#so given the location between the stormlands and the reach i imagine it being a combo of mountains and greenery

[corviids]

summerhall inspiration

#the way it’s described in the books is kinda confusing cuz it’s called a summer palace but it’s actual design isn’t stated #so given the location between the stormlands and the reach i imagine it being a combo of mountains and greenery

[beyondmistland]

Westerosi Worldbuilding Wednesday: Hidden History of the Vale: Lost Lore (Part I)

 Letter #1: Unlike the rest of Westeros House Arryn has historically dated events not from the Founding of the Citadel but rather the Battle of Seven Stars, making any and all attempts to cross-reference Vale texts with those of other kingdoms a chore for Maesters.  Letter #2: Just as the Vale is home to the purest Andal bloodlines so is it home to the oldest and purest form of the Common Tongue. As a result, the Vale has often looked down upon the dialects of other Westerosi as "bastardized" or "mongrel", particularly those of the North and Stormlands, both of which show a strong influence from the Old Tongue in their harsh, guttural pronunciation of words.  Letter #3: For good or ill, no other kingdom in Westeros has had a history as intertwined with that of the Faith as the Vale. Indeed, of the twenty-eight Holy Wars acknowledged by the High Septon, half have been directed against the Vale and its "Black Sept" at Gulltown alone. House Arryn, for its part, has historically only ever acknowledged seven Holy Wars to be truly canon, none of which include campaigns against the Iron Islands, Dorne, or the Stormlands. All told, the Vale's relationship with the Faith can be summed up with the (in)famous speech Alester III gave at a Summit of Kings: "It was in the Vale that the light of the Seven first graced this promised land. It was in the Vale that the first septs were built so that the faithful could worship the gods properly. It was in the Vale that the first knights performed chivalrous deeds and carved out kingdoms. Why then, should we follow some flowery Septon in Oldtown when the Reach was the last realm to heed the call of the Seven?" (To prevent confusion here I must explain what the Summit of Kings was given the term's obscurity. Taking place every seven years this ancient Andal tradition was said to have involved all the Great Houses of southern Westeros agreeing to set aside their quarrels so as to discuss terms for peace over the span of a moon's turn. As one can surely imagine it never ended well.)  Letter #4: Given the Reach's wealth, power, stability, and central location it is hardly surprising in hindsight that it became the center of the Faith rather than the Vale or Riverlands given the remoteness of the former as well as the turmoil of the latter.  Letter #5: By far the most consequential decision Artys I made during his reign was to expel all Maesters from the Vale on pain of death, a decree which remained in effect until the coming of Maester Quince during the reign of the penultimate Falcon King, Roland VIII. As a result, nearly all of the Vale's own writings have been penned exclusively by Septons of the Faith, many of whom were sponsored by generous donations from the monarchs of House Arryn such as Jasper I, Jon V, Alester III, Artys V, and Mathos IV, who are collectively known as the Five Holy Kings.  Letter #6: Even the minting of coins was different in the Vale for the kings of House Arryn were known to depict on one side of every coin which of the Seven they had taken for their personal patron, a practice nonexistent elsewhere in Westeros. (As anyone of sound mind can guess the Stranger alone was never chosen for this honor.)  Letter #7: Historically, there were many differences between the laws of the First Men and those of the Andals, the greatest of which pertained to female succession for prior to the coming of the latter a woman almost always came last in matters of inheritance, hence why there has never been a ruling queen in the history of House Stark despite the family having ruled the North for millennia.  Letter #8: Jon (I) Ironbeak created the Vale's first code of law but because it was so heavily based on the strictures of the Seven his successor had to devote a great deal of time separating worldly matters from issues of faith.  Letter #9: Later in his reign he became the first Arryn king to appoint a High Septon for the Vale though it should be pointed out that this was long before the Starry Sept was even conceived, let alone built. (On a somewhat darker note Jon I was also responsible for founding the Inquisition.)  Letter #10: His son and heir, Elbert II, founded the first incarnation of the Faith Militant for in those days the Arryn kings wielded worldly power as well as spiritual power. More than that, however, Elbert II is remembered for being succeeded by both his daughters, one of whom gave birth to Jon (II) Blackwing, the most infamous king in the history of the Vale. (These two daughters are most famous for penning The Life and Reign of Elbert II.)

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#hidden history #the vale #house arryn #asoiaf #worldbuilding #lost lore #Westerosi Worldbuilding Wednesday