Dune is a beloved sci-fi epic involving space travel, giant sandworms, and
high-stakes games of politics on a galactic scale.
At the center of this is one legendary family: House Atreides. We're here to break down this
storied clan, from their mythical origins to their strange, star-strewn legacy.
It is said that the Atreides clan can trace their lineage back to the mythical King
Agamemnon. A major player in the Trojan War who appears in the Odyssey and the Iliad,
Agamemnon was the son of King Atreus, from which "Atreides" is derived.
This connection to legendary kings, queens, and heroes is apparent in the way the Atreides family
carries themselves. Agamemnon led the Greek armies against Troy, and the Atreides of "Dune"
are similarly warlike. While they seem, at first glance, to maintain a balance with nature and a
healthy fear of industrialization on the planets they control, make no mistake: Their armies are
still feared as fierce and accomplished fighters. They fight often enough to have created their own
battle language, a series of hand signals to be used in conflict. Just as their ancestor
commanded legendary forces in the ancient world, so too do they among the stars.
By the time readers meet the Atreides family of Dune,
they are far away from Greece. House Atreides oversees Caladan,
a lush planet covered in forests and seas that is part of the Galactic Padishah Empire.
They are fair rulers who take conservatorship of their planet very seriously. The people of
Caladan are largely satisfied and well-cared for on their planet, living in harmony with nature.
The Atreides family is forced to leave their homeworld behind, however,
when the Emperor commands them to take control of the desert planet, Arrakis, also known as Dune.
This hostile planet is a desert world where water is punishingly scarce. Humans, religious refugees
known as Fremen, have lived on the planet for centuries. They have adapted to the planet's
harsh surface by living underground and building a society geared towards the conservation of water.
"And when we have enough, we shall change the face of Arrakis."
The Padishah Empire's interest in Dune is piqued by the discovery of a critical resource:
The planet is the only known source of the spice melange, a fragrant commodity found
under the sand, that gives people who ingest it mild prescience. The "spice," as it is known,
is a crucial component of religious ceremonies and light-speed navigation,
and its highly addictive nature leaves the Empire with no choice but to take control of the planet.
Prior to the Atreides' arrival, the planet was ruled by the Harkonnens.
Long-time rivals of the Atreides, the Harkonnens are ruthless and greedy, their homeworld
having been turned into a smog-choked hell in service of increasing profits.
The Harkonnens launch a plot with the Emperor to take down the Atreides,
who are wildly popular leaders that the galactic ruler sees as a threat to his own throne.
The Harkonnens' time on Arrakis allows them to set traps for the incoming family. Ideally,
in the Emperor's mind, this will make the defeat of the Atreides look like inter-house
rivalry. He loans his incredibly gifted force of soldiers and disguises them in Harkonnen uniforms.
Sympathetic people within the conspiracy warn the Atreides family of the trap laid for them.
Duke Leto Atreides and many of his men are killed in the attack,
but his son Paul and Paul's mother, Jessica, are able to escape.
Both Paul and Jessica have been trained in the ways of the Bene Gesserit,
and use their powers of observation and coercion to survive the desert.
Paul is eventually taken in by a band of Fremen. They are initially wary of Paul and Jessica,
but their gifts of prescience, courtesy of the spice, and Paul's unique abilities
collide with prophecies seeded among the Fremen by Bene Gesserit missionaries.
Paul's goals to take back the planet coincide with the Fremen's belief that they will someday rise up
and take back control of their home. As Paul and Jessica learn to survive in the desert, word of
Paul's god-like powers spread among the Fremen, and a plot is hatched to cast out imperial forces.
Jessica's arrival among the Fremen is particularly well timed. She has been trained in the ways
of the Bene Gesserit, an order of women who secretly pull the strings of galactic power.
Their leaders are known as Reverend Mothers, and the Fremen's own Reverend is nearing the end of
her life. The Fremen believe Jessica would make a suitable replacement, but to become a Reverend
Mother, one must drink the Water of Life, a poison derived from the sandworms who live on Dune.
High-level Bene Gesserit members have such intense control of their bodies that they
can isolate the poison inside themselves and render it harmless. If they fail,
they die. If survived, however, the Water of Life opens up a mental pathway,
connecting the survivor to the memories of all the Reverend Mothers who came before her.
