The definition of warden is a person responsible for the supervision of a particular place or thing or for ensuring that regulations associated with it are obeyed. Also typically when someone was fostered, they wouldn't return home until they were typically 16(unless they were a prisoner ward like Theon) the whole point was the raise them away from their family to imprint upon them different values, ethics, and to strengthen bonds with other noble families. Great video, I always love y'all stuff
Ned at not have been in the north during some formative years but he still had ravens. I wonder how often Ned wrote home and was able to keep in contact with his father in that way
Thoughts on Rickard not having Southron ambitions but magic ones with Catelyn specifically chosen because probable Blackwood, Lothston, and Strong blood could revitalize Stark warging powers?
If it came from Lyarra I'd believe it, but not from Rickard. The evidence seems to indicate that Walys killed Lyarra then manipulated Rickard in his grief.
Amazing episode as always! Sad to have just missed the live, but here for the replay crew 😊 All the talk of the necessity of the southern alliances for the north really had me in the 'what ifs' of it all and wondering, if things had turned out differently, do you think Robb would also have been married to a southern noble lady? Or was it time to consolidate into the northern bannermen houses again? Perhaps Meera? Possibly Alys Karstark or Wylla Manderly? Or would he have considered those alliance strong enough without a marriage bond and gone for a daughter of the Vale with Myranda Royce perhaps?
So... if there was no Sept before Ned built one for Cat, there was probably no Septa or Septon either instructing the children. Did the Maester have all that responsibility? Wouldn't he have needed a bit of help with all the children there needing some instruction? or did others take part... like Old Nan and her like.
The others are only coming because he befouled a sacred place with a Sept. Anyways, the septa only seemed to force sexist southern ideals on the girls. My guess is that they would spend more time riding and even might have worked with the Master at Arms just like their brothers. Lyanna was a capable warrior.
Haha hailing from Scotland 🏴 I did love the anecdote about the haggis but unfortunately untrue 😅! Loved this psychological analysis of ned and paradox of him being more open to southern centric thing despite being the most stereotypical”northerner” we meet - only Q I had was that is there anything to fact that up to current time none of Ned’s generation seemed to have any green dreams/green seer powers - do you think there was something latent amongst lyanna?
You know I dont think Ned was any happier about Robert marrying his sister that she was. He knew what Rob was. Robert wasnt going to change and hed end up treating her badly, because she wouldn't have put up with that shit and the marriage wouldn't have been much better than his and Cersei. She just COMPLETELY WENT ABOUT the wrong way. I wonder if things had gone differently if Ned would have tried to Help get her out of it.
He was telling her Robert loved her and would change when they married, so he was definitely drinking the Baratheon Koolaid. We see in canon that Ned isn't all that bright unless the matter involves warfare. His emotional IQ is comparable to a brick. Lyanna tried to do it the right way, she was appealing to everyone in her family, and they ignored her. Rickard should have told her he was trying to make her queen. That does seem to have been the plan since Duskendale failed.
The Starks have fought the Andals for five thousand years. Building a Sept was a bad idea. Ned, having been raised in the south would not have been taught about this. It seems like he goes out of his way to appear more Northern later in life, but he was not in the North for his formative years. He knew the basics, but not why they were important. It's been death by inches for Northern culture since the Targaryens took over. The fleet on their western shore, the right to first night (which was how they manned the wall without the other kingdoms helping them), and the need to bend the knee to kings who knew nothing about them. It's extremely apparent that southerners only cared about the North when they needed swords for a war the North had no interest in in the first place. Life is hard enough in the North without having to clean up someone else's mess. Ned allowed himself to lose sight of this. The rebellion was the first time in quite a while where the North had a vested interest in a southern war. Barbrey Dustin may be bitter, but she gives us an awful lot of truth in a short time. Ned and Robert are completely different, and I find it really hard to believe a man like Ned could call Robert a friend unless Ned himself was slightly different before the War. This seems likely. I attribute some of his reticence to having seen what happens south of the Neck, and wanting nothing to do with it. Cat manipulates and lies to him, and to avoid her writing home he agrees. She changes her mind when Bran falls, but he's already given his word by then. The parallels between Ned and his sons (Jon's baby swap, love vs duty for Jon and Robb, adherence to honor even when it makes no sense) should not be a thing. Ned objectively knows better, but doesn't prepare his children for any of it, and so they die or suffer. Case in point: it's made pretty clear that Jeyne Westerling at least partially seduced Robb on Tywin's orders. Tyrion figures it out when he and Tywin are talking. Tywin uses the rumor of Ned and Ashara against Robb. I want to like Ned, but I think we need to look at him a bit more objectively. He's the kind of kid who needs the stove to burn him three times before he realizes it's hot. I'll take some flak for this, and that's fine. George wrote Ned so that most people wouldn't look at him objectively.
