By Jamie Kennett
It’s one apparent king after another; there isn’t a single one of the major houses of Westeros that doesn’t think they have some kind of a claim to the kingship now. Stannis Baratheon is, by-and-large, the rightful king however, and should only have to contend with Daenerys Targaryen on who ought to sit on the Iron Throne. That being said, the odds of him donning the infamous golden crown have dropped drastically in the wake of his failed assault on King’s Landing. Nobody really knows what happened to Stannis or what was left of his army, after the battle, or how he and the remnants of his house plan to deal with his claim to the throne now that he’s been reduced to a largely powerless man on a big rock in the middle of the sea with no-one but a fire-worshipping priestess for company.
It’s one apparent king after another; there isn’t a single one of the major houses of Westeros that doesn’t think they have some kind of a claim to the kingship now. Stannis Baratheon is, by-and-large, the rightful king however, and should only have to contend with Daenerys Targaryen on who ought to sit on the Iron Throne. That being said, the odds of him donning the infamous golden crown have dropped drastically in the wake of his failed assault on King’s Landing. Nobody really knows what happened to Stannis or what was left of his army, after the battle, or how he and the remnants of his house plan to deal with his claim to the throne now that he’s been reduced to a largely powerless man on a big rock in the middle of the sea with no-one but a fire-worshipping priestess for company.
Stannis
A lot of people thought Stannis had been killed at the Battle of the Blackwater; the last we saw of him he was on the walls above the Mud Gate, being dragged off by a pair of soldiers whilst hacking his way through a number of goldcloaks. Some thought those soldiers were King’s men, and others thought they were King’s men, which led me to consider how a soldier can call himself a ‘King’s man’ when there are at least five ‘Kings’ (and/or Queens). As it happens, they were King’s men, as in that they served Stannis himself and were rescuing him from his potential death at the hands of the recently arrived Tywin Lannister. Stannis retreated back to Dragonstone with his noticeably smaller army, and the few ships he had left after his initially huge fleet burnt up in the inferno of wildfire at the start of the battle. Luckily for him, his personal fire priestess and ‘confidant’ Melisandre stayed behind at Dragonstone, sound as a pound.
Since the Battle, Stannis has become something of a recluse. Preferring to spend all of his time in the keep of Dragonstone with Melisandre, he lets in no man from the outside, and talks to no more than a handful of his courtiers. It’s understandable given what the man must be going through, but it does make you wonder what he must be up to in there. Is he plotting his next move against the throne? Has he turned his back on even his own people? Will he spend the rest of his days in a fortified state in his keep? I certainly feel he has been slightly brainwashed into following the ideology of the Lord of Light, and this could have some adverse effects on his mentality now that he’s essentially locked himself in a castle with a woman who preaches such beliefs. He may try to muster another army in an attempt to take what is rightfully his, but I feel he may be a tad dissuaded by what happened the first time around. I expect we’ll see more of Melisandre and Davos than we will Stannis himself.
A lot of people thought Stannis had been killed at the Battle of the Blackwater; the last we saw of him he was on the walls above the Mud Gate, being dragged off by a pair of soldiers whilst hacking his way through a number of goldcloaks. Some thought those soldiers were King’s men, and others thought they were King’s men, which led me to consider how a soldier can call himself a ‘King’s man’ when there are at least five ‘Kings’ (and/or Queens). As it happens, they were King’s men, as in that they served Stannis himself and were rescuing him from his potential death at the hands of the recently arrived Tywin Lannister. Stannis retreated back to Dragonstone with his noticeably smaller army, and the few ships he had left after his initially huge fleet burnt up in the inferno of wildfire at the start of the battle. Luckily for him, his personal fire priestess and ‘confidant’ Melisandre stayed behind at Dragonstone, sound as a pound.
Since the Battle, Stannis has become something of a recluse. Preferring to spend all of his time in the keep of Dragonstone with Melisandre, he lets in no man from the outside, and talks to no more than a handful of his courtiers. It’s understandable given what the man must be going through, but it does make you wonder what he must be up to in there. Is he plotting his next move against the throne? Has he turned his back on even his own people? Will he spend the rest of his days in a fortified state in his keep? I certainly feel he has been slightly brainwashed into following the ideology of the Lord of Light, and this could have some adverse effects on his mentality now that he’s essentially locked himself in a castle with a woman who preaches such beliefs. He may try to muster another army in an attempt to take what is rightfully his, but I feel he may be a tad dissuaded by what happened the first time around. I expect we’ll see more of Melisandre and Davos than we will Stannis himself.
