41:33 Made a big mistake here, thanks to @Trofusky for pointing it out. My traitors list is a copy of the box above, and I forgot to change the values. I finished this edit three days before posting, and I watched the final render about four times before uploading, and I still missed this mistake. Sometimes, my stupidity still surprises me. Anyways, of all 113 Kingsguard, here are those who became traitors/oathbreakers in some way: Gyles Greycloak (unknown treachery) Olyver Bracken & Raymund Mallery (defected from Maegor to Jaehaerys) Lucamore Strong (had three separate secret wives/families) Criston Cole (this is arguable; he went against Viserys's wishes once Viserys died, but at that point Aegon was going to become King regardless of Cole, so was he just being loyal to Aegon? Up for debate) Mervyn Flowers (killed his Lord Commander and tried to run away) Terrence Toyne (had relations with Bethany Bracken) Jaime Lannister (killed his king and had an affair with his sister) Boros Blount (visits brothels) Arys Oakheart (affair with Arianne, attempts to be Queenmaker) Sandor Clegane (abandons KG after Blackwater) Jorah Mormont (spied on Dany, and was criminally creepy) That's 12/113, or about 11%, of Kingsguard who ended up breaking their oaths in some way. If I'm missing any, comment below.
would we not also include Arryk Cargyll for using deception in an attempt to kill another of the royal family & his own kin/ brother of the kingsguard? Pretty sure that’s against the oath
Sure, it may have been an order given by his lord commander; but I don’t think refusing the treacherous instructions of the kingmaker gives him immunity from upholding his oath to the royal family, fellow kingsguard, or from keeping the most general ideals of formal knighthood
You might also say Marston Waters and Amaury Peake, who went against the King's and Prince's orders to not try to harm Viserys II's wife who probably had nothing to do with the corruption of her family. But again, you could say they were doing their duty.
If Olyver Bracken and Raymund Mallery and especially Criston Cole are traitors/oathbreakers then so are Arryk Cargyll, Willis Fell, and Rickard Thorne. If Boros Blount is an oathbreaker for visiting having sex then so are Lewyn Martell, Preston Greenfield, and Osmund Kettleblack, and Owen Bush's death would indicate the same. Aemon the Dragonknight is probably the father of his sister's children. The number of oathbreakers can be massive depending on where you draw the line.
@@CrusaderChris Why isn't Jon Snow on the top of the list and why is Sandor Clegane so low? Same for The Mountain they are way better fighters than Brienne of Tarth
Balon swan is a highly underrated kingsguard Jaime would’ve chosen him over everyone else to be the commander in his absence and he is a genuinely good person he’s the Kevan Lannister of the kingsguard quietly being great in the background hopefully he doesn’t share kevans fate
from what I remember jaime does also say though than no one but maybe loras was genuinely worthy of being on his kingsguared, that his predecessors wounldt have approved
@@jakelongstaff4102 I don’t ever think he was a dick to Sansa iirc he was only really a kingsguard after the riots while Tyrion was there to stop some of the abuse so I think he didn’t interact much with her
@@jakelongstaff4102 Jaime does think Loras is a skilled fighter and worthy of the kingsguard but he also thinks he’s a pompous douche whose over confident he sees too much of himself in Loras which is why he thinks about him frequently while not as often with balon
@@thepunisher6674 he literally doesnt… have you read affc? He literally says loras is the only one with promise. He thinks balon is decent as a man and soldier but not as a kingsguard. If im right it’s literally how balon treats sansa that makes him dislike him a little
The Goode Brothers from House Goode is likely an ancestor of the famed House Goodmen, who is said that only 10 of them were needed to take the Eyrie, so they arguably should be rated higher.
Dunk is so GOATed, the art of him facing Lyonel Baratheon in his white armour is my favourite piece of ASOIAF art easily, as I didn't know that's who he became. My headacnnon is always that he ran right back in to save Aegon and they died together; and that the night of being named Lord Commander Aegon V said he knew Dunk was never knighted and dubbed him in the night, a symbolic touch and showing a grey realistic heroism people miss a lot in GRRM's works.
“serve until they die” … I never understood this part. This means that like 1 or 2 of the 7 Kingsguard are always too old to be useful. Makes sense for the Night Watch as there’s no upper limit to their headcount, but if you can only have 7, this makes little sense IMHO to not have the best at all times.
I think the Kingsguard is in practical terms more of a political position than a realistically complete security system. Yeah you have people like Barristan and Aemon the Dragonight who were both honorable and useful in the field. However, the Kingsguard has also been a way to bring houses closer to the Throne. Look at how annoyed Jon Con is that Rolly Duckfield (a.k.a. Ned under a false identity) is made Kingsguard cause it lessen the possibilities of the alliances.
Not one of the, he’s the best fighter in Westeros at the time. At 23, won a melee and disarmed Daemon in that melee, afterwards faced Daemon while jousting and beat him again. Beat Arryk and Erryk as well. Turned Harwin Strong’s nickname from Harwin Breakbones to Harwin Brokenbones because of how badley he beat him. Joffrey Lonmouth got beat so badly he went into coma before dying days later. He offered a 3v1 while wounded and yet the 3 opted to just have their archers take him out in fear of losing the 3v1 vs him. Knights were straight up scared to face him in open battle. He was the best fighter of his generation, but it has to be noted that generation didn’t have a lot of wars going on which means there werent a lot of experienced warriors around overall.
in the books tbf theirs nothing to disrespect. he pulls a few snakes things but they arent even really snakey. people only hate him if they watch the show only
@CrusaderChris Jaime Lannister considers him as good with a lance as himself (and it is implied that he even thinks Loras has the edge), he performed superbly at the battle of the blackwater, and he was second place to Brienne at Renly's tourney. He also was deeply devoted to Renly and seems truthful in his oath to Joffrey and Tommen. I agree he's not top teir, but I think he would use Marston Waters as a fleshlight, for example.
