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This place could be beautiful, right? (--You could make this place beautiful.)

Chapter 11: A/N

Summary:

Another A/N, this time on character heights :D

Chapter Text

Okay, so, an addendum on heights.

People clown on GRRM for this a lot, and for his off-the-cuff numbers, but honestly, I sort of love how goofy it all is, when you imagine it, you know? Like, I love how silly their armour is.

His great cloak was sewn from countless layers of cloth-of-gold, so heavy that it barely stirred even when he charged, so large that its drape covered most of his stallion’s hindquarters when he took the saddle. No ordinary clasp would suffice for such a weight, so the great cloak was held in place by a matched pair of miniature lionesses crouching on his shoulders, as if poised to spring. Their mate, a male with a magnificent mane, reclined atop Lord Tywin’s great helm, one paw raking the air as he roared. All three lions were wrought in gold, with ruby eyes.

His armor was heavy steel plate, enamelled in a dark crimson, greaves and gauntlets inlaid with ornate gold scrollwork. His rondels were golden sunbursts, all his fastenings were gilded, and the red steel was burnished to such a high sheen that it shone like fire in the light of the rising sun.”

“Even the horse’s armor was gilded, and his bardings were shimmering crimson silk emblazoned with the lion of Lannister”

Even Gregor Clegane has a silly armour, and he’s supposed to be the big bad

Beneath a long yellow surcoat bearing the three black dogs of Clegane, he wore heavy plate over chainmail, dull grey streel dinted and scarred in battle. Beneath that would be boiled leather and a layer of quilting. A flat-topped greathelm was bolted to his gorget, with breaths around the mouth and nose and a narrow slit for vision. The crest atop it was a stone fist.

Crest on top of his helmet is a fist?! The yellow surcoat with three black dogs? What?!

So, with that in mind, I don’t mind the ridiculous heights. It adds to the fantasy of it all. You have normal sized people like the Targaryens and the Martells and the Tyrells and then you have inexplicably huge people like Jaime and Tywin, then the even more inexplicably tall people like Cleganes and Baratheons—but not Greyjoys or Starks for that matter. Then there’s people like Hodor and Greatjon and some of the Wildlings who are like idk 2.5m tall or something hilarious like that.

I don’t know, I eat up that stuff. I love to imagine a sixteen-year-old Jaime’s hulking, clumsy mass scampering behind Rhaegar and Elia. Jaime in the show is like 188, that’s 6’2’’ I think? That’s very reasonable. He’s not 2m. I’m sorry, he’s just not because he’s supposed to be the skilled, clever fighter, not the hulking monster.

Funny.

But anyway, so we calculated Jaime’s height, again, by GRRM’s own words that he’s taller than Rand, who is 6’6’’.

But what about the others?

Keep in mind that all the heights are when the men and women are fully grown—if, indeed, they live to grow up in the books


 

House Baratheon

  1. Robert Baratheon — 6’6” (198 cm)
    As described by Ned in A Game of Thrones (Book 1).
  2. Renly Baratheon — 6’5” (196 cm)
    "The way she looked at the king--looked down at him, she was a good hand higher, though Renly was near as tall as his brother had been--was painful to see."
    This establishes both Renly, Brienne, and Robert here.
  3. Stannis Baratheon — 6’4” (193 cm)
    Described as a little shorter than Robert, but I like to imagine he’s shorter than Renly too.

House Lannister

  1. Tywin Lannister — 6’4” (193 cm)
    I didn’t find anything concrete on him, but the forums agree that he’s tall and strong even past his prime, and most put him around Jaime’s height. I’m not quite that bold, but 6’4” sounds about right.
  2. Jaime Lannister — 6’6” (198 cm)
    GRRM said he’s taller than Rand, who is 6’6”, but let’s not split hairs and say they’re the same height lol.
  3. Cersei Lannister — 6’0” (183 cm)
    This one is a bit of a reach, but I found on a forum somewhere that Cersei and Melisandre are the same height, and Mel is “taller than most knights,” so at least 6’. Plus, she’s apparently from the line of giants.
  4. Tyrion Lannister — 3’0” (91 cm)
    The goblet Joffrey got for his wedding was described as being 3’0” tall, and Tyrion was annoyed that the goblet was as tall as him. Also, George said that Peter Dinklage is taller than book Tyrion, and Peter is like 4’2”. So that’s a thing, too. The randomness never ends. Soon we will have 1ft tall and 9ft tall people, why not? The important thing is that GRRM is really firm about a “realistic, grounded deconstruction of fantasy tropes” and “dragons with a correct number of limbs.” Yeah, George, you did very well.

House Clegane

  1. Gregor Clegane — 8’0” (244 cm)
    Gregor Clegane is eight feet tall. Deal with it.
  2. Sandor Clegane — 6’9” (206 cm)
    In 2001, George said the Hound was maybe a bit taller than Brienne, and in A Feast for Crows, Brienne said the gravedigger was taller than her. Bronze Yohn is as tall as the Hound according to Sansa.

House Stark

  1. Brandon Stark — 6’2” (188 cm)
    There is nothing at all about Stark height. I can’t even find a useful comparison. Brandon is taller than Eddard.
  2. Eddard Stark — 6’0” (183 cm)
    Eddard is average height. In the normal world, average height is 5’8”-5’10”, I don’t even know if that tracks. But in Westeros? With the old blood thing? Yeah, we know he’s taller than Cat’s 5’8”, so.
  3. Benjen Stark — 5’9” (175 cm)
    Like all the Starks, pulling the number out of a hat. I can’t find a single quote.
  4. Lyanna Stark — 5’4” (163 cm)
    Lyanna died young, so we really don’t know how much she’d have grown, but she’s described as short.

