Swan Song part 15/16. The False Prophet

[Megorova]

This thread is a spin-off of the Swan Song part 7/16. The Bastard of Harrenhal

“When Manfred didn’t get Harrenhal, even after everything he did to have it, he went away from Westeros, though that’s a story for another thread.”

This is that story, it’s about what Manfred was doing in those years that he was away from Westeros, and why what he did then is relevant for what is currently happening in ASOIAF.

Common Cause

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BELLEGERE OTHERYS (THE BLACK PEARL OF BRAAVOS)

Smuggler, trader, sometime pirate, captain of the Widow Wind, born of a union between a Braavosi merchant’s daughter and an envoy from the Summer Isles

After Naerys fell pregnant and almost died in 161, King Baelor sent Aegon to Braavos on a diplomatic mission. Accounts of the time suggest it was an excuse to make certain Aegon left Naerys alone as she recovered from a failed childbirth. There he met Bellegere Otherys. His affair with the Black Pearl continued for ten years, though it was said that Bellegere had a husband in every port and that Aegon was but one of many. She gave birth to three children during the decade, two girls and a boy of doubtful paternity.

Children by the Black Pearl: Bellenora, Narha, Balerion.

LADY JEYNE LOTHSTON

Daughter of Lady Falena, the king’s first mistress, by either Lord Lucas Lothston or the king himself

Jeyne was brought to court by her mother in 178, when she was fourteen. Aegon made Lord Lothston his new Hand, and it was said (but never proved) that he enjoyed mother and daughter together in the same bed. He soon gave Jeyne a pox he’d caught from the whores he’d been seeing after Lady Bethany’s execution, and the Lothstons were then all sent from court again.

Children by Jeyne Lothston: None.

... His last act before his death, all accounts agree, was to set out his will. And in it, he left the bitterest poison the realm ever knew: he legitimized all of his natural children, from the most baseborn to the Great Bastards—the sons and daughters born to him by women of noble birth. Scores of his natural children had never been acknowledged; Aegon’s dying declaration meant naught to them. For his acknowledged bastards, however, it meant a great deal. - TWOIAF, Aegon IV.

Aegon never acknowledged that Bellegere’s children were fathered by him. Also, it seems likely that he was the one who was spreading those rumors that she had a husband in every port. And in Manfred’s case, it wasn’t even publicly known that his real mother was Jeyne Lothston, and thus there was no evidence for Manfred to prove that he also was one of Aegon’s children. After the First Blackfyre Rebellion, for the role that Manfred had played in the fall of the Blackfyres, King Daeron legitimized him. Though he refused to give Manfred what he craved the most - to be acknowledged as Aegon’s son and to get Harrenhal. Daeron denied him both; he refused to acknowledge Manfred as his half-sibling, and decreed that even though Manfred was legitimized and officially became a Lothston, the Harrenhal will continue to be the property of its current owners - the other Lothstons. Afterwards, Manfred decided to join forces with Aegon’s other bastards, those that remained unacknowledged, just like him. That’s why he went to Braavos to make a common cause with his half-siblings, the three Otheryses.

Bellenora, Narha, and Balerion were born in 161-171 AC. Thus, during the First Blackfyre Rebellion in 196 AC, they were 25-35 years old, and Manfred, who was born in 178-180 AC, at that time was 16-18. By the time he came to Braavos, his half-siblings already had children close to Manfred’s own age. He approached them under pretense that he considers them to be his family, and thus he wants to get to know them. Possibly he lied to them that what happened between him and the Blackfyres was either a misunderstanding or a lie made by the Targaryens, and he hadn’t betrayed Daemon. They believed him and accepted him into their household. Eventually, he hooked up with one of his half-nieces. For the sake of convenience, let’s call her Alayne.

Concerning Bellegere Otherys, according to the World Book, her parents were a Braavosi merchant’s daughter and an envoy from the Summer Isles, though later it was revealed that “She was a pirate queen, fathered by a Sealord’s son on a princess from the Summer Isles.” - TWOW, Mercy. Thus, the three Otheryses were great-grandchildren of the previous Sealord, their maternal grandmother was a Princess, their mother was a pirate Queen, and it’s likely that all three of them and their children were the keyholders of the Iron Bank. Apparently they were rich and had connections in a lot of important places. And Manfred was intending to use those connections for his own purposes.

It seems that eventually he left Braavos to go back to the 7K. Could be that him and Alayne weren’t married, or maybe she died and he became a widower. Either way, sometime after returning to Westeros, he got married there and then brought his family to Harrenhal. Though back at Braavos remained at least one of his abandoned children, born by Alayne.

Debts unpaid

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“The singers leave out much and more. Daemon was the Warrior himself that day. No man could stand before him. He broke Lord Arryn’s van to pieces and slew the Knight of Ninestars and Wild Wyl Waynwood before coming up against Ser Gwayne Corbray of the Kingsguard. For near an hour they danced together on their horses, wheeling and circling and slashing as men died all around them. It’s said that whenever Blackfyre and Lady Forlorn clashed, you could hear the sound for a league around. It was half a song and half a scream, they say. But when at last the Lady faltered, Blackfyre clove through Ser Gwayne’s helm and left him blind and bleeding. Daemon dismounted to see that his fallen foe was not trampled, and commanded Redtusk to carry him back to the maesters in the rear. And there was his mortal error, for the Raven’s Teeth had gained the top of Weeping Ridge, and Bloodraven saw his half brother’s royal standard three hundred yards away, and Daemon and his sons beneath it. He slew Aegon first, the elder of the twins, for he knew that Daemon would never leave the boy whilst warmth lingered in his body, though white shafts fell like rain. Nor did he, though seven arrows pierced him, driven as much by sorcery as by Bloodraven’s bow. Young Aemon took up Blackfyre when the blade slipped from his dying father’s fingers, so Bloodraven slew him, too, the younger of the twins. Thus perished the black dragon and his sons.” - TSS.

For Daemon’s mercy towards Ser Gwayne, House Corbray was forever indebted to the Blackfyres, so if one of them had asked the Corbrays for a favor, it would have been granted unconditionally. As Aegon the Unworthy’s granddaughter, Alayne was Bittersteel’s niece and a first cousin of Daemon II, Haegon I, Aenys, Calla and other children of Daemon I Blackfyre. Her son, who was a sellsword, wanted to migrate to Westeros and to live at the 7K. So thru her cousins, Alayne had requested Corbrays to hire him in the service of Lord Corbray, and this request was granted.