Any member of the kingsguard who defied Rogar Baratheon is automatically legendary. That’s the best moment of the kingsguard right there. One of my favorite moments in ASOIAF
Something else to add to Mormont being Waste of Space tier is that he simply loves slavery. He only ever implies that getting caught and banished for slaving was his first and only offence and from that point he sure seems to know a lot about slaves, the price of slaves, where to buy slaves, the best places to sell slaves, hangs around the Dothraki for seemingly no reason until he meets Dany and eventually convinces her to go to Slaver's Bay to buy a slave army. Even if this is never expanded on and Martin only ever leaves it in subtext it's almost certain he spent his years in exile in the slave trade and probably before that too (why would slaver ships even be on Bear Isle in the first place?) so it's a poetic sort of justice that he ends up a branded slave himself by the end of ADWD. Waste of space.
I love that quote at 28:30 when this uppity kid, Loras, japes at Jaime suggesting that he learned his ways from the current kingsguard roster that was terrible but Jaime is like, nah. I learned from the baddest knights in a generation, whom he still reveres
31:30 So-called "chivalrous" knights about to kill a man trying to see his dying sister. It is very strange that they forcibly stopped Ned from entering the Tower of Joy, to me that lends more credence to the idea that Lyanna wasn't entirely a willing participant in Rhaegar's delusions, at least not at that point, because in no world do I think that Lyanna herself would agree to killing Ned to stop him from entering the Tower, so it seems like she had no say in the matter. I think the truth is somewhere in between the story HBO depicted and the story Robert and his allies went with.
Love me Kingsguard Love me Crusader Chris Simple as *Rare TV win for Harrold Westerling being done dirty here, give him a fight and the writer's remembering him next season (guessing Team Black due to writer's bias) and he's a rare chivalrous seeming knight
Gwayne Corbray should defenitely be in the top tier. Daemon Blackfyre was the best warrior of his age and probably top 5 warriors of all time. If you can fight him for an hour you are definitely a generational talent. Daemon Blackfyre was also said to be better than the dragonknight so Gwayne Corbray was probably at his level if not better
Not Putting Ser Criston Cole in Generation talent is wild. Remember Cole was killed by crossbows because everyone was terrified of meeting Cole in field.
We’re not told he’s a very good swordsman. He’s shown to be a mediocre battle commander at best, and an objectively terrible kingsguard, what with how he’s behind a plot to murder the dead Kings chosen heir.
Maybe that why dragons did not hatch for Aegon V in Sumerhall because Dunk save Rhaella and took her outside she was post to be seventh member of Targaryen family to be sacrificed to hatch dragons but since Dunk save her it could not happen.
George once said that a song of ice and fire is a series where the hero dies before the series even begins. I think that Duncan is that hero that died.
4:40 Technically speaking, The Mirror Shield could've actually been a member of the Kingsguard. We assume the story grew over time to where he was added to the Kingsguard, but it's also possible he started as a Kingsguard but grew into a figure from the Age of Heroes. Better yet, he could've been equated to another Serwyn from the Age of Heroes.
Jaimie trys to murder a child and instead cripples him for life and ppl make excuses for him but still hate the other corrupt kingsguard despite not being able to see their pov strange..
37:50 George has actually said that the rainbow guard had nothing to do with Renly’s sexuality but that the rainbow is a religious symbol of the Faith of the Seven. The rainbow was not as widely adopted by the LGBT community until the mid 90’s.
in my opinion dying as a kings guard in service means your top tier at least. it means you did your duty. even barrister says something to that degree I believe. the only exception is the guy who guarded myrcella, can't remember his name but that one doesnt count. its why Eryk and aryk imo are arguably top 10 kings guard in history. both held vows however they thought best and did so to such a point they died in service killing one another
Great list, comprehensive, well researched and thought out. I appreciate also you crediting the artwork. A few minor quibbles in the rankings but only as a single tier up or down., The only major offense is putting Jora Mormont as a waste of space- c’mon!
Glad somebody else mentioned the weird parallel between Jaimie + Cersei and Rhaegar/targaryen incest. It makes a lot of sense, considering the effect Rhaegar has on both twins long after his death (shoutout the goat Aurane Waters.) As much as I don’t like Rhaegar the person I think he’s a fantastic character and narrative device, arguably one of the best examples of a character whose personal legacy is so strong amongst those still in the game that he basically feels like a still living character.
Quick fact check here: did Cregan Stark actually defeat Aemon the Dragonknight? The only thing I know is that Aemon said Cregan was the best he ever faced.
Ryan Redwyne and Criston Cole should be in generational talent. They were both the best fighters of their generation. There is no reason to believe any of the generation tier are much better fighters than them
COLE IS HALL OF GOOD??? Are there a point in the video where you start discussing what happens after season 2 or you immediately talk about spoilers after it?
Eh, imo they haven't been that good in wars. Like during the Dance of the Dragons they only sent 2000 OP greybeards and then showing up when the war was over, and then they spent the 1st Blackfyre Rebellion fighting against Skagos, an island which should've been taken over in a couple months.
@@nickorlando2388 Yeah, but he was alive during the coming of the Andals, long time before the Conquest. I mean, they're great in the main series, but not so much in the Targaryen era.
