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Duskendale Delay


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When Aerys II was taken hostage at Duskendale, it took half a year before he was rescued single handedly by Barristan Selmy.

I was wondering why it took so long and Barristan didn't attempt save him sooner. I came up with some possibilities:

It may have taken a while for Barristan to plan the mission and the delay was due to recon. However, six months seems a long time.

Could also be possible that Lord Darklyn's security around the king had dropped over the months, only making the rescue possible later. But don't really know why they would lower the security.

Maybe Barristan only offered as a last resort because he was worried about Tywin's planned assault and the casualties that would inflict. It makes sense from the point of view of Barristan.

However, then I'm unsure why Tywin decided on an assault after six months. I like the idea Tywin didn't save the king instantly as with the king captured, as hand, he could rule in his place. Particularly, since at that point their relationship was strained. But then why give up his power in an attempt to save the king all of a sudden?

Maybe in the six months he had planned something,(possibly regarding the succession) behind the king's back amd he intended for the king to die, like Aerys thinks afterwards. But if he wanted him dead why let Barristan go on the rescue mission? It doesn't add up.

Another possiblity, is Tywin had no hidden agenda and had realised the siege wasn't working well enough. Then decided that he could gamble on Darklyn not killing the king because people never kill the hostage as then they have nothing to barter for their life with. He might also have considered that a captured king is about as good use as a dead one so the issue had to be resolved one way or another. 

The simplest reason and my favourite  would be Tywin just thought Aerys deserved to be held hostage for a while and just waited for six months because he was annoyed with the him. However, this seems really petty and Tywin isn't typically petty, so not sure.

Yeah, so this post is a bit scattered (sorry) but I would appreciate any thoughts on what people think Tywin was doing? 

 

 

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11 hours ago, Rickard_The_Crisp said:

Maybe Barristan only offered as a last resort because he was worried about Tywin's planned assault and the casualties that would inflict. It makes sense from the point of view of Barristan.

This has been my thinking. Tywin was in charge and didn't give permission for an earlier rescue mission. Partly because, as you say, he liked that Aerys was being held prisoner for awhile; partly because he didn't want to risk the king's life with a direct assault.

Tywin probably didn't imagine that Barristan would succeed in single-handedly rescuing Aerys, so he didn't give permission until he was almost ready for the larger attack, thinking he might as well try the "Hail Mary" pass (a gridiron football term in the U.S., considered to be a longshot like a little prayer, when time is about to run out). 

I have also wondered whether Aerys might have been using "The Defiance of Duskendale" as a cover story. He pretended that he was being held in a tower, but he was actually wandering his realm as a spy, incognito. He may have had a prior arrangement with Barristan to be "rescued" at the end of the six months. 

The Darklyns had a history of loyal service to the Targaryens and the kings guard. They were so proud of this history, they incorporated it into the House Sigil. The very idea of the Defiance seems at odds with their family tradition. The notion of a pre-planned ruse requested by the King makes more sense in the context of their history of loyal support and protection for the King. 

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2 minutes ago, Seams said:

I have also wondered whether Aerys might have been using "The Defiance of Duskendale" as a cover story. He pretended that he was being held in a tower, but he was actually wandering his realm as a spy, incognito. He may have had a prior arrangement with Barristan to be "rescued" at the end of the six months. 

 

This is very unlikely, Aerys suffered from a trauma after the defiance that he never left the red keep, and there's no benefit from doing so, and they did kill a knight of a kingsguard.

 

5 minutes ago, Seams said:

 The Darklyns had a history of loyal service to the Targaryens and the kings guard. They were so proud of this history, they incorporated it into the House Sigil. The very idea of the Defiance seems at odds with their family tradition. The notion of a pre-planned ruse requested by the King makes more sense in the context of their history of loyal support and protection for the King. 

What does their sigil have to do with it? and that pre-requested plan by the king actually make no sense, Aerys ordered the extinction of their house save for dontos as a favor for saving his life so there's they got no protection from the king.




back to the topic, I think it took long because of the confusion that followed after Aerys imprisonment, gathering troops required time and besieging a castle while the king is inside is also very risky so he have to sit and wait, it would also look ill if Tywin doesn't make an attempt to negotiate for a resolution, this alone can take months, he's still the hand of the king after all so Aerys safety is his primary concern.


 

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I think there was every reason to not rescue him. For one, such an attempt was to be met with a swift killing of Aerys. Second, Aerys by all accounts was acting like an absolute fool. Making promises he couldn't keep. Threatening war on Braavos. Keeping mistresses. Defying his own Hand of the King. He was beginning to become a nuisance. Aerys made a better prisoner than he did a king. 

Besides. A simple siege on the castle would of resulted in the inevitable release of Aerys. The Darklyns could only ever hold out for so long. Until such time as their resources ran out. And if Aerys wound-up dead... Maybe the realm would've thanked them for it. Not officially. But Aerys really was becoming an increasingly difficult threat to the stability of the realm. If you read his exploits in their entirety, it's a wonder he held on to power for as long as he did. 

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