Jessica is pregnant when she undergoes the Water of Life ceremony. As a result,
her unborn daughter Alia absorbs this knowledge alongside her mother.
The Bene Gesserit know that people born with this knowledge already awakened before
they can form personalities of their own are uniquely unstable. They view these children as
deeply cursed abominations. Jessica and Paul refuse to cast her out,
and Alia becomes an incredibly important figure in the years following her older brother's crusade.
Having been shaped by their uniquely dangerous landscape, the Fremen are some of the fiercest
fighters in the galaxy. Paul sees in them a resource that can be used to take on the
Emperor's universally feared soldiers. He trains the Fremen in Atreides battle techniques and the
body control of the Bene Gesserit, creating a desert-wide army of super-soldiers. Together,
they prepare for an attack on the planet's imperial capital, Arrakeen.
During his time outside of the Empire's reach, Paul also realizes the unique power the controller
of Dune wields: They are the controller of spice production, the most coveted resource
in the universe, necessary for travel between planets, and highly addictive to boot. Whoever
controls the spice controls the entire universe. Thus, Paul uses a dual strategy of direct attack
and threat to the production of spice to bring down the Galactic Empire.
"We must totally destroy all spice production on Arrakis."
Paul sets up his soldiers in the desert outside Arrakeen, using a storm as cover. When the storm
lifts, they launch a brutal assault on the capital. To keep imperial reinforcements off
the planet, Paul threatens to destroy the spice, something all space navigators require to do their
jobs — and keep on living, as withdrawal can be fatal. The Emperor concedes control to Paul,
and he launches a cosmic Jihad to bring all known worlds under his rule.
After Paul becomes the Emperor, the gospel of Paul Atreides begins to grow. The capital
of Arrakeen becomes a holy city, with churches and cults based around Paul and his sister Alia.
But though the Empire continues to expand,
rot sets in back home. Fremen veterans become disillusioned with Emperor Atreides' cause.
Terraforming has begun on Dune to make it a more habitable planet,
and the old ways of water conservation are slipping. Powerful forces that had been
embarrassed by Paul's sudden rise exploit this discontent and hatch a plot against the Emperor.
Emperor Atreides is blinded by a nuclear attack on Arrakis, but retains his ability to see
via his incredible gifts of prescience. The Emperor's blindness further rankles his Fremen
followers, however, who expect people who have been blinded to walk into the desert to die,
rather than burden their tribe.
After fathering two children with Chani,
Paul appears to sacrifice himself in the traditional fashion,
solidifying his status as a god-like figure among his subjects and Fremen followers alike.
Paul's sister Alia takes on the duties of running the Atreides Empire,
expecting to serve as regent until Paul's children grow to adulthood. Alia pulls power to herself
rather than turn the throne over, creating her own cult and surrounding herself with die-hards.
Eventually, however, her own strange birth catches up with her. Her unstable personality succumbs to
one of the countless other selves in her memory, and she begins to be possessed by Atreides enemy
Vladimir Harkonnen. When a mystical preacher from the desert appears, believed to be her brother,
the Harkonnen-Alia fears her rule will be overturned and orders his death.
Leto II, who has been living among the Fremen, returns from his self-imposed exile
and orders Alia to stand trial for crimes against the Atreides Empire.
She breaks free of Harkonnen's hold long enough to end her own life. In the aftermath, Leto II
forces the development of humanity across his Empire to suit this goal. He reigns for 3,500
years before realizing that he ultimately must die for the next stage of humanity to develop.
Leto II sets about preparing for his death. He carries on the Atreides bloodline via distant
relatives, despite the fact that many of them have no idea they're part of the legendary house.
He reverses the complete terraforming of Dune, returning it to the harsh desert it once was.
Finally, he allows himself to die in an ambush, thereby ending the Atreides Empire.
In the chaotic period following the death of Leto II, his Empire fractures and splits
into millions of independent worlds in what becomes known as "The Scattering,"
forcing the further evolution of humanity, according to Leto II's plan. The planets
that survive indeed flourish on their own unique terms, and the galaxy continues, into infinity.
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