The Horrific Night

The Horrific Night, in 139 A.I. was a religious uprising by the peasantry, given the name Zealots, against the established Cafferen nobility of the Garden Coast, with the aims of engulfing the Lordship in religious mayhem and killing all who refused to convert to the Faith of the Seven.

Origins

Religious tensions had been growing in the Garden Coast ever since the Andals, led by the Lord Colemon Cafferen, first settled there in 84 A.I. Dissatisfied with the succession of multiple Cafferen Lords who were not as zealous in the faith as the regular Andal populace was, a new movement began to spring up in the following decades after 84 A.I. Many hundreds of peasants, dozens of clergymen, and even some nobility in the Beachcastle itself joined the secret movement, which only grew more in strength.

With the Rapid Disintegration of the Cafferen Military hampering the Lordship's ability to defend itself, by 139 A.I. the Zealots had deemed that their time had come. With a plan developed by traitors on the noble council of the Lord Theo Cafferen, in the middle of the night uprisings sprung up all over the Garden Coast. The Zealots attacked the Beachcastle and the forts along the Five Fawns Isle in an attempt to burn the Heart Trees which were under the Lord's protection there, though their attacks failed with heavy losses for the Zealots. Ambushes against the Masters of Mellington and Fencefield went slightly better, with the Master of Mellington barely escaping with his life and the Master of Fencefield being killed and burnt for refusing conversion. But it was clear to all, both Zealots and non-Zealots alike, that the horrific Night had been a disaster for their movement and cause. Hundreds upon hundreds of Zealots had been killed, whilst they failed in nearly every objective they had set out to accomplish. It was a rout, and the end goal of a zealous Lordship on the Garden Coast was crushed in an instant. The members of the noble council who'd been secretly supporting the Zealot movement began to work hard to distance themselves from accusation, though after an investigation, Septon Ale had enough evidence of involvement with the group to have him imprisoned. Others, like Ser Arros and Ser Lewyn Cafferen, were able to hide themselves well enough from the movement to avoid the fate of Septon Ale.

With the Zealot movement crushed on the Horrific Night, reforms enacted in the following decades by the Lord Clifford Cafferen made a reoccurrence of such an event unlikely. The fervent Andal peasantry on the Horrific Night had benefited from a lack of control from their Lord and the rest of the nobility. Many hundreds still had the iron and steel swords passed down through the generations from those who had first settled here, but a decree from the Lord Clifford Cafferen stated that all weapons that the peasants currently possessed were to be rounded up and confiscated. That, along with reforms tying the Andal commoners to their lands and making them poorer thus lessened the time they'd have to gather and discuss the next great rebellion.

Aftermath

In short, the Horrific Night saw the Zealots rise up all over the Garden Coast, intending to kill all First Men who didn't convert, and to destroy the Heart Trees which still infested the lands. In almost all things they failed with great loss of life. The defenders fought valiantly to defend those who are not their own, to defend trees they themselves did not worship. No Weirwoods were burnt, only one important figure killed. Hundreds faithful to the Zealot cause died, whilst many less defenders had died. Much property was damaged or destroyed, but to no gain for the Zealots. It was an abject failure, and the cause of the Zealots had taken a major blow. The Zealots were crushed, and the Religious Tensions in the Garden Coast were settled, through blood and steel.