This is a listing of members of the Faith Militant in A Song of Ice and Fire.
For the main character index, see here
The Faith Militant
"This debt shall be forgiven, and [the king] will have his blessing. The Warrior's Sons shall escort me to him, shining in the glory of their Faith, whilst my sparrows go forth to defend the meek and humble of the land, reborn as Poor Fellows as of old."
—High Sparrow
The military wing of the Faith of the Seven. Many pilgrims take up weapons to protect themselves and other victims of the war, which results in a massive Church Militant. They answer only to the High Septon, whose role is similar to the medieval Pope.
- Action Girl: Women were allowed to arm themselves join the Poor Fellows in defiance of traditional Westerosi gender norms.
- Bright Is Not Good: You'd think that the bright rainbow cloaks the Warrior's Sons wear would be a sure sign of goodness, but not so much.
- Church Militant: The Warrior's Sons and the Poor Fellows, referred to collectively as the Swords and Stars. The Warrior's Sons were made up of noblemen, and the Poor Fellows were commoners (women were allowed to join this order as well). They rose against House Targaryen during the rule of Aenys I. The uprising continued until the reign of Jaeherys the Conciliator, who convinced them to disband by granting amnesty to all members of the two orders and vowing that House Targaryen would always defend the Faith of the Seven. As of A Feast For Crows this has been revived.
- Cold-Blooded Torture: They use this to elicit "confessions".
- Dead Guy on Display: In A Feast for Crows, they collect the bones of murdered septons, septas, begging brothers, silent sisters and other devotees of the Faith and pile them at the feet of King Baelor's statue to show the realm how many innocents have been senselessly slaughtered, including holy men and women, because of the War of Five Kings.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?:
- The rise of a militant fundamentalist religious movement resulting from the collapse of law and order during a devastating civil war has similarities to the creation of the Taliban and ISIS. Mitigated somewhat by them being less hostile and more egalitarian than these groups.
- The original Faith Militant uprising against Maegor the Cruel also bears similarities with the Cristero War in Mexico as a conflict between religious rebels against an authoritarian regime that violently persecuted it's faith, but was peacefully settled. The modern incarnation also bears some similarities with Lollards since they rose up due to socio-political consequences of the Hundred Years War.
- The Fundamentalist: They're willing to do anything for the sake of the Faith.
- Hammer of the Holy: The Poor Fellows are primarily peasants and use whatever arms they can find, which means that most groups are predominantly armed with simple wooden cudgels.
- In-Series Nickname: The "Stars and Swords", for their emblems: a seven-pointed star for the Poor Fellows and a sword for the Warrior's Sons.
- Knight Templar: As an organization, they are somewhat inspired by the real The Knights Templar, though their practice of trials and use of torture to provide confessions borrow from the latter-day Spanish Inquisition.
- The Order: Actually two Orders: The Noble and Puissant Order of the Warrior's Sons, and the Poor Fellows.
- Order Reborn: They were originally founded before the Targaryens arrived in Westeros. After Aegon took over, his successor was to be his son Aenys, but the Faith opposed this because Aenys was the product of an incestuous marriage (Aegon married his sister, Rhaenys). The Faith Militant organized a rebellion which lasted into the reign of Jaehaerys I, who was able to strike a deal with them: the orders would disband and the Targaryens would swear to always be the guardians of the Faith of the Seven. During Tommen's reign in A Feast for Crows, the new High Septon is able to convince Cersei, acting as regent, to allow them to re-form the orders if he cancels the debt the crown owes the Faith and if he publicly blesses King Tommen's reign, a traditional rite he had yet to perform.
- Pet the Dog: When they find orphaned children, they bring them to the Inn at the Crossroads.
- Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: The Poor Fellows accept members from all ranks of society, regardless of birth, sex or station, although they are led in battle by the Warrior's Sons.
- Turned Against Their Masters: Cersei was dead wrong if she thought reinstating the Faith Militant would somehow not backfire.
- Warrior Monk: They are The Order of this, the Poor Fellows, who are essentially begging brothers with axes, more so than the Warrior's Sons.
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Ser Theodan Wells
Ser Theodan Wells
Theodan the True
A pious knight who becomes commander of the Warrior's Sons after the Faith Militant is revived.
- Church Militant: He is among the very first knights who join the Warrior's Sons after they are reformed and becomes its new leader.
- The Fundamentalist: All of the Warrior's Sons are fundamentalists and fanatics to some degree.
- In-Series Nickname: Ser Theodan the True.
