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“ | Do you think the path from poverty to wealth is always pure and honorable? I have done many things, Khaleesi, that a righteous man would condemn. And here I am, with no regrets. | „ |
~ Xaro Xhoan Daxos to Daenerys Targaryen. |
“ | I no longer lust for dragons. I saw their work at Astapor. | „ |
~ Xaro to Daenerys, after witnessing the aftermath of various brutal battles at Astapor, the first one having been caused by Daenerys and her dragons. |
Xaro Xhoan Daxos is a supporting antagonist in the A Song of Ice and Fire novel series and its television adaptation, Game of Thrones. He is a member of the Thirteen, being a wealthy merchant prince from the great city-state of Qarth. The Thirteen are one of the upper classes of the city, which constantly contend with the Pureborn (the current rulers of Qarth), the Ancient Guild of Spicers, and the Tourmaline Brotherhood for control of the city.
In the television series, he conspires with the warlock Pyat Pree and Daenerys' handmaiden Doreah to use Daenerys' dragons to become "King of Qarth".
In the novels, Xaro is not part of any conspiracy and has no involvement with the House of the Undying's own schemes. In fact, after Daenerys escapes from the House of the Undying, it is Xaro who keeps her protected in his huge mansion, until he has to tell her she must leave due to the angered Pureborn wanting her dead for causing trouble in the city.
Currently, Xaro is still alive in the novels and serves as Qarth's envoy and representative when he is sent to Meereen to treat with Daenerys. Xaro and Daenerys' friendship and alliance abruptly end during A Dance With Dragons. On behalf of Qarth, Xaro leaves a declaration of war against Meereen because Daenerys refuses to leave Slaver's Bay for Westeros, much to his annoyance. Qarth is a member nation of the Slaver Alliance, which is led by the city-state of Yunkai. A Qartheen fleet joins with the Yunkish army and navy during the Second Siege of Meereen. The Qartheen fleet is currently opposed by the Iron Fleet, led by Lord Captain Victarion Greyjoy.
In the television series, he is portrayed by Nonso Anozie, with his literary role divided between show Xaro and the Spice King, a TV character with book Xaro's personality.
Biography[]
Game of Thrones[]
Xaro and the Thirteen meet Daenerys Targaryen at the gates of Qarth, weeks after the Thirteen met with Daenerys' bloodrider, Kovarro. They demand to see her dragons, and when she refuses, they deny her admission to the city. Xaro invokes the ancient custom of Sumai to allow her and her people to be admitted under his protection.
Xaro welcomes Daenerys to the city and makes her a guest in his expansive mansion. He makes repeated references to the fact that he came to Qarth with nothing, but by skill and determination, he has made himself the richest man in the city.
Xaro hosts a lavish reception for Daenerys in his gardens to introduce her to Qarth's social elites and showers her with gifts. Later that night, he shows her his massive treasure vault, which is impossible to open without the key he always wears around his neck. Inside is his enormous fortune, which he promises to divide with her if she will marry him.
Xaro informs Daenerys that news has reached Qarth that King Robert Baratheon is dead and that the subsequent outbreak of the War of the Five Kings is tearing Westeros apart. Daenerys learns that the major noble Houses that played an active role in deposing House Targaryen are now fighting each other: Robb Stark is fighting the Lannisters, and the Baratheons have been split between Robert's two younger brothers, Stannis and Renly.
Daenerys is at first excited by this news, as she has lived in fear of Robert Baratheon her entire life. More importantly, the outbreak of the War of the Five Kings means that House Targaryen's enemies are now divided. She seriously considers Xaro's offer of a marriage alliance, as he can provide her with enough money to raise an army to invade Westeros.
Her advisor, Ser Jorah Mormont, is more hesitant, however, stressing that men like Xaro only want something in return. Daenerys acknowledges that Xaro has openly admitted that he hopes to become even wealthier if Daenerys reconquers Westeros as his wife, but Jorah points out that this won't simply be rewarding Xaro: the lords of the Seven Kingdoms will say that it was Xaro's conquest, achieved with resources he provided, and Daenerys will become little more than a figurehead.
Initially eager to take the quickest path back to Westeros, Daenerys eventually relents to Jorah's advice and decides to decline Xaro's offer for the moment. Instead, she tries to secure support for her return to Westeros from his colleagues in the Thirteen, but without success. While they are meeting with the Spice King, her dragons are stolen from Xaro's home. One of Daenerys' maids, Irri, is dead, while the other, Doreah, is missing and presumed dead.
Xaro uses the theft as a premise to hold a council of the Thirteen in his home. He then stages a coup with the assistance of the warlock Pyat Pree and declares himself King of Qarth. The warlock uses his magic to kill the rest of the Thirteen. They reveal that they stole the dragons and have taken them to the House of the Undying. Daenerys flees in terror.
