Chapter 117: The Messy Affairs of Westeros in Those Years

Over the past year, the situation in Westeros had changed dramatically.

While Dany was still a guest in Qarth, Robert Baratheon's good friend—the Duke of Winterfell, Eddard Stark—followed in the tragic footsteps of his father and older brother. In the most humiliating manner, he was beheaded by "Mad King II" Joffrey.

There is no doubt that the Stark family of the North are the absolute protagonists of Game of Thrones, and their tragic fate has always been deeply sympathized with by audiences. When watching the show, Dany often found herself identifying with them.

However, from an objective perspective, their downfall wasn't entirely undeserved.

The Death of Eddard Stark

Rather than saying Eddard died at the hands of Joffrey because of Robert, it would be more accurate to say he was doomed by the combined efforts of his wife and daughter.

People often claim that Eddard Stark had low emotional intelligence and lacked political acumen. In reality, he was quite self-aware—he knew he wasn't suited for life in King's Landing. When Robert personally traveled to the North to ask him to serve as his Hand, Eddard originally intended to refuse.

"Robert is my best friend. If I refuse, he'll be furious and curse me out, but in a few days, we'll be back to being brothers as always."

That was what Eddard told his wife after a heartfelt conversation.

Eddard and Robert had grown up together in the Vale, both raised as wards of Jon Arryn. They had also fought side by side in rebellion, making them arguably the closest of friends in the world of A Song of Ice and Fire.

And Eddard's judgment wasn't wrong.

But his wife, Catelyn, was a highborn noblewoman through and through. Her thinking was much more pragmatic.

In her youth, Catelyn Tully had been rational enough to handle the affections of her childhood friend, Littlefinger. Now, as the mother of five children, she was equally rational in considering the king's invitation.

She persuaded her husband to accept the position for two reasons:

In the past, you were best friends, but now he is the king, and you are his subject. A king's will is unpredictable.

The children are growing up. It's time to arrange marriages. King's Landing, the capital of the Seven Kingdoms, is filled with nobles and opportunities—far better than the barren North.

Their eldest son, Robb, as the heir, had to remain in Winterfell to rule in his father's absence. Their youngest, Rickon, was only three and too small to leave his mother—Catelyn herself would not be going to King's Landing.

The children originally planned to accompany Eddard were three:

Sansa, the eldest daughter,

Arya, the second daughter,

Bran, the second son.

The daughters needed to find suitable matches (Catelyn and Eddard had never considered Theon Greyjoy for Sansa). Meanwhile, Bran, as the second son, had no inheritance rights, making his future uncertain—a legitimate concern. Eddard's own younger brother, Benjen, had been forced to join the Night's Watch due to a lack of inheritance.

Going to King's Landing under the protection of his Hand of the King father and royal uncle could at the very least secure Bran a knighthood. If luck was on his side, he might even become a Kingsguard.

There is no doubt that Catelyn Tully made the choice any good wife and mother would.

Unfortunately, she lacked political foresight and ignored the looming storm in King's Landing—while her husband had no ability to weather it.

Convincing her husband to go to King's Landing was a forgivable mistake. But kidnapping Tyrion Lannister? That was sheer recklessness.

To be fair, Littlefinger's cunning played a part. He masterfully exploited her "a man who loves me would never hurt me, even if I married someone else, he will always be my loyal admirer" (PS: pure Mary Sue thinking) delusion. With ease, he deceived Catelyn into believing Tyrion was responsible for the attempt on Bran's life.

It must be said—Littlefinger is truly the ultimate simp, one who ended up ruining an entire family.

Back to the point—Tyrion, despite being a dwarf and despised by his father, was still a Lannister. By capturing him, Catelyn effectively declared war between House Stark + House Tully against House Lannister.

This instantly put Eddard in a life-or-death conflict with the Queen's faction in King's Landing. While Robert was the king and Eddard's friend, the Lannisters' power was overwhelming—Robert owed Tywin Lannister three million gold dragons, and the kingdom's stability relied heavily on Lannister support.

How Sansa Stark Doomed Her Father

Eddard discovered that Robert's three children with the queen were not his biological offspring. But instead of immediately revealing this to Robert, he hesitated.

His sense of honor and righteousness made him fear that Robert would react as Tywin did—by brutally slaughtering the children as had happened to Rhaegar Targaryen's heirs.

So, Eddard secretly met with Cersei and warned her:

"I know what you've done. I haven't told my unfortunate but fearsome friend yet. You have three days—take your children and leave. Then we'll settle things honorably on the battlefield."

Upon learning that Eddard knew the truth, Cersei acted first—she had Robert killed.

Because in King's Landing, all of Eddard's authority came from the king.

Logically, after killing Robert, Cersei should have immediately arrested Eddard's entire family, or at least placed him under control.

But she didn't.

The political showdown between Eddard and Cersei—one of the major early power struggles in Game of Thrones—was, in reality, a battle between two amateurs. Compared to true masters like Tywin, Varys, Littlefinger, Prince Doran Martell, or Lady Olenna of Highgarden, these two were complete rookies.

Cersei excelled at palace intrigue, but when it came to court politics, she was utterly incompetent.

Eddard, on the other hand, had participated in the War of the Usurper to overthrow the Targaryens, so he had some experience and a decent political instinct.

When his best friend died the day after he warned Cersei, he immediately realized he had sealed Robert's fate.

Consumed by guilt and grief, he resolved to sacrifice himself to uphold the legitimacy of the "Baratheon Dynasty."

At that point, Eddard had already accepted his impending death.

But he didn't want his daughters to die with him.

Thus, he endured in silence, planning to secretly send his two daughters onto a fast ship that had long been prepared. Once they left King's Landing, he would fight the Lannisters to the bitter end, even if it meant mutual destruction.