And when years later the sellsword’s son became a hedge knight, he took the stone head of the Titan of Braavos as his sigil. His grandson fought in the War of the Ninepenny Kings on the side of the Targaryens. During his service in that war, he befriended Hoster Tully. This friendship led to his son Petyr becoming Hoster’s ward at Riverrun, where he was raised alongside with Hoster’s children - Catelyn, Lysa, and Edmure Tully. Unknown to Hoster, Petyr and his children were bloodrelated. The founder of House Whent (grandfather of Shella Whent, Walter, Oswell, Minisa, and Sarya Whent) also was the father of the sellsword from Braavos, who was Petyr’s great-grandfather. Thus, Petyr is a third cousin of the Tully-siblings.

Cats, Coins and Pearls

The Titan of Braavos is an official symbol of that city, though Braavos also has other symbols, not as obvious.

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“The ships of Braavos sail as far as the winds blow, to lands strange and wonderful, and when they return their captains fetch queer animals to the Sealord’s menagerie. Such animals as you have never seen, striped horses, great spotted things with necks as long as stilts, hairy mouse-pigs as big as cows, stinging manticores, tigers that carry their cubs in a pouch, terrible walking lizards with scythes for claws. Syrio Forel has seen these things.

“On the day I am speaking of, the first sword was newly dead, and the Sealord sent for me. Many bravos had come to him, and as many had been sent away, none could say why. When I came into his presence, he was seated, and in his lap was a fat yellow cat. He told me that one of his captains had brought the beast to him, from an island beyond the sunrise. ‘Have you ever seen her like?’ he asked of me.

“And to him I said, ‘Each night in the alleys of Braavos I see a thousand like him,’ and the Sealord laughed, and that day I was named the first sword.”

Arya screwed up her face. “I don’t understand.”

Syrio clicked his teeth together. “The cat was an ordinary cat, no more. The others expected a fabulous beast, so that is what they saw. How large it was, they said. It was no larger than any other cat, only fat from indolence, for the Sealord fed it from his own table. What curious small ears, they said. Its ears had been chewed away in kitten fights. And it was plainly a tomcat, yet the Sealord said ‘her,’ and that is what the others saw. Are you hearing?”

Arya thought about it. “You saw what was there.” - AGOT, Arya IV.

“Braavos was full of cats” - ADWD, The Blind Girl.

And there is a cat-themed symbolism connected to Petyr Baelish:

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Lord Petyr was seated on his window seat, languid and elegant in a plush plum-colored doublet and a yellow satin cape, one gloved hand resting on his knee.

... “So,” Lord Petyr continued after a pause, utterly unabashed, “what’s in your pot for me?”

“Harrenhal.”

It was interesting to watch his face. Lord Petyr’s father had been the smallest of small lords, his grandfather a landless hedge knight; by birth, he held no more than a few stony acres on the windswept shore of the Fingers. Harrenhal was one of the richest plums in the Seven Kingdoms, its lands broad and rich and fertile, its great castle as formidable as any in the realm . . . and so large as to dwarf Riverrun, where Petyr Baelish had been fostered by House Tully, only to be brusquely expelled when he dared raise his sights to Lord Hoster’s daughter.

Littlefinger took a moment to adjust the drape of his cape, but Tyrion had seen the flash of hunger in those sly cat’s eyes. I have him, he knew. “Harrenhal is cursed,” Lord Petyr said after a moment, trying to sound bored. - ACOK, Tyrion IV.

Littlefinger was sitting on a window seat, languid and elegant, like a cat basking in sunshine. He was wearing a yellow cape, and the Seallord’s tomcat also was yellow. And Petyr’s eyes are “sly cat’s eyes”.

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“I’ve angered you, my lady. That was never my intent.” He looked contrite. The look brought back vivid memories for Catelyn. He had been a sly child, but after his mischiefs he always looked contrite; it was a gift he had. The years had not changed him much. Petyr had been a small boy, and he had grown into a small man, an inch or two shorter than Catelyn, slender and quick, with the sharp features she remembered and the same laughing grey-green eyes. He had a little pointed chin beard now, and threads of silver in his dark hair, though he was still shy of thirty. They went well with the silver mockingbird that fastened his cloak. Even as a child, he had always loved his silver. - AGOT, Catelyn IV.

Petyr unquestioningly has financial talent. As Catelyn noted “he had always loved his silver”.

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Ten years ago, Jon Arryn had given him a minor sinecure in customs, where Lord Petyr had soon distinguished himself by bringing in three times as much as any of the king’s other collectors. King Robert had been a prodigious spender. A man like Petyr Baelish, who had a gift for rubbing two golden dragons together to breed a third, was invaluable to his Hand. Littlefinger’s rise had been arrow-swift. Within three years of his coming to court, he was master of coin and a member of the small council, and today the crown’s revenues were ten times what they had been under his beleaguered predecessor . . . though the crown’s debts had grown vast as well. A master juggler was Petyr Baelish.

Oh, he was clever. He did not simply collect the gold and lock it in a treasure vault, no. He paid the king’s debts in promises, and put the king’s gold to work. He bought wagons, shops, ships, houses. He bought grain when it was plentiful and sold bread when it was scarce. He bought wool from the north and linen from the south and lace from Lys, stored it, moved it, dyed it, sold it. The golden dragons bred and multiplied, and Littlefinger lent them out and brought them home with hatchlings.

And in the process, he moved his own men into place. The Keepers of the Keys were his, all four. The King’s Counter and the King’s Scales were men he’d named. The officers in charge of all three mints. Harbormasters, tax farmers, customs sergeants, wool factors, toll collectors, pursers, wine factors; nine of every ten belonged to Littlefinger. They were men of middling birth, by and large; merchants’ sons, lesser lordlings, sometimes even foreigners, but judging from their results, far more able than their highborn predecessors.

No one had ever thought to question the appointments, and why should they? Littlefinger was no threat to anyone. A clever, smiling, genial man, everyone’s friend, always able to find whatever gold the king or his Hand required, and yet of such undistinguished birth, one step up from a hedge knight, he was not a man to fear. He had no banners to call, no army of retainers, no great stronghold, no holdings to speak of, no prospects of a great marriage. - ACOK, Tyrion IV.

And now he is Lysa Tully-Arryn’s widower, and Lord Protector of the Vale, with the knights of the Vale at his service, and Sansa Stark as his ultimate trump card.

In my opinion, Littlefinger’s money-making talent is a hint that he is bloodrelated to the keyholders of the Iron Bank, the Otheryses. Also, could be that one of his ancestors is the hedge knight Uthor Underleaf, a character from “The Mystery Knight” novel. And Petyr’s affiliation with the brotheling business could be a hint to his descend from the Black Pearls of Braavos, famous courtesans that seems to be something like local mascots of Braavos and one of its unofficial symbols.

Mockingbird

I think that Petyr’s personal sigil, a mockingbird, has a double meaning. It’s a hint to his past affiliation with Varys. When Varys just arrived to Westeros and was searching there for a suitable man to become the father of the Promised Prince, he was contemplating Petyr as one of the prospective candidates. He knew who Petyr’s ancestor was. Varys traced Petyr thru his connection to House Corbray, whom Blackfyres in the past asked for a favor for their relative. Though later Varys dismissed Petyr as a candidate and instead recruited him as an agent, one of his little birds. In my opinion, it’s a common misunderstanding that supposedly all of Varys agents are mutes, and here’s the proof:

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“How could you know all that?”