House Umber

  1. Greatjon Umber — Around 7’0” (213 cm)
    “And when Lord Umber, who was called the Greatjon by his men and stood as tall as Hodor and twice as wide, (…)” — A Game of Thrones, Bran VI.
  2. Smalljon Umber — A bit under 7’0” (just below 213 cm)
    Cat said that Smalljon is nearly as tall as his father.

House Martell

  1. Doran Martell — 6’0” (183 cm)
    I don’t think we’ve ever seen him standing up, so. IDK.
  2. Oberyn Martell — 6’1” (185 cm)
    “He sat his saddle as if he’d been born there, tall, slim, graceful.” — A Feast for Crows
    I don’t know where this idea that Dornish were short came from. I’ve seen them measured at 5’5”, 5’4”. The first time we meet Oberyn, he’s described as “He sat his saddle as if he’d been born there, tall, slim, graceful.” (*A Feast for Crows*) Also, his daughters are described as tall, too. Yeah, he’s short in comparison to the Mountain, but I mean. Duh. Tyrion describes him as “tall,” not “average.” And if Ned is “average,” then Oberyn has to be taller.
  3. Elia Martell — 5’5” (165 cm)
    She is described as fragile, slender, delicate. She was born a month premature, so she’s always had delicate health.
  4. Arianne Martell — 5’2” (157 cm)
    “Where the Sand Snakes were tall, Arianne took after her mother, who stood but five foot two.” — A Feast of Crows.

House Dayne

  1. Arthur Dayne — 6’6” (198 cm)
    We get nothing at all about Arthur. Not even a description. However, GRRM has this thing about height always meaning strength. He might very well be right in this. All his best fighters are described as tall—with the glaring exception of Loras, and I’m not even going to touch the fact that the one character who is hinted at being gay in the books, and visibly gay in the show, is the one exception—and Jaime outright says Arthur is stronger than him. This might very well mean they’re the same height.
  2. Ashara Dayne — 5’10” (178 cm)
    “The Lady Ashara Dayne, tall and fair, with haunting violet eyes.” — A Game of Thrones.

Miscellaneous

  1. Duncan the Tall — Nearly 7’0” (213 cm)
  2. Khal Drogo — 7’0” (213 cm)
    “Khal Drogo was a head taller than the tallest man in the room…” — A Game of Thrones.
    A head is about a foot—lol—and I guess that the room would have at least one man 6’0” tall. Jorah, if no one else.
  3. Melisandre — At least 6’0” (183 cm)
    “Even her eyes were red... but her skin was smooth and white, unblemished, pale as cream. Slender she was, graceful, taller than most knights, with full breasts and narrow waist and a heart-shaped face.” — A Clash of Kings, Prologue.
  4. Brienne of Tarth — 6’8” (203 cm)
    Cat described Brienne as 4” taller than Renly. She is also taller than Jaime and Renly, so that tracks, hilariously.
  5. Hodor — 7’0” (213 cm)
    “He was trying to be gentle, he always tried, but Hodor was seven feet tall and stronger than he knew, (…)” — A Storm of Swords, Bran I.
Name Height (ft) Height (cm)
Robert Baratheon 6’6” 198 cm
Renly Baratheon 6’5” 196 cm
Stannis Baratheon 6’4” 193 cm
Tywin Lannister 6’4” 193 cm
Jaime Lannister 6’6” 198 cm
Cersei Lannister 6’0” 183 cm
Tyrion Lannister 3’0” 91 cm
Gregor Clegane 8’0” 244 cm
Sandor Clegane 6’9” 206 cm
Brandon Stark 6’2” 188 cm
Eddard Stark 6’0” 183 cm
Benjen Stark 5’9” 175 cm
Lyanna Stark 5’4” 163 cm
Greatjon Umber 7’0” 213 cm
Smalljon Umber Just under 7’0” 213 cm
Doran Martell 6’0” 183 cm
Oberyn Martell 6’1” 185 cm
Elia Martell 5’5” 165 cm
Arianne Martell 5’2” 157 cm
Arthur Dayne 6’6” 198 cm
Ashara Dayne 5’10” 178 cm
Duncan the Tall Nearly 7’0” 213 cm
Khal Drogo 7’0” 213 cm
Melisandre At least 6’0” 183 cm
Brienne of Tarth 6’8” 203 cm
Hodor 7’0” 213 cm

Notes:

Good Bones
BY MAGGIE SMITH
Life is short, though I keep this from my children.
Life is short, and I’ve shortened mine
in a thousand delicious, ill-advised ways,
a thousand deliciously ill-advised ways
I’ll keep from my children. The world is at least
fifty percent terrible, and that’s a conservative
estimate, though I keep this from my children.
For every bird there is a stone thrown at a bird.
For every loved child, a child broken, bagged,
sunk in a lake. Life is short and the world
is at least half terrible, and for every kind
stranger, there is one who would break you,
though I keep this from my children. I am trying
to sell them the world. Any decent realtor,
walking you through a real shithole, chirps on
about good bones: This place could be beautiful,
right? You could make this place beautiful.

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