To be fair, Aerys' Kingsguard is probably glorified because they are recent history, and because we don't know so much about the previous ones. People who didn't know Arthur Dayne said that Barristan was the greatest swordsman ever, and people who haven't seen Barristan fight say that it's Jaime, so I'm pretty sure Jaime is overrated even if he was very good. Lorras and Jaime are probably close to equal, with the Hound being better than either even though he's not very knightly.
Stannis doesn't have a Kingsguard. I don't think we're given an explicit reason why, but probably because he follows R'hllor, and the Kingsguard is a Faith of the Seven-based system.
@@CrusaderChris Great point. I had not realized that he never calls them his King's Guard, but it does make sense that he probably prefers guards and champions instead of the King's Guard
it's kinda funny how Crusty Kraut was only written as some throwaway worldbuilding to give more weight to Arys Oakheart, one of the most boring POVs in the books, and now Kraut is more popular than Oakheart ever will be
So you want in YOUR Kingsguard someone who slept with the Kings wife, along with being known for killing the king he was sworn to protect and/or die for?? Good luck with that.
22:54 Black fire rebellions have so much potential, the story of Daemon and Gwayne itself can be a fantastic fucking episode. Give them a background and a past and i stg you have elite storytelling. Same with Lewyn, imagine we get a scene of him pleading to stay back and defend his niece and the children all to be forced by Aerys to lead a vanguard, the whole time he’s thinking about one thing, His family.
9:07 Curious of Maester Gyldayn to fail to compare the initial Jaehaerys I lineup to the gigachad Aerys II roster. The Mad King had absolute ballers for Kingsguard. Gerold Hightower, Barristan Selmy, and of course Arthur Dayne were all amongst the finest knights to ever wear the white cloak, and were formative for Jaime Lannister. Llewyn Martell, Jonothor Darry, and Oswell Whent were no slouches either.
Loved your theory about Summerhall, If we do get a Dunk & Egg story about the event I do think it would be heartbreaking for not just the readers but also Dunk himself. Imagined the scene with Frodo and Sam on Mount Doom, As Dunk (after saving Rhaella and likely Aerys, Jaehaerys II, and Shaera.) desperately trying to stop Egg stop from sacrificing innocent lives to the Fire. I could Aegon V stared at Dunk like Frodo did to Sam as everything was burning around them but then probably said ''For Fire & Blood.'' and then Aegon killed one member of his family maybe Prince Duncan the Small. In which Dunk has to no choice but to kill his former squire to stop the burning like Jamie and Aerys II years later? I hope you Incorporated my theory into your Aegon V's video when you reach him after you did his father Maekar in your Targaryen Kings series?
Dunk told Maekar he'd only take Egg with him if they could go on the road. Maekar wanted Dunk to stay put at Summerhall with Egg. That's what Chris is talking about.
I pretty much agree with those 7, seems they were the best of the best and almost all had a conscience. in this combination they would probably be a huge influence on any king to be honorable and care for his people.
Controversial choice, but for me, the hound as a member of the kingsguard is mid. He wasn't in the kingsguard long enough to make a mark, disobeyed orders, and deserted when he was needed the most. Also, based on his track record from the early books, he wouldn't have had any problem committing dishonorable, even evil acts if asked to by his king (think how he murdered Mycah). He's more Meryn Trant than Arthur Dayne, despite his obvious skills as a swordsman.
I do understand when ranking them souly as how they served as kingsguards, but personally, I'd have put the hound over brienne as in lore he is one of the most dangerous and skilled warriors in ASOIF and I believe was hinted as one of the few who could face a two handed Jaime and the mountain. Great video and analysis, just a personal opinion
Great video, but I think you should've ranked Joffrey Doggett higher. Blud fought against Maegor for the longest and survived, petitioned Jaehaerys to reinstate the Faith Militant, and then joined his Kingsguard. Now that is based.
Out of curiosity, is the swordsmanship of the kingsguard their only ranking quota here? Because the kingslayer and kingmaker are objectively horrible kingsguard when looking at the perspective of their duties and vows
I personally think Jaime is the best KG in history, in combat. His killing spree at Whispering Wood is the stuff of legends. Man straight up said "F*ck it, we ball" and almost ended the North's campaign before it even got going.
I mean considering that he did the very opposite of what his job is I wouldn't say so. He has also been an absolute dick for most of the story. He is changing which is one of the things that make him hands down the best character in the books, but he has a long way to go. Knights are not just about skill. It's chivalry, honour then skill. PS. Putting him on top is also a biiiig insult on Arthur dayne, aemon the dragonknight and Duncan the tall
@@wanyekivincent2883 I literally said "in combat". And when it comes to chivalry, Jaime may literally be *the* best knight in history. Because for all the honor of the likes of Arthur Dayne, Barristan Selmy etc. They still stood by and were complicit in their King's horrific tortures and atrocities. Jaime (at *17* no less) made a choice that no KG in history has had the balls to make and in a single act saved more people than any other knight individually, and almost more than every KG in history combined.
