Fight by Deepwood Motte

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Fight by Deepwood Motte
Conflict War of the Five Kings
Date 300 AC
Place Deepwood Motte and the wolfswood
Result Decisive victory for Stannis Baratheon and the northmen; Deepwood Motte recaptured
Combatants
House Baratheon of Dragonstone
House Flint
House Norrey
House Wull
House Liddle
House Mormont
House Greyjoy
Commanders
Stannis Baratheon
Alysane Mormont
Asha Greyjoy
Strength
<1,400 southron soldiers
<3,000 mountain clansmen
~200
4 longships
Casualties
unknown all but 9 killed
9 captured

The fight by Deepwood Motte[1] occurs in the late stages of the War of the Five Kings during Stannis Baratheon's attempt to gain the northmens' allegiance by driving the invading ironborn out of the region.

Prelude

Stannis Baratheon, under the advice of Jon Snow, goes west from Castle Black to take Deepwood Motte, held by the ironborn under Asha Greyjoy. While moving through the northern mountains, Stannis wins the support of the mountain clans Flint, Wull, Norrey and Liddle, who remain loyal to the legacies of Ned and Robb Stark.

Fight

Stannis, now with additional men, attacks Deepwood Motte. Five men, including a Flint, climb Deepwood's eastern wall in an attempt to open the gate, but they are defeated by Asha's guards. Sybelle Glover and Deepwood's maester fail to convince Asha to surrender. Seeing she is outnumbered, Asha decides to retreat back to her longships under cover of darkness. As Stannis's men attack the north gate with a battering ram, the Greyjoys escape out the south gate on foot and on horse and venture into the wolfswood.[2]

Initially traveling south and southwest, the ironborn then head west and intend to travel north to their beached longships only once the sun comes up. They march all night and light no fires and cover, they think, good ground. However, the retreat is slowed due to the unfamiliar territory and darkness. The northmen by comparison know the wolfswood well and are not hindered in the same way.[2]

The northmen sneak up on the ironborn, slaying their sentries and closing in around them. The ironborn fight back fiercely, but they are surrounded and outnumbered. Eventually, they are all subdued. Asha is defeated by Morgan Liddle,[1] while Quenton and Dagon the Drunkard, distant Greyjoy cousins, are both slain.[2]

Meanwhile, fighters in fishing sloops led by Alysane Mormont are able to sneak up on the longships off the strand, capturing or burning them.[3]

Aftermath

Stannis takes several of the ironborn captive, including Asha Greyjoy. He frees Lady Sybelle Glover and returns Deepwood Motte to House Glover. This wins Stannis much popular support in the North, with House Glover and its vassal houses as well as House Mormont declaring for him afterwards.[1]

References and Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 42, The King's Prize.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 26, The Wayward Bride.
  3. A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 35, Jon VII.