Ok, so responding to @ around the 50:00ish mark, the protectiveness of Brandon. The north demonstrates clannish behavior. A bit more primitive in nature than "high society" but the north is much more removed from the south with their "dainty society and social norms" the north is more "manly" in nature. More stoic, more gruff, more reserved, "bearded" manly men, No need for knight hood. Just be a man, do what needs doing and shut up about it. I can fight with my brother all I want, but if a kid from 2 blocks over messes with my brother he can F.A.a.F.O.. I beat that azz. Cut to a short time later, a kid from the next town over messes with that same kid from a couple blocks over, I am gonna have his back because he is from my hood (true story) See the pattern? The north still has the mountain clans, the Skagosi which I think are portrayed as even more wild and primitive than the mountain clans. My Irish clannish upbringing in the poorer side of a pretty affluent town (the town oddly enough had very real but unwritten separation between the overwhelmingly more wealthy"south side" and the pretty much accepted across the board "poorer north side") my accumulated life experience has always had me relate with the northerners. Ok, I meandered a little bit there, but said pretty much what I intended to in the way I wanted to.
So... after Brandon rode to Kings Landing in order to call out Rhaegar for the abduction of Lyanna, he was imprisoned and THEN King Aerys called for Riccard and the fathers/guardians of all of Brandon's companions... so what exactly happened? Riccard must have been a BAMF as he insisted on trial by combat knowing he would have to face and defeat one of the Kings Guard, which included Barriston the Bold, Sir Whent, Sir Martell, and even the Sword of the Morning Arthur Dayne... How the hell did Aerys get away with choosing "fire" as his champion rather than one of the Kings Guard? I mean... this was MAJOR... wasn't it? What sort of success had Lord Riccard had in man to man combat? Somebody PLEASE tell George we need more info... Write the Book, George.... Write the Books... write all them books!!!
If you held me to it, I'd say Varys told Aerys the truth: that Rickard, Hoster, and Jon Arryn were plotting a rebellion. Objectively speaking, that much is obvious. Aerys was mad, yes, but what he did was... not entirely unjustified. Also, Brandon had directly threatened Rhaegar's life, so there's that.
It bothers me that Riccard sent his son and heir to be fostered by the Rhyswells (I think that's right)... Why the heck did he do that? Usually, the Lord wants their heir by their side... cup bearer, then squire or whatever... learning at the feet of the Lord in preparation for that eventuality. Riccard sends his oldest AND his second oldest away to be fostered. So... was Riccard injured or something? Did he take a debilitating injury in Rob's Rebellion? or GreyJoy's Rebellion? or before that in the war of the nine pennies? I don't get it. Did he not like to spend time with his boys? Was he trying to ensure their survival during a harsh winter or something? It makes no sense... and it opened the door, at least in Ned's case, to encroachment on the northern traditions of the southron ways - which, really, are not all that consistent with the northern traditions. The Starks should have been focusing on populating the Gift... or lands close to it. Carving up more lands, holdfasts, etc. in order to keep that area closer to the wall more fully populated as a buffer zone for the threat from the north - but it seems they remember very little about it or eschew even the validity of that threat. Yeah... it was unusual for Bran to want to be a Knight... you should have gone much more into what WAS usual for the children of the north.
Pycelle was most likely at Sumeerhall. He remebers serving five Kings and Aegon V. is one of them. This grandmaesters where usually old, when they were sent to Kings Landing and Aegon V. actually requested a younger one. Do you even mind telling lies about imaginary characters anymore?