- The Leader: Of the Warrior's Sons, placing him in charge of defending the Faith. Among the tasks this entails is leading honor guards for members of the Most Devout when they meet with the Royal Court and leading Cersei's escort when she undergoes the penance walk through King's Landing.
- Meaningful Name: "Theo" is Greek in origin and relates to the gods. Fitting for a pious character.
Lancel Lannister
Ser Lancel Lannister
- "When it seemed that I might die, my father brought the High Septon to pray for me. He is a good man... He says the Mother spared me for some holy purpose, so I might atone for my sins."
The teenaged eldest son of Kevan Lannister and his wife Dorna Swyft, and younger cousin to Jaime, Cersei and Tyrion. One of Robert Baratheon's squires. Initially described as something of a wannabe Jaime, he becomes more religious over the course of the series, and begins to become at odds with some members of his family. After the Faith Militant is reborn, Lancel is among the first knights to join the Warrior's Sons.
See the House Lannister page.
- Alliterative Name: Lancel Lannister.
- Arranged Marriage: In A Feast For Crows, the Lannisters marry him off to Amerei Frey, a female line descendant of House Darry, all the male members of which died during the War of the Five Kings, so the Lannisters can claim the Darry lands for themselves. This causes problems with the now devoutly religious Lancel, and the fact that Ami has a reputation as being very promiscuous does not help matters.
- The Atoner: Ends up becoming The Fundamentalist in an attempt to make up for his earlier behavior.
- Brainless Beauty/Dumb Blonde: A subtly deconstructed and male example. Played straight enough that when he gets sent on a Snipe Hunt for a breastplate stretcher by Robert, he never seems to realize it isn't real — for all he makes for a very courtly, decorative squire on the surface. Deconstructed in that he's shown constantly trying to find templates to model himself on (first picking his cousin who he had no chance of coming close to, then picking the idealised version of what a knight should be, seeing as that is what Jaime isn't... then picking the ideal of what a penitent knight should be, since he messed Knight in Shining Armor up, too). This all strongly suggests that he feels that he's lacking something; but, he can never manage to pinpoint exactly what thanks to his own limitations and educational boundaries, so he only ever succeeds at digging himself into ever-deeper holes as a result. Also, thanks to people writing him off as a waste of space, he never exactly gets any real help in pointing him in directions that'd be more right for him.
- Break the Haughty: The Battle of the Blackwater finishes what Tyrion started. During his recovery, he develops a Heel–Faith Turn.
- Butt-Monkey: Robert mocks and dislikes him. Cersei manipulates him. Tyrion blackmails him. He's nearly killed during the battle for King's Landing. Then he's forced into an Arranged Marriage so that the Lannisters can get their paws on a castle whose male heirs got killed off during the war. Finally, he just gives up and becomes a member of the Faith Militant, making his father practically disown him.
- Disease Bleach: His wounds during the Battle of the Blackwater did a real number on his health and turned his hair white.
- The Dilbert Principle: He's utterly useless in any role that requires political savvy and subtlety. Yet, he keeps rising. Mainly because he's seen as a useful and vacuous placeholder who is unable to cause direct harm to the real movers and shakers in the House. This bites a lot of people. Including him. Very, very hard.
- The Dog Bites Back: Given Robert's abusive treatment of him, it probably didn't take much for Cersei to convince him to help her kill Robert. It's inverted in the end however; Lancel totally regrets his actions and feels very guilty about them all. His guilt then fuels him in turning on Cersei by confessing to the Faith about all he has done. This little family betrayal, however, comes across as totally earned on Cersei's end given how she abused him, however much it then messes with Team Lannister's overall game-plan (which by that point has pretty much already been torpedoed by others, including Cersei herself, anyway: he just provides some fancy magnesium-based glitter within the explosion).
- False Friend: Ultimately, Cersei only was interested in him as a useful bedwarmer and scapegoat from the very start of their "relationship". He was genuine, the poor fool.
- The Fundamentalist: Becomes this in A Feast for Crows.
- Heel–Faith Turn: Totally and genuinely so (and tooth-grindingly so, as far as his family is concerned). But, it's not really changed him much, otherwise.
- I Just Want to Be You: Greatly admires his cousin Jaime and wants to emulate him (ironically he appears unaware that Jaime is sleeping with Cersei too). He later realizes his own kingslaying is nothing to be proud of. "The brave man kills with a sword, the coward a wineskin."
- It's All About Me: In a very confused, roundabout way. He's so busy trying to find out who he is by copying others, that he trips himself up by running in circles without fully understanding the crucial component he's missing. It helps to stop to both work out and understand how you and others actually think and feel about things from time to time, lad.