@@wanyekivincent2883 Jaime's good qualities are too often overshadowed by his negative qualities, and I think that's a pity. The entire foundation of his character is built upon his speech to Catelyn: when he's in a situation where his king is objectively evil, but he's honor-bound to blindly serve him, what is the right thing to do? For all their wisdom and prowess, no other Kingsguard considered killing Aerys. None of them (as far as we know) tried saving Rhaella. Jaime did. Is that not heroic? Chivalrous? And Jaime's situation is actually VERY similar to all three of those knights you mentioned, which is why they all belong in Generational Talent tier. Arthur was in the same spot as him: do I choose the king I've sworn to protect, or the prince and the good of the realm? Aemon the Dragonknight's version of Aerys was his own brother, so if he wanted to kill Aegon IV, that means he's breaking his oath AND becoming a kinslayer. Duncan the Tall, if my theory is somewhat true, had to choose between the boy he'd known and loved for decades and the dragon-obsessed lunatic king he became. GRRM (through Jaime, mainly) is deconstructing the sanctity of oaths. If your oath prevents you from saving innocent lives, that oath is not worth serving. So Jaime broke free, and Dunk (presumably) did too. Arthur sort of did, and Aemon did not.
The deal with Jaime is that he would easily be the Greatest Kingsguard in history if he didn't have to sacrifice his entire reputation to protect innocent smallfolk from evil King he was sworn to. Killing Aerys, which was obviously good is the only thing that 'stains' him (there is incest thing, but its not like Robert was loyal or cared about Cersei anyway) He was sworn at 16, he fought and killed outlaws of Smiling Knight as teenager, he fought in siege of Pyke and conquered Riverlands for his kings in absence of any sort of cohesive military and political leadership after Tywins and Kevans deaths.
tnf barrister says Daenerys has no queens guard and blood riders are something else entirely, like family. griff is more of a hand figure from what we've seen
![Felix "Unfair" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Oswujxm2Ag0/mqdefault.jpg)
41:33 Made a big mistake here, thanks to @Trofusky for pointing it out. My traitors list is a copy of the box above, and I forgot to change the values. I finished this edit three days before posting, and I watched the final render about four times before uploading, and I still missed this mistake. Sometimes, my stupidity still surprises me. Anyways, of all 113 Kingsguard, here are those who became traitors/oathbreakers in some way:
Gyles Greycloak (unknown treachery)
Olyver Bracken & Raymund Mallery (defected from Maegor to Jaehaerys)
Lucamore Strong (had three separate secret wives/families)
Criston Cole (this is arguable; he went against Viserys's wishes once Viserys died, but at that point Aegon was going to become King regardless of Cole, so was he just being loyal to Aegon? Up for debate)
Mervyn Flowers (killed his Lord Commander and tried to run away)
Terrence Toyne (had relations with Bethany Bracken)
Jaime Lannister (killed his king and had an affair with his sister)
Boros Blount (visits brothels)
Arys Oakheart (affair with Arianne, attempts to be Queenmaker)
Sandor Clegane (abandons KG after Blackwater)
Jorah Mormont (spied on Dany, and was criminally creepy)
That's 12/113, or about 11%, of Kingsguard who ended up breaking their oaths in some way. If I'm missing any, comment below.
would we not also include Arryk Cargyll for using deception in an attempt to kill another of the royal family & his own kin/ brother of the kingsguard? Pretty sure that’s against the oath
Sure, it may have been an order given by his lord commander; but I don’t think refusing the treacherous instructions of the kingmaker gives him immunity from upholding his oath to the royal family, fellow kingsguard, or from keeping the most general ideals of formal knighthood
You could argue Barristan, for taking up arms against the king he was sworn to protect, but that's a grey area.
You might also say Marston Waters and Amaury Peake, who went against the King's and Prince's orders to not try to harm Viserys II's wife who probably had nothing to do with the corruption of her family. But again, you could say they were doing their duty.
If Olyver Bracken and Raymund Mallery and especially Criston Cole are traitors/oathbreakers then so are Arryk Cargyll, Willis Fell, and Rickard Thorne. If Boros Blount is an oathbreaker for visiting having sex then so are Lewyn Martell, Preston Greenfield, and Osmund Kettleblack, and Owen Bush's death would indicate the same. Aemon the Dragonknight is probably the father of his sister's children. The number of oathbreakers can be massive depending on where you draw the line.
Starting the video now but we've got beef if Strong Belwas isn't top of GOAT tier
You WILL be disappointed
@@CrusaderChris Why isn't Jon Snow on the top of the list and why is Sandor Clegane so low? Same for The Mountain they are way better fighters than Brienne of Tarth
Strong Belwas deserved better.
@@trump2025power ? Jon is still dead and was never a kingsguard or queensgard
Jon Snow is only an amazing fighter in the show, in the books he is pretty mid @@trump2025power
Balon swan is a highly underrated kingsguard Jaime would’ve chosen him over everyone else to be the commander in his absence and he is a genuinely good person he’s the Kevan Lannister of the kingsguard quietly being great in the background hopefully he doesn’t share kevans fate
from what I remember jaime does also say though than no one but maybe loras was genuinely worthy of being on his kingsguared, that his predecessors wounldt have approved
plus I remember him being a dick to Sansa.
@@jakelongstaff4102
I don’t ever think he was a dick to Sansa iirc he was only really a kingsguard after the riots while Tyrion was there to stop some of the abuse so I think he didn’t interact much with her
@@jakelongstaff4102
Jaime does think Loras is a skilled fighter and worthy of the kingsguard but he also thinks he’s a pompous douche whose over confident he sees too much of himself in Loras which is why he thinks about him frequently while not as often with balon
@@thepunisher6674 he literally doesnt… have you read affc? He literally says loras is the only one with promise. He thinks balon is decent as a man and soldier but not as a kingsguard. If im right it’s literally how balon treats sansa that makes him dislike him a little
The Goode Brothers from House Goode is likely an ancestor of the famed House Goodmen, who is said that only 10 of them were needed to take the Eyrie, so they arguably should be rated higher.
