Stilgar
Naib of Sietch Tabr
Stilgar was the Fremen Naib of Sietch Tabr and Siridar-Governor of Arrakis, the close friend and chief advisor of Emperor Paul Muad'Dib, and the guardian who raised the Atreides twins Leto II and Ghanima.
Stilgar was a Fremen Naib of Sietch Tabr and the Siridar-Governor of Arrakis from 10196 AG onwards. A close friend and chief advisor to Emperor Paul Muad'Dib Atreides, he was responsible for the education and upbringing of Paul's children, Ghanima and Leto II. Brother of the planetologist Liet-Kynes and uncle of Chani, he was widely regarded as the voice of his people.
Early life#
Stilgar was born on Arrakis and became Naib of Sietch Tabr after calling out the Naib who preceded him. He took two wives across his life, Tharthar and later Harah.
The Desert War#
Upon the change of the Arrakis fief in 10191 AG from House Harkonnen to House Atreides, Stilgar was befriended by the Atreides Swordmaster Duncan Idaho, sent ahead by Duke Leto Atreides to study the Fremen. Idaho judged Stilgar a fine example of his people, and grew so impressed with the Fremen and their ways that he accepted dual loyalties to the Atreides and to Stilgar.
After House Harkonnen attacked Arrakis and House Atreides went renegade, the surviving Atreides, the heir Paul and his mother Jessica, sought refuge with Stilgar's tribe. The Fremen spared them after an attempt to take their water ended with the offworlders besting them. Stilgar soon became a good friend of Paul's, though as Paul's prescient powers developed Stilgar increasingly became a religious follower. He fought through the Arrakis Revolt to its climax at the Battle of Arrakeen in 10193 AG.
Governor and commander#
Paul became Emperor in 10196 AG and granted Stilgar the stewardship of Arrakis that same year, making him also a commander in Paul's loose Jihad. In 10208 AG, at the end of the Jihad, Stilgar helped settle the Tupile Treaty and the matter of the Ixian Confederacy. When Paul walked blind into the desert in 10207 AG, Stilgar executed the Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam, Korba the Panegyrist, and the Guild Steersman Edric, disobeying Paul's prior orders against such killings.
The regency and the twins#
In 10219 AG, during the regency of Alia, who had become possessed by the ego-memory of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, Stilgar declared Sietch Tabr neutral in the war between Alia and the allies of Jessica and her grandchildren. When the Duncan Idaho ghola, Alia's husband, killed Javid in violation of sanctuary, Stilgar killed the ghola in turn and was thereby forced against the Regent. He became instrumental in allying the Fremen tribes with Jessica's faction. He privately recalled having once considered slaying the sleeping Leto II, noting after the boy's ascension that it was now too late.
Legacy#
Stilgar lived a long and prestigious life, owed in no small part to his spice-rich Fremen diet. His descendants flourished into the reign of Leto II the God Emperor and likely beyond. He wrote a preface for the work "Muad'Dib, The Man" attributed to the Princess Irulan, and long after his death his seed cells were among those stored in the nullentropy tubes of the Tleilaxu Masters. He was described as a thin man with darkly veined hands, a thin nose, a full-lipped mouth and a glistening black beard, his eyes stained the deep blue of the spice. Above all, he always placed Fremen interests before his own, a quality his friend and Emperor admired.
Frequently asked questions
- Who is Stilgar in Dune?
- Stilgar was a Fremen Naib of Sietch Tabr and the Siridar-Governor of Arrakis from 10196 AG onwards. He was a close friend and chief advisor to Emperor Paul Muad'Dib Atreides and was responsible for the upbringing of Paul's children, Ghanima and Leto II.
- How did Stilgar become Naib of Sietch Tabr?
- Stilgar was born on Arrakis and became Naib of Sietch Tabr after calling out the Naib who preceded him. He took two wives across his life, Tharthar and later Harah.
- How did Stilgar meet Paul Atreides?
- After House Harkonnen attacked Arrakis and House Atreides went renegade, Paul and his mother Jessica sought refuge with Stilgar's tribe. The Fremen spared them after an attempt to take their water ended with the offworlders besting them, and Stilgar soon became a good friend of Paul's before becoming a religious follower as Paul's prescient powers developed.
- How was Stilgar related to Liet-Kynes and Chani?
- Stilgar was the brother of the planetologist Liet-Kynes and the uncle of Chani. He was widely regarded as the voice of his people.
- What did Stilgar do during Alia's regency?
- In 10219 AG, during the regency of the possessed Alia, Stilgar declared Sietch Tabr neutral in the war between Alia and the allies of Jessica and her grandchildren. After the Duncan Idaho ghola killed Javid in violation of sanctuary, Stilgar killed the ghola in turn, was forced against the Regent, and became instrumental in allying the Fremen tribes with Jessica's faction.
Gallery
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Sources
- WikiStilgar — Dune Wiki entry
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