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: A version without much "beloved" about it. Jaime tries to provoke him by suggesting his wife Ami is having an affair with Harwyn Plumm. He doesn't consider himself really married to Ami, as he can't offer her much that's expected of a husband, and he placidly hopes they're happy together. Some offscreen Character Development in that while he complained to Cersei earlier in the book that his future wife wasn't a maiden (and only on the basis that she was previously married, not that she Really Gets Around), he doesn't seem to care about it now. Also, while he compares his marriage to King Baelor and Princess Daena's, he's not about to lock her up in a mini-Maidenvault.
- Kissing Cousins: During a period in which she is separated from Jaime, Cersei outright uses Lancel as a replacement.
- Meaningful Name: A knight named Lancel who has an affair with the queen. Unlike the otherwise-heroic Lancelot, though, he's not a "lot" as of yet.
- The Millstone: Is treated as a joke, is put in positions that could easily damage him without impacting what other people consider more important... and, may not actually be quite as horrendously stupid as he is judged to be, if others would just give him a chance to actually do something he is better suited for, instead of plunking him in plots and positions he is eminently unsuited to make work. He might have made a happier up-scale entertainer, ice-breaker and social butterfly the family could have used as a calculated distraction and smokescreen in their dealings, had he been given the right training, rather than a knight or lord with responsibilities he couldn't deal with, for example. Fat chance of that happening in House Lannister.
- The Mole: Forced to spy on Cersei by Tyrion, who blackmails him with knowledge of Lancel sleeping with her.
- Oh, Crap!: His reaction when Tyrion threatens to inform Joffrey of Lancel's involvement in his father's death. It's enough to make him drop his haughty attitude and all but beg Tyrion to keep quiet about it.
- Pretty Boy: Described as very fair-haired and looking slightly like a younger, less manly Jaime. The TV series picked this description up and ran with it, making him look positively girly. However, during the Battle of Blackwater and his recovery afterwards, he loses quite a bit of his looks and even has early gray hair.
- Replacement Goldfish: He essentially becomes this to Cersei after she's separated from Jaime, and he's explicitly said to resemble Jaime in his youth. However, Tyrion's thoughts go along the line of
Poor Man's Substitute. - Running Gag: His inability to grow any facial hair (though not for lack of trying), which other characters mock him for.Bronn: That stripling cousin of yours delivered the message. Four hairs on his lip and he thinks he's a man.
- Smug Snake: Gets a little too big for his britches after doing his part in Robert's death, not to mention replacing Jaime in Cersei's bed. Tyrion rapidly shows him otherwise and battle cures him even further.
- The Squire: One of two Lannisters who serve Robert as squires, putting him in an ideal position to give Robert extra-strength alcohol while hunting in order to cause an "accident". He is knighted for this service.
- Turn to Religion: Lancel spends a good while being the Butt-Monkey of the Lannister family. While in recovery form his severe wounds from the Battle of the Blackwater, he was converted to the Faith of the Seven and became The Fundamentalist.
Historical Members
Warrior's Sons
Ser Damon Morrigen
Ser Damon Morrigen, Grand Captain of the Warrior's Sons
Damon the Devout
Leader of the Warrior's Sons at the start of King Maegor Targaryen's reign, he fought Maegor in a Trial by Seven.
- All There in the Manual: His only mention so far is in The World of Ice & Fire.
- The Champion: Served as the Faith of the Seven's champion as leader of the Warrior's Sons.
- The Leader: He was the Grand Captain of the Warrior's Sons.
- Real Men Love Jesus: He was known as Damon the Devout, so great was his faith in the Seven.
- Shrouded in Myth: Accounts of the Trial by Seven between him and Maegor differ wildly. The only thing that is known for sure is that King Maegor was the last man standing at the end of it.
- Trial by Combat: He challenged King Maegor to a Trial by Seven soon after he took power, challenging the legitimacy of his reign.
Ser Garibald of the Seven Stars
Ser Garibald of the Seven Stars
The Septon Knight
A knight and a septon who fought in Maegor's trial of seven.
- Badass Preacher: He was both septon and knight.
Ser Dickon Flowers
Ser Dickon Flowers
The Bastard of Beesbury
A bastard of House Beesbury and a Warrior's Son who fought in Maegor's trial of seven.
- Heroic Bastard: To his brothers in arms, he was a pious and loyal man fighting for the will of the gods against abominations.