Untrue. They are descended from Ser Ten Goodmen, one of the greatest warriors in Westerosi history
Ser Ten Goodman really ruined the army of Stannis
is this a saul goodman joke?
They are the ancestors of ser Saul goodman, knight of the law, defender of albuquerques citizen
@@j1ffersonchicagoer of sunroofs
Dunk is so GOATed, the art of him facing Lyonel Baratheon in his white armour is my favourite piece of ASOIAF art easily, as I didn't know that's who he became. My headacnnon is always that he ran right back in to save Aegon and they died together; and that the night of being named Lord Commander Aegon V said he knew Dunk was never knighted and dubbed him in the night, a symbolic touch and showing a grey realistic heroism people miss a lot in GRRM's works.
I also think they died together it would be beautifully tragic in typical gourge fashion.
Was just lamenting I had run out of your content to binge, and then this. Tis like my nameday
On defense of Aegon the current model of guards wouldn't be able to do Jack either if the queen sudenly attacked the king with a Valyrian steel sword.
“serve until they die” … I never understood this part. This means that like 1 or 2 of the 7 Kingsguard are always too old to be useful. Makes sense for the Night Watch as there’s no upper limit to their headcount, but if you can only have 7, this makes little sense IMHO to not have the best at all times.
I think the Kingsguard is in practical terms more of a political position than a realistically complete security system.
Yeah you have people like Barristan and Aemon the Dragonight who were both honorable and useful in the field. However, the Kingsguard has also been a way to bring houses closer to the Throne. Look at how annoyed Jon Con is that Rolly Duckfield (a.k.a. Ned under a false identity) is made Kingsguard cause it lessen the possibilities of the alliances.
They should people be able to challenge other kingsguards for the position (a fight to the DEATH)
@@ramiromen6595that would be insane
@@ramiromen6595Suicide of kingsuard would skyrocket , stress and anxiety that comes with lil fiends vying for your job is crazy
Yes just like the supreme court
Just got home from uni lectures in Law, back to back since 8am now I get to watch this. Life is good
I just finished my Political philosophy course and sitting in Burger King eating and watching the video. Life is good indeed
SO EARLY VALYRIA IS STILL STANDING
Now it can’t even piss…standing up
so early the ghis empire still rules essos
Finally someone is putting some respect on Ser Criston Cole, he's one of the best fighters in Westeros during the Dance of The Dragons.
Not one of the, he’s the best fighter in Westeros at the time.
At 23, won a melee and disarmed Daemon in that melee, afterwards faced Daemon while jousting and beat him again.
Beat Arryk and Erryk as well.
Turned Harwin Strong’s nickname from Harwin Breakbones to Harwin Brokenbones because of how badley he beat him.
Joffrey Lonmouth got beat so badly he went into coma before dying days later.
He offered a 3v1 while wounded and yet the 3 opted to just have their archers take him out in fear of losing the 3v1 vs him.
Knights were straight up scared to face him in open battle. He was the best fighter of his generation, but it has to be noted that generation didn’t have a lot of wars going on which means there werent a lot of experienced warriors around overall.
@@sirjayko33I won’t have songs of your bravery kingmaker
in the books tbf theirs nothing to disrespect. he pulls a few snakes things but they arent even really snakey. people only hate him if they watch the show only
True, he's not a nice guy, but that has no bearing on his skill with a sword.
32:48 the purple eyes on Danny are so good! I really wish they would add those
Loras as mid is wild
Bro has done nothing 😭 He killed innocent people without trial, flipped from one king to the next, and that's kinda it.
@CrusaderChris Jaime Lannister considers him as good with a lance as himself (and it is implied that he even thinks Loras has the edge), he performed superbly at the battle of the blackwater, and he was second place to Brienne at Renly's tourney. He also was deeply devoted to Renly and seems truthful in his oath to Joffrey and Tommen. I agree he's not top teir, but I think he would use Marston Waters as a fleshlight, for example.
@@vandalman8 it's not just about combat. It's rarely ever about combat
@@wanyekivincent2883 which is why the kingslayer is top tier and Marston Waters and Shitston Cole are 2nd from the top, lol.
@@vandalman8Criston Cole should have been a generational talent. Definitely the best knight of his time. Everyone who disagrees should duel him.
Any member of the kingsguard who defied Rogar Baratheon is automatically legendary. That’s the best moment of the kingsguard right there. One of my favorite moments in ASOIAF
Happy to see Jaime get his top tier place. Agreed, probably the best character GRRM has written
All three Lannister siblings are some of his best work ever, along with Daenerys. Abner Marsh is the GOAT, tho
@@CrusaderChris 100% agree on the Lannisters siblings. Still gotta read fever dream. House of the worm has a Jaime like character I’ve heard too
Jamie is probably the best character in asoiaf. But also probably the worst kingsguard.
How dare you disrespect Eddard Stark like that.
Something else to add to Mormont being Waste of Space tier is that he simply loves slavery. He only ever implies that getting caught and banished for slaving was his first and only offence and from that point he sure seems to know a lot about slaves, the price of slaves, where to buy slaves, the best places to sell slaves, hangs around the Dothraki for seemingly no reason until he meets Dany and eventually convinces her to go to Slaver's Bay to buy a slave army.
Even if this is never expanded on and Martin only ever leaves it in subtext it's almost certain he spent his years in exile in the slave trade and probably before that too (why would slaver ships even be on Bear Isle in the first place?) so it's a poetic sort of justice that he ends up a branded slave himself by the end of ADWD.
Waste of space.
