High Sparrow is a key player in Game of Thrones. (HBO)
Many things in Game of Thrones could hinge on High Sparrow. He’s slowly moved himself up to a monumental position of power. Can anything stop him? This post has spoilers through “Blood of My Blood” along with minor spoilers from the books. It’s an in-depth analysis of High Sparrow, his background, and top fan theories about his future.
This is background about High Sparrow, information about him from the books, and fans top theories about who he is and the role he will play.
Here’s what you need to know.
High Sparrow’s Background
He now has the ear, heart, and faith of King Tommen and has thrown much of King’s Landing into disarray. He’s gained power for himself despite not having huge weapons at his disposal. But how did he begin?
The High Sparrow was born to a talented cobbler. After his father passed away, he improved the family business and became wealthier and began living an extravagant lifestyle. He fell into a life of lavish parties and debauchery. But one morning he woke, ashamed of the life he was living, and left without even his shoes. He began focusing on ministering to the poor and felt closer to the Seven than ever before.
The Faith of the Seven
This is the religion of the Seven Kingdoms, strongest south of Westeros. Other main religions include the Old Gods of the Forest in the north and worshipping the Drowned God along the Iron Islands.
The Faith of the Seven began about 6,000 years ago. According to legend, the God of the Seven manifested before the Andals, an ancient people who invaded Westeros thousands of years ago shortly after the God appeared to them. The God’s symbol is a seven-pointed star. The Andals viewed the magic of the Children of the Forest as an abomination, so they burned down the weirwood trees and slaughtered the First Men. Except for the Kingdom of the North, all the First Men kingdoms fell to the Andals.
The Faith believes there is one god with seven faces: father, mother, maiden, crone, warrior, smith, and stranger.
The Faith Militant
Until the Targaryens began ruling, the Faith Militant dispensed justice and conducted trials over everyone in society in Westeros, including the kings. The Targaryens took this away from them and the Faith became corrupted.
Becoming the High Sparrow
After leaving his lavish lifestyle, the High Sparrow (although he wasn’t originally called this) began to speak out against suffering of the poor at the hands of the noble families. He and his followers eventually made their way to King’s Landing and the “Sparrows” became a cult of sorts. They emerged from the disillusionment spawned by the Red Wedding and other instances. They believed everyone was equal in God’s eyes and no excess should be allowed.
When the Sparrows arrived after Tywin’s death, they gained many followers, including Lancel Lannister. They found the High Septon in a brothel and forced him to do a walk of penance. Cersei arrested the High Septon and had the High Sparrow elected as the new High Septon. She said she was going to return power to the Faith Militant. This led to the current situation, that landed Loras, Margaery, and Cersei in jail and now has placed of all King’s Landing within High Sparrow’s power.
The High Sparrow’s Influence Over Tommen
Long before tonight’s episode, some fans were wondering if Tommen was falling under High Sparrow’s spell. Maybe Tommen was starting to think High Sparrow has some logic behind his beliefs. There’s one big reason that Tommen’s switch isn’t such a surprising idea. In a previous season, when Tommen and Tywin were talking, Tywin asked: “What is a good king’s single most important quality?” The first thing that Tommen suggested was “holiness.”
Tommen’s been susceptible to this for a long time. And with Margaery on board, that was all it took for him to join the Seven club.