“The whisperings of little birds,” Varys said, smiling. - AGOT, Catelyn IV.

... Littlefinger smiled. “Leave Lord Varys to me, sweet lady. If you will permit me a small obscenity—and where better for it than here—I hold the man’s balls in the palm of my hand.” He cupped his fingers, smiling. “Or would, if he were a man, or had any balls. You see, if the pie is opened, the birds begin to sing, and Varys would not like that. Were I you, I would worry more about the Lannisters and less about the eunuch.” - AGOT, Ned IV.

How can those “birds” whisper or sing if they are mutes? They can’t. And thus, they are not mutes. Years later, when Petyr found out nearly all of Varys’ secrets, he betrayed him and, as a symbol of outsmarting his ex-master, had chosen a mockingbird as his personal sigil. With this symbol, he is mocking Varys, though it also has another meaning. In wild nature, mockingbirds often become victims of brood parasites - other birds lay eggs in their nests, hiding them among the host’s own eggs, and that way, make them raise the alien hatchlings. Though Petyr had accomplished the opposite - he tricked the great falcon of the Vale, Jon Arryn, into raising Petyr’s child - Sweetrobin.

The Beast out of the earth

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Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon. It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. And it performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of the people. Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. - Revelation 13: 11-14.

Thru the Bastard of Harrenhal Littlefinger is a 4-times-great-grandson of Falena Stokeworth. The family sigil of House Stokeworth is a white lamb holding a golden goblet on a green field. That sigil looks a lot like how Agnus Dei, the Lamb of God, is depicted on the icons. Like this one:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamb_of_God#Book_of_Revelation

Petyr is partially Stokeworth and partially Targaryen. That’s why he is a Beast that has horns like a lamb and voice like a dragon.

In the Bible, the Beast out of the Earth also was called the False Prophet because he rallied people to worship the fake Messiah.

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Later, the Imp had slipped a handful of stags to one of Darry’s serving men for the key to the cellar where the missing tapestries were hidden. He showed them to Jaime by the light of a candle, grinning; woven portraits of all the Targaryen kings, from the first Aegon to the second Aenys. - AFFC, Jaime IV.

... “Does Lord Baelish seek our help?” asked Harys Swyft.

“Not as yet. In truth, he seems quite unconcerned. His last letter mentions the rebels only briefly before beseeching me to ship him some old tapestries of Robert’s.” - AFFC, Cersei IV.

... Petyr laughed. “Perhaps I shall. Or better still, to our sweet Cersei. Though I should not speak harshly of her, she is sending me some splendid tapestries. Isn’t that kind of her?” - AFFC, Alayne I.

In my opinion, Littlefinger’s intentions are something like this: he will use Targaryen tapestries to make an image of fAegon, who is a parallel to the Biblical Beast out of the Sea (the Beast that had many heads, one of which was mortally wounded and then healed itself, making people worship it). Petyr will rally people of the 7K to welcome fAegon, the False Promised Prince, as their King. Then he will offer Sansa Stark as a bride for fAegon.

It seems that originally, Varys was planning for fAegon to marry with Margaery Tyrell and thru that marriage to gain for him access to the Reach (my latest discovery is that maybe Olenna Tyrell’s mother was Calla Blackfyre, which means that Margaery is fAegon’s third cousin). Petyr knew about those plans, and to disrupt them, suggested Tyrells to marry Margaery to Renly. It wasn’t predetermined when exactly fAegon will arrive to Westeros with the Golden Company, whether it will happen next year, or 5 or 10 years from now on. And thus, Tyrells got tired of being fed with Varys’ promises, and Littlefinger used their impatience for his own benefit. Now, Margaery is twice a widow, married for a third time, and she’s not a virgin. Furthermore, she is not even her father’s heir-presumptive; there are Willas, Loras and Garlan in the succession line before her. So it’s questionable how beneficial the marriage with Margaery could be for fAegon.

Though there’s another prospective bride-candidate for him - Arianne Martell. After her father’s death, she will become the ruling Princess of Dorne. Though, she’s also not a virgin and thus, it’s questionable whether fAegon will want to marry her. Furthermore, Dorne is the hottest region of Westeros. It’s rocky, mountainous, arid and dry. Most of Dorne south of the Red Mountains is an arid wasteland. Eastern Dorne largely consists of dry, stony soil, ill-suited for agriculture, while western Dorne contains deserts of red and white sand. Inland water is almost as valuable as gold, and wells are jealously guarded. Dorne is the least populous of the Seven Kingdoms. Dorne’s true military numbers have not yet been revealed, though GRRM has previously stated that Dorne is roughly equal in military strength to the North and the Vale. So what exactly Martells can offer to fAegon - not-a-maiden bride and sand, sand, and more sand? Supposedly, they can raise fifty-thousands soldiers, though the Vale can do the same, and it’s much closer to King’s Landing than Dorne.

Thus, getting the Vale on his side thru political marriage with Sansa Stark will be more favorable for fAegon than to marry either Arianne or Margaery. Unlike the other two girls, Sansa is the key to more than one Kingdom: she can rally support from the Vale, the North and Riverlands. And she’s a virgin, and pretty, and she is thought to be her father’s sole living heir. Thus, the marriage with Sansa is the most beneficial for fAegon and the Golden Company. Though it’s obvious that Littlefinger is planning to use Sansa for his own benefit. That’s why he kept watch over her all this time and brought her with him to the Vale. If his plans concerning Sansa will be successful, and she will become fAegon’s Queen, then it’s likely that in the future Petyr will use on them the same trick that he used on Jon Arryn and Lysa Tully - fAegon’s child actually will be Littlefinger’s. Then he will persuade Sansa to poison her husband, or he will poison fAegon himself and frame Sansa for his death, same as he framed her in Joffrey’s poisoning. King Aegon VI Targaryen will die from poisoning, his wife, Queen Sansa, will be executed for high treason, and Littlefinger will become their child’s Regent and the little King’s Hand. Using this same method, he became Robert Arryn’s Regent and Lord Protector of the Vale. If this method worked once, it would work again, this time on a grander scale.

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“Littlefinger... the gods only know what game Littlefinger is playing.” - Varys, AGOT, Arya III.

... “I ride where I will and serve no man but myself.

… if you dance with dragons, you must expect to burn.” - Uthor Underleaf, The Mystery Knight.

Same as his (possible) ancestor, the Snail, Littlefinger serves no one but himself, and only gods know what game he’s playing. Though he got involved with the dragons, and thus his fate is known - same as the False Prophet from the Bible, Petyr Baelish will burn.