I love that quote at 28:30 when this uppity kid, Loras, japes at Jaime suggesting that he learned his ways from the current kingsguard roster that was terrible but Jaime is like, nah. I learned from the baddest knights in a generation, whom he still reveres
31:30 So-called "chivalrous" knights about to kill a man trying to see his dying sister. It is very strange that they forcibly stopped Ned from entering the Tower of Joy, to me that lends more credence to the idea that Lyanna wasn't entirely a willing participant in Rhaegar's delusions, at least not at that point, because in no world do I think that Lyanna herself would agree to killing Ned to stop him from entering the Tower, so it seems like she had no say in the matter. I think the truth is somewhere in between the story HBO depicted and the story Robert and his allies went with.
Love me Kingsguard
Love me Crusader Chris
Simple as
*Rare TV win for Harrold Westerling being done dirty here, give him a fight and the writer's remembering him next season (guessing Team Black due to writer's bias) and he's a rare chivalrous seeming knight
Gwayne Corbray should defenitely be in the top tier. Daemon Blackfyre was the best warrior of his age and probably top 5 warriors of all time. If you can fight him for an hour you are definitely a generational talent. Daemon Blackfyre was also said to be better than the dragonknight so Gwayne Corbray was probably at his level if not better
Kinda weird that both Stannis and Robb never thought to make they’re own Kingsgaurd
Stannis and Robb don't have any connection to the Seven.
@@ZekeKennedy-yp2pq This.
Yes, and Stannis gave up on the Seven when his parents died. >
@@ZekeKennedy-yp2pq oh yeah forgot about that
Congrats on getting 50k subscribers! You'll definitely earn more
Not Putting Ser Criston Cole in Generation talent is wild.
Remember Cole was killed by crossbows because everyone was terrified of meeting Cole in field.
We’re not told he’s a very good swordsman. He’s shown to be a mediocre battle commander at best, and an objectively terrible kingsguard, what with how he’s behind a plot to murder the dead Kings chosen heir.
Maybe that why dragons did not hatch for Aegon V in Sumerhall because Dunk save Rhaella and took her outside she was post to be seventh member of Targaryen family to be sacrificed to hatch dragons but since Dunk save her it could not happen.
George once said that a song of ice and fire is a series where the hero dies before the series even begins. I think that Duncan is that hero that died.
how do you not have more subscribers lmaoo, your videos are phenomenal
The maester-engineered psy-op has bled into reality. The Citadel is repressing my subscribers. 1 Like = 1 Prayer
@@CrusaderChris Father. Warrior. Smith. Mother. Maiden. Crone. Stranger 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
I love this video. Would love to see similar tier lists and videos like this
Thank god, i was starving for more asoiaf content
4:40 Technically speaking, The Mirror Shield could've actually been a member of the Kingsguard. We assume the story grew over time to where he was added to the Kingsguard, but it's also possible he started as a Kingsguard but grew into a figure from the Age of Heroes. Better yet, he could've been equated to another Serwyn from the Age of Heroes.
Or he was a member of *a* kings guard back when Westeros was split between petty kings
@bigbean1627 Aegon and Visenya created the Kingsguard after conquering Westeros.
“I can’t stand religious zealots”
- Crusader Chris
Jaimie trys to murder a child and instead cripples him for life and ppl make excuses for him but still hate the other corrupt kingsguard despite not being able to see their pov strange..
37:50 George has actually said that the rainbow guard had nothing to do with Renly’s sexuality but that the rainbow is a religious symbol of the Faith of the Seven. The rainbow was not as widely adopted by the LGBT community until the mid 90’s.
Gyles Morrigan and Marston Waters being respected made me happy :]
in my opinion dying as a kings guard in service means your top tier at least. it means you did your duty. even barrister says something to that degree I believe. the only exception is the guy who guarded myrcella, can't remember his name but that one doesnt count. its why Eryk and aryk imo are arguably top 10 kings guard in history. both held vows however they thought best and did so to such a point they died in service killing one another
In GoT or Clash, Bran remember Ned saying that the Kingsguard used to be a shining example, but it looks like they were always a pretty mixed bag.
Great list, comprehensive, well researched and thought out. I appreciate also you crediting the artwork. A few minor quibbles in the rankings but only as a single tier up or down., The only major offense is putting Jora Mormont as a waste of space- c’mon!
20:06 Damn, Tyland got that Nazgul drip. No wonder Aegon looks horrified.
The Rainbow Guard has nothing to do with Renly being gay. The rainbow is a symbol of the faith.
I find that passing queer...
Maybe not in Westeros, but the rainbow was a clear nod to the readers of the book that Renly was gay.
@@greywolf7577Yeah, it's for sure a cheeky easter egg.
He was gay, OP?
36:10 "we'll see that in the winds of winter"
Lol. That's funny. 😊
I wouldn’t need 7 kings guard. I would only need one: Ser Meryn the Magnificent.
Glad somebody else mentioned the weird parallel between Jaimie + Cersei and Rhaegar/targaryen incest. It makes a lot of sense, considering the effect Rhaegar has on both twins long after his death (shoutout the goat Aurane Waters.) As much as I don’t like Rhaegar the person I think he’s a fantastic character and narrative device, arguably one of the best examples of a character whose personal legacy is so strong amongst those still in the game that he basically feels like a still living character.
I agree wholeheartedly with everything you’ve just said
Quick fact check here: did Cregan Stark actually defeat Aemon the Dragonknight? The only thing I know is that Aemon said Cregan was the best he ever faced.
Make a Hand of the King tier list next
Solid!! Great synth sound at the end of the video..is that a moog??
