Patrulha da Noite

A Patrulha da Noite é uma ordem militar dedicada à manutenção da Muralha, a imensa fortificação na fronteira norte dos Sete Reinos, e à defesa dos reinos dos homens daquilo que se encontra além dela. A fundação da ordem remonta à Era dos Heróis, quando os Outros foram forçados de volta ao extremo norte. Os homens da Patrulha da Noite vestem apenas o negro.

História

A Patrulha da Noite é provavelmente a ordem mais antiga dos Sete Reinos, tendo sobrevivido à queda dos reinos dos Primeiros Homens perante a Invasão Ândala e à Guerra da Conquista. Foi fundada há mais de 8 mil anos, após um período conhecido como A Longa Noite. Sob cobertura de uma noite sem fim que durou por uma geração, os Outros invadiram, vindos das Terras de Sempre Inverno, destruindo grande parte de Westeros, até serem derrotados pela Patrulha da Noite da Batalha Pela Alvorada. Após a ameaça ter sido expulsa, a Muralha foi construída por Brandon, o Construtor, o primeiro Stark, para proteger os reinos dos homens no caso de os Outros retornarem. Durante a Era dos Heróis, foi registrado que os filhos da floresta dava à Patrulha 100 adagas de obsidiana todos os anos.

But other than the corrupting of the thirteenth Lord Commander named the "Night's King," attacks by the Others never came. Instead, the most frequent attacks came from the wildlings, sometimes led by their kings, and their constant attempts at raiding in the North. Little by little, the Night's Watch began to forget that its main mission was not the fight against the wildlings, but against the Others. As the years came and went, the purpose of the Watch became less and less obvious, and its manpower decreased more and more, with most of the Seven Kingdoms neglecting the Wall. Only the North, particularly the Starks, have the memory of the old days, but even they believe the Others are no more than vague figures in stories told to frighten children.

At one time the Night's Watch boasted nineteen castles along the hundred leagues of the Wall, with over ten thousand men-at-arms between them. Castle Black alone quartered five thousand fighting men with all their horses, servants, and equipment. The highborn of the North have traditionally considered it an honor to serve on the Wall. Many younger sons of Northern houses, low in the line of succession, gladly took the black. 300 years after Aegon's conquest, only three castles remain in use and the Night's Watch's numbers have dwindled to less than a thousand men. Not only that, but the Night's Watch is now largely made up of the misfits of the Seven Kingdoms: peasants, debtors, poachers, rapers, thieves, and bastards. Only a few of the noble and knightly houses south of The Neck have members in the Night's Watch, and most serve because they fought on the wrong side of a war or fell afoul of political machinations.

Segundo o Grande Meistre Pycelle, a Muralha é um mundo a parte, e as notícias geralmente a alcançam atrasadas.

Organização

Estrutura

A Patrulha da Noite consiste de três ordens: Patrulheiros, Construtores e Intendentes. Todos são sujeitos ao Senhor Comandante, e cada uma das ordens é liderada por seu próprio oficial, escolhidos pelo Comandante e chamados de Primeiro Patrulheiro, Primeiro Construtor e Primeiro Intendente, respectivamente.

• Patrulheiros: Apesar de todos os irmãos da Patrulha patrulharem a Muralha, os patrulheiros são a principal força de combate, aptos a sobreviverem num ambiente selvagem, com a tarefa de explorar e patrulhar a Floresta Assombrada. Estão constante e ativamente defendendo a Muralha e cavalgando para enfrentar os inimigos da Patrulha, incluindo os selvagens sem lei, assim como os misteriosos e não-humanos Outros.

• Construtores: Responsáveis pela manutenção da Muralha, dos castelos e dos equipamentos. Contam com pedreiros, carpinteiros, mineiros e lenhadores.

• Intendentes: A maior das três ordens, responsáveis por um conjunto de funções essenciais, proporcionando serviços do dia-a-dia. Caçam, plantam, cuidam dos cavalos, colhem lenha, cozinham refeições, tecem vestes, mantém os armamentos e conduzem o comércio com o sul, trazendo à Muralha alguns dos suprimentos necessários. Como outros membros da Patrulha, devem estar prontos para lutar em qualquer momento, e todos receeram, no mínimo, treinamento básicom em combate.

