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Is the form of address for ASOIAF nobility based on real-world equivalents? I found it odd at first that heads of great families are referred to as Lord + First Name, e.g., Lord Tywin. I also found it odd that there isn’t much distinction between ranks. Heads of great houses, their children, members of lesser houses—they are all Lord and Lady. Was this common in certain cultures? Wouldn’t great lords want titles to differentiate themselves?

GRRM specifically went with a single title of Lord because he didn’t want to have to deal with the confusion of Dukes, Earls, Counts, Vicounts, Marquesses, Barons, etc.

Do you have any idea why all of Quellon’s children would set themselves to reversing his legacy? An incident in Ironborn history, a real world trend in behavior, something that sheds light on this tragic cultural pivot so enthusiastically embraced by all four of Quellon’s sons?

  1. Good statesmen aren’t always good parents.
  2. Children often seek to define themselves against their parents and feudal systems combine that tendency directly to public policy. 

Why would Rhaegar knight the Mountain? Even ignoring Gregor’s reputation, is House Clegane really important enough to warrant the Crown Prince of Westeros’ personal attention?

We don’t know the precise circumstances of Gregor’s knighting, but two possibilities come into mind: either it was done as a favor to Tywin Lannister, as Gregor was his bannermen, or it happened as a result of Gregor’s prowess during a tourney or melee, which is pretty common. 

Concerning Dorne’s Export Commodities: What’s the deal with Sandsilk? Why are they the only westerosi nation in the silk fabric sector? They obviously don’t grow the raw silk themselves, meaning they have to import it from the east. This puts them in competition with the 3 Daughters, yet we never hear of the Dornish being pulled into their endless trade wars. Could you please give your thoughts on the matter? Thank you.

Why do you assume the Dornish don’t produce their own silk? If mulberry can grow in India, South Africa, Iran, etc. it can probably grow in Dorne. Given that Dornish silk techniques are distinctive enough to be recognized on sight – “painted, not sewn. The Dornish paint their silks, I’ve heard” – and have their own distinct name, I’d lean towards them producing it. 

So I don’t think they’re competitors with the Free Cities, I think they’re business partners. Dorne sells wine, peppers, citrus fruit, and sand-silk and they buy dyes, spices, textiles, etc. from the Free Cities. 

As to why the Dornish are the only Westerosi who have a silk industry, my guess would be that, as silk is otherwise found in Essos (it can be bought in Qarth but given the city’s commercial focus is likely a middleman, it’s manufactured in Naath, and given that the Silk Road is one of the roads that connect western Essos with Yi Ti is likely also manufactured there), it was brought over by those Rhoynar artisans we hear of from Nymeria’s Conquest. 

Isn’t it a bit silly for the Redwynes to have 200 Warships? How does House Redwyne finance and maintain what amounts to an enormous standing army, used less than a handful of times over the past 300 years? Is this realistic?

The Redwynes control an island that exports a highly valuable commodity and they exercise an unusual degree of control over their exports, so their standing navy earns its keep through escorting their trading fleets. 

And the Redwyne Fleet was used in the War of Five Kings, the Greyjoy Rebellion, Robert’s Rebellion, which adds up to 100% of the wars within ASOIAF proper, so it’s not like it’s not getting any use. 

Which would be a more effective border defense for the southern Riverlands: a series of major castles that would require storm or siege to prevent attacks on the rear of an invading army… or a more closely space series of signal towers meant to warn Harrenhal and Riverrun but unable to mount a major resistance themselves?

The former, clearly. Far better to have a defense that can slow or halt the enemy than a defense that can’t. 

Although honestly, I think a lot of the Riverlands’ problems on its southern could be solved with a riverrine navy on the Blackwater Rush (which the Iron Throne would probably have a problem with) that could contest fords, along with the improved fortification of Stony Sept, and (surprise surprise, it’s me) a canal linking the Red Fork to the Rush (allowing for good interior lines between the two halves of the Riverlands). 

Aside from prestige and stopping border raids, would conquering Dorne have any real strategic or economic value?

Quite a bit, but you have to weight that against the costs of conquering and occupying Dorne:

  • Strategic: in addition to avoiding border raids, incorporating Dorne means having a much freer hand in the Stepstones (no more Dorne supporting the Free Cities against the mainland), eliminating the possibility of foreign enemies landing in an allied Dorne as prelude to an invasion of the mainland, and having total control of the western coast of the Narrow Sea. 
  • Economic: while Dorne doesn’t have much arable soil, what it does have is arable in all seasons, which is handy. Moreover, Dorne has a lot of high-value export-friendly commodities, from citrus fruits to wine to silks. So while Dorne is overall less productive than many of the other Seven Kingdoms, its per-capita productivity is quite substantial.