Davos Seaworth
Which brings me neatly around to one of the most important of Stannis’ courtiers and retainers. Ser Davos Seaworth, (the Onion Knight), gave us the lasting impression that he had perished alongside his son Matthos on the Blackwater. Oh contraire! He survives, albeit barely, and swims to the relative safety that is the other side of the bay. Less can be said of Matthos and his other sons that died that night. Davos passes out after escaping the danger zone around King’s Landing, awaking a while later on a small and barren rock a few miles out into the sea. After spending many a day stranded on said rock, close to death, with nothing but seawater and a couple of crabs for sustenance and company, his mind begins to wander…
Davos realises the reason that Stannis had his own brother Renly murdered, and led a great deal of loyal Baratheon and Florent men to their eventual deaths that night on the Blackwater; it was ultimately down to Melisandre and her wicked fire-preaching ways. It’s clear to all besides Stannis that the woman is manipulating him for her own gain; the scene in Stannis’ boardroom (that just so happened to be gratuitously sexual), and the birth of that eerie shadow-creature-thing is a clear reminder of that. So to save his King and the rest of Dragonstone from the bad times that are sure to come, Davos plots to kill Melisandre and finally do away with her. First he has to get to Dragonstone, and as luck would have it, a short while after he hatches his plan he is picked up by a passing ship that just so happens to be in the pay of Davos’ friend and former pirate-turned-sea captain Salladhor Saan. From there he makes for the city, and Stannis’ keep, to rid the world of Melisandre. He is however apprehended by the captain of Dragonstone’s guard before he can get anywhere near her, and is locked away in a dungeon for the conceivable future. If season three is as true to A Storm of Swords as it could be, then all this is sure to happen. It doesn’t bode all-too-well for Davos in the coming episodes if he does get locked up, but do remember that Ned Stark, Tyrion and Jaime Lannister all had experience in dungeon captivity and they all got to see daylight again, though Ned didn’t for quite as long as he’d liked to have…
Which brings me neatly around to one of the most important of Stannis’ courtiers and retainers. Ser Davos Seaworth, (the Onion Knight), gave us the lasting impression that he had perished alongside his son Matthos on the Blackwater. Oh contraire! He survives, albeit barely, and swims to the relative safety that is the other side of the bay. Less can be said of Matthos and his other sons that died that night. Davos passes out after escaping the danger zone around King’s Landing, awaking a while later on a small and barren rock a few miles out into the sea. After spending many a day stranded on said rock, close to death, with nothing but seawater and a couple of crabs for sustenance and company, his mind begins to wander…
Davos realises the reason that Stannis had his own brother Renly murdered, and led a great deal of loyal Baratheon and Florent men to their eventual deaths that night on the Blackwater; it was ultimately down to Melisandre and her wicked fire-preaching ways. It’s clear to all besides Stannis that the woman is manipulating him for her own gain; the scene in Stannis’ boardroom (that just so happened to be gratuitously sexual), and the birth of that eerie shadow-creature-thing is a clear reminder of that. So to save his King and the rest of Dragonstone from the bad times that are sure to come, Davos plots to kill Melisandre and finally do away with her. First he has to get to Dragonstone, and as luck would have it, a short while after he hatches his plan he is picked up by a passing ship that just so happens to be in the pay of Davos’ friend and former pirate-turned-sea captain Salladhor Saan. From there he makes for the city, and Stannis’ keep, to rid the world of Melisandre. He is however apprehended by the captain of Dragonstone’s guard before he can get anywhere near her, and is locked away in a dungeon for the conceivable future. If season three is as true to A Storm of Swords as it could be, then all this is sure to happen. It doesn’t bode all-too-well for Davos in the coming episodes if he does get locked up, but do remember that Ned Stark, Tyrion and Jaime Lannister all had experience in dungeon captivity and they all got to see daylight again, though Ned didn’t for quite as long as he’d liked to have…
Melisandre
See 'Stannis' and 'Davos Seaworth'.
See 'Stannis' and 'Davos Seaworth'.
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