The End

[Süneyra Obiasarkan]

One question tho, how would Redwynes agree to wed one of their own to Calla Blackfyre ??? When Blackfyres were enemies to the current kings? Did they hide her identity or were Daeron and his successors okay with the daughter of their enemy marrying into Westerosi nobility???

[Megorova]

7 hours ago, Süneyra Obiasarkan said:

One question tho, how would Redwynes agree to wed one of their own to Calla Blackfyre ??? When Blackfyres were enemies to the current kings? Did they hide her identity or were Daeron and his successors okay with the daughter of their enemy marrying into Westerosi nobility???

I'm not claiming that Olenna Tyrell's mother definitely was Calla Blackfyre, I just see that this kind of possibility is likely. And I think that there are ways how GRRM could have naturally inserted this detail into ASOIAF's plot, and made this turn of events logical and practical, even though the Redwynes were supposedly loyal to the Targaryens and Calla was a traitor's daughter.

It's likely that Daemon Blackfyre made a pact with the Redwynes long before the final battle of that Rebellion. If he won, then Calla would have married with Bittersteel, because in this case Daemon's people wouldn't have needed the services from the Redwynes. Though in case if he would have died, or lost and was seized by the Targaryens, he made sure that his family and his people won't go down together with him. Thus Rohanne and Daemon's children, together with the families of his loyalists, prior the final battle all have gathered at the location from which the Redwyne fleet would have transported them across the Narrow Sea to Tyrosh, in case of Daemon's defeat.

The Redwynes had a vast fleet, and they were using it for various purposes, including for trade, including trading with the Tyroshi. And Calla was the Archon's granddaughter, so this marriage would have been favourable for the Redwynes and their commerce, and for the 7K too.

Try to look at that marriage thru the political prism: it had multiple aspects - political, finantial, personal, practical. And thus it could have been presented by the Redwynes to King Daeron from various angles, using which the Redwynes justified their actions.

It's likely that the Redwynes didn't revealed to King Daeron that they had a pre-agreed deal with Daemon, concerning the fate of his people and his family in case of his death or defeat. Also they didn't told him that it was Bittersteel's (or Daemon's) suggestion to marry Calla with one of the Redwynes, as a payment for their aid. It's likely that they lied that Rohanne of Tyrosh had approached them already after Daemon's death. And that they have agreed to provide for her and her people the passage across the Narrow Sea. Though only on a condition that Rohanne will break up her daughter's engagement to Bittersteel, and instead will agree to marry her with Lord Redwyne's heir - Runceford, which potentially would have strengthened relationship between the 7K and Tyrosh.

Now let's go in details thru various aspects of how the Redwynes could have been able to justify their actions to the King.

Political aspect - after Daemon's death, and the deaths of his firstborn sons, all his other children were still underaged. Thus Daemon's widow - Rohanne of Tyrosh, was the regent of Daemon's heirs, so until they would have reached the age of maturity, she was the one in charge of what was left after Daemon - all his posessions, and also his people. With Daemon's death, and his children being underaged, Rohanne became a liege of all those people that swore their loyalty to Daemon. They became her people, thus they were under her protection. Rohanne's husband died, and thus she wanted to take her family and her people and to go with them back home to her native land - Tyrosh. So if the Redwynes tried to apprehend them, then it would have been the same as declaring a war against the Archon of Tyrosh. And did King Daeron wanted to have another war, this one with the Tyroshi, in addition to the one that he just recently had fought with the Blackfyres? At least that's what the Redwynes could have claimed, as their reasons for not apprehending Daemon's people.

Finantial aspect - the fleet of the Redwynes is their private property. The King has no right to order them with whom they should make business, and with whom they shouldn't. They provided various services to various people, including providing a transportation to the sea-travelers.

All those people - Daemon's loyalists - wanted to cross the Narrow Sea, and for their passage they offered money to the Redwynes. Gold is gold, whether it is given by the traitors or by loyalists, for business that sort of details are irrelevant. Politics and business should be separated one from the other. If the Redwynes would have refused to make business with all those prospective clients, would King Daeron provided monetary compensation to the Redwynes for letting pass such a lucrative business opportunity? Unlikely. So who would have blamed them for seizing that chance? No one.

Also - did Daeron specifically ordered to the Redwynes or to other owners of ships and sea-vessels not to provide services to any of the Blackfyre-loyalists or their families? I don't think so. And thus the Redwynes didn't broke any laws, they were just making business.

Personal aspect - if Lord Redwyne didn't married his son to Calla, then the girl would have married with Bittersteel. So the Redwynes SAVED HER. And she was King Daeron's niece. So shouldn't the King be grateful to them for saving his niece from the marriage with that awful brute Bittersteel, whom Daeron detested?

Practical aspect - if all those people, that were supporting Daemon in the span of his Rebellion, didn't left Westeros when the war ended, then what would have happened later? Amongst them there would have been many of those that were unsatisfied with the war's outcome, so instead of coming to terms with their defeat, they would have formed numerous bands of outlaws and would have continued to cause unrest all over 7K. If they didn't left, then what King Daeron could have done with them?

To send all of them to The Wall? Would that have been wise? So many people that previously were united by fighting for the common cause. Even if they were sent to The Wall, they would have still remained together and supported each other. So how much time would have passed after them being send to The Wall and them seizing the castles of the Night's Watch and continuing their Rebellion from there? I think - not long. Considering that there were thousands of Daemon's supporters, if they all were sent to The Wall, then they would have outnumbered the original inhabitants of the Night's Watch. Also, after seizing the castles on The Wall, they could have sent an envoys to the Wildlings, made a pact with them and opened the gates, letting all those savages to pass thru, and launching them at the citizens of the 7K.

So if The Wall was not a viable option, then what else could have been done? Mass executions? Of thousands? Amongst whom there were also women and children? Did Daeron wanted to be remembered in the history as Daeron the Butcher, instead of being Daeron the Good? No? What other options were there? To imprison them all? Though it's unlikely that in the existing prisons there would have been enough vacancies to provide accommodation for all of them. And building new prisons, same as hiring new guards/jailers, would have taken time, and would have costed a lot of money. Also, who would have paid for feeding all those prisoners? And for how long? Daeron would have had to empty the treasury, and to spend all the tax money on sustaining his Prison State. So the last remaining option was to send all those people into exile. And that's exactly what the Redwynes have done. So shouldn't King Daeron be grateful to them? They did his job

So let's summarize - by providing transportation across the Narrow Sea to Daemon's loyalists, the Redwynes have freed King Daeron from the necessity of dealing with that problem on his own, they cleaned the 7K from thousands of potential troublemakers, they prevented the war with Tyrosh, and also made a lot of money, some of which they have sent as taxes into the 7K's treasury, and they saved Daeron's niece from a marriage with a monster.

