A Rosy and Thorny Game of Thrones - Part 1

Sunday sees the return of the HBO TV series Game of Thrones, the medieval fantasy based on the Song of Ice and Fire novels by George R. R. Martin, which was influenced by the Wars of the Roses. The Daily Mail and History Behind Game of Thrones compare the Cousin's War in 15th Century England and the War of the Five Kings that ravaged across Westeros in Game of Thrones.

England's rich history and terrain would inspire Martin to write detailed and intricate conflicts that have been portrayed so well in the TV series. Having read just the first two novels of Song of Ice and Fire, I will mainly reference the TV series which will unavoidably contain spoilers for those who aren't up-to-date with Game of Thrones. 

SETTING

Much had changed from the early days of England where Celtic tribes had worshiped the old Pagan Gods, much like the Andals who worshiped the Old Gods of the Forest in early Westeros. The island off the north-west European mainland was subsequently invaded by Romans, Angles, Saxons, Vikings and Normans who all drove the Celts to the hills of Scotland, Wales and Ireland. 

Hadrian's Wall stretches 73 miles from coast to coast

The Roman Emperor Hadrian wanted to protect England from the raiding Scottish tribes and constructed a 73-mile long wall in 128 AD that stretched to the east and west coasts of northern England. At it's highest the wall reached 20 feet tall but centuries of disrepair and weather would leave the wall in ruins which can still be walked along today. I visited Hadrian's Wall almost 20 years ago, as had Martin before me, and the writer discussed his inspiration in a 2000 interview:

"I stood on Hadrian's Wall and tried to imagine what it would be like to be a Roman soldier sent here from Italy or Antioch. To stand here, to gaze off into the distance, not knowing what might emerge from the forest."

The mystical and imposing 700 foot wall

Martin would go on to create The Wall that towered over 700 feet tall, made of ice and magic, defended by the Men of the Night's Watch against the Wildlings, White Walkers and other mysteries beyond the Wall.

Anglo-Saxon England was divided into seven kingdoms

England during Anglo-Saxon times was divided into the seven kingdoms of East Anglia, Mercia, Northumbria, Wessex, Essex, Sussex and Kent with the final three being the smallest. Westeros is also divided into seven kingdoms: the North, Mountain & the Vale, Isles & the Rivers, the Rock, the Stormlands, the Reach and Dorne. These kingdoms would be united following the Targaryen Conquest led by Aegon the Conqueror and England's kingdoms would also be united after William the Conqueror led the Norman Conquest of England in 1066 AD.

The Seven Kingdoms of Westeros

Only eight per cent of Anglo-Saxon controlled land remained when William the Conqueror died in 1087 and his descendants would battle over the English throne in a period of Anarchy during the mid 1100s. The resulting monarchy of the Plantagenets would rule for four centuries which would see England conquering others (under Kings Richard, Edward I, Edward III and Henry V) and rebelling against each other with the Peasant's Revolt of 1381 and Henry IV's deposing Richard II in 1399.

Henry IV was descended from Edward III's third living son, John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, and his usurpation disregarded the heir-presumptive, Edmund Mortimer. Henry IV's grandson Henry VI would later be challenged by Mortimer's descendant, Richard, Duke of York, in what would become the Wars of the Roses.

Robert Baratheon rebelled against Aerys II, the mad king of Westeros, and would later claim the Iron Throne. Robert's ignorance of the machinations in King's Landing would lead to his death and the antagonism between the North's Starks and the Rock's Lannisters would propel the Seven Kingdoms into civil war.

Westeros and the nearby continent of Essos would share similar geography to England and it's European neighbours. Dorne on the south-eastern tip of Westeros juts out towards the Narrow Sea while the English county of Kent extends towards the mouth of the English Channel which separates England with mainland Europe.

To the north of Kent is the port of London which has served as England's capital for two millenniums and the seat of Westerosi power is located in King's Landing north of Dorne. Westerosi gold was mined in the western lands of the Rock, similar to the coal mined in Wales centuries after the Cousin's War. The English Midlands and the rivers of the Severn and Trent are invoked in the Riverlands whilst, beyond the Neck, the North resembles England's Yorkshire and Northumbria. The cold and rugged lands of Scotland beyond Hadrian's Wall were embellished by Martin into the mystical lands beyond The Wall.

Beyond the Narrow Sea is Essos' vital trading port of Pentos

Beyond the Narrow Sea are the Free Cities of Essos which serve as trading posts to Westeros and Pentos resembles the Burgundian port of Antwerp which brought exotic imports to England. English kings such as Edward III and Henry V would proclaim their hereditary right to rule France by fighting their European neighbours in the Hundred Years War during the 14th and 15th centuries. The famous English victories of Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt were distant memories in 1453 when England's once mighty territory in France was reduced to just Calais and this would send Henry VI into a mental breakdown.

English rule stretched across the English Channel in the Hundred Years War

Europe would often be a place of exile with Henry Tudor fleeing to Brittany, France, in 1471 when Edward IV reaffirmed his place on the throne. Tudor was of Welsh heritage and the Welsh Dragon flew on the banners at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485 where a victorious Tudor became King Henry VII. Essos has also been a land of exile for Daeneyrs Targaryen and the 'Mother of Dragons' wishes to fly her dragons over Westeros and take the Iron Throne.

Henry Tudor's Welsh Dragon standard flew successful at Bosworth

The back stories and landscapes of Westeros were inspired by England's rich history and it's blood soaked lands. Martin's characters would owe their personalities and actions to the key players in the War of the Roses.