A Song of Ice and Fire: Fantasy and History I

“A song of Ice and Fire” by George R. R. Martin is probably one of the best written pieces of fantasy of all time. And the great thing about it is that is not a copy of “The Lord of The Rings”.

The thing is that such was the influence and importance of Tolkien’s work in the fantasy landscape that ever since, almost every fantasy book that has come out has been trying too hard to be Lord of the Rings. And the result of that is a huge line of Tolkien’s rip offs that lack both the quality and imagination of the original. Therefore, a work like “A song of Ice and Fire” feels fresh and it’s really welcomed. The great thing about Martin’s work is that it creates its own world and dynamics and it takes from its own influences.

Whilst Lord of the Rings took a lot from the Nordic Mythology, A song of Ice and fire takes from European medieval history. And that is very noticeable.

There’s a great deal of things that could be said about this series of books, but I will keep this focused on the resemblances between real life history and the events and characters of this book. 

As there are thousands of these resemblances, I’ll devote one post to each of these. And the first post of this series will be dedicated to the resemblance between the figure of Isabella of France and Cersei Lannister.

First off, let’s briefly explain who Isabella was.

Isabella of France (1295- 1385) was the Queen consort of England as the wife of Edward II of England. She was the daughter of Philip IV of France and Joan I of Navarre. She was notable at the time for her beauty, diplomatic skills and intelligence. And has often been described as the She-wolf of France.

She was sent off to marry far away from home at the age of 12. Her husband, Edward the II, was notorious for the patronage he lavished on his favorite: Piers Gaveston, who was also his lover. This started a period of political turmoil that ended with an extended fight between the king and some of his nobles. The nobles would end up executing Gaveston, forcing the king into revenge. After his lover’s death, he turned to a new favorite, Hug Despenser the younger. His association which him resulted in the Despenser War and a period of internal repression across England.

Isabella, tired of her husband and Despenser, travelled to France under the guise of a diplomatic mission, where she began an affair with Roger Mortimer. Once there, he called for her son, and heir to the throne, to sign the peace treaty with the French. With her son by her side, she set sail towards England with a small army and took over Edward’s crown. She deposed him and became regent on behalf of her son: Edward III. A few years later, her husband died under strange circumstances, and it’s often believed that it was arranged by her.

Isabella landing in England with her son, the future Edward III in 1326

Seated as Queen next to her lover, Isabella led a lavish existence and ruled no better than her husband had.

When her son was seventeen, he deposed Mortimer and executed him, taking all power away from Isabella. She was exiled in an English castle until the end of her life whilst her son ruled.

She soon became a popular figure in plays and literature, usually portrayed as beautiful but cruel and often manipulative.

As you see, there is clearly some resemblance there.

Both were woman that were sold off to marry a rich and powerful king. Both Robert Baratheon and Edward II were handsome men, tall and fair. And both Isabella and Cersei found out during their wedding night’s that in their marriages there were three people, not two. In Isabella’s case was a real third person: Pierce Gaveston, her husband’s lover. And in Cersei’s case, was Lyanna Stark, Robert’s death fiancee. 

Another common aspect is that they both were regarded as very beautiful. At the time Isabella married, Geoffrey of Paris described her as “the beauty of beauties in the kingdom if not in all Europe”. And in Cersei’s case, it is often said that she is the most beautiful woman in Westeros.

And although far more far fetched there is even a small resemblance between the Isabella’s husband and Cersei’s. When the nobles executed Gaveston, the king, Edward II, went on a grieving rage and swore revenge. Which he actually got. Just as King Robert’s rage when he hear of the kidnapping and murder of his beloved Lyanna, which also ended in a bloody revenge.

Isabella was a fiercely protective mother, just like Cersei. Isabella took over her husband’s crown because he confiscated her lands and removed her children from her custody to be looked over at the Despenser’s household. Cersei is also a fiercely protective mother. And you could provable say that the only thing she truly cares are her children. Cersei actually takes the final step against her husband when Ned Stark threatens her and says he’ll tell her husband that the kids are the spawn of incest (which would mean death to them).

Both women actually though that they could be better rulers that their own husbands and decided to take over and rule themselves. Both planned the murder of their husbands so they could reign as regents for their sons. And in both cases, their sons ended up pushing them away from power. 

But, obviously, there are also differences between this strong willed women: for instance, Isabella’s son (Edward III) was not a psychopath and ended up being a pretty good king (at least for Middle Ages standards). Joffrey, instead, is basically crazy and a pretty bad king.

Isabella was a perfect match to her male contemporaries. Cersei, on the other hand, may not be as good as she thinks she is as a schemer. Her brother, Tyrion, is a thousand times better than her at the game of politics.

And Robert Baratheon had very little in common with Edward II. The latter was a soft man with no passion for hunting nor the usual kingly activities, whilst Robert was, first and foremost, a warrior. Robert also was a womanizer, instead, Edward was homosexual (or bisexual at least).

But whatever their differences are, Isabella and Cersei were raised to be no more than a pawn in a bigger game, but decided that they wanted to have a say at the game of thrones.

Cersei Lannister played by Lena Heady

Isabella of France played by Sophie Marceau in the
highly historically inaccurate "Braveheart"

In the next chapter of the “fantasy and history” series. I will compare Tywin Lannister to Edward I (the father of Isabella’s husband), also known as Hammer of the Scotts and Edward Longshanks. He ruled England with a hand of iron and destroyed the rebellion lead by William Wallace. Tywin, instead, squashed the rebellion lead by House Reyne of Castarmere in a very similar way.

But I’ll leave that to next year !

Happy New Year to all!!!