Changes: Battle of the Fords

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Template:Battle

The Battle of Stone Mill is a major engagement in the War of the Five Kings. It is recounted by Edmure Tully in his report to King in the North Robb Stark in "Walk of Punishment", the third episode of Season 3.

History

Prelude

In an attempt to lure Tywin Lannister away from Harrenhal and leave King's Landing open for an attack, Robb Stark invaded the Westerlands, and won a great victory at Battle of Oxcross. This left his army free to sack and pillage the northern Westerlands.^[1]

Meanwhile, Robb left the remaining Stark-Tully forces in the Riverlands under the command of his uncle Edmure Tully. The war dragged on in the Riverlands in a series of raids, counter-raids, and skirmishes between Edmure's forces based at Riverrun, and Tywin Lannister's forces based at Harrenhal to the east.

Robb's offensive in the Westerlands eventually succeeded in luring a Lannister army led by Gregor Clegane (called "The Mountain That Rides") to march back to the west, and attempt to force a passage over the Red Fork of the Trident River.

The Battle

Gregor Clegane's forces seized control of Stone Mill, hoping to use it as a crossing site over the Red Fork. Edmure Tully, commanding Robb's forces at and around Riverrun, decided to engage the Mountain's forces and prevent their crossing. The Lannisters withdrew from the area, and Edmure also recaptured Stone Mill.^[2]

Tactically, the battle was an amazing success, inflicting two to one losses on the Lannisters and forcing Gregor Clegane to retreat from the Red Fork and back to Harrenhal.^[3] Tywin's young nephews, Willem and Martyn Lannister, are taken hostage in the battle.^[4]

Aftermath

Strategically, the battle was a significant blunder. Robb Stark's plan was to lure Gregor Clegane's forces further west into the Riverlands where they could be surrounded and destroyed. Edmure's attack instead allowed Clegane and his army to escape. Gregor and his army soon abandoned Harrenhal entirely to take part in the Lannister victory at the Battle of the Blackwater - which would not have happened if Edmure had lured more Lannister forces into the west.^[5]

In the books

In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, the battle was fought over an extremely wide front, encompassing fords to the south and north of Riverrun, and featured the entire main Lannister army attempting to cross the river. Edmure's forces were fewer in number but held the strategic high ground on each side of the fords, and were able to subject the Lannister forces to withering arrow fire as they attempted to cross. Ser Jason Mallister commanded the defense of four fords to the south of Riverrun, and Karyl Vance commanded the defense of fords to the north, while Edmure Tully commanded the defense of the fords closest to Riverrun itself. The fiercest assault came at Stone Mill in the center, where the forces commanded by Ser Gregor Clegane himself managed to gain a foothold on the west bank of the river despite suffering terrible losses, but were then driven back when Edmure hit them with his reserves.

The entire campaign was led by Tywin, while Gregor Clegane personally commanded the main thrust at Stone Mill. While the battle was raging, Tywin received word that Stannis Baratheon was about to attack King's Landing. He withdrew from the engagement, turned his army south and marched to the headwaters of the Blackwater Rush. They built barges and skiffs and were able to rapidly head downriver, meeting the army of House Tyrell along the way. This allowed the combined Lannister and Tyrell armies to then attack Stannis's flank at the Battle of the Blackwater, routing him.

Robb later chastises Edmure for his blunder, saying that the Northmen had identified a valley in the western mountains where they planned to lure Tywin Lannister into a trap and destroy his main army, as well as keeping Tywin from aiding King's Landing's defense and thus allowing the Northmen to try and negotiate a peace with Stannis after he took the capital. By preventing his crossing, Edmure won a strategically meaningless short-term victory at the cost of a possible long-term victory for the entire campaign. Edmure angrily pointed out that the blunder was due to Robb not trusting him with his plans.

In the TV series the battle is somewhat smaller in scale and focused specifically around Stone Mill, which is where the main thrust occurred in the novels.