Entre os Intendentes, aqueles com habilidades com somas, leitura ou escrita recebem tarefas específicas. Poucos são alfabetizados, mas a Patrulha tem um propósito para cada homem. Intendentes também servem como escudeiros ou assistentes dos altos oficiais da Patrulha, como o Senhor Comandante. Em suma, toda a administração da Patrulha da Noite fica nas mãos dos Intendentes.

Liderança

The Senhor Comandante is the final authority and oversees the entire order. Any man of the Night's Watch can be nominated to be the Lord Commander. A Lord Commander serves in office until the day he dies, when a new Lord Commander is elected by the men of the Watch. It is strongly suggested that the Lord Commander is usually a ranger. This may be gainsaid by a passage in A Guerra dos Tronos, in which Jon Snow is appointed a steward and not, to his disappointment, a ranger, and assigned as the personal steward of the current Lord Commander. His peers take it for granted that this means Snow is being groomed for leadership. A combination of these two theories may indicate a "fast track," where suitable candidates for Lord Commander may be placed to give them experience in each of the three disciplines, regardless of which they are initially placed. Ultimately though, the position of Lord Commander is filled by an election, so no one, even fast-tracked, can be guaranteed it.

The majority of the officers and leadership of the Watch are pulled from the upper crust of Westerosi society. An aristocratic or knighted man is almost guaranteed a position as an officer in the Watch, but there are several powerful and influential brothers that are of common blood as well, such as the senior rangers Qhorin Meia-Mão, Blane, and Cotter Pyke, commander of Eastwatch-by-the-Sea and a bastard-born pirate. The Watch, as a meritocracy, is one of the few places in feudal Westeros where a common man can rise high and even gain command over knights and lords, rising as far as Lord Commander of the Night's Watch.

Recrutamento

Once, serving on the Wall was honor and a sign of selfless devotion to duty, with many cavaleiros, honorable men, and nobles taking the black voluntarily. Today, the Night’s Watch is beginning to be seen as only a way to avoid punishment; suitable less for knights now than for the dregs of Westeros, salvaged from dungeons by traveling recruiters. Disgraced nobles, bastards, and even the unwanted legitimate offspring of nobles are “encouraged” to take the black, making many of today’s Watch a surly and dissatisfied lot.

Those who come voluntarily are free to leave during any time of their training, but no man may leave after he has said vows. Any deserters are sentenced to death. After taking the vows, the men of the Watch cannot own any land, marry, or father children. Men are also encouraged to sever any ties left with their families, if they're lucky enough to have one.

Men of the Night's Watch are garbed all in black, a tradition that earned them the nickname "crows," particularly among the selvagens. While some use this name derogatorily, many in the Night's Watch have adopted the term for their own use. They are also called the black brothers and in song they've been called the black knights of the Wall.

Votos

When the recruits are considered ready to take the black, they say their vows either in a septo or before a árvore-coração. The vows are as follows:

“	Escute as minhas palavras e testemunhem os meus votos. A noite chega, e agora começa minha vigia. Não terminará até a minha morte. Não tomarei esposa, não possuirei terras, não gerarei filhos. Não usarei coroas e não conquistarei glórias. Viverei e morrerei no meu posto. Sou a espada na escuridão. Sou o vigilante nas muralhas. Sou o fogo que arde contra o frio, a luz que trás consigo a alvorada, a trombeta que acorda os que dormem, o escudo que defende os reinos dos homens. Dou minha vida e a minha honra a Patrulha da Noite. Por esta noite, e por todas as noites que estão por vir.	”

É costumeiro que o funeral de um irmão negro seja finalizado com a frase "E agora sua vigília tem fim".

Propriedades

Castelos da Patrulha

The Night's Watch raised nineteen castles to guard the hundred leagues of the Wall, although they have never manned more than seventeen at one time. Today only few of them are maintained by an ever dwindling force. The castles themselves are closer to garrisons, composed mostly of barracks, stables, storehouses, towers and out-buildings, as they have no walls of their own (other than the Wall itself). They were purposefully built this way so the Watch could man only the Wall itself and focus on threats from the north. The Night's Watch feared no attack from the south because of their vow not to take part in the wars of the Seven Kingdoms.