Ser Harys Horpe
Ser Harys Horpe
Death's Head Harry
A knight from House Horpe who fought in Maegor's trial of seven.
- Alliterative Name: Harys Horpe.
- An Arm and a Leg: Accounts of the trial of seven state his arm was hacked off by Lord Lucifer Massey.
- Dropped a Bridge on Him: Some chroniclers of the trial of seven state he simply died.
- Names to Run Away from Really Fast: His nickname is certainly grim.
- Taking You with Me: One account of the trial of seven state he tossed his battle-axe intto his other hand and killed Lord Massey after being mutilated.
Ser Willam the Wanderer
Ser Willam the Wanderer
A hedge knight and member of the Warrior's Sons who fought at Maegor's trial of seven.- Dying Moment of Awesome: When fatally injured, he gave Maegor a near fatal wound that would leave him in a coma for weeks.
- Last Stand: He was the last champion standing before being brought down by Maegor.
Ser Morgan Hightower
Ser Morgan Hightower
Ser Morgan Hightower was a member of House Hightower and Commander of the Warrior's Sons during the Faith Militant uprising.
See the House Hightower page.
- Karmic Death: He was the first man killed by Joffrey Doggett's followers in revenge for betraying the High Septon he had sworn to obey.
- Know When to Fold 'Em: Yes, he did most likely kill the High Septon, but it was either that or Maegor would burn Oldtown to the ground.
- Turn Coat: If the rumors are to be believed. He was the only Warrior's Son pardoned.
Poor Fellows
Septon Moon
High Septon Moon
A septon during the reign of Maegor I.
- At Least I Admit It: Judging from his "I am a sinner" remark at every start of his sermons, it seems he is very much self-aware about his... shortcomings as a holy man.
- Badass Preacher: He was both septon and an acclaimed fighter.
- Church Militant: He was a leader of the Poor Fellows, one of the two orders of the Faith Militant.
- Decapitation Presentation: After the failure of his followers' El Cid Ploy, his stuffed and mounted head was presented as a gift to the High Septon from Lord Hightower.
- Dirty Old Monk: He started every sermon with the phrase "I am a sinner" and he wasn't exaggerating. He had an insatiable appetite for wine and women and his prowess as a lover was such that some of his followers started using images of his penis as a symbol of their crusade.
- El Cid Ploy: After his death, one of his followers supposedly had a vision that Moon would still grant his followers victory. The man strapped Moon's corpse to the back of a horse and then tried to storm Oldtown's gates. The handful of people who joined the attack were promptly killed by Lord Hightower's men.
- Last of His Kind: The last of the main leaders of the Faith Militant Uprising to be dealt with, after his death the remaining Poor Fellows disbanded and accepted royal pardons.
- The Moral Substitute: He was crowned as High Septon by his band of Poor Fellows in defiance of the new, official High Septon, whom they dubbed the "High Lickspittle".
- No Historical Figures Were Harmed: Of John Ball, a priest and prominent leader of the Peasants' Revolt.
- Outlaw: Became one after Maegor and High Septon Pater outlawed the Faith Militant. The author of The Sons of the Dragon notes he was hardly distinguishable from an outlaw.
- "Rashomon"-Style: Exactly who was behind his assassination remains a matter of debate. Some claim Jaehaerys or Rogar Baratheon hired an assassin to end the threat posed by Moon. The fact the assassin was never caught nor seen again, and because none of Moon's guards could give an accurate description of her, have led some in universe to say Moon was killed by a Faceless Man, though this seems unlikely, given the professionalism of the Faceless Men contrasted with the hamfisted way in which Moon was killed. A more popular theory is that the Lords Oakheart and Rowan hated Maegor more than they did House Targaryen; with Maegor now dead, they had no reason to support Moon's cause any longer, and so paid a camp follower to murder Moon so they would have an opportunity to withdraw in the aftermath—and bend the knee to Jaehaerys soon after.
- Really Gets Around: There was hardly a night when he didn't have a woman in his bed. It got to the point that people started attributing his penis the ability to make barren women fertile.
- Rebel Leader: He was one of the leaders of the Faith Militant Uprising against Maegor I in 48AC. He even got the support of Lords Rowan and Oakheart, in the last year of Maegor's reign.
- Slashed Throat: Died because of this by an unidentified female assassin.
- Turbulent Priest: One of the most consistent thorns on the side of the Targaryens, he never stopped railing against them and fomenting rebellion.
- The Unsolved Mystery: History will never know who ordered his assassination, only that it was a really botched job.
- Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters: To the crown, he was a rebel, outlaw and traitor. To pious lords and the smallfolk and peasants of the realm, he was a hero, and so they gave him and his followers shelter.
Ser Horys Hill
Horys Hill
A hedge knight of bastard origin that led the Poor Fellows from the westerlands.
- Alliterative Name: Horys Hill.
- Always Save the Girl: Subverted. He led a force of Poor Fellows and smallfolk that tried to save Jeyne Poore from her execution, but Maegor ambushed the would-be rescuers and wiped them all out.
- Heroic Bastard: To the Poor Fellows, he's a man of bastard birth who fights against an abomination.
- Knight Errant: He's a hedge knight, the ASOIAF name for the trope.
- Once Done, Never Forgotten: His defeat in the Battle at the Great Fork of the Blackwater tarnished his reputation and lost most of his followers.
- Rebel Leader: He led the Poor Fellows from the Westerlands.
Wat the Hewer
Wat the Hewer
A leader of the Poor Fellows who participated in the battle at Stonebridge, according to The Sons of the Dragon.
- An Arm and a Leg: After being captured, Maegor had his arms and legs deliberately amputated.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Maegor chopped off all of his limbs and kept him alive to attend the King's wedding. Ouch.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: His army of Poor Fellows, untrained and undisciplined, without proper weapons or armor, are no match for Maegor's heavy cavalry.
- Death by Irony: Wat the Hewer had his arms and legs hewed off by Maegor.
- Large and in Charge: Yandel describes him as a "giant", and he led the Poor Fellows.
- Rebel Leader: He led the Poor Fellows in battle against the forces of the Iron Throne.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: The last we see of him, Maegor cut off all his arms and legs. Did Maegor kill him? Leave him to die of his inevitable infections? Or is he still alive and threatening to bite Maegor's legs off?
- Working-Class Hero: To the Faith of the Seven and its supporters, he's a member of the smallfolk fighting against a tyrannical and unholy king.
Ragged Silas
Ragged Silas
A leader of the Poor Fellows.
- Outlaw: Became one after Maegor and High Septon Pater outlawed the Faith Militant. The author of The Sons of the Dragon notes he was hardly distinguishable from an outlaw.
- Rebel Leader: He leads the Poor Fellows in the uprising against Maegor Targaryen.
- Working-Class Hero: To the Faith of the Seven and its supporters, he's a member of the smallfolk fighting against a tyrannical and unholy king.
- Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters: To the crown, he was a rebel, outlaw and traitor. To pious lords and the smallfolk and peasants of the realm, he was a hero, and so they gave him and his followers shelter.
Dennis the Lame
Dennis the Lame
A leader of the Poor Fellows.
- Outlaw: Became one after Maegor and High Septon Pater outlawed the Faith Militant. The author of The Sons of the Dragon notes he was hardly distinguishable from an outlaw
- Rebel Leader: He leads the Poor Fellows in the uprising against Maegor Targaryen
- Working-Class Hero: To the Faith of the Seven and its supporters, he's member of the smallfolk fighting against a tyrannical and unholy king.
- Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters: To the crown, he was a rebel, outlaw and traitor. To pious lords and the smallfolk and peasants of the realm, he was a hero, and so they gave him and his followers shelter.
Jeyne Poore
Jeyne Poore
Poxy Jeyne Poore
A leader of the Poor Fellows.
- Burn the Witch!: Septons loyal to Maegor declared her a witch so the king could have her burned alive.
- Damsel in Distress: When she was captured, Maegor ordered Jeyne burned alive. A force of Poor Fellows and peasants tried to rescue her, but Maegor had anticipated this and the rescuers were ambushed and slaughtered.
- Expy: A religiously motivated female warrior who is later betrayed, captured by her enemies, and declared a witch so they can burn her at the stake: she's basically the Westeros version of Joan of Arc.
- Lady of War: A female leader of the Poor Fellows in their war against Maegor.
- More Deadly Than the Male: It's said she was considered the most savage captain of the Poor Fellows in all of Westeros.
- Outlaw: Became one after Maegor and High Septon Pater outlawed the Faith Militant. The author of The Sons of the Dragon notes her followers made the Kingswood impassable to honest travelers
- Rebel Leader: She leads the Poor Fellows in the uprising against Maegor Targaryen.
- Working-Class Hero: To the Faith of the Seven and its supporters, she's member of the smallfolk fighting against a tyrannical and unholy king.
- Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters: To the crown, she was a rebel, outlaw and traitor. To pious lords and the smallfolk and peasants of the realm, she was a hero, and so they gave her and her followers shelter.
