Torrhen Stark

Torrhen Stark
Political information
Title(s)	King in the North Lord Paramount of the North Warden of the North Lord of Winterfell
World of Westeros
Season(s)	Complete Guide to Westeros, Histories & Lore

"After Aegon and his dragons destroyed the combined armies of the Reach and the Rock at the Field of Fire, King Torrhen Stark bent the knee and swore fealty to the Targaryen Dynasty in order to spare the destruction of Winterfell...and his people. He was forever after known as "The King Who Knelt"."

―Robb Stark

Torrhen Stark, also known as the King Who Knelt, is an unseen character in Game of Thrones. He is deceased when the series begins and has appeared in the Complete Guide to Westeros and Histories & Lore featurettes.

Biography

Background

King Torrhen Stark submits to Aegon the Conqueror.

Torrhen Stark was the last King in the North until the secession of the North and the Riverlands in the War of the Five Kings and the coronation of Robb Stark. King Torrhen's reign coincided with the War of Conquest, in which the Andal kingdoms south of the Neck submitted one by one to Aegon the Conqueror. Torrhen amassed his army and marched to meet the Targaryen warlord, but by the time he arrived Aegon had already won the decisive Field of Fire and conquered most of the South of Westeros. After seeing Aegon's dragons and his massive host, Torrhen realized the war was already lost. Instead of fighting he chose to bend the knee to spare his people and surrendered his crown. For his submission, Aegon named him Lord Paramount and Warden of the North. Robb Stark believes that Torrhen "saved thousands of lives that day."

In the books

Torrhen bends the knee to Aegon and his sisters, foreverafter becoming known as the King Who Knelt.

In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, Torrhen Stark's story is the same. It is believed he knelt at the place where the Inn of the Kneeling Man sits at the time of the books.

Torrhen's army numbered about 30,000 men, but the Targaryen army that came to meet him numbered about 45,000 - nor did this represent all of Aegon's new bannermen, just the ones directly facing him. Moreover, the Targaryens had their three huge dragons. Torrhen's bastard brother Brandon Snow volunteered to sneak into the Targaryen camp at night and attempt to kill all three dragons while they slept, but Torrhen judged that this was impossible and that the failed attempt would only invite further retaliation from the Targaryens, so he chose to surrender instead.

See also

• Torrhen Stark on A Wiki of Ice and Fire

References

Template:Stark navbox