Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim took fans of the fantasy RPG franchise to Skyrim, the northernmost province of Tamriel. Being the home of the Nords, Skyrim is a viking wonderland full of undead, giants, and dragons. Aside from all that, Skyrim is also in the middle of civil war.
The Stormcloaks, lead by Ulfric Stormcloak, seek to break Skyrim away from the Septim Empire due to the dissatisfaction they have towards the empire. The Dragonborn gets to choose either to side with the Imperial Legion or with the Stormcloaks, and doing so will decide which side wins the civil war. But what exactly do the Stormcloaks desire, and why do they want it? This list will hopefully give some insight on what is typically not known about them.
10 The White-Gold Concordat
Before the events of Skyrim, there was a war raging on in Tamriel known as the Great War. The Great War was the Imperial Legion of the Septim Empire, against the Third Aldmeri Dominion, who are the High Elves of Summerset Isle.
The war essentially tore both sides to pieces with no side necessarily winning over the other. Instead, they signed a ceasefire known as the White-Gold Concordat, which composed of a series of demands the empire had to accept. These demands left many of the provinces of the empire disgruntled, including Skyrim and many of its Nords.
9 Banning of Talos
The banning of the god Talos was one of the demands of the White-Gold Concordat. Talos is one of the Nine Divines, and is the only Divine who was once a Man. Talos was also the founder of the Septim Empire, and a beloved figure for Nords due to his Nordic origins.
The Stormcloaks, heavily comprised of Nords, were particularly outraged by the banning of Talos, as they believed it was a sign of their culture and beliefs being expunged by invaders. This led many Nords to secretly practice their worship of Talos, and further cement a rising interest in a secession for Skyrim.
8 The Markarth Incident
While the Great War was raging on, the native Bretons of The Reach, which is one of Skyrim's region, took control over the area and ruled it. However, when the Great War ended, Nords of The Reach retook the region with the help of Ulfric Stormcloak. Ulfric only helped in agreement that The Reach would allow the worship of Talos, which was initially enacted within the region until the Aldmeri Dominion caught wind of it and demanded the empire to enforce the concordat.
The Reach then turned its back on Ulfric, and imprisoned him and his men to appease the Dominion. During his imprisonment, his men ignited a rebellion against the empire. Eventually Ulfric was released after the death of his father, but this whole event left him extremely bitter towards the empire and its supporters.
7 Death of High King Torygg
Despite being a province under the empire, Skyrim has always had a High King. The High King at the time, was Torygg and was loyal to the empire. Ulfric did not believe Torygg to be fit as a High King and challenged him to a duel. The duel was won by Ulfric when he used his Thu’um on Torygg and killed him. Many supporters of the empire were outraged, and Ulfric fled back to his home in Windhelm and the rebellion escalated.
6 The Name Stormcloak
It is not too difficult to figure out that the Stormcloaks are named after their leader, Ulfric Stormcloak. But the name, Stormcloak, was initially a derogatory term. It was the term used by those who opposed the rebellion, and was used in a mocking way. However, the Stormcloaks rebranded the name as their official title as a sign of respect towards Ulfric, who they believe to be the true High King of Skyrim.
5 Rebellion Nearly Snuffed Out
The civil war was already going on at the start of the game, but it was actually about to end. Along with the Dragonborn, Ulfric Stormcloak was captured by the Imperial Legion and sentenced to be put to death at Helgen. If it were not for the dragon god, Alduin, showing up to intervene the execution, the Stormcloak Rebellion would have quickly collapsed on itself due to the death of their leader.
4 Stormcloak Titles
There are various rankings for Stormcloak soldiers. An unblooded is the lowest rank for initiate soldiers, then there is ice-veins, bone-breaker, snow-hammer, and finally the highest honor is stormblade. If the Dragonborn sides with the Stormcloaks, they can earn these ranks throughout the civil war questline. Ranking up gives you special armors and weapons, and the Dragonborn is also typically addressed by his rank.
3 Stormcloak Holdings
The initial area controlled by the Stormcloaks is the eastern half of Skyrim. They start with holding the region of Eastmarch and the city of Windhelm, which is also the headquarters of the Stormcloaks.
Additionally, they hold the regions of The Rift and the city of Riften, The Pale and the city of Dawnstar, and Winterhold and city of Winterhold. Despite this being their controlled areas, they have encampments in all the regions of Skyrim.
2 Stormcloak Symbol
Like their name, their symbol being that of the head of bear is also related to Ulfric Stormcloak. Aside from being the leader of Stormcloaks, Ulfric is also the Jarl of Windhelm. Being the Jarl is the equivalent to him being the governor of the region, Eastmarch. The symbol of the City of Windhelm as well as the symbol of the Stormcloak family is that of a bear, and the Stormcloak Rebellion uses this symbol as their own.
1 Aldmeri Dominion’s Support of the Stormcloaks
Despite the Aldmeri Dominion and the empire working alongside each other for the time being, there is no love between one another. The Aldmeri Dominion does not openly support the Stormcloaks, but they have been subtly assisting them throughout the civil war. The dominion desires the prolongation of the civil war, because that will keep the empire preoccupied and exacerbated. Before Alduin showed up at Helgen, they were going to assist Ulfric in escaping, and there are entries by dominion agents stating that a prolonged war will be the most beneficial outcome for them. Due to this, the dominion only ever shows up in the war as a measure to stoke the flames.