One minor change is about Martyn and Willem Lannister: neither of them was taken captive at the Battle of Stone Mill, and not by the Tullys. Willem and his cousin Tion Frey were captured by the Starks at the Battle of the Whispering Wood, while Martyn was captured at the Battle of Oxcross.

References

Template:WarOfTheFiveKings

[1] "Garden of Bones"

[2] "Walk of Punishment"

[3] "Walk of Punishment", deleted scene.

[4] "Walk of Punishment"

[5] "Walk of Punishment"

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

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 {{Battle
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-|prev= [[Sack of Winterfell]]
+|prev= [[Surrender of the Crag]]
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-|next= [[Liberation of Harrenhal]]
+|next= [[Battle of the Blackwater]] (Lannister)<br>[[Liberation of Harrenhal]] (Stark)
 |name= Battle of Stone Mill
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 |date=
 |place=[[Stone Mill]], [[the Riverlands]]
-|result=Tactical [[House Tully|Tully]] victory,<br> Strategic [[House Stark|Stark]] - Tully failure
+|result=Tactical [[House Tully|Tully]] victory,<br> Strategic [[House Stark|Stark]] - Tully failure<br>[[Stone Mill]] reclaimed from Lannister occupation
 |BG2=
-|side1=[[House Tully]]
+|side1=[[File:Tully mini shield.png|20px|right|link=House Tully]] [[House Tully]]
-|side2=[[House Lannister]]
+|side2=[[File:Lannister mini shield.png|20px|right|link=House Lannister]] [[House Lannister]]
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@@ Line 30: / Line 30: @@
 |civilian=}}
-The '''Battle of Stone Mill''' is a major engagement in the [[War of the Five Kings]]. It is recounted by [[Edmure Tully]] in his report to [[King in the North]] [[Robb Stark]] in "[[Walk of Punishment]]", the third episode of [[Season 3]]. Chronologically, the timing of the battle is not given but seems to be after the [[Battle of the Blackwater]], which happened in the [[Blackwater|ninth episode]] of [[Season 2]].
+The '''Battle of Stone Mill''' is a major engagement in the [[War of the Five Kings]]. It is recounted by [[Edmure Tully]] in his report to [[King in the North]] [[Robb Stark]] in "[[Walk of Punishment]]", the third episode of [[Season 3]].
 ==History==
 ===Prelude===
-Having decided to give up his stronghold at [[Harrenhal]], Lord [[Tywin Lannister]] and the bulk of the [[House Lannister|Lannister]] army marched south-east to [[King's Landing]] to engage the forces of [[Stannis Baratheon]]. Tywin left Ser [[Gregor Clegane]], the Mountain, in command of the garrison at Harrenhal, instructing him to ravage the countryside.<ref>"[[The Prince of Winterfell]]"</ref>
+In an attempt to lure Tywin Lannister away from Harrenhal and leave [[King's Landing]] open for an attack,  [[Robb Stark]] invaded [[The Westerlands|the Westerlands]], and won a great victory at [[Battle of Oxcross]].  This left his army free to [[Battle of the Yellow Fork|sack]] and [[Surrender of the Crag|pillage]] the northern Westerlands.<ref>"[[Garden of Bones]]"</ref>
+Meanwhile, Robb left the remaining Stark-Tully forces in the Riverlands under the command of his uncle [[Edmure Tully]].  The war dragged on in the Riverlands in a series of raids, counter-raids, and skirmishes between Edmure's forces based at [[Riverrun]], and [[Tywin Lannister]]'s forces based at [[Harrenhal]] to the east.
-The [[House Stark|Stark]] army under King [[Robb Stark]] abandoned its invasion of the [[Westerlands]] - now fruitless since they lacked the strength to attack [[Casterly Rock]]<ref>"[[The Prince of Winterfell]]"</ref> - and marched east to besiege Harrenhal and flush out the Mountain. However, upon their arrival they discovered that the Mountain had already slaughtered the prisoners at Harrenhal and fled.<ref>"[[Valar Dohaeris]]"</ref>
+Robb's offensive in the Westerlands eventually succeeded in luring a Lannister army led by [[Gregor Clegane]] (called "The Mountain That Rides") to march back to the west, and attempt to force a passage over the Red Fork of the [[Trident]] River.
-Gregor Clegane's forces seized command of the shore opposite [[Stone Mill]]. Edmure Tully, commanding Robb's forces at and around [[Riverrun]], decided to engage the Mountain's forces and seized the mill.<ref>"[[Walk of Punishment]]"</ref>
