Mors has green boys, as the main Umber strength went south with the Greatjon and likely perished in the Red Wedding.[14]

Family

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Hoarfrost
 
Unknown
wife
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unknown
Umber
 
Unknown
wife
 
 
 
Mors
 
Unknown
wife
 
Hother
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Jon
 
Unknown
wife
 
Sons
 
Sons
 
Daughter
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Jon
 
Sons
 
At least
two daughters
 


Quotes

The Cerwyns and the Tallharts are not to be relied on, my fat friend Lord Wyman plots betrayal, and Whoresbane ... the Umbers may seem simple, but they are not without a certain low cunning.[13]

And Lord Wyman is not the only man who lost kin at your Red Wedding, Frey. Do you imagine Whoresbane loves you any better? If you did not hold the Greatjon, he would pull out your entrails and make you eat them, as Lady Hornwood ate her fingers.[16]

References