Daenerys later escapes from the House of the Undying after killing Pyat Pree and retrieving her dragons, and with her men, she invades Xaro's house, where she finds Xaro in bed with Doreah, revealing that she had in fact betrayed Daenerys and her dragons to Xaro and Pyat Pree. Using the circular key pendant, the treasure vault is opened and found to be empty, his enormous wealth a clinging on to his power and seat. Xaro and Doreah plead for their lives, with Xaro promising to get her ships to invade Westeros, but to no avail. Xaro and Doreah are locked inside the empty vault to presumably starve to death, and Daenerys and her people ransack Xaro's house of all its gold and precious items, which Jorah says will be enough to buy a small ship.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- In the television series, Xaro has a different ethnicity, being a black-skinned man from the Summer Isles who lives in Qarth. In this version, Xaro managed to build his name and reputation through deceit. He claims to be the richest man in Qarth, but it is a lie, and by the time he meets Daenerys Targaryen, his vault is empty for some reason, although he does own a huge mansion and lots of valuable items.
- In the novels, Xaro is a native Qartheen; thus, his ethnicity is Qaathi. He lives in an enormous palace, is extremely wealthy, and really possesses a lot of money and valuables. The people of Qarth are known by the Dothraki as Milk Men (Qaathi), due to their extremely pale skin complexion. The Qaathi are the whitest people in the world and originate from the southeastern region of the grasslands of central Essos. Even the Myrish Daario Naharis states, "Qartheen have milk in their veins." This ethnicity might have had their own kingdom or empire once and came into conflict with the Sarnori from northern Essos, often losing against them. Due to these wars, the Qaathi founded new city-states farther south of the continent, among them Qarth on the coast of the Summer Sea. However, these lands would start to turn into deserts, now the Red Waste. After the Doom of Valyria, the Qaathi faced more downfall, thanks to the Dothraki venturing into the desert during the Century of Blood, destroying all remaining Qaathi city-states except Qarth, which is protected by its triple walls. Qarth rules territories containing other active Qaathi towns and lands, including Port Yhos and Qarkash, both Qartheen settlements. Several ruins of Qaathi cities in the Red Waste have Dothraki names, such as Vaes Orvik, Vaes Qosar, Vaes Shirosi, and possibly Vaes Tolorro.
- In the novels, Xaro is extremely elegant and, like all Qartheen people, extremely well-mannered, to the point of weeping when having to be rude or disappointing others. He is heavily implied to be homosexual, favoring feminine boys. Daenerys notices that Xaro seems to force himself when he tries to act seductive and behave like he is attracted to her. Two times, Daenerys rejected his offer to marry him, and Xaro appears to be having feelings of relief. Daenerys notices how Xaro's company of slaves and attendants is all male teenagers and young adult boys, all androgynous and feminine-looking.
- His ability to cry at will is a common skill of the Qartheen people, presumably a genetic skill of the Qaathi.
- Unlike in the novel series, in the TV show Qarth's storyline is pretty much one-note, almost entirely left in Season 2, except for a brief confrontation against a female child warlock in Season 3. Xaro, Pyat Pree, and the sorceress of Asshai Quaithe no longer serve any role after the second season, and both Xaro and Pree died in the same season, serving no posthumous involvement in the rest of the story. No other warlocks are featured in the show, and the inhuman and demonic-looking Undying Ones, who rule the House of the Undying, are never featured.
- In A Song of Ice and Fire, Qarth and its characters still serve a role in the story, and Qarth declared war against Meereen as part of the nations of the Slaver Alliance to get rid of Daenerys.
- Xaro appears in A Dance with Dragons, criticizing Daenerys' chaotic work in Slaver's Bay and leaving Qarth's declaration of war to her.
- Pyat Pree also continued to chase Daenerys, leading a group of warlocks to avenge the House of the Undying (which got damaged and partially destroyed by Drogon, who also killed the Undying Ones in the novels). The ships with Pree's team were captured by the Silence, and the warlocks became terrorized prisoners of Euron Greyjoy, who forced them to teach him their dark sorcery, leaving Pree's current status unknown. Aeron Greyjoy sees one surviving warlock, who does not speak the Common Tongue, being held by Euron's foreign mutes, muttering "Pree" to himself, and Aeron assumes Pree is some demon he worships. The same warlock is seen again being tormented and bullied by the ironborn, who taunt him as they prepare to sacrifice him to the Drowned God.
- Quaithe continues to serve as Daenerys' enigmatic ally from Qarth, communicating with her through dreams, warning her about the pale mare (an epidemic of bloody flux known in the real world as dysentery) and about the fact she will have to deal with the Kraken (Victarion Greyjoy), dark flame (red priest Moqorro), lion (Tyrion Lannister), griffin (Jon Connington), the sun's son (Quentyn Martell), and the mummer's dragon (Aegon VI Targaryen; believed by some readers to be an imposter). She warned Dany not to trust any of them and to remember the Undying Ones and the visions of their House, and finally told her to "beware the perfumed seneschal" (either Reznak mo Reznak, Varys, or somebody else). Quaithe claims that her reason to help Daenerys is to "show her the way".
External Links[]
- Xaro Xhoan Daxos on the A Wiki of Ice and Fire.
- Xaro Xhoan Daxos on the Game of Thrones Wiki.