 ===The Battle===
+Gregor Clegane's forces seized control of [[Stone Mill]], hoping to use it as a crossing site over the Red Fork.  Edmure Tully, commanding Robb's forces at and around [[Riverrun]], decided to engage the Mountain's forces and prevent their crossing.  The Lannisters withdrew from the area, and Edmure also recaptured Stone Mill.<ref>"[[Walk of Punishment]]"</ref>
-Tactically, the battle was an amazing success, inflicting disproportionate losses on the Lannisters and forcing Gregor Clegane to retreat from the Red Fork of the [[Trident]]. They fell back on [[Casterly Rock]]. This removed them from being in immediate striking distance of Riverrun itself. Tywin's young nephews, [[Willem Lannister|Willem]] and [[Martyn Lannister]], are taken hostage in the battle.<ref>"[[Walk of Punishment]]"</ref>
+Tactically, the battle was an amazing success, inflicting two to one losses on the Lannisters and forcing Gregor Clegane to retreat from the Red Fork and back to [[Harrenhal]].<ref>"[[Walk of Punishment]]", deleted scene.</ref>  Tywin's young nephews, [[Willem Lannister|Willem]] and [[Martyn Lannister]], are taken hostage in the battle.<ref>"[[Walk of Punishment]]"</ref>
 ===Aftermath===
-Strategically, the battle was a significant blunder. Robb Stark's plan was to lure Gregor Clegane's forces further west into the [[Riverlands]] where they could be surrounded and destroyed. Edmure's attack instead allowed Clegane to escape.<ref>"[[Walk of Punishment]]"</ref>
+Strategically, the battle was a significant blunder. Robb Stark's plan was to lure Gregor Clegane's forces further west into the [[Riverlands]] where they could be surrounded and destroyed. Edmure's attack instead allowed Clegane and his army to escape.  Gregor and his army soon [[Liberation of Harrenhal|abandoned Harrenhal entirely]] to take part in the Lannister victory at the [[Battle of the Blackwater]] - which would not have happened if Edmure had lured more Lannister forces into the west.<ref>"[[Walk of Punishment]]"</ref>
 ==In the books==
-In the ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'' novels, the battle is similar but takes on a considerably greater strategic significance. In the novels the main Lannister army under Tywin was lured by Robb from Harrenhal and marched west, Tywin facing unrest from his bannermen as Robb's forces ravaged their homeland. Tywin's main army attempted to cross the Red Fork of the Trident south of Riverrun, only to face significant Riverlands opposition led by Edmure Tully, who seized the opportunity to prove himself a battle commander the equal of his nephew.
+In the ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'' novels, the battle was fought over an extremely wide front, encompassing fords to the south and north of Riverrun, and featured the entire main Lannister army attempting to cross the river.  Edmure's forces were fewer in number but held the strategic high ground on each side of the fords, and were able to subject the Lannister forces to withering arrow fire as they attempted to cross. Ser [[Jason Mallister]] commanded the defense of four fords to the south of Riverrun, and Karyl Vance commanded the defense of fords to the north, while Edmure Tully commanded the defense of the fords closest to Riverrun itself. The fiercest assault came at Stone Mill in the center, where the forces commanded by Ser Gregor Clegane himself managed to gain a foothold on the west bank of the river despite suffering terrible losses, but were then driven back when Edmure hit them with his reserves.
-The battle was fought over an extremely wide front, encompassing fords to the south and north of Riverrun, and featured the entire main Lannister army attempting to cross the river. Edmure's forces were fewer in number but held the strategic high ground on each side of the fords, and were able to subject the Lannister forces to withering arrow fire as they attempted to cross. Ser [[Jason Mallister]] commanded the defense of four fords to the south of Riverrun, and Karyl Vance commanded the defense of fords to the north, while Edmure Tully commanded the defense of the fords closest to Riverrun itself. The fiercest assault came at Stone Mill in the center, where the forces commanded by Ser Gregor Clegane himself managed to gain a foothold on the west bank of the river despite suffering terrible losses, but were then driven back when Edmure hit them with his reserves.