That's how the Redwynes could have presented their actions to the King. So they not only didn't hide from the others what they did, they BRAGGED about it. They are heroes, and Calla was the Maiden Fair that was saved by them from the Bear  Maybe there was even a song about how Olenna's parents supposedly got together.

So Daeron and his successors were not only Okay with the daughter of their enemy marrying into Westerosi nobility, they even celebrated this kind of outcome. The 7K aspired to have a good relatioship with Tyrosh. That's why Daeron had married Daemon to the Archon's daughter. Though with Daemon's death, and the Archon's daughter becoming a widow and escaping from the 7K, those good relationships were stained. Thus King Daeron's approval of Calla's marriage with a member of Westerosi nobility (even if he gave his approval only after the marriage had already occurred and became known to him), helped to demonstrate Daeron's continued goodwill towards the Tyroshi.

You mentioned there Daeron's successors, whether they were Ok with this. Yep, they were more than OK with this outcome. Prince Valarr - one of Daeron's grandsons, who was a son of the Crown Prince - married with Kiera of Tyrosh. And after Valarr's death Kierra married with one of King Daeron's other grandsons - Daeron the Drunken. So yes, if the Targaryens were willing to re-marry their boys to the same Tyroshi-woman, just to hang onto their good relatioship with the Tyroshi, then in my opinion to keep Calla at the 7K via a marriage with one of their citizens, was a valuable opportunity, which the Targaryens wouldn't have wasted. Even though originally it wasn't their own idea.

P.S. Of course, my theory concerning the identity of Olenna's mother could be wrong. Though, how else could be explained how Daemon Blackfyre's numerous supporters got across the Narrow Sea, and why the name of Olenna's mother was never mentioned anywhere in the books? Does anyone have a better explanation than mine? Then be my guests - write it here.

[StarksInTheNorth]

17 hours ago, Megorova said:

P.S. Of course, my theory concerning the identity of Olenna's mother could be wrong. Though, how else could be explained how Daemon Blackfyre's numerous supporters got across the Narrow Sea, and why the name of Olenna's mother was never mentioned anywhere in the books? Does anyone have a better explanation than mine? Then be my guests - write it here.

 

Because GRRM doesn’t care. Ned’s mother has never been mentioned in the core series and was only revealed with TWOIAF. Yet she’s mother to two of the most characters and grandmother to six of them. GRRM is renowned for not caring about mothers. Joanna Lannister was first named in ASOS; the Princess of Dorne, mother to Elia, Doran, and Oberyn, is still unnamed. 

Despite multiple books on the Dance, we still don’t know the name or house of Alicent Hightower. She’s the queen of Westeros for ~15 years, mother to a king and mother and grandmother to two other queens. Yet we don’t know her mother’s name even though we know her father.

Mothers of major characters aren’t important enough to be named. So Olenna Tyrell’s mother not being named isn’t that odd. Especially since then we’d need an explanation for why Aegon V betrothed his son to Olenna, even though it would likely be known she was a Blackfyre. 

[Megorova]

1 hour ago, StarksInTheNorth said:

Especially since then we’d need an explanation for why Aegon V betrothed his son to Olenna, even though it would likely be known she was a Blackfyre. 

That is the explanation - Olenna was a carrier of Targaryen blood. We can call them Blackfyres, but actually Daemon I was a pure-blooded Targaryen, with both of his parents being Targaryens - Aegon and Daena.

In my opinion Egg's wife Betha was a daughter of Mya Rivers (Aegon IV's bastard). Mya and Daemon were King Daeron's half-siblings, Betha and Calla were Maekar's first cousins, if Olenna was Calla's daughter then she was a second cousin of Egg and his siblings, so to Egg's son Olenna was a second cousin once removed.

Egg's wife Betha was his first cousin once removed, so it seems fitting that Egg was intending to marry one of his sons with the girl that was that son's second cousin once removed.

Myriah Martell, Dyanna Dayne, Jenna Dondarrion, Alys Arryn, Aelinor Penrose, Elia Martell, Betha Blackwood - they were all partially Targaryens by blood. That's why Targaryen-boys married with them.

Targaryens were keeping their Valyrian blood as pure as possible. And marrying one of them with Olenna Redwyne - a daughter of Calla Blackfyre, was one more step in the same direction.

Also, there was this - "Following the deaths of her parents, brothers, and uncles in the Dance and the victory of the blacks, Jaehaera was married to her cousin King Aegon III Targaryen as part of the peace agreement."

If Targaryens wanted to have a continued good relationship with the Tyroshi (Rohanne's marriage to King Daeron's brother, Kiera's marriage to Valarr and Daeron - King Daeron's grandsons), then the next step would have been for Egg to marry one of his sons with Rohanne of Tyrosh's granddaughter - Olenna.

[StarksInTheNorth]

2 hours ago, Megorova said:

That is the explanation - Olenna was a carrier of Targaryen blood. We can call them Blackfyres, but actually Daemon I was a pure-blooded Targaryen, with both of his parents being Targaryens - Aegon and Daena.

Having Targaryen blood didn’t seem to matter for the marriages of at least two of his children - Jaehaerys was betrothed to Celia Tully and Shaera was to marry Luthor Tyrell. If Aegon wanted blood purity, Duncan/Shaera would’ve been an approved match instead of marrying out. But he didn’t want to.

By the time of Aegon V, support of the Blackfyres had dwindled enough that they didn’t need to worry about it as much, and there’s no indication the Tyroshi much cared about Westeros’ problems by that point.

[Megorova]

33 minutes ago, StarksInTheNorth said:

Having Targaryen blood didn’t seem to matter for the marriages of at least two of his children - Jaehaerys was betrothed to Celia Tully and Shaera was to marry Luthor Tyrell. If Aegon wanted blood purity, Duncan/Shaera would’ve been an approved match instead of marrying out. But he didn’t want to.

"Convinced the Targaryen practice of incestuous marriage was harmful after spending time with smallfolk, Aegon and his queen, Betha Blackwood, betrothed four of their children to some of the Great Houses of the Seven Kingdoms in 237 AC Their eldest son and heir, Prince Duncan, was betrothed to the daughter of Lord Lyonel Baratheon of Storm's End. Prince Jaehaerys, Aegon's second son, was betrothed to Lady Celia Tully, the daughter of the Lord of Riverrun. Aegon's youngest son, Prince Daeron, was betrothed to Lady Olenna Redwyne of the Arbor, when both children were nine years old. In addition, Aegon's eldest daughter, Princess Shaera, was betrothed to Luthor Tyrell, the heir to Highgarden. The proposed marriages would have won Aegon much support for his reforms, but his children had inherited his willfulness and their mother's stubbornness.^[18][12]"

 

Even though Aegon was supposedly against incestuous marriages, he did married with his close blood-relative (his wife Betha was his first cousin once removed). So even though Aegon wasn't intending for his children to marry each other, he still was intending for them to marry with their blood-relatives.

