Legacy of the Conqueror by Oryn Royce
Following Aegon I's declaration of sovereignty over all of Westeros, he accepted the oaths of loyalty from his new vassals. When King Dayne arrived at the Aegonfort to give up his crown, he also brought to the Conqueror his fears over a war with the Salty and Sandy Dornish. King Aegon promised his support if such a conflict came to pass, the King would have to honour his promise sooner than his council guessed… pg.22
The Dornish split, the Houses outside the Red Mountains crowned a Buckler King and he married Princess Nysar. Aegon marched south through the Boneway while the Dayne's came from Prince's Pass. Although the armies found the various keeps deserted and the towns empty of all except the elderly and sick, the Stony Dornish knew these tactics well. They hunted the rebels in the hidden places of the desert or along the coasts. The Loyalists would drive the rebels into the open field where the Targaryens would descend with flame and steel. From Sandstone to Greenguard, all the cities outside of the Red Mountains felt either Dayne blades or dragonfire… pg.25
While scouting Hellholt, Queen Rhaenys decided to intimidate the garrison by burning the walls, making her husband's eventual siege easier. Supposedly, a lucky shot from a Scorpion tore through her dragon, Meraxes' eye, killing the beast and the Queen with its fall. To appease the Targaryen's wrath, Lord Dayne and Lord Fowler marched on Hellholt intent on ending the Uller line. They sieged the castle, while Queen Visenya and King Aegon ensured that no supplies or aid could reach the they finally broke through, Lord Fowler fought down to the dungeons and discovered Queen Rhaenys. What state she was in, alive or dead, is unknown. King Aegon left with his wife's body wrapped in his cloak. The skeleton of Meraxes was also recovered. King Aegon spent 3 days and nights burning Hellholt until nothing remained of its walls. The surviving members of House Uller were dragged back to King's Landing and burned alive in front of the Iron Throne… pg.47
King Aegon grew frustrated with the war in Dorne. Even with half the country loyal to him, the other half was still raiding the Stormlands and hiding in desert holes even the Daynes couldn't sniff out… pg.60
The war continued for 3 years, when Princess Nysar died and her daughter assumed her title. She sued for peace with King Aegon against the wishes of her father, who was later captured by the Yronwoods and executed… pg.62
Aegon I revoked the Principality of Nysar and the former-princess was married into House Fowler; her younger brother became Lord Nysar… pg.66
In 6748 AL, Aegon I passed away in the fortress of Dragonstone… pg.144
King Aenys I was crowned later that month, many people would come to describe the second Targaryen King as an adequate ruler but he lacked the sheer martial might and respect his father commanded; strength and stature his half-brother Maegor would come to possess in spades… pg.145
Aeny's reign began with 3 uprising: The 2nd Dornish Rebellion, the Priest-King Lodos' reign on the Iron Islands, and the terror of Garth Blackhand… pg.145
The death of Garth Blackhand marked the last of the initial uprisings. It was a mark against the King that the traitors were put down by his Lords with minimal intervention by the Crown. King Aenys was perceived as indecisive and unsure of how to deal with the complex problems his kingdom faced… pg.180
Prince Maegor celebrated his second year as Hand of the King in 6745 AL, with the announcement that he would be setting aside his wife Ceryse Hightower, declaring her barren. Lord Hightower was furious and made public declarations against the Hand… Lord Hightower found little support among his peers, who generally agreed with Maegor's assumption that Lady Ceryse was barren. Lord Darry was the one who introduced Prince Maegor to the daughter of his bannerman, Lord Harroway of Harrow Court… pg.230
After Maegor's marriage to Alys Harroway, Grand Maester Gawen wrote to Maester Warren in Oldtown of the attempts by King Aenys to convince his brother to set aside his new bride. Maegor refused and Aenys backed down, word spread and the King's standing among his bannerman fell further… pg.231
Oryn Royce was a 3rd son from Runestone who lived during the rule of Aegon III. He was a life-long scholar and by all accounts he had no desire to join the Maesters. Oryn spent his days as the Castellan of Runestone while writing several classic historical treatises.
