There are seven stone balls for the seven members of the small council, and if you recognize the world of A Music of Ice and Fireplace in any respect, you may know that quantity is way from a coincidence. Seven is crucial quantity in Westeros for a number of causes. For one, the realm’s dominant faith revolves round worshipping a god with seven faces, or types: the Father, the Mom, the Maiden, the Crone, the Warrior, the Smith, and the Stranger. This multifaceted deity is represented by the religion’s core image, the Seven-Pointed Star. That is additionally why the clergymen who lead the faith are referred to as septons, as “sept” means seven.
After all, this is not the one significance of the quantity seven in Westeros. The realm itself is also known as the Seven Kingdoms, although this moniker is a bit complicated. Should you’ve seen “Sport of Thrones” or learn the novels, you’ve got most likely tried to determine which kingdoms are literally being referenced. The North? Dorne? Do they belong to the nice households of Westeros? That is all form of proper, however the full reply is a little more sophisticated.
As outlined within the encyclopedic companion guide “The World of Ice and Fireplace,” the phrase “Seven Kingdoms” refers back to the state of Westeros when Aegon the Conqueror first started warring to unite it. On the time, there have been seven distinct kingdoms on the continent. Some, just like the North, dominated by Home Stark, keep constant by way of to the cut-off date when “Sport of Thrones” takes place. Homes Lannister, Arryn, and Martell every guidelines impartial kingdoms as nicely, whereas the Stormlands, Attain, and Riverlands had been all dominated by kings from households that will finally get replaced after the Targaryen conquest.