Presently, due to manpower shortages, the Watch only mans the Torre Sombria, Castelo Negro and Atalaialeste do Mar, although there are plans to re-garrison Fortenoite and many of the other castles. The question of who will be responsible for the remanned castles is a point of tension between the Lord Commander Jon Snow and King Stannis. Patrols between the castles used to be more regular, but as the manpower of the Night's Watch diminished, so did the number of patrols. Now the Watch uses mules to ride atop the Muralha, as the paths have not been graveled between the older castles in many years. The mules are bred at Atalaialeste and are specially trained for their duties.

Mais importantes

• Castelo Negro, the largest maintained castle, located at the northern end of Kingsroad held by nearly six hundred brothers at the beginning of A Game of Thrones
• Torre Sombria, most western outpost of the Watch, garrisoned by two hundred men at the beginning of "A Game of Thrones."
• Atalaialeste do Mar, port town of the Night's Watch with the smallest standing garrison.
• Fortenoite, the oldest and largest castle of the Night's Watch. Houses the "The Black Gate," a secret way through the Wall sealed by a magical ancient door fashioned from weirwood, which only opens to a sworn brother of the Night's Watch.
• Lago Profundo, built seven miles east of the Nightfort and meant to replace it. It was paid for by Good Queen Alysanne Targaryen.
• Portão da Rainha, originally called Snowgate, it was renamed after Good Queen Alysanne slept there for one night during her visit to the Wall.

Demais castelos, de leste a oeste

Dádiva e Nova Dádiva

The Dádiva is a tract of land measuring twenty-five leagues southward from the Wall that the Night's Watch received from King Brandon Stark of the North. For years the Watch farmed the Gift, but as their numbers dwindled there were fewer hands to plow the fields, tend the bees and plant the orchards, so the wild reclaimed much of the area. Wishing to restore the Night's Watch and reward its loyal service in defense of the realm, Queen Alysanne, wife of King Jaehaerys, o Conciliador, doubled the extent of the Gift. Towns and villages that were located within the "Nova Dádiva" supported the Night's Watch with their taxes, rendered by goods and labor. In time, the New Gift lost population as people moved south, into the mountains or into the Umber lands east of the Estrada do Rei to avoid wildling raids, further reducing the support structure for the Night's Watch and the Wall.

The nearest point of civilization to Castle Black is Vila Toupeira, a subterranean settlement whose brothel is frequently patronized by brothers of the Night's Watch.

Navios

The Night's Watch employs a small fleet at Atalaialeste. Known Night's Watch ships include the Blackbird, the Storm Crow, and the Talon.

Membros Notáveis

Senhores Comandantes recentes

• Lorde Jeor Mormont, 997º Senhor Comandante, conhecido como o Velho Urso. Towards the end of his tenure, he became increasingly worried as more rangers were lost beyond the Wall, including First Ranger Benjen Stark. Also, there were more reports coming in of wildlings either fleeing south or gathering in large numbers to escape or meet some threat. After an attempt to investigate in force, most of the brothers who went with him were killed at the Batalha do Punho dos Primeiros Homens. Following this staggering loss, he was murdered by his own rangers during a mutiny.
• Lorde Jon Snow, 998º Senhor Comandante.

Ex-Senhores Comandantes

• 'Rei da Noite', 13º Senhor Comandante. Converteu a Patrulha em seu exército pessoal e a liderou em batalha contra o Rei do Norte e Joramun, o Rei-Para-Lá-Da-Muralha.
• Qorgyle, 996º Senhor Comandante. Serviu antes do Velho Urso, e foi um membro da Casa Qorgyle de Dorne. Seu primeiro nome nunca foi revelado.
• Runcel Hightower, tried to make the position of Lord Commander hereditary and pass the position to his son.
• Rodrik Flint, thought to make himself King-beyond-the-Wall.
• Tristan Mudd, Mad Marq Rankenfell and Robin Hill; Three Lords Commander who nearly destroyed the Watch when they forgot their vows in favor of their pride and ambition.
• Osric Stark, a brother or son of a King in the North. He was chosen Lord Commander when he was 10 making him the youngest Lord Commander of the Night's Watch. He served for 60 years
• Brynden Rivers, conhecido como Corvo de Sangue. Foi Mestre dos Sussurros, Mão do Rei e um importante comandante de guerra da Casa Targaryen, apesar de bastardo. Foi enviado para a Muralha em 233 AL por seu sobrinho, o Rei Aegon V.
• Irmão desconhecido de Harren, o Negro. Permaneceu na Muralha enquanto seu irmão queimava em Harrenhal.
• Sleepy Jack, Senhor Comandante quando Raybun Barba Vermelha cruzou a Muralha e atrasou-se para a Batalha do Lago Longo.