Stars and Swords: The Seven in Westeros, Volume 1 by Maester Perce
In 6720 AL, during the reign of the Conqueror, The Faith of the Seven saw an opportunity to gain power alongside the ascension of the Targaryen Dynasty. The Faithful in Westeros chose their own High Septon and used their good relations with House Hightower to purchase a voyage across the Narrow Sea to Antos. The records of the city record the arrival of the High Septon of Westeros and his stay with the High Septon of Andalos. Together, they announced that the Seven would spread their light to the First Men… pg.110
King Rynel Allyrion gave the Faith a loan to build a small fleet and personally donated supplies to the venture, other Lords followed the King's lead… pg.143
Records made by the Faith in Andalos,counted three chapters of Warrior's Sons, 9,000 Poor Fellows and over 200 Septas/Septons made the voyage west, landing in Oldtown… pg.146
"The Starry Service" is the local name used for the extremely large religious ceremony conducted after the Faith's forces landed in Westeros. Transcriptions of the sermon summarize the High Septon's blessing as the Faith began their quest to "spread goodwill and faith to the lost children of Westeros."... pg.147
Under the orders of Archmaester Yoren, the movements of these Andals was carefully recorded and reported. The Warrior's Sons established their chapters in Oldtown, King's Landing and Lannisport. The Septons and Poor Fellows spread through the Reach and then into the Westerlands… pg.153
The Faith didn't find much support in the rural populations, I speculate this is due to the Seven's focus on making donations of wealth or labour to prove one's piety, the people of Westeros were accustomed to only giving up their time and oaths to the Gods. Several Septons and their bands of Poor Fellows were driven out of the countryside and had to find shelter in the larger cities as no Lord would shelter them. Some Lords would go so far as to put the Faith's men on trial for crimes of disturbing the peace, sending them to the Wall in chains… pg.158
Warrior's Sons found a purpose keeping the peace in the cities they visited. This bought them the goodwill of their neighbours but they had difficulty integrating, they were not only foreign and had little to no knowledge of the Old Tongue but they were all knights. In the surviving writings of Grand Captain Martyn, he complains of the lack of First Men Knights joining their order. Though the title of "Knight" was shared by the two continents, its meaning and associated duties varied wildly… pg.166
A Knight in Andalos is generally a man of noble blood (whether true born or not) who squired for a Knight and is then knighted himself; either for deeds in battle, showing prowess at a tourney, for political reasons, or through bribery and blackmail. Andal Knights then generally either enter the service of a Lord, hold lands of their own, or travel from keep to keep seeking work. They act as heavy cavalry in war. In Andalos, many Knightly houses make their name fighting the Dothraki. Knights make up the majority of Andal sellsword companies, and are a favourite hire of slavers to escort their product to market… pg.166
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A Knight in Westeros can be of any status. The only way to be knighted was in battle, usually by killing doing a great deed (killing a Lord's personal guard, capturing a high ranking prisoner etc.). Knights typically entered a Lord's service as a bodyguard, sworn to die with their liege and protect him, alternatively they were employed by the King/Lord to train and lead their militias/levys. In times of war, knights were charged with being commanders in the field or charged with manning the fortifications of . Depending on their Kingdom, a Knight's general field of expertise varied; in the North for instance, a small number of knight's were experts in the use of the Umber Axe (A/N Dane Axe); in the Vale, knights were encouraged to train as horsemen. Green Men may also be knighted, these men give blessings, ensure the laws of hospitality and honour are followed, and if need be give the God's mercy to dying warriors. The major divider between the two is that Andal Knights are a privileged warrior class existing within Andal nobility, a Westerosi Knight is closer to a military rank or a profession… from Maester Perce's smaller work "Chivalry Across the Sea".
