Battle of the Honeywine

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Battle of the Honeywine
Conflict Dance of the Dragons
Date 130 AC
Place The banks of the Honeywine
Result Victory for the greens
Combatants
Rhaenyra Targaryen.svg Blacks Aegon II Targaryen.svg Greens
Commanders
House Rowan.svg Lord Thaddeus Rowan
The Bastard of Bitterbridge.png Tom Flowers
House Beesbury.svg Ser Alan Beesbury
House Tarly.svg Lord Alan Tarly
House Costayne.svg Lord Owen Costayne
House Hightower.svg Lord Ormund Hightower
House Targaryen.svg Prince Daeron Targaryen
Strength
A great host of mounted knights, thousands of foot soldiers (estimated) 1,000 knights
1,000 archers
3,000 men-at-arms
Thousands of sellswords and freeriders
Daeron on Tessarion
Casualties
Unknown but heavy (estimated)
Tom Flowers
Lord Owen Costayne
Ser Alan Beesbury (captured)
Lord Alan Tarly (captured)
Unknown but heavy (estimated)

The Battle of the Honeywine was one of many battles fought during the Dance of the Dragons, the civil war between the greens of Aegon II Targaryen and the blacks of Rhaenyra Targaryen for control of the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms after the death of their father, King Viserys I Targaryen.[1]

Prelude

Given that Aegon II Targaryen's main supporters were House Hightower, the family of his mother Alicent, the greens assumed the lords and lands of the Reach would side with them. Instead, many of the major lords from the north and east of the Reach declared for Rhaenyra Targaryen and her blacks, including Houses Caswell, Rowan, and Tarly. Several of the Hightowers' own vassals declared for Rhaenyra, such as Houses Beesbury and Costayne.[1]

With the Reach divided between blacks and greens and Lord Lyonel Tyrell of Highgarden only a baby, his regent mother avoided risks and pursued neutrality for House Tyrell.[1] Instead of quickly marching armies from the Reach to join with the other green armies in the north to overwhelm the blacks, the Hightowers and their allies had to slowly fight through the Reach itself.

The Battle of the Gullet, in which both sides suffered heavy losses, occurred a fortnight prior to the Battle of the Honeywine.[2]

The Battle

A fortnight later on the banks of the Honeywine in the Reach, Lord Ormund Hightower found himself caught between the forces of Lord Thaddeus Rowan and Tom Flowers, the Bastard of Bitterbridge, coming in from the northeast with a large host of mounted knights. From behind his retreat was cut off by Ser Alan Beesbury, Lord Alan Tarly, and Lord Owen Costayne.[1]

Attacked from the front and the rear, Lord Hightower's lines were starting to crumble and defeat seemed all but a foregone conclusion. Just then, a massive shadow appeared in the sky above them, Prince Daeron Targaryen on his dragon, Tessarion. It was then that the battle turned to the favor of Aegon II's forces and the rout was underway with heavy losses in the retreat.[1]

Aftermath

This was the second defeat in a row for Rhaenyra Targaryen and her supporters, the blacks, at the hands of Aegon II and his supporters, the greens. Both sides suffered heavy casualties, with Rhaenyra losing commanders in the dead Tom Flowers, the captured Ser Alan Beesbury and Lord Alan Tarly, and the mortally wounded Lord Owen Costayne. When Dragonstone heard of the disaster, Rhaenyra refused Lord Bar Emmon's suggestion to submit to Aegon.[1]

Daeron Targaryen was hailed as a hero that day and knighted by Lord Ormund Hightower with the Valyrian steel longsword, Vigilance. Daeron was first called "Daeron the Daring" after the battle, though Daeron modestly said Tessarion was the true hero of the battle.[1]

The battle slowed the massive Hightower army that set out from Oldtown on its march north. Indirectly, this prevented the greens in the Reach from aiding the greens to the north. The westerlands' armies were annihilated in the Battle by the Lakeshore, while the green armies from the crownlands were destroyed in the Butcher's Ball.

Black forces continued to harass the Hightower army as it slowly advanced up the Roseroad, though Daeron flew on Tessarion to scout ahead for ambushes that they set. Eventually it began to approach King's Landing itself, resulting in the First Battle of Tumbleton.

Quotes

My Lord is kind to say so, but the victory belongs to Tessarion.[1]

Daeron Targaryen responding to Ormund Hightower's praises after the battle

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 The Princess and the Queen.
  2. Fire & Blood, The Dying of the Dragons - The Red Dragon and the Gold.