Skyrim Civil War

"When the sons of Skyrim would spill their own blood."

- Esbern on the prophecy to unfold

The  (called the Stormcloak Rebellion by the Empire and the Great Uprising by the Stormcloaks) is an ongoing civil war in the province of Skyrim. It began when High King Torygg was murdered  by the Jarl of Windhelm, Ulfric Stormcloak who used the power of the Thu'um, who then initiated the Stormcloak Rebellion because if High King Torygg did not exept the challenge, Ulfric Stormcloak would have called a Moot to be arranged to elect a new High King.

The Stormcloaks believe that the Empire betrayed Skyrim by signing the White-Gold Concordat with the Aldmeri Dominion at the end of the Great War. The Concordat binds the Empire to several Thalmor demands, including the outlawing of Talos worship, and the Stormcloaks feel that the Thalmor have far too much influence over the Empire. The Imperial Legion see the Stormcloaks as traitors — partly due to their desire to secede from the Empire and partly because of Ulfric's killing of High King Torygg — and seek to crush the rebellion and prevent it from taking control of Skyrim.

As the war between the Stormcloaks and the Imperial Legion progresses in Skyrim, the Dragonborn can choose a side and end the war.

Stormcloaks
The Stormcloak uprising was founded by Jarl Ulfric of Eastmarch after the Markarth Incident, and aims to forcefully remove the Imperial Legion from Skyrim's territories and turn the province into an independent kingdom. The rebels' stated goals include lifting the ban on Talos worship across Skyrim, expelling or executing all Thalmor Justiciars who have been granted the authority by the Mede Empire to enforce the White-Gold Concordat within the province, and to independently prepare Skyrim for a future war with the Aldmeri Dominion. Besides stemming from a deep discontentment with the ban on Talos worship among much of the Nord population, the main motivation behind the Stormcloak uprising is a belief that Cyrodiil has become a puppet state of the Thalmor in all but name, and no longer has the legitimacy to rule over Skyrim.

Some Nords, notably Jarl Laila Law-Giver of Riften, do not entirely trust or support Ulfric himself but back the Stormcloaks as they share the common goal of independence from the Empire, while other Nords feel the civil war bleeds Skyrim dry and leaves none but the Thalmor as the beneficiaries. Interestingly, the Dragonborn will sometimes encounter Imperial citizens on the road who head for Windhelm to join the Stormcloak uprising, stating that "the Empire is in shambles" and that "Ulfric has the right of it".

The name "Stormcloaks" was invented by the Empire to belittle the cause of the rebellion, implying that they are Ulfric's personal lackeys in his bid for power. However, they since have defiantly taken the name and made it their own, to honor the common cause of Skyrim's independence which they are fighting for.

Their base of operations is the Palace of the Kings in the city of Windhelm, with Galmar Stone-Fist serving as their field commander.

Imperial Legion
The Imperial Legion is the military arm of the Mede Empire, which prior to the Great War with the Aldmeri Dominion ruled over most of Tamriel. The Legion is attempting to quell the rebellion led by Ulfric Stormcloak, with the goal of keeping Skyrim in the Empire and bringing Ulfric to justice for the murder of High King Torygg, the province's last High King.

Several Nord citizens support the Legion as they feel Ulfric's speeches amount to political posturing, and that his true motive is to become Skyrim's next High King. Even Laila Law-Giver, one of Ulfric's Jarls, believes this.

General Tullius is the military governor of Skyrim and the commander of the Legion in the province. He and Jarl Elisif of Haafingar lead the pro-Imperial war effort. In Skyrim, the Legion is headquartered at Castle Dour in the city of Solitude, with Legate Rikke serving as their field commander.

Initial territories
Initially, both the Empire and the Stormcloak Rebellion control four Holds. The Empire controls Falkreath, Haafingar, Hjaalmarch, and the Reach, and the Stormcloaks control Eastmarch, the Pale, the Rift and Winterhold. Balgruuf the Greater, Jarl of the central Whiterun Hold, remains uneasily neutral, but he will eventually side with the Empire once the player joins the war.

Trivia

 * Depending on the order in which they are completed, the Civil War can have an impact on the Main Quest, and vice versa. In the main quest, Season Unending is a meeting between five factions (the Stormcloaks, the Legion, the Blades, the Thalmor and the Greybeards) to negotiate a truce, which temporarily pauses the Civil War.
 * If the Civil War is completed before Season Unending, the peace conference will not be held, and the later quest will not occur.
 * If Season Unending is completed before the Civil War ends, it will change territories under the control of both the Imperials and the Stormcloaks.
 * A bounty may be cleared when the relevant Hold is liberated or reunified during the Civil War.
 * When the Thalmor Dossier on Ulfric Stormcloak is found, it states that if either side wins the Civil War it would negatively affect the Thalmor's goals, meaning they want the races of men divided and fighting amongst themselves.