Duncan the Small was supposed to marry with a girl that was his some sort of cousin - one of Lyonel Baratheon's daughters.

Daeron was supposed to marry with Olenna, who was his second cousin once removed, thru a Blackfyre-line.

And concerning Luthor Tyrell and Celia Tully - Princess Rhaena Targaryen had 6 daughters with Garmund Hightower.  

In my opinion one of those 6 girls married with her Hightower-cousin, and their children continued House Hightower; three of her sisters married into Houses Dayne, Arryn and Dondarrion, and their descendants were wives of King Daeron II's sons - Dyanna Dayne (Egg's mother), Jena Dondarrion, and Alys Arryn. That's 4, so there are still two girls left. And I was wandering with whom those two remaining girls could have married. So could be that they have married with a Tyrell and a Tully.

This piece was missing in my theories, and now it's not  Thanks a lot. Because of you I noticed that missing part

[Megorova]

[Edit: I wrote this post before I wrote that one in SS-16, so even though here there are two words written in All Big letters ("then" and "here"), I did not lied. Consider it - those two words, as my last hoorah. But I'm not yealling at you. I'm not.]

On 11/2/2021 at 9:48 PM, Willam Stark said:

On 11/2/2021 at 7:23 PM, Megorova said:

I did explained what was his possible reasons to go to Braavos. You think those reasons are not sufficient?

He wanted to be acknowledged, he wanted to get Harrenhal, and thus he used various means and tried to get assistance from various people, including his Braavosi half-siblings - Bellenora, Narha and Balerion - Aegon's other unacknowledged bastards.

You've created this background, it's not even implied in D&E.

Again, this comes from nowhere.

The part because of which I made a connection between the Bastard of Harrenhal and Petyr Baelish wasn't implied in D&E, instead it was menitoned in the main series.

You can skip the explanation part and to go straight to the quotes, and in case if the connection between those pieces of data from the text of the books will be not clear, THEN you can read the explanation part.

Explanation:

Spoiler

I'll show you how I eventually arrived to the conclusion that Petyr Baelish could be a descendant of an Otherys-girl and the Bastard of Harrenhal. And after that there are quotes from the books, on which are based my "discoveries". You don't like all that "speculative fiction", though to understand why I connected this piece of data from the books with that piece of data, why at all have I decided that they are connected, you need to read how I made those connections, how were formed those conclusions, the thinking process of it. I'll keep it short, so read it all, please.

My other (much earlier (from 2018) posts) about Littlefinger as a possible dragonseed (there was a few "false starts" at the beginning, but eventually I found the correct path) - [No need to read the post on that link]:

https://asoiaf.westeros.org/index.php?/topic/151343-petyr-baelish-blackfyre-heir/&do=findComment&comment=8195564

As it could be seen in my following posts from that thread - "Petyr Baelish Blackfyre heir" (which is not one of my own threads), at that point in time I haven't thought yet that Petyr could be a hidden dragonseed. I was even against this possibility. Though while I was doing some research related to that thread, I have found evidences that support the possibility that Petyr is indeed a descendant of the Targaryens. On June 26 I wrote - "Petyr doesn't look like Targaryen or Blackfyre.", though just a mere two days later, I became convinced that Petyr could be Aegon the Unworthy's descendant. Mostly because of his ancestor's green shield. [Don't go to that link, I copy-pasted HERE the important part.]

https://asoiaf.westeros.org/index.php?/topic/151343-petyr-baelish-blackfyre-heir/&do=findComment&comment=8198862

My quote from there (read only the text in bold):

Quote

Posted June 28, 2018

I think, that maybe Petyr is descendant of Aegon IV Targaryen.