Idk what a moog is, the artist is Quest Master tho. Check em out
Strong Belwas on mid? C'mon, my onion boy deserves better than this
“I remember them as mid” had me on the floor laughing 😂😂
“he was brave and he was mid” 😂
Thanks For this! Love your rankings! Please rank the Iron throne monarchs from Aegon I to Tommen I❤❤❤❤
Out of those seven, who would you choose to be the Lord Commander of your Kingsguard?
Ryan Redwyne and Criston Cole should be in generational talent. They were both the best fighters of their generation. There is no reason to believe any of the generation tier are much better fighters than them
Can you rank beauties in AWOIAF history ? 😊
This was a great idea for a video, and you obviously did your homework.
never let bro cook again 🔥
Ser Barristan the GOAT is the greatest ever
COLE IS HALL OF GOOD??? Are there a point in the video where you start discussing what happens after season 2 or you immediately talk about spoilers after it?
Ngl, I would want a northman on the kingsguard based on their history in previous wars
Eh, imo they haven't been that good in wars. Like during the Dance of the Dragons they only sent 2000 OP greybeards and then showing up when the war was over, and then they spent the 1st Blackfyre Rebellion fighting against Skagos, an island which should've been taken over in a couple months.
@@SirLofHearthaven bros never heard of the Theon Stark the Hungry wolf
@@nickorlando2388 Yeah, but he was alive during the coming of the Andals, long time before the Conquest. I mean, they're great in the main series, but not so much in the Targaryen era.
To be fair, Aerys' Kingsguard is probably glorified because they are recent history, and because we don't know so much about the previous ones. People who didn't know Arthur Dayne said that Barristan was the greatest swordsman ever, and people who haven't seen Barristan fight say that it's Jaime, so I'm pretty sure Jaime is overrated even if he was very good. Lorras and Jaime are probably close to equal, with the Hound being better than either even though he's not very knightly.
No way you put Jamie in generational Kingsguard. Sure he was a good swordsman but he might be the worst kings-guard in history.
Great list but what about the King's Guard of The Mannis? He has a couple of solid guards, like the one with the pig symbol.
Stannis doesn't have a Kingsguard. I don't think we're given an explicit reason why, but probably because he follows R'hllor, and the Kingsguard is a Faith of the Seven-based system.
@@CrusaderChris Great point. I had not realized that he never calls them his King's Guard, but it does make sense that he probably prefers guards and champions instead of the King's Guard
it's kinda funny how Crusty Kraut was only written as some throwaway worldbuilding to give more weight to Arys Oakheart, one of the most boring POVs in the books, and now Kraut is more popular than Oakheart ever will be
So you want in YOUR Kingsguard someone who slept with the Kings wife, along with being known for killing the king he was sworn to protect and/or die for?? Good luck with that.
22:54 Black fire rebellions have so much potential, the story of Daemon and Gwayne itself can be a fantastic fucking episode.
Give them a background and a past and i stg you have elite storytelling. Same with Lewyn, imagine we get a scene of him pleading to stay back and defend his niece and the children all to be forced by Aerys to lead a vanguard, the whole time he’s thinking about one thing, His family.
9:07 Curious of Maester Gyldayn to fail to compare the initial Jaehaerys I lineup to the gigachad Aerys II roster. The Mad King had absolute ballers for Kingsguard. Gerold Hightower, Barristan Selmy, and of course Arthur Dayne were all amongst the finest knights to ever wear the white cloak, and were formative for Jaime Lannister. Llewyn Martell, Jonothor Darry, and Oswell Whent were no slouches either.
a video with the same style, about the greatest fighters the ASOIAF universe would be amazing. Please make it happen 🙏
Bro really saw Pate the woodcock utter one of the hardest lines on asoiaf and then said he was mid...
Loved your theory about Summerhall, If we do get a Dunk & Egg story about the event I do think it would be heartbreaking for not just the readers but also Dunk himself. Imagined the scene with Frodo and Sam on Mount Doom, As Dunk (after saving Rhaella and likely Aerys, Jaehaerys II, and Shaera.) desperately trying to stop Egg stop from sacrificing innocent lives to the Fire. I could Aegon V stared at Dunk like Frodo did to Sam as everything was burning around them but then probably said ''For Fire & Blood.'' and then Aegon killed one member of his family maybe Prince Duncan the Small. In which Dunk has to no choice but to kill his former squire to stop the burning like Jamie and Aerys II years later? I hope you Incorporated my theory into your Aegon V's video when you reach him after you did his father Maekar in your Targaryen Kings series?
I dont care wtf it says in fire&blood says Aery 2nd had by far the best kingsguard
Duncan the tall didn’t persuade the prince to let him take egg on as Squire, the Prince asked Duncan to
Dunk told Maekar he'd only take Egg with him if they could go on the road. Maekar wanted Dunk to stay put at Summerhall with Egg. That's what Chris is talking about.
I pretty much agree with those 7, seems they were the best of the best and almost all had a conscience. in this combination they would probably be a huge influence on any king to be honorable and care for his people.
Rank the kings later
Controversial choice, but for me, the hound as a member of the kingsguard is mid. He wasn't in the kingsguard long enough to make a mark, disobeyed orders, and deserted when he was needed the most. Also, based on his track record from the early books, he wouldn't have had any problem committing dishonorable, even evil acts if asked to by his king (think how he murdered Mycah). He's more Meryn Trant than Arthur Dayne, despite his obvious skills as a swordsman.
Hmmmm I’d say Podrick is the best of the Kingsguard
So I noticed in HoTD season 2, the black dude Kingsguard to Aegon (the ones sent to the wall by Aemond) was named “Red” Robb. Maybe that’s him
Jaime is automatically the worst kingsguard ever just from the fact that he killed the king he was sworn to protect.