Irmãos

• Beardless Dick, patrulheiro.
• Benjen Stark, Primeiro Patrulheiro e irmão mais novo do Lorde Eddard Stark. Perdido além da Muralha e acredita-se que esteja morto.
• Blane, a senior ranger of common blood, scout and second to Qhorin Halfhand. Killed while in command of the Shadow Tower Men during the Battle at the Fist of the First Men.
• Bowen Marsh, Lord Steward of the Night's Watch. Led a successful but costly battle against wildling raiders in the Gorge, west of the Shadow Tower.
• Chett, former steward to Maester Aemon until Samwell Tarly was raised to the post. Sent to the pens to take care of the dogs. Later, he conspired to kill Jeor Mormont, but was slain and turned into a wight.
• Cotter Pyke, Comandante de Atalaialeste do Mar.
• Donal Noye, ferreiro de um braço. Serviu à Casa Baratheon e produziu o martelo de batalha do Rei Robert Baratheon, antes de perder um braço na Rebelião Greyjoy. Morreu ao matar Mag, o Poderoso, Rei dos Gigantes, sob a Muralha na Batalha de Castelo Negro.
• Eddison Tollett, intendente pessoal do Senhor Comandante Snow. Chamado de Edd Doloroso por seu sarcasmo, humor negro e suas reclamações constantes.
• Jarmen Buckwell, a senior ranger. Survived the Battle of the Fist of the First Men and retreated back to Castle Black.
• Ser Denys Mallister, commander at The Shadow Tower.
• Janos Slynt, antigo Comandante da Patrulha da Cidade de Porto Real e antigo Senhor de Harrenhal. Um lacaio político da Casa Lannister, foi exilado na Muralha pela Mão do Rei em exercício, Lorde Tyrion, que queria livrar a capital de corrupção - e a si mesmo do Lorde Slynt. O Lorde Tywin Lannister tentou usar Janos como uma ferramenta política na Patrulha, e quase virou a eleição para o 998º Senhor comandante em seu favor. Após a eleição de jon Snow ao posto, Janos continuou insubordinado, o que levou Jon a executá-lo.
• Meistre Aemon, maester of Castle Black and one of the last Targaryens. Died of old age at sea with Samwell Tarly.
• Sor Mallador Locke, knight and ranger. Killed during the Battle of the Fist of the First Men.
• Othell Yarwyck, first Builder of the Night's Watch.
• Qhorin Meia-Mão, second-in-command at The Shadow Tower and a ranger of much repute. He allowed Jon Snow to kill him so that Snow would be accepted among the wildlings.
• Thoren Smallwood, Primeiro Patrulheiro em exercício, após o desaparecimento de Benjen Stark. Morto por uma criatura durante a Batalha do Punho dos Primeiros Homens.
• Samwell Tarly, son of renowned battle commander Randyll Tarly. Obese and an admitted coward. Sent by Lord Snow to the Citadel for study after the Battle on the Fist of the First Men.
• Sor Jaremy Rykker, a senior ranger and knight. Killed by a wight at Castle Black.
• Sor Waymar Royce, novice ranger and knight, slain by an Other.
• Sor Wynton Stout, an elderly ranger.
• Paul Pequeno, a simple-minded brother. He was part of a conspiracy to kill Jeor Mormont until the Brothers were attacked at the Fist of the First Men. He saves Samwell Tarly, but was slain by an Other and returned as a Wight.
• Stonesnake, ranger from the Torre Sombria. Companion to Meia-Mão and the most accomplished mountain climber in the Watch. Missing and presumed dead after trying to cross the Frostfangs alone and on foot.
• Ulmer, a grey-bearded outlaw, once part of the Kingswood Brotherhood. Skilled with a bow.
• Yoren, senior "wandering crow" or recruiter for the Watch. He attempted to smuggle Arya Stark to the North, but was killed fighting Lannister men who were searching for the outlaw Beric Dondarrion.