Would Braavos be in “control” of the headwaters/valley of the Upper Rhoyne, say the section north of Norvos, given their maritime nature? TY.

Unclear. Control probably goes too far – the Braavosi are pretty heavily invested in their maritime navy as opposed to a riverrine navy, and trying to control the Rhoyne would mean persistent conflict with Norvos, Qohor, and Volantis, on terms that would be pretty bad for the Braavosi. It would be a huge investment with a poor rate of return, when maritime control offers much better profit margins.

Rather, I think the Braavosi are only interested in access to the Rhoyne. It gives them a much larger market they can sell into and buy from, it speeds up traffic for longer voyages, it offers them substantial military advantages while risking little of their own since the Sweetwater doesn’t link with the Rhoyne, etc.

Do you think there any castles or fortresses in the Disputed Lands not directly linked to an existing walled settlement? Are their any in the lower Rhoyne territories controlled by the Volantene?

Disputed Lands – maybe, but there’s no textual evidence. Likely depends on terrain – are there any hills or fords or other geographical features which would make a fortress useful? Or is it a featureless plain where mobility and flexibility are key and fortresses just limit you?

Lower Rhoyne – far more likely, although again, no direct textual evidence. Forks in the river, fords, bends in the river where the speed of the current changes, etc., rivers offer far more locations where one would want a fortress.

How did Robert’s Rebellion influence Robb crowning as King in the North?

Outside of a mild effect of emphasizing the consensual nature of the North’s allegiance – since Ned had personally acclaimed and then sworn his sword to Robert – it didn’t really.

Why do you think it took the Manderlys to establish White Harbor at the mouth of the White Knife given its prime trading location? Do you see the North’s material existence or culture as particularly averse to founding permanent cities. Was it more of the fact that the area was (as detailed in WOIAF) highly contested between so many petty kings for so long? Historical contingency? Thanks for your reply.

Money, primarily. It’s not like the North didn’t use the mouth of the White Knife – the Wolf’s Den was fortified because that territory was useful to them. But the Manderlys had a depth of liquid capital that the less-fertile North simple didn’t have to hand, and because it was the only option, they invested all of it into a single location. This created the necessary labor demand for a proper city.

But yes, the development of the Wolf’s Den was likely inhibited by the castle being the Vale’s focus of attack during the Worthless War and then suffering the effects of civil war and repeated change in management.

Time Stood Still, Part 5: The Mummer’s Farce Is Almost Done

poorquentyn:

Whole series here

“Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!”

Every dream-narrative has (to borrow from IMO the finest example of the form, Mulholland Dr.) a Club Silencio moment. Right before our hero wakes up (in Davos’ case, on Unicorn Cannibal Island), the author lays it all out for them: here’s what the dream’s been about, here’s what all the symbols meant, here’s what you learned.

Indeed, Davos IV ADWD is in essence a full-length commentary on, counterpoint to, and occasionally critique of Davos III. The structure is identical: Davos starts in a cell (though GRRM dwells on that more here), is brought before Lord Wyman, a discussion ensues about the war so far and where they should go from here. Robett Glover acts in private where Marlon Manderly acts in public, similar issues of loyalty and injustice are raised in the confrontation, and the meeting even takes place directly below the Merman’s Court, where the last one took place (that was the public face of Wyman Manderly, this the private one). This sort of echoing strikes me as unmistakably similar to dream-narratives; not that other kinds of narratives don’t have echoes and parallels, of course, but the feigned/real divide, the way the symbols are used, and the way everything is tied into Davos’ own internal struggle is what leads me to the dream-construct.

If you take what we’re seeing here as Davos’ dream, for example, the setting should feel like we’re wandering his subconscious, right? And just like in the last three chapters, it does.

Keep reading

An excellent essay about one of my favorite chapters in the whole series.

I hope I’m not confusing you with someone else, but in one of your essays about the Blackfyre Rebellions, you said that Daeron’s attempt to squander Blackfyre support after the Redgrass Field failed because he chose a “middle path” between Baelor’s clemency and Bloodraven’s punishments. Which do you think he should have embraced then? Would he have been better off being lenient with the blacks, or should he have been sterner?

I think you mean squelch rather than squander.

But yes, that’s what I said. As to which path is better, I don’t know; history has plenty of examples of either strategy succeeding and failing.

If Daeron II had followed a Robert-like path of clemency, it’s likely that the former Blackfyre loyalists just wouldn’t have had the motive to keep rebelling. Gormon Peake isn’t going to back Daemon II if he’s still got his castles, for example. However, it could be the case that you’d get a long peace but with a lot of underground machinations a la Robert, but then you still have peace.

If Daeron II had followed a Tywinesque policy, there are no more former Blackfyre supporters left to support any future rising. However, it’s still possible that the country as a whole – even former Targaryen loyalists – might have revolted against such blatant tyranny, similar to how Bloodraven lost his political support when he murdered Aenys Blackfyre

Why do you think did Asha, in her Kingsmoot speech, suggest the idea of the Ironborn acquiring parts of the Stoney Shore/Sea Dragon Point from the Starks, instead of lands on Cape Kraken/Flints Finger?

Because Asha still held Deepwood Motte, which is the main seat of power in the Sea Dragon Point region, and Flint’s Finger was still held by the North, and while Asha had an agreement with Lady Glover, she didn’t have one with the Flints.

I know you addressed the reason why Tywin made Littlefinger Lord Paramount of the Riverlands instead of the Freys but why didn’t he give it to Kevan (or even another Lannister cousin)? He could rule from Darry or something like that and he’d be a lot more reliable than Littlefinger.

Because Tywin understands that monopolizing political power doesn’t work in feudal societies, and knows that you need to spread the land around to keep everyone on the inside of the coalition.

After a large war with high civilian/peasant casualties, I’d assume that agriculture would be disrupted. In order to get more people back in the fields, would it be feasible for people living in city slums to be offered farming land if they were willing to relocate to it? They’d lack the knowledge required for farming, but, realistically, could that be taught to them in large numbers? If so, would the lords of cities filled with the poor consent to it, glad to get rid of them?

Offering vacant land to new settlers is a historical thing that happened, but not particularly city-dwellers. Remember, pre-modern societies were (for the most part) almost entirely rural.

So instead what you’d see is offers being made to landless agricultural laborers, younger sons who aren’t going to inherit the family farm, farmers from neighboring regions.

Say you were Quellon Greyjoy prior to Robert’s Rebellion and you had just “freed” the remaining thralls on the islands. Given the relatively infertile nature of the II’s soils, would it be a wise move to convert most of the farmland into pasture for sheep, similar to the Highland Clearances of Scotland? I think that for a Lord wishing to promote better relations with the greenlanders, this is a smart move. Thought?

I don’t know if the Iron Islands has the landmass to make wool exports a viable economic strategy, especially when you’re right near to the North which can outproduce and outcompete you in that market without stretching.

As I said in my post on the Iron Islands and econ dev, I’d emphasize ironmongery, commerce, mercenary work, and organized crime.