Prince Baelor's Targaryen Rule In A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms References Jaime Lannister

Warning! Spoilers for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms episode 4 ahead!

Prince Baelor mentions a Targaryen rule in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and it has an intriguing connection to a famous moment in Game of Thrones​​​​​. HBO's newest addition to the franchise is beginning to really dig into the action as Dunk is accused of striking (and kicking) Prince Aerion Targaryen. The punishment for this, if found guilty, would ordinarily be the removal of Dunk's hand and foot. His only hope of saving his limbs will be to stand victorious in the Trial of Seven.

When Prince Baelor explained Dunk's situation in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms episode 4, he said, "The last time a man struck the royal blood it was decreed he should lose the offending hand." The same rule was mentioned a handful of times in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire books. However, this wasn't just a consequence of a crime, but an almost magical form of justice.

Targaryens were regarded as closer to gods than men, so their blood was holy. To strike this holy "royal blood" meant that the hand that did it was damned. Whether this means figuratively or literally is up for debate. Regardless, it's worth considering how it relates to a particular Game of Thrones character.

The Targaryen Rule For Striking The Royal Blood Relates To Game Of Thrones' Jaime Lannister

Jaime Lannister famously killed Aerys II Targaryen, whom he served as a member of the King's Guard. Though Jaime did this as the direct result of the king's violent madness, he faced significant consequences throughout Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire and Game of Thrones. The most obvious was social ostracisation. Regardless of Jaime's intention, slaying a king is considered a deeply immoral crime, especially for someone who was sworn to protect. Still, there's another, less direct way Jaime paid for what he had done.

Roose Boldton cut off Jaime's right hand and sent it to Tywin Lannister, sending a rather effective message. The act itself had nothing to do with the fact that Jaime killed Aerys. However, it is rather meaningfully mentioned that this is the hand he used to slay the Targaryen ruler. It was Jaime himself who said, "I've lost the hand I killed the king with."

Considering the perceived—or perhaps literal—magic of Targaryen blood, it's interesting to consider that Jaime losing his hand was a sort of supernatural justice. Blood magic plays a prominent role in A Song of Ice and Fire​​​​​, especially as far as the Targaryens are concerned. Prince Baelor simply mentioned a royal tradition in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms​​​​​, but it may be much more than that.

What Jaime's Fate Could Mean For Dunk In A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms

Jaime was pardoned for his crime against King Aerys when Robert Baratheon took the throne, but he suffered the penalty nonetheless. This begs the question of what will happen to Dunk, regardless of how he fares in the Trial of Seven. The magic that exists in Targaryen blood, which binds them to the souls of dragons and gives them mysterious prophetic abilities, exists outside the Seven. If the gods of the Andals deem Dunk innocent, the Blood of the Dragon may feel differently.

Throughout the Game of Thrones franchise, we see that anyone not of the Blood of the Dragon who harms the Targaryens suffers pretty horrible fates, whether justified or not. It's interesting to consider what this will mean in the long run for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' Dunk. As we see with Jaime, the magical justice could take years before it's carried out. Since Martin hasn't quite finished the Tales of Dunk and Egg books, it may be some time before we can ever know for certain.

• 

  Game Of Thrones

  

  10/10

  Release Date 2011 - 2019-00-00

  Showrunner David Benioff, D.B. Weiss

  • 
  • 

    Isaac Hempstead Wright

    Brandon Bran Stark