Falena Stokeworth was Aegon's first mistress. Could be, that her daughter, Jeyne Lothston, was Aegon's daughter. Later Jayne also became Aegon's mistress. I think, that she secretly gave birth to Aegon's son, between 178 and 180. This son was the Bastard of Harrenhal, that in 193 was defeated by Ser Arlan of Pennytree, in the melee at a tourney, held at KL. Later he became one of captain-generals of Golden Company, and died in 236, during Fourth Rebellion of Blackfyres. His comrades brought his severed head to his son, and presented it to him on his father's shield. It's from ancient Spartan saying - Come back with your shield, or on it. His shield was mix - black bat of Lothstons on green field of Stokeworths.

~~~

No, though I got this idea, after reading Sansa's description of that shield.

"The device painted on the shield was one Sansa did not know; a grey stone head with fiery eyes, upon a light green field."

It doesn't seems right, to be depiction of the Titan. Sansa is an educated highborn, shouldn't she be able to recognize the Titan, if it was really him on that picture? Also if it's the Titan, then why does he have a fiery eyes? And why is it only the head, depicted on that shield? And also why is it on green background? If it's Titan's head, then shouldn't it be depicted on background of blue sky? So why the background is green? There's no greenery in Braavos. But even if there was, still the Titan's head is way higher than trees or grass, so it should be on font of sky, not something green. Unless sky in Braavos is green, and as far as I remember, it isn't.

So it got me thinking, that the head is not the Titan's head. It's an actual head. Someone's cut off head, depicted on a green font. So the head was brought to his family, in or on something green, like a piece of green cloth, or on top of green shield. Petyr's great grandfather possibly was from same generation as Aegon V, and maybe he or his father fought on side of Blackfyres during their Fourth Rebellion.

Now why is he supposedly from Egg's generation, and why his father died during 4th Rebellion of Blackfyres:

1. Rhaegar - 2. Aerys - 3. Jaehaerys - 4. Aegon V - 5. Maekar I.

If Maekar wasn't killed during Peake's Uprising, then in 236, during 4th Rebellion of Blackfyres, he would have been 55-59 year old, and would have fought on battlefield alongside Egg, and his three grandsons. For example in 236, Bittesteel was 64 years old, nevertheless he did participated in that battle. So if the Bastard of Harrenhal was Aegon IV's son and grandson, and he was born in 178-180, then in 236 he was 56-58 year old - well past his prime, and thus died on that battlefield.

1. Petyr - 2. Petyr's father (he participated in War of Ninepenny Kings, on side of Targaryens) - 3. Petyr's grandfather (hedge knight, that took supposedly the Titan's head as his sigil) - 4. Petyr's great grandfather (sellsword from Braavos) - 5. Petyr's great great grandfather (maybe the broken sword belonged to him, or rather was given to his son, after his father's death, and the head, that was later depicted on their family's sigil, was this man's head. Golden Company has tradition to cut off heads of their fallen generals. It started from death of Bittersteel. Though if they had to bring across the Narrow Sea, remnants of their fallen comrade, to give them to his family, then it's possible, that they brought only head, instead of taking entire body. It's easier to retrive a cut off head, from the battlefield, than to take from there an entire body. Also easier to transport. And there's that saying, often used in books and movies about warriors and battles, about either returning with victory and your shield, or to die in battle, and then the body will be brought back to that warrior's family, on top of his own shield. Which made me think, that either members of Golden Company, cut off head of their fallen comrade, and brought it back to Essos, either wrapped in some green cloth, that they picked up at battlefield, or on top of green shield. Either it was enemy's banner, or enemy's shield, that was green-colored, or it was this warrior's own shield).

That battle happened on Massey's Hook, in Crownlands. I went thru Houses of Crownlands, and their traditional colors and sigils:

• Bar Emmon - leaping blue swordfish on fretty silver on white;
• Buckwell - a rack of golden antlers on vair;
• Celtigar - red crabs strewn on white;
• Massey - a triple spiral - red, green and blue, on white;
• Rosby - three red chevronels on ermine;
• Rykker - two black warhammers crossed on a white saltire on blue;
• Stokeworth - a white lamb holding a golden goblet on a green field;
• Sunglass - seven golden seven-pointed stars in a ring on white;
• Velaryon - a silver seahorse on sea green.

Out of all Crownland Houses, only House Stokeworth has lots of green on their sigil.

Then I went thru history of that House, and got an idea, that the Bastard of Harrenhal is son of Aegon IV and Jeyne Lothston (that was Aegon's bastard-daughter). Falena Stokeworth was married to Lucas Lothston, and he was named Lord of Harrenhal. So both Falena and Jeyne, at certain time lived at Harrenhal. Apparently Jeyne's son was the Bastard of Harrenhal, that lost to Ser Arlan in 193. During that melee at King's Landing, Ser Arlan also defeated Lord Stokeworth. This Lord Stokeworth was probably Falena's great-nephew (she was born in 125, that tournament happened in 193, by that time, if she was still alive, she was 68, so her brother, the old Lord Stokeworth was already dead, or too old to be participating in tournaments, so Ser Arlan's opponent from Stokeworth House, was from different generation than Falena. So great-nephew seems to be right). Also if the Bastard of Harrenhal really was Jeyne's son, then during that tournament, Ser Arlan defeated both - Falena's great-nephew and her bastard-grandson. Arlan's opponents were cousins, that together took part in that tournament.

If this Bastard was son of Aegon IV, and he wanted to keep his parentage in secret, then he wasn't using as his sigil anything obviously Targaryen or dragon-related. And he probably wasn't going to use symbols of House Lothston, because Lord Lothston wasn't his real father. He could have used black bat from their sigil, because the bat could be symbol of Harrenhal, or sort of encrypted symbol of dragons. If Jeyne was half-Stokeworth and half-Targaryen, then her son could have used green background of Stokeworths, and something like a bat, that to other people will look like sigil of House Lothston, while actually it's a symbol of black dragon. So Bastard of Harrenhal was secret Targaryen bastard, and thus, when Daemon I Blackfyre and Bittersteel rebelled against Targaryens, he joined their ranks, fought with them during First Rebellion, and then escaped with Bittersteel to Essos, when later he joined Golden Company, and became one of their captain-generals, and his shield was green. His head was brought to his son, on this green shield, after he died during Fourth Rebellion.

And who is current Lord of Harrenhal? - Petyr Baelish. Isn't it fitting, that he became legitimate Lord of Harrenhal, while years ago, his great great grandfather was the Bastard of Harrenhal, and secret son of Aegon IV.

Then I discarded the idea that the grey head was the head of the Sellsword's father, instead it could have been his brother's, in case if the Bastard of Harrenhal had more than one partially Otherys-child. So one of his Braavosi-sons died in the Fourth Blackfyre Rebellion (or maybe in the Third one), and then the younger one migrated from Braavos to the Vale. Or maybe the head indeed was the head of the Braavos' Titan, but the green color was picked as a part of those coats-of-arms because of the Stokeworths, to whom the Bastard was related thru his maternal grandmother - Falena Stokeworth.

Then I established a new time-table for Petyr's ancestors, by using the time-table from Catelyn's family. She and LF are approximately of the same age, and their fathers fought together in the War of the Ninepenny Kings. So I assumed that if Petyr's father was close in age to Cat's father, then the following generations of their Houses also were close in age, or at least from the same generation, or lived in the same time-period, thus:

1. Catelyn/Petyr, 2. Hoster+Minisa, Shella Whent + Walter, Oswell, maybe also Sarya/Lord Baelish, 3. the father of Shella, the father of Walter and Oswell, the father of Minisa, and maybe also the father of Sarya/ the Hedge Knight, 4. the grandfather of Shella, Minisa and the other Whents/ the Sellsword from Braavos - Petyr's great-grandfather.

It's a logical assumption that the Bastard of Harrenhal could have been the guy responsible for the downfall of House Lothston, from whom he then took Harrenhal and became the founder of House Whent. Or maybe that House was founded by the Bastard's son. Though, if he was who I think, then he was still alive during the fall of the Lothstons, which had occurred sometime during King Maekar's reign, thus no later than in 233 AC. If that Bastard was Jeyne Lothston's son, then he was born in 178-180, and by 233 he was 53-55 years old. Bittersteel took part in the battles of the Golden Company until the day he died, and at that time he was 64 years old. So the Bastard, aged 55, still could have been alive and actively fighting, at the time of the Lothstons' fall.