To be fair, in the early days after the king's murder, Eddard actually had the capital to put up a fight.

Renly, Varys, and even Littlefinger—who had already backstabbed him—initially did not want him to fall so soon.

Their support was not out of loyalty to Eddard's sense of justice but rather a matter of political balance. If Eddard fell, the next Hand of the King would undoubtedly be Duke Tywin, a master of warfare, finance, political intrigue, and court maneuvering.

Unfortunately, Eddard stubbornly rejected all offers of support. Renly had no choice but to flee, Varys dared not visit him again, and Littlefinger decisively sided with Cersei.

At that point, Eddard's defeat was inevitable, but he had already made peace with his fate: "My closest friend is already in the grave—why should I fear death?"

It must be said that if Eddard chose to, he had a remarkable ability to keep secrets.

Just as he managed to conceal Jon Snow's true parentage from everyone—including the cunning Varys and Littlefinger—he also nearly succeeded in keeping his plan to send his daughters away hidden from all of King's Landing.

Then, his eldest daughter, Sansa, ruined everything.

The night before their departure, she secretly went to see Cersei and revealed the entire plan. At this stage, Sansa was a typical noble girl infatuated with romance—she loved handsome young men, and Joffrey was undeniably handsome. She couldn't bear to leave.

Cersei, suddenly alert, wasted no time. The very next day, she had Eddard arrested and thrown into the dungeon.

Eddard's men were slaughtered, the Tower of the Hand was drenched in blood, and only Sansa and her handmaiden, Jeyne, survived. Arya, on the other hand, was lost in the streets.

Eddard had already accepted death and felt no fear in captivity. However, with his daughters in Cersei's hands, he was forced to forsake his honor for the second time in his life.

For the sake of his children, he stood in the Great Sept of Baelor before the people of King's Landing and confessed: "I have committed treason. Joffrey is the rightful king."

According to the agreement with Cersei, once he surrendered, Joffrey would send him to the Wall to serve as a Night's Watch.

But Joffrey was too deranged. He changed his mind at the last moment and, before Sansa's very eyes, ordered her father beheaded.

Not only did Sansa betray her father, but she also bore significant responsibility for the tragedies that later befell House Stark.

How many foolish decisions did Catelyn make just to save her?

Now that Eddard's death has been covered, let's move on to the other major events.

After Eddard's imprisonment, four kings suddenly rose to power:

Robb Stark, King in the North, seeking vengeance for his father, ruling over the North and the Riverlands, backed by wolves and trout.

Joffrey Baratheon, Robert's supposed son, controlling the Crownlands and the Westerlands, represented by the lion.

Stannis Baratheon, Duke of Dragonstone, Robert's second brother, holding Dragonstone and nearby islands, symbolized by the fiery heart of R'hllor alongside the stag.

Renly Baratheon, Duke of Storm's End, Robert's youngest brother, ruling the Stormlands and the Reach, bearing the golden rose and the crowned stag.

Among the Seven Kingdoms, only Dorne and the Vale remained uninvolved.

However, House Martell of Dorne had a deep blood feud with the Lannisters. Rhaegar Targaryen's wife, Elia Martell, was a Dornish princess, and she and her two children were brutally murdered by Tywin Lannister's forces.

As for the Vale, it was controlled by Catelyn's younger sister, Lysa Arryn. Theoretically, she should have supported Robb, but in reality, she only listened to Littlefinger.

Among these factions, Robb's forces appeared strongest on paper. The vast alliance of "wolf + trout + eagle (the Vale) + stag" that had been forged during Robert's Rebellion was not entirely broken—at least, that's what the naive Robb and Catelyn believed.

However, the entire conflict was actually sparked by Lysa's madness—she killed her own husband and then told her sister that the Lannisters were responsible. The "eagle" had already abandoned the alliance from the start.

Speaking of Lysa, it's worth mentioning how twisted Eddard Stark's family ties were:

"I married my brother's widow, my foster father married my wife's younger sister, which makes me and my most respected foster father brothers-in-law. How wonderful—except that my wife's younger sister is also my wife's childhood admirer."

Renly ("Three Stags") was more than willing to continue the previous alliance, but Stannis ("Two Stags") was a cold and unpredictable man. No one could ever guess what went on in his mind.

On one hand, Stannis gritted his teeth, saying, "I don't want to be king, I don't want to be the prophesied one, why must I be forced into this?"

On the other, he secretly ordered the Red Priestess to use a shadow assassin to murder his own brother.

As mentioned earlier, R'hllor, the Lord of Light, had two aspects: he was both the god of fire and a demon who controlled shadows. His priests wielded blood magic, capable of assassinating targets with shadow assassins.

The Red Priestess's shadow creature was even more terrifying than the Nara clan's shadow techniques—when it slit Renly's throat, he was fully armored with a gorget of high-quality steel, strong enough to resist an axe. Yet the shadow cut through it as if slicing through paper.

Renly died before he even had a chance to fight.

His "Crowned Stag + Golden Rose" alliance collapsed. The Stormlands fell to Stannis, while the Reach remained neutral.

As the new leader of House Baratheon, Stannis not only refused to join Robb's grand coalition but also ordered the Red Priestess to cast a blood magic curse on Robb.

Whether Robb's eventual death was truly caused by this curse is uncertain. However, all three men targeted by the Red Priestess—Joffrey, Robb, and Balon Greyjoy—died unnatural deaths.

(P.S. Littlefinger and Catelyn were childhood friends. Littlefinger was a poor boy who spent his whole life obsessed with Catelyn—his fantasy version of her, that is, not the real Catelyn the Duchess.)

(End of Chapter)

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