Jaak Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 How serious do you think was the whole of pre-Maegor Faith Militant about their faith? Consider that: what were the options of nobles? For heirs - landed incomes. Right. For non-heirs? Household knight in family. Yes. We see from Merrett Frey that it is not assured. Sandor Clegane and Brynden Tully are other examples of family members seeking other employment. Household knight in other families? Yes. And not assured either. Household knights may marry. But they are not good catches. See the example of Podrick Payne´s father, who married chandler´s daughter. So the alternatives? Faith as a septon. And Citadel. Both require education, and involve giving up marriage for life. And do not make use of what training a noble does have - as a warrior. So that left... Wall, and Faith Militant. Going to Wall involves freezing. And there always were wildings to fight. But Faith Militant? In Andal Westeros before Maegor, which lord was eager to pick a quarrel with Faith? Lords were habitually feuding with each other. And kings chronically warred. But if Faith was supposed to be an all-Andal institution then that would have deterred lords from militarily attacking Faith. Meaning that in terms of actually having to fight and die in battle, Faith Militant might actually have been safer than either serving as a secular household knight or at Wall. So for a second son with insecure employment and poor marriage prospects, like ser Waymar, Faith Militant may have looked attractive. With the main catch being lifetime renunciation of option of marriage. Now, precisely because of their popularity, Faith Militant may have afforded to be selective. While Wall takes criminals, incompetents, cowards and cripples, Faith Militant may have chosen who they took. But still. In a situation where Faith Militant rarely actually had to fight, people like ser Boros could easily have flocked to Faith. How many of the Faith Militant were after lifetime employment, and got second thought when Faith actually got an enemy with dragonfire? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Universal Sword Donor Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 Pretty serious Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lion of the West Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 Serious enough to fight dragons with not dragons of their own. To be honest a monastic life style really isn't for everyone. And I get the impression that's what the Warrior's Sons were living. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aryagonnakill#2 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 I think you make a fair point, and I am sure there would be some people like that, I am picturing state workers who go into work miserable every day until they can cash in their pension. However you have to consider how completely unbearable it would be to be around the actual believers. I know I couldn't put up with psychos every day for life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlaskanSandman Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 I would completely agree with you. It was almost like, the faith was weakening the position of the Wall, along with down playing the legends of the Others and such....... (whistles non chalantly) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaak Posted November 28, 2017 Author Share Posted November 28, 2017 24 minutes ago, LionoftheWest said: To be honest a monastic life style really isn't for everyone. And I get the impression that's what the Warrior's Sons were living. But so are Night Watch and Citadel. And we see their frailties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lion of the West Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 Just now, Jaak said: But so are Night Watch and Citadel. And we see their frailties. Not really. To my understanding the Night's Watch is more military while the Citadel is more academic rather than monastic in nature. At least that's how I see it but then again with "monastic" I kind of includes all manner of associations that others may not per necessity share. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Varys Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 It would depend on the people. Most should be sincere believers, or at least pretending to be such. Others would be cynics who saw the Warrior's Sons as a better career choice than the life of a tourney knight, say. One also assumes that the Warrior's Sons had pretty cozy lives, overall. They had their chapters at fixed locations, most likely controlling vast holdings in the surrounding areas, enabling them to enjoy a rather luxurious lifestyle. They were not the Poor Fellows. And during the various wars in those days most kings would have been rather keen not to attack, harm, or hurt the Faith and its properties considering that the Faith Militant could have then sided with the attacked party - not to mention that the Faith Militant all across Westeros could decide to attack some king whose war the High Septon had declared to be 'unjust', or if tales spread that this king and his army had attacked the Faith. The kind of atrocities the members of the Faith suffer in the Riverlands during the War of the Five Kings was, most likely, unthinkable back when the Faith Militant was still around. Technically we should imagine the Seven Kingdoms prior to the Conquest as 'the Eight Kingdoms' considering that the holdings of the Faith must have been rather vast, stretching across the entire south. In a sense, those holdings still exist, but they no longer have any visible political power. Although their economic power must still be vast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Fossoway Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 Dragons were the face of what the Faith abhorred. To fight against the beasts was more the verification of faith than an obstacle to overcome. So to form a militarized movement that went against a royalty that possessed dragons was evidence of a strong Faith. But that was the Faith during Maegor's reign. I feel that the current Faith, while it gathers a lot of believers, it is managed by interests beyond a dogmatic cause. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaak Posted November 29, 2017 Author Share Posted November 29, 2017 Ironmen banished septons and destroyed septs on Iron Islands. How did ironborn reavers treat septs, septons and septas on their raids on greenlands? Was it common for silent sisters to become saltwives? How did Faith Militant respond to ironborn reavers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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