I do understand when ranking them souly as how they served as kingsguards, but personally, I'd have put the hound over brienne as in lore he is one of the most dangerous and skilled warriors in ASOIF and I believe was hinted as one of the few who could face a two handed Jaime and the mountain. Great video and analysis, just a personal opinion
Joffey Doggett hate is unfounded (I stand for the smallfolk)
Agreed completely. Bro was based
Great video, but I think you should've ranked Joffrey Doggett higher. Blud fought against Maegor for the longest and survived, petitioned Jaehaerys to reinstate the Faith Militant, and then joined his Kingsguard. Now that is based.
Out of curiosity, is the swordsmanship of the kingsguard their only ranking quota here? Because the kingslayer and kingmaker are objectively horrible kingsguard when looking at the perspective of their duties and vows
I personally think Jaime is the best KG in history, in combat. His killing spree at Whispering Wood is the stuff of legends. Man straight up said "F*ck it, we ball" and almost ended the North's campaign before it even got going.
I mean considering that he did the very opposite of what his job is I wouldn't say so. He has also been an absolute dick for most of the story. He is changing which is one of the things that make him hands down the best character in the books, but he has a long way to go. Knights are not just about skill. It's chivalry, honour then skill.
PS. Putting him on top is also a biiiig insult on Arthur dayne, aemon the dragonknight and Duncan the tall
His taste in women is questionable, but yeah he's not on trial for that. Legendary
@@wanyekivincent2883 I literally said "in combat".
And when it comes to chivalry, Jaime may literally be *the* best knight in history. Because for all the honor of the likes of Arthur Dayne, Barristan Selmy etc. They still stood by and were complicit in their King's horrific tortures and atrocities. Jaime (at *17* no less) made a choice that no KG in history has had the balls to make and in a single act saved more people than any other knight individually, and almost more than every KG in history combined.
@@wanyekivincent2883 Jaime's good qualities are too often overshadowed by his negative qualities, and I think that's a pity. The entire foundation of his character is built upon his speech to Catelyn: when he's in a situation where his king is objectively evil, but he's honor-bound to blindly serve him, what is the right thing to do? For all their wisdom and prowess, no other Kingsguard considered killing Aerys. None of them (as far as we know) tried saving Rhaella. Jaime did. Is that not heroic? Chivalrous?
And Jaime's situation is actually VERY similar to all three of those knights you mentioned, which is why they all belong in Generational Talent tier. Arthur was in the same spot as him: do I choose the king I've sworn to protect, or the prince and the good of the realm? Aemon the Dragonknight's version of Aerys was his own brother, so if he wanted to kill Aegon IV, that means he's breaking his oath AND becoming a kinslayer. Duncan the Tall, if my theory is somewhat true, had to choose between the boy he'd known and loved for decades and the dragon-obsessed lunatic king he became.
GRRM (through Jaime, mainly) is deconstructing the sanctity of oaths. If your oath prevents you from saving innocent lives, that oath is not worth serving. So Jaime broke free, and Dunk (presumably) did too. Arthur sort of did, and Aemon did not.
@@reefa2931 he then proceeded to throw a little boy out the window. Besides, he also stood and watched as the starks were burnt
Orivel the open-handed is a crazy nickname
Don’t ever disrespect the starks u Frey
Congrats on getting to 50K subs! All heil Lord Chris! 🫡
I appreciate you 🙏
😎@@CrusaderChris
I can’t believe Arthur Dayne was the Blackwater Bah Harbor Butcher
the rainbow cloaks actually had nothing to do with renlys gayness, the rainbow is a symbol of the seven
The strong Belwas slander is disgusting. You will be hearing from the Belwasheads about this.
This should be damn good
We're ranking Kingsguards, GRRM pls release the book
4:08 dark souls reference🔥
so no Starks on the Kings Guard?
Who did Robert B SA?
Cersei
@@CrusaderChris Thanks for the reply, but do you have a reference? I think I completely missed that part. Or I just don't remember.
Never mind. I think I found it in FFC.
Assuming you accidentally copy/pasted the common KG names to Traitors, seeing as Westerling’s not a Traitor but Lucamore Strong was
FUCK I knew I was forgetting to fix something I watched this video FOUR TIMES before uploading
I know she was not a Kingsguard or Queensguard but I love Jonquil Darke, Queen Alysanne's protector!
Sandor is a bit like Jaime in reverse. Doing good things for bad reasons.
The deal with Jaime is that he would easily be the Greatest Kingsguard in history if he didn't have to sacrifice his entire reputation to protect innocent smallfolk from evil King he was sworn to. Killing Aerys, which was obviously good is the only thing that 'stains' him (there is incest thing, but its not like Robert was loyal or cared about Cersei anyway)
He was sworn at 16, he fought and killed outlaws of Smiling Knight as teenager, he fought in siege of Pyke and conquered Riverlands for his kings in absence of any sort of cohesive military and political leadership after Tywins and Kevans deaths.
Strong Belwas is a chad for what he did to the Champion of Meereen alone.
Not True, there is only One god. And that god is Death!! And what do we say to the god of Death???? Great job!!
Pate Woodcock not being the highest tier…hmm.
tnf barrister says Daenerys has no queens guard and blood riders are something else entirely, like family. griff is more of a hand figure from what we've seen
And there are of course more that were not mentioned in the history
Wasnt jon connington a white cloak
Hand of the king, but not Kingsguard. His cloak does have a lot of white on it, though.