Smuggler
the contraband traders of the Imperium
A smuggler was anyone who sold or transported contraband or controlled substances within the Imperium. Smugglers were common on Arrakis, where they dealt chiefly in the spice melange, and Duke Leto Atreides sought an accommodation with them after taking the fief.
A smuggler was anyone who sold or transported contraband or controlled substances within the Imperium. Smuggling was common during the imperial rule of House Corrino, but became far less practiced under the rule of Leto Atreides II, who used prescience to maintain strict control over the Known Universe.
Smuggling on Arrakis#
Smugglers were common on the planet Arrakis, where they usually dealt in the spice melange as well as other foodstuffs, weapons, and narcotics. During Harkonnen rule on Arrakis, smugglers tended to remain covert for fear of retribution.
When House Atreides took over the Arrakis fief and all spice mining on the planet, Duke Leto Atreides attempted to establish a détente with the smugglers, informing them that he would ignore their operations on the condition that they forwarded him a percentage of their profits. This worked to some degree: some of the smugglers assisted in capturing Harkonnen agents left behind from the previous fief and turned them over to Atreides authorities. Esmar Tuek was a known spice smuggler during the period when House Atreides took over spice mining on Arrakis in 10,191 AG.
Refuge after the fall of House Atreides#
When House Atreides was attacked by House Harkonnen in 10,191 AG, some of Duke Leto's men escaped the onslaught by allying themselves with the smugglers. By remaining on Arrakis among the organised underworld, they hoped one day to exact retribution for the defeat of their Duke. Notable among them was Gurney Halleck, the Atreides Warmaster, together with several men under his direct command. Many years after returning to Caladan, Halleck once more sought out his smuggler friends on Arrakis to obtain information.
Frequently asked questions
- What was a smuggler in the Dune universe?
- A smuggler was anyone who sold or transported contraband or controlled substances within the Imperium. Smuggling was common during the imperial rule of House Corrino, but became far less practiced under the rule of Leto Atreides II, who used his prescience to maintain strict control over the Known Universe.
- How did smugglers operate on Arrakis?
- Smugglers were common on Arrakis, where they usually dealt in the spice melange as well as other foodstuffs, weapons, and narcotics. During Harkonnen rule they tended to remain covert for fear of retribution, but they operated as an organised underworld on the desert planet.
- What was Duke Leto Atreides' arrangement with the smugglers?
- When House Atreides took over the Arrakis fief and all spice mining there, Duke Leto attempted to establish a détente with the smugglers, telling them he would ignore their operations provided they forwarded him a percentage of their profits. This worked to a degree, and some smugglers helped capture Harkonnen agents and turned them over to Atreides authorities.
Sources
- WikiSmuggler — Dune Wiki entry
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Related entries
Melange
Melange, commonly called simply the spice, was a naturally produced awareness spectrum narcotic found only on Arrakis. It was the foundation of commerce, longevity, and interstellar travel across the Imperium, the single resource capable of creating or destroying an empire.
Arrakis
Arrakis, known as Dune and later as Rakis, was a harsh desert world in the Canopus system and the only natural source of the spice melange. Home to the Fremen and the sandworms, it became the seat of the Atreides empire and the center of the known universe.
Caladan
Caladan was a lush oceanic world orbiting Delta Pavonis, the ancestral seat of House Atreides for more than ten thousand years. Birthplace of Duke Leto I and Paul Atreides, it was a planet of rain, orchards, and fisheries before the family was ordered to Arrakis.
Esmar Tuek
Esmar Tuek was a cunning spice smuggler of Arrakis with secret ties to the Fremen, who reached an accommodation with Duke Leto Atreides and was killed by the traitor Wellington Yueh during the fall of House Atreides.
Gurney Halleck
Gurney Halleck was the Warmaster of House Atreides under Duke Leto and later his son Paul, and one of Paul's principal teachers. A warrior, minstrel, and implacable enemy of the Harkonnens, he served the Atreides line from Caladan to the reign of Leto II.
House Atreides
House Atreides was a respected House Major of the Galactic Padishah Empire, ruled by a Duke and seated for twenty generations on the ocean world of Caladan. Through Paul Muad'Dib and his son Leto II, the Atreides line rose to rule the Known Universe before passing into a bloodline scattered across the millennia.
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