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Letters from various Septons show their growing frustration at their lack of progress, even 5 years into their vaunted mission. I beleive the small number of nobles converting to the Faith was the main drive, though they were doubtlessly hampered by the difficulty translating and adapting the Seven's teaching into Old Tongue without relying on Andol… pg.175
The Faith were able to build Stoney Sept into a thriving town due to some patronage from House Piper, but its proximity to High Heart and the God's Eye caused some tension with passing pilgrims and Green Men… pg.177
The Faith's presence in King's Landing was the most secure outside of Oldtown due to the Andal High Septon's position. As an envoy of King Allyrion, the High Septon helped negotiate trade with Andalos. His presence so close to the King spawned rumors that Aegon planned on converting to the Seven. To counter this his Small Council, specifically Lord Edmyn Tully, advised he bring a Green Man to court. Queen Visenya sent for a Green Man she'd befriended on Driftmark in her Childhood. Green Man Rhaela arrived, and accompanying here was a contingent of men and woman from Heartsport and Heart's Rest, who called themselves "Horned Guards". They assisted her in watching over the nearby Godswoods and maintaining the Old Gods' prominence in the Capital… pg.180
There was relative peace, in a religious sense, while Aegon ruled. The Faith remained a minority religion but became popular in the Crownlands and parts of the Reach and Riverlands… pg.193
Stars and Swords: The Seven in Westeros, Volume 2 by Maester Perce
During the 12th Small Council session of 6752 AL (41AC), King Aenys announced his intention to wed his eldest children to one another. The Faith of the Seven was outraged, they decided the Targaryens had finally gone too far. King Aenys could not be dissuaded… pg.32
Septon Murmison, who officiated the incestuous marriage, was thrown out of the Faith. His body was found later that week, he'd been murdered; most likely by the Poor Fellows who'd flooded into King's Landing… pg.36
The newly wed Prince Aegon and Princess Rhaena left for a royal progress. In their wake rumors spread among the Poor Fellows that the Green Men had encouraged the Targaren's incestuous leaning; these fear mongers used the lack of formal denunciation of the incestuous union as proof… pg.38
When they scaled the walls of the Red Keep, we know some went to kill the royal family, King Aenys and Queen Alyssa were saved by Ser Raymont Durrandon; the others went to burn down the Godswood, which was nearly destroyed… pg.38
King Aenys fled with his family to Dragonstone with Dowage Queen Visenya. Prince Maegor remained to set the city back in order, which had erupted into a riot between follower's of the Old Gods and the Seven… pg.40
The Warrior's Sons fortified the Sept of Remembrance, a sept funded entirely by pious Lords from Andalos. Green Man Robeta called for volunteers to join the Horned Guards and protect the Godswoods. Small clashes between Poor Fellows and newly formed Horned Guards sprang up across the continent, most famously at the Slaughter of High Heart. In King's Landing a contingent of knights from the Stormlands arrived to reinforce the Horned Guards… pg.40
The memoirs of Princess Rhaena describe her royal progress with her husband Prince Aegon. The royals received courteous but luke-warm reception from the Houses they visited. The religious unrest broke out while they were guests of Lord Leman Crakehall. A small army of Poor Fellows left Lannisport and descended on Crakehall, putting the keep "under siege" with support from the Warrior's Sons… The Faithful at Crakehall would be dispersed by Lord Lannister after news spread that Prince Maegor had squashed the Seven's warriors in the capital… pg.42
When King Aenys heard the news of his children trapped in Crakehall he collapsed. The notes of Dragonstone's Maester describe his steady decline and death a few days after… pg.46
In King's Landing, during the 5th month of 6753 AL (42 AC) Prince Maegor would declare himself King... He negotiated with Green Man Robeta for the Horned Guard and her knights to support him when he flew to the Sept of Remembrance… He was challenged by Ser Istan Vyrwel, the Grand Captain of the Warrior's Sons, to a Trial of Seven. Maegor agreed and was the only survivor of the battle… His injury was severe and he collapsed after being declared victor… Queen Cerys Hightower allowed Green Man Robeta to tend to Maegor, who awoke 2 days later… Maegor would burn the Sept of Remembrance and kill any who fled the fires of Belarion… pg.50-52
Maegor's Tyranny is well documented… He hunted down the Poor Fellows and at his prompting, Lords across Westeros threw out chapters of Warrior's Sons and refused to shelter Poor Fellows… A few minor lords rebelled but were put back in line by the Lord Paramounts… pg.52-55
Following his victories he announced he would marry Green Man Robeta, this was met with some disagreements but after Maegor beheaded Grand Maester Myles, most fell in line… Some Lords were even pleased at the idea of having true First Man Blood running in the royal line… Maegor didn't even marry her in a Sept, just in a Godswood. Maegor is remembered as having become more inclined to the faith of the Old Gods, because "The Seven insist that a man answer to the weak. The Old Gods insist that a man must answer to himself"... pg.59
Maegor's next act would cement his reputation as "Maegor the Cruel". That same year, near the God's Eye, he attacked and killed his nephew Prince Aegon; who had garnered enough support to push his own claim on the Iron Throne… King Maegor had a firm hold on the throne and no real opposition to his rule… pg.59-61
Maester Perce specialized in Economics and History. His interest in the history of religion in Westeros came from his brother's decision to join the Green Men. He was good friends with a number of Septons and also exchanged frequent letters with his brother. After writing his books, Maester Perce would go on to serve as the Maester of Weirthrone.
A/N: So this is my "test" format for the next section of the fic. Framing it as excerpts from a book allows me to add a certain amount of POV and character into the story. Thanks for reading, feedback welcome.
