Gowron
 Chancellor Gowron | |
| Species | Klingon |
|---|---|
| Home planet | Qo'noS |
| Affiliation | Klingon Empire |
| Position | Chancellor |
| Portrayed by | Robert O'Reilly |
Gowron (full name: Gowron, son of M'Rel) is a fictional character in the Star Trek universe. Portrayed by Robert O'Reilly and featured in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. His defining characteristics are his large eyes, cruel grin, and voice.
The Next Generation
Gowron (Klingon - ghawran) first appears in the episode "Reunion" as one of two possible successors to the role of Chancellor of the Klingon High Council (the other candidate is Duras, a longtime rival of Gowron). K'mpec, the incumbent Chancellor, suspects that either Duras or Gowron had been poisoning him, and appoints Captain Jean-Luc Picard as "Arbiter of Succession" to determine who will be the next Chancellor. Before the arbitration process can be resolved, however, Worf's one-time mate, K'Ehleyr, discovers the evidence that implicates Ja'rod (the father of Duras) in the Romulan attack on the Klingon outpost Khitomer, and to prevent her from disclosing it, Duras murders her. Claiming right of vengeance, Worf challenges Duras to a duel and kills him, resulting in Gowron's ascension to the Chancellorship.
Gowron reappears in the episode "Redemption", with his position now under threat from the Duras sisters who are driving for Duras' illegitimate son Toral to be appointed Chancellor. It is revealed that the Duras clan has been in league with the Klingons' traditional enemies the Romulans, and their attempt to seize power ends when the Romulans abandon them. Gowron also restores the honor of Worf's house during this episode's events.
Gowron is once more challenged in the episode "Rightful Heir" by the apparently resurrected Kahless the Unforgettable. It is ultimately revealed that this Kahless was in fact a clone, whom Gowron appoints to the symbolic post of Emperor of the Klingon Empire.
Deep Space Nine
Gowron's first appearance in the series is in the episode "The House of Quark". He rules over a dispute of the status of the House of Kozak. Gowron appears prominently in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine in the episode "The Way of the Warrior", when he launches an assault upon the Cardassian Union, claiming that the newly installed civilian Detapa Council is infested with Changlings from the Dominion, a powerful organization from the Gamma Quadrant that is attempting to gain a foothold in the Alpha Quadrant. When the Federation Council condemns his actions, Gowron formally withdraws the Empire from the Khitomer Accords, thus ending the alliance with the Federation.
Despite this, Gowron journeys to the station, hoping to get Worf to argue on behalf of the Klingons. He does not take Worf's refusal well, and reinstates his discommmendation.
Later in the episode, the Defiant is forced to fight several Klingon ships, at a predetermined meeting point in space, to rescue Gul Dukat and the rest of the Detapa Council. The Defiant returns to the station, only to find it surrounded by a fleet of Klingon battleships, led by both General Martok and Gowron himself. Gowron issues Captain Sisko a final ultimatum: turn over Gul Dukat and the Detapa Council, or else. Sisko refuses, warning that DS9 is not quite as helpless as they were led to believe. However, Gowron attacks Deep Space Nine anyway to capture the Detapa Council. A fragile peace is reached by the end of the episode, though Gowron makes it clear that he won't forget the incident.
In the episode "Broken Link", Gowron risks a war with the United Federation of Planets, demanding the disputed Archanis sector. Starfleet comes to the conclusion that Gowron is in fact a Changeling through faulty information leaked to Odo. Sisko, Odo, Worf and O'Brien infiltrate a Klingon ceremony to try to expose him in the follow-up episode "Apocalypse Rising", but Odo realizes that the Changeling is in fact Gowron's top advisor General Martok, who is killed by Gowron's men. In spite of this, Gowron does not change his policies though he agrees to a cease-fire.
In the fifth season two-parter, "In Purgatory's Shadow" and "By Inferno's Light", Gowron restores the broken peace with the Federation in the Khitomer Accords after the Cardassian Union joins the Dominion and the real Martok is rescued from a Dominion prison.
Gowron makes his final appearances in "When It Rains..." and "Tacking Into the Wind", where he assumes direct command of Klingon military forces and launches multiple reckless attacks with minimal success, wanting Martok (who he regards as a rival) to suffer a string of defeats. Martok, although he knows that this is Gowron's intention, tells Worf not to involve himself. Worf disregards Martok's request and confronts Gowron, provoking a duel to the death, killing Gowron. Worf is entitled to assume the leadership of the Empire, but he refuses the Chancellorship in favor of Martok. By coincidence, history repeats itself as it was Worf who had killed Duras to enable Gowron to ascend to the Chancellorship in the first place.
Despite the questionable nature of Gowron's actions towards the end of his life, he does die in honorable combat, as evidenced by Worf's performance of the traditional Klingon death howl (done as a warning to those in Sto-Vo-Kor - the place of the honored dead in Klingon mythology - that a warrior is about to arrive) over the body.
External links
- Gowron at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
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