The Bastard of Harrenhal in 193 AC was defeated in a melee by Ser Arlan of Pennytree, alongside with Lord Stokeworth. At that time the bastard was 13-15 years old. So could be that, as a bastard, he didn't had his own coat-of-arms, and thus was borrowing from his Stokeworth-relative. And he continued using those coats-of-arms, with the Stokeworth' green on it, until he became the Lord of Harrenhal and took a different one. Though while he was at Braavos, he still was using the green one. So that's what his descendants also started to use as their coat-of-arms, or at least one of them did.

So I assumed that the Bastard went to Braavos, then went back to Westeros, then his son - the Sellsword, also relocated to the 7K. And because of all this going back and forth across the Narow Sea, I just thought about the Biblical characters - the Beast out of the Sea, and the Beast out of the Earth. I wrote more on this topic in the Opening Post of this thread, and in the Swan Song Part 14. The part from there relevant for this topic is that the Beast out of the Earth had a dragon's voice and a lamb's horns, and he was ralling people to support the Beast out of the Sea, and told them to make an image of that Beast, and to worship it. Petyr, as a descendant of a Targaryen-bastard, has a dragon's voice, and as a descendant of a Stokeworth, he has a lamb's horns - because there is a lamb on the green banner of the Stokeworths. So Petyr is GRRM's parallel to that Beast, which in the Bible was also called - the False prophet (which is why it is the theme of this thread).

Additional reason why I connected Petyr to the False prophet, is because that lamb - on the banner of Stokeworths, looks similar to the Sacrificial Lamb / Agnus Dei / the Lamb of God / Jesus Christ. The real Agnus Dei, depicted on the religios icons and in churches, also has a chalise, though he is just standing near it. And there's a cut on his body, and the blood from the cut is pouring into the vessel. So that vessel is the Holy Grail with the blood of Jesus. And the Stokeworth's lamb isn't bleeding, so he's a faker. And he is depicted with his front paw holding that golden chalise. So he's a greedy little creep, and he's guarding that gold, like the dragons in the legends (like Smaug from The Lord of the Rings and Hobbit).

Petyr Baelish has a money-making talent, and he is connected to the Iron Bank of Braavos - he's a Master of Coin, and in the name of the Crown he borrowed a lot of money from the Bank, and then stole all that gold. So he's amassing gold, like a dragon. Also he's in a brotheling business, and one of his ancestors came from Braavos, and the timing shows that he could have been a decendant of the First Black Pearl of Braavos, who was a courtesan. Another connection between Petyr and Braavos are cats. I wrote this part in the Opening Post of this thread.

So that's about it. And now the basis from the books.

Quotes:

Quote

Above the hearth hung a broken longsword and a battered oaken shield, its paint cracked and flaking.

The device painted on the shield was one Sansa did not know; a grey stone head with fiery eyes, upon a light green field. "My grandfather's shield," Petyr explained when he saw her gazing at it. "His own father was born in Braavos and came to the Vale as a sellsword in the hire of Lord Corbray, so my grandfather took the head of the Titan as his sigil when he was knighted." - ASOS, Sansa VI.

https://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Crownlands#Houses

Amongst the Crownland's Houses only House Stokeworth has a lot of green on their banner.

https://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/File:House_Stokeworth.svg

And amongst the Houses of the Vale, besides the Baelishes, there's only Waynwoods with a lot of green on their banner, though there's no relevant connection between them and Petyr.

https://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Vale_of_Arryn#Houses_and_Clans

A Dragon hoarding gold, a Lamb that holds a chalise in its paw - greed. Gold and brothels - Iron Bank and the Black Pearls - connection between LF and Braavos:

Quote

Ten years ago, Jon Arryn had given him a minor sinecure in customs, where Lord Petyr had soon distinguished himself by bringing in three times as much as any of the king’s other collectors... A man like Petyr Baelish, who had a gift for rubbing two golden dragons together to breed a third... Within three years of his coming to court, he was master of coin and a member of the small council, and today the crown’s revenues were ten times what they had been under his beleaguered predecessor... The golden dragons bred and multiplied, and Littlefinger lent them out and brought them home with hatchlings. - ACOK, Tyrion IV.

Even as a child, he had always loved his silver. - AGOT, Catelyn IV.

"You would not believe half of what is happening in King's Landing, sweetling. Cersei stumbles from one idiocy to the next, helped along by her council of the deaf, the dim, and the blind. I always anticipated that she would beggar the realm and destroy herself, but I never expected she would do it quite so fast. It is quite vexing. I had hoped to have four or five quiet years to plant some seeds and allow some fruits to ripen, but now . . . it is a good thing that I thrive on chaos." - AFFC, Alayne II. 

Once more Littlefinger supplied the answer. “Whores love to gossip, and as it happens I own a brothel or three." - ACOK, Tyrion III.

“A brothel. Can you think of a less likely place to find a Catelyn Tully?” He smiled. “As it chances, I own this particular establishment, so arrangements were easily made. - AGOT, Ned IV.

Those tapestries are "the image of the Beast", for this ->

Quote

A cloth dragon swayed on poles amidst a cheering crowd. - ACOK, Dany IV.

Later, the Imp had slipped a handful of stags to one of Darry’s serving men for the key to the cellar where the missing tapestries were hidden. He showed them to Jaime by the light of a candle, grinning; woven portraits of all the Targaryen kings, from the first Aegon to the second Aenys. - AFFC, Jaime IV.

... “Does Lord Baelish seek our help?” asked Harys Swyft.

“Not as yet. In truth, he seems quite unconcerned. His last letter mentions the rebels only briefly before beseeching me to ship him some old tapestries of Robert’s.” - AFFC, Cersei IV.

... Petyr laughed. “Perhaps I shall. Or better still, to our sweet Cersei. Though I should not speak harshly of her, she is sending me some splendid tapestries. Isn’t that kind of her?” - AFFC, Alayne I.

Connection to Harrenhal, and what he wants:

Quote

“So,” Lord Petyr continued after a pause, utterly unabashed, “what’s in your pot for me?”

“Harrenhal.”

It was interesting to watch his face. Lord Petyr’s father had been the smallest of small lords, his grandfather a landless hedge knight; by birth, he held no more than a few stony acres on the windswept shore of the Fingers. Harrenhal was one of the richest plums in the Seven Kingdoms, its lands broad and rich and fertile, its great castle as formidable as any in the realm . . . and so large as to dwarf Riverrun, where Petyr Baelish had been fostered by House Tully, only to be brusquely expelled when he dared raise his sights to Lord Hoster’s daughter.

Littlefinger took a moment to adjust the drape of his cape, but Tyrion had seen the flash of hunger in those sly cat’s eyes. I have him, he knew. “Harrenhal is cursed,” Lord Petyr said after a moment, trying to sound bored. - ACOK, Tyrion IV.

HOUSE WHENT Knights in the service of the Lothstons, they were given Harrenhal as a reward for their service in bringing the Lothstons down. They hold the seat to this day, but tragedy has marked them. - TWOIAF, Riverlands, House Tully.

https://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/House_Whent#House_Whent_at_the_end_of_the_third_century

You know old Ben Blackthumb? He came here as a boy. Smithed for Lady Whent and her father before her and his father before him, and even for Lord Lothston who held Harrenhal before the Whents. - ACOK, Arya IX.

...

Everyone wants something, Alayne. And when you know what a man wants you know who he is, and how to move him.

"As you moved Ser Dontos to poison Joffrey?" It had to have been Dontos, she had concluded. - ASOS, Sansa VI.

There are a few more elements scattered all over ASOIAF's texts, but I think that that's enough to make my point.

Also - if "when you know what a man wants you know who he is" is true, then it is also true that "when you know who a man is, you know what he wants". So based on that logic - if we will know who Petyr is - who were his ancestors, then we will know what are his motives, what are his desires and goals, and why he does what he does. And because of that reason I thought that it's important to figure out who were LF's ancestors, and why GRRM had shared with the readers specifically that information about Petyr's ancestors - Lord Baelish, the Hedge Knight, the Sellsword from Braavos. Why that number of generations, why not less or more? So that was my starting point - figuring out a time-table for Petyr's House.

The End.