HBO’sGame of Thronesopens in the snowy North with rangers, Will, Gared, and Ser Waymar Royce belonging to an ancient order called the Night’s Watch. The three men have been dispatched to investigate reports of Wildlings (Free Folk) in the Haunted Forest, which lies beyond the Wall. While there’s a lot to unpack here, the visuals signify that this Wall is a fortification along the Northern border of the Kingdom of North, and it is a defensive barrier.
Furthermore, Will, Gared, and Waymar’s expedition reveals that the Wildlings are outlaws or as Waymar calls them, “savages” located beyond the Wall. They are separatists who do not recognize themselves as part of the political system that imposes its will on the Kingdom of the North, or King’s Landing which is described as the capital of the Seven Kingdoms. At this point, the question remains of where the capital, King’s Landing is located and which region (realm) is it the administrative center of.
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As a matter of fact,Game of Thronesis adapted from George R. R. Martin’sA Song of Ice and Firebook series, and its story is set in the fictional Seven Kingdoms located on the continent of Westeros. This massive landmass, Westeros (West) is separated from the continent of Essos (East) by the Narrow Sea. Furthermore, Westeros is divided into Seven Kingdoms spread across nine regions, subject to the paramountcy of the monarch on the Iron Throne. Fictional indeed it is, Martin’s world-building is expansive in every sense of the word. It perfectly sets up the landscape where characters play the game of thrones.
The Geography And Conquest Of Westeros
The Free Cities, mentioned inGame of ThronesandHouse of the Dragon, are the closest foreign territories to Westeros. The Summer Isles lie to the south of Westeros, whereasthe west of Westerosis where all the maps stop. In theGame of Thronesfinale, “The Iron Throne,” Ned Stark’s youngest daughter, Arya acted on her desire to explore the unexplored and set sail on the Sunset Sea that lies to the west of Westeros. The continent has a diverse landscape. It is long and narrow, with the Wall towards its North and Dorne in the South. The northernmost known regions of Westeros are the Land of Always Winter, and due to the extreme landscape, these lands are filled with unexplored areas.
The first king of the Targaryen dynasty,Aegon I conquered six of the Seven Kingdomsof Westeros. Before his invasion, Westeros was divided into seven independent but warring kingdoms namely the North, the Rock, the Reach, the Isles and Rivers, the Stormlands, the Mountain and the Vale, and Dorne. Each of these was ruled by a noble house from a principal residence. The most notable example in this direction would be that of House Stark who ruled the Kingdom of the North from their ancestral castle and seat of power - Winterfell. Aegon saw the warring kingdoms and the independent Principality of Dorne as one unit and set out to conquer and bring them into the fold of the realm.
The Political Machinery of Westeros
The continent of Westeros is among the known continents in the Known World. While the much bigger, diverse, and historically rich, Essos features in HBO’sGame of Thrones, Westeros is where most of the show’s action takes place. Before Sansa Stark won freedom for the North and Bran Stark was elected as King, Westeros' nine distinct administrative regions (apart from the North) were the Vale, the Riverlands, the Iron Islands, the Westerlands, the Crownlands, the Reach, the Stormlands, and Dorne. The Monarch was at the top of the ruling hierarchy that imposed its will on the fictional realm of the Seven Kingdoms. Birthright determined one’s place in society and while the underprivileged such as Varys or people with no distinguished lineage such as Baelish made it to the highest offices, it is often through underhanded means and political scheming they retain these positions of power.
The monarchs of Westeros, such asQueen Cersei Lannister, adopted iron fist policies, but history also recognizes benevolent kings such as Jaehaerys and Viserys I Targaryen. The Wildlings, who self-designate as the Free Folk are not bound by the laws, rules, duties, and limitations that concern the citizenry of the Seven Kingdoms. While the Wildlings still dwelled in Westeros, they considered themselves free people. Another major difference between the Free Folk and the citizenry of the Seven Kingdoms was that the former didn’t recognize a hereditary ruler but chose a leader from among themselves. There existed deep-seated mistrust, malice, and animosity between the two until Jon Snow let the Free Folk through the gates of the Night’s Watch and allied them with the Northerners to prevent strengthening the Night King’s army of the dead. In theGame of Thronesfinale, the former Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch, Jon returned north of the Wall with the remaining Free Folk, his pal, Tormund Giantsbane, and direwolf, Ghost. The lot abandoned Castle Black and headed into the Haunted Forest and that’s where the curtains closed.