-The entire campaign was led by Tywin, whilst Gregor Clegane personally commanded the main thrust at Stone Mill. Whilst the battle was raging, Tywin received word that Stannis Baratheon was about to attack King's Landing. He withdrew from the engagement, turned his army south and marched to the headwaters of the [[Blackwater Rush]]. They built barges and skiffs and were able to rapidly head downriver, meeting the army of [[House Tyrell]] along the way. This allowed the combined Lannister and Tyrell armies to then attack Stannis's flank at the Battle of the Blackwater, routing him.
+The entire campaign was led by Tywin, while Gregor Clegane personally commanded the main thrust at Stone Mill. While the battle was raging, Tywin received word that Stannis Baratheon was about to attack King's Landing. He withdrew from the engagement, turned his army south and marched to the headwaters of the [[Blackwater Rush]]. They built barges and skiffs and were able to rapidly head downriver, meeting the army of [[House Tyrell]] along the way. This allowed the combined Lannister and Tyrell armies to then attack Stannis's flank at the Battle of the Blackwater, routing him.
-Robb later chastises Edmure for his blunder, saying that the northmen had identified a valley in the western mountains where they planned to lure Tywin Lannister into a trap and destroy his main army. By preventing his crossing, Edmure won a strategically meaningless short-term victory at the cost of a possible long-term victory for the entire campaign. Edmure angrily pointed out that the blunder was due to Robb not trusting him with his plans.
+Robb later chastises Edmure for his blunder, saying that the Northmen had identified a valley in the western mountains where they planned to lure Tywin Lannister into a trap and destroy his main army, as well as keeping Tywin from aiding King's Landing's defense and thus allowing the Northmen to try and negotiate a peace with Stannis after he took the capital. By preventing his crossing, Edmure won a strategically meaningless short-term victory at the cost of a possible long-term victory for the entire campaign. Edmure angrily pointed out that the blunder was due to Robb not trusting him with his plans.
+In the TV series the battle is somewhat smaller in scale and focused specifically around Stone Mill, which is where the main thrust occurred in the novels.
-In the TV series the timing and nature of the battle is changed. The entire battle now takes place at the Stone Mill and seems to be much smaller in scale, with Gregor's forces consisting almost solely of the garrison Tywin left him at Harrenhal. Rather than being forced to retreat eastwards to King's Landing, Gregor's forces were instead forced to retreat westwards to Casterly Rock. The overall strategic significance of the battle was also downplayed: in the TV series it only meant that the Mountain would survive to cause further problems later on.
-One minor change is about Martyn and Willem Lannister: none of them was taken captive at the Battle of Stone Mill, and not by the Tullys. Willem and his cousin Tion Frey were captured by the Starks at the [[Battle of the Whispering Wood]], while Martyn was captured at the [[Battle of Oxcross]].
+One minor change is about Martyn and Willem Lannister: neither of them was taken captive at the Battle of Stone Mill, and not by the Tullys. Willem and his cousin Tion Frey were captured by the Starks at the [[Battle of the Whispering Wood]], while Martyn was captured at the [[Battle of Oxcross]].
 ==See also==
+*{{AWOIAF|Battle of the Fords}}
-*[http://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Battle_of_the_Fords Battle of the Fords at A Wiki of Ice and Fire]
 ==References==
-{{Reflist}}
+{{Reflist|2}}
+{{WarOfTheFiveKings}}
 [[Category:War of the Five Kings|Stone Mill]]
 [[Category:Battles|Stone Mill]]

Wiki of Westeros