House of the Dragon: What is The Seven and Who Are The Silent Sisters?
Things get more and more complicated in House of the Dragon and much of this is the fault of Alicent Hightower, who, in Rhaenyra and Daemon‘s absence, filled the palace at King’s Landing with some very interesting symbols. After returning to King’s Landing, a few years after marrying Daemon, Rhaenyra discovers that her home is very different, many things are gone and all kinds of details and decorations have been changed by the symbol of a star, which Alicent herself, who has already heard Aegon’s prophecy and interpreted it differently, wears a message around his neck (almost as powerful as his green dress).
That star is not a reference to the Hightower house (whose image is a tower with flames), but to the faith of The Seven, which is also mentioned in Game of Thrones, and is what leads Cersei Lannister to have to walk naked through the streets as punishment for their actions. The theme of faith is important in the context of House of the Dragon (we saw it when Stannis Baratheon agrees to sacrifice his daughter), so the appearance of The Seven and the Silent Sisters (who are in charge of caring for Vaemond’s body Velaryon after being beheaded) is not a coincidence.
House of the Dragon: What is The Seven and who are The Silent Sisters?
It was the Andals who introduced the Faith of The Seven to the kingdom, where it became the main religion, although it was not observed in the North and the Iron Islands. Within the history of Game of Thrones, there is a legend that says that the God of The Seven appeared to the men of Andalos, who brought their faith when they decided to invade other kingdoms and managed to establish their religion in Westeros. And part of carrying that faith meant that they had to engrave the symbol of a 7-pointed star on their skin to show their devotion.
With this, the Andals end up attacking the Children of the Forest and the First Men, little by little they also crush the beliefs in the Old Gods and become the highest authority before the reign of the Targaryens. Supposedly, they could judge and punish any person they considered to have acted against the rules of the faith. The Targaryens changed that and took a lot of power away from the Faith of the Seven, but that didn’t stop them, and now Alicent Hightower took them back to court, where they don’t exactly have the power, but it’s clear she means to give it back, or at least he seems to be playing by his rules.
And what do they believe? This faith determines that there is a god with 7 representations or faces. The Father is a kind of judge, The Mother represents peace and fertility, The Maiden has to do with innocence, The Crone is wisdom, The Warrior has to do with battles, The Blacksmith represents creation, and The Stranger represents death. Also, the return of the Faith of the Seven brought with it the Silent Sisters, which is a group of religious women who are part of the Faith of the Seven. In House of the Dragon, they appear preparing the bodies of the dead. They have a vow of silence and mainly serve The Stranger, who is the god of death.
They also wear suits that cover almost their entire body and face, leaving only their eyes free to carry out their work, and some consider that they are similar to the men of The Night’s Watch, since they dedicate their lives to the service of others, and The group is also made up of women who come from noble families, who are offered this as an opportunity to live when their families are defeated. Touching one of the Silent Sisters is considered a crime and a great offense against the faith.
