Game Of Thrones Wiki Guide

Children of the Forest

The Children of the Forest are an ancient race of humanoids who inhabited Westeros thousands of years before the arrival of the First Men. 

The Children are also known as the "woh dak nag gram" (little squirrel people) to the giants, who themselves predate the arrival of humans in Westeros. In their own language, the True Tongue, the Children refer to themselves as "those who sing the song of the earth."

History[edit]

Early History[edit]

Very little is known about the Children before the arrival of the First Men, which took place approximately 12,000 years before the events of the first season. In the books, the character Leaf claims that her people had lived in Westeros for over a "thousand thousand" years before humans ever set foot in Westeros.

During an era known as the Dawn Age, the First Men traveled from Essos using a land bridge known as the Arm of Dorne. As they settled in the new continent, they cut down weirwood trees for firewood. 

To the Children, the weirwoods were sacred, and this action led to a protracted and bloody war between the two races. 

War With The First Men[edit]

The Children and the First Men warred for over 2,000 years. During the conflict, the Children used powerful magic to sink the Arm of Dorne into the sea, and flood the Neck with powerful torrents of water (a region that remains a swampy bog to this day), in an effort to stop the advance of humans. 

Despite their magic though, the First Men were better equipped for warfare, and had the technological advantage due to their bronze weapons, horses, and armor.

The Pact[edit]

Eventually, the two sides reached a peace agreement called the Pact. The Children agreed to keep to the deep woods, and in return, the First Men pledged to never cut down a weirwood tree anywhere in Westeros again.

This peace lasted for over four thousand years, an era now known as the Age of Heroes. In time, the First Men even took up the Children's religion, a practice still followed by those who follow the Old Gods of Westeros today.

The Long Night[edit]

According to ancient texts, at some point during this four thousand year period, the White Walkers emerged from the north and began slaughtering everything in their path.

The First Men were unable to halt the invasion, until a mysterious figure remembered only as the "last hero" reached out to the Children, and learned that dragonglass could be used to kill White Walkers.

The Children then joined with the First Men in the conflict, culminating in the defeat of the White Walkers in a battle known as the Battle of the Dawn.

Following this conflict, the Children helped in the construction of the Wall, weaving powerful magic into the ice itself. Each year, the Children would gift the Night's Watch brothers manning the Wall with a hundred obsidian daggers.

In the centuries that followed however, the Children began to retreat deeper into their forests, while the First Men contended with an invasion by another race of humans known as the Andals, who did not respect the terms of the Pact.

By the time Aegon Targaryen arrived in Westeros to unite the Seven Kingdoms, the Children had not been seen by humans for thousands of years. 

In current times, the Children are considered by most in Westeros to be imaginary monsters, in the same vein as snarks and grumpkins.

Recent Events[edit]

The Children reemerged in Season 4, when Bran Stark, Jojen, Meera, and Hodor arrived at the cave of the Three-eyed raven. A Child named Leaf saved the group from wights, using some kind of fire magic. Leaf and many more Children live in this cave, magically protected from the White Walkers.

In Season 6, we learn that the Children are in fact the ones who created the White Walkers to begin with, intending to use them as weapons in their war against the First Men.

Why the White Walkers are not mentioned in the histories of the war between the Children and the First Men is currently unknown. 

Many Children are killed when Bran unintentionally breaks the magic protecting the Three-eyed raven's cave from the White Walkers. Leaf herself dies giving Bran and Meera time to escape from a horde of wights.

Appearance[edit]

The Children are somewhat human in appearance, but do not grow much taller than human children (hence the name given to them by the First Men). They have large eyes, and green tinted skin that seems to have an almost bark-like texture.

In the books, the Children are described as having dappled nut-brown skin, large ears, cat-like eyes, and four-fingered hands.

Culture and Magic[edit]

The Children abstain from typical human technologies. They do not build cities, weave cloth, or craft tools or weapons from metal.

Instead, the Children live in more natural settlements built into caves and trees. They wear clothing crafted from bark and woven leaves, use stone tools, and wield knives and bows made from dragonglass.

They worshipped gods of nature, a practice that the First Men eventually adopted, and consider the weirwood tree to be sacred. In current times, the gods of the Children are known as the Old Gods, and are worshipped primarily by northmen.

The Children are also especially knowledgeable of ancient magics. They had the gifts of warging and greensight (abilities believed to have been passed down to the First Men), and the power to control elements of nature itself, such as when they flooded the Neck. Some even believe that their greensight was so powerful, that they could even communicate with the dead.
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