House Martell

House Nymeros Martell, usually simply called House Martell, is one of the Great Houses of the Seven Kingdoms and the ruling house of Dorne. "Nymeros" indicates "of the line of Nymeria," referring to the union of the Martells with the Rhoynish warrior queen Nymeria around 700 BC. The head of House Martell, titled Prince of Dorne, rules Dorne from Sunspear in southeastern Dorne.

The Martells of old used a spear as their emblem, while Nymeria and her Rhoynar used the sun as theirs. When Nymeria wed Lord Mors Martell, the symbols were combined into a gold spear piercing a red sun on an orange field. Their words are Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken. In appearance they are what Daeron I Targaryen considered salty Dornishmen, with dark eyes, dark hair in ringlets, and olive skin.

House Martell was founded by Morgan Martell, an Andal adventurer who settled between the mouth of the Greenblood and the Broken Arm. Morgan led the defeat of the local First Men, including Houses Wade and Shell, establishing his rule over a strip of land fifty leagues long and ten leagues wide. They did not rule as kings, but were cautious vassals of kings from Houses Jordayne, Allyrion, and Yronwood, as well as petty kings of the Greenblood.

At the time of the Rhoynish Wars, the Martells were one of the lesser ruling families of Dorne. At the time of the arrival of the Rhoynish warrior queen Nymeria, around 700 BC, the lands of the Martells were dwarfed by those of House Yronwood. Mors Martell, the Lord of the Sandship, saw an opportunity in the arrival of the Rhoynar, and took Nymeria to wife. Combining their strength, the two managed to unite all of Dorne under their rule in Nymeria's War.

The union of their peoples saw the Martells abandon many of their older Andal customs in favor of those of the Rhoynar. Nymeria named Mors Prince of Dorne instead of king, and their lands and title passed down to their eldest child, their daughter, regardless of Nymeria marrying again after Mors's death and giving birth to a male child. The Spear Tower and the Tower of the Sun, the towers of Sunspear's Old Palace, were built in the Rhoynish fashion.

Dorne alone withstood Aegon's conquest and remained independent of Targaryen rule for almost two centuries. In the end, it was the marriage of Mariah Martell to Daeron II Targaryen and her brother Maron Martell's marriage to Daenerys Targaryen in the year 187 AC that led to Dorne bending the knee where all attempts at military conquest had failed. The growing influence of the Dornish in Daeron II's court was a contributing factor in the First Blackfyre Rebellion.

The Second War of Conquest
Prince Doran Martell had secretly been working to restore House Targaryen and take revenge upon House Lannister for the death of his sister Elia and her children. He sent his son Quentyn to Meereen to negotiate an alliance with Daenerys Targaryen while outwardly taking no part in the War of the Five Kings. Lord Jon Connington sent a letter to Doran, stating that his sister Elia's son, Aegon Targaryen, survived the Sack of King's Landing, and has returned to Westeros after all these years to reclaim the Iron Throne. Doran sends Arianne to the Stormlands to meet Aegon and Connington. Arianne was convinced of Aegon's identity and urged her father declare for for him, but Dornish did not move from their defensive posture remained guarding the high passes. It was only after Daenerys Targaryen came to terms with Aegon VI that the Dornish armies joined the war.

The Year of False Banners
Many Dornish houses cotininued to maintain doubt that Aegon VI is truly the son of Elia Martell, who had been believed for many years to have met his end as an infant by the hand of Ser Gregor Clegane. Distrusting of the Targaryens' return and further apprehensive of their dragons, Arianne Martell faces her first test as Princess of Dorne as her bannermen houses call for independence.

Amidst both cries for secession and to swear fealty, another Vulture King rose from the Red Mountains to choose rebellion. Caravans flying the banner of the dragon and that of their loyalists were attacked and looted; riots were incited in protest of Dorne's inaction - one of which saw to the utter destruction of the Water Gardens, for its relevance to peace with the Targaryens.

Arianne Martell had struggled to conceive an heir ever since her marriage, a fact that Maesters attributed to her frequent use of Moon Tea in her earlier life. She was finally expecting a child despite her advancing years when the turmoil erupted. The stress restoring the peace and bringing her vassals into line brought on an early labor which claimed the life of both mother and child.

The Red God Revival
Many worshippers of the Lord of Light flocked to Dorne and Planky Town, its proximity and similarities to the Free Cities of the east making it an ideal new home for many. House Martell welcomed the arrival of many skilled artisans and merchants into their lands and offered no opposition to their religion. More often than not, however, these new arrivals soon adopted the Dornish way of life, creating a peculiar blend of peoples and cultures in the port city of Planky Town.

The Summer Sickness
Dorne was not able to escape the effects of the horrible Summer Sickness. Though the ports and passes were closed at once, the plague had already slipped into the countryside, burning through the lands of the Stony and Sandy Dornish but sparing those who lived near the coasts. Prince Trystane Martell was among the victims of this horrific plague.

The Royal Tour
House Martell hosted a feast at Sunspear in honor of Crown Prince Aenys Targaryen's visit in the year 360AC.

Past Members

 * Doran Martell (247AC - 312AC) Prince of Dorne 279AC - 312AC. Doran was crippled by gout later in life and spent the majority of his time at the Water Gardens, concealing his condition from public view.
 * Arianne Martell (276AC - 315AC) Princess of Dorne 312AC - 315AC.
 * Trystane Martell (287AC - 339AC) Prince of Dorne 315AC - 339AC.
 * Myrcella Baratheon (Waters) (290AC - -)
 * Children of Trystane Martell