In the world of Game of Thrones, anything goes. With the start of the new season, it’s pretty clear that the system just doesn’t work anymore. Even though there is currently the impending doom of war, they need to think about what they’re going to do once they (hopefully) settle down..
Westeros currently has a system of absolute monarchy, where power is concentrated in the hands of the king or queen, with little delegations to the Hand of The King and, sometimes, to its very small council. Together, they make up the three branches of state, with next to nothing holding them accountable. This is how you end up with situations where the frustrations of the people are bottled up until they turn into a war. We’ve seen this unfold on the show over the course of the first three seasons, with The War of the Five Kings, that ultimately ends up fragmenting the entire kingdom and killing each of the five kings involved. This clearly means that there is a dire need for change in how Westeros is governed.
There have, of course, been plenty of wise characters that have suggested this over the course of the show’s run. Perhaps you’ll remember one of Daenerys’ most iconic lines, “I’m not going to stop the wheel, I’m going to break the wheel”, in response to Tyrion’s criticisms that she has no place in Westeros’ current system. Her motives appear to be noble here, understanding the Kingdom’s need for a different approach to governing, but we can see from her actions that she intends to merely adapt the wheel to fit her motives. So Dany’s a dead end. At the end of season 7, Tyrion suggests adopting a form of elective monarchy, similar to that of the Holy Roman Empire. This model has the potential to work in the archaic world of Game of Thrones, but there is a high chance of it ending much like them, with exclusively one dynasty on the throne, in this case, another long line of Targaryens, if his plan to put Dany on the Iron Throne is successful. This is where we need to consider whether morals will play a central part in the newly reformed political system of Westeros, and if the answer is yes, is a family infamous for inbreeding the best choice? Probably not.
The social structure of Westeros clearly indicates that the common people just want to get on with their lives while the Great Houses of Westeros seem to like having a monarchy to fight over. So, the fundamental question for Westeros is how exactly they go about tackling the issue of the lack of accountability to stop the spawn of the devil – I’m looking at you Joffrey and Ramsay – from becoming unstoppable.
Considering some realistic factors such as the timeframe of when GoT is set up, we recognize that something outrageous like a Republic is too much of a stretch for their archaic society because of the size of the Kingdom in comparison with its technological abilities. There are no better communications methods other than ravens, and getting from Dorne to the Wall takes around 3 months of non-stop riding. On top of that, most common people are illiterate. All of this would just result in the nobility once again fighting for power.
Here’s what we suggest: setting up a separate judiciary-like body.
See, as fantastical as GoT might be, there still seem to be some set of rules that people must follow. We know this because Tyrion and Littlefinger got put on trial for crimes that they were accused of, which suggests that they do indeed have laws that govern them – but the obvious problem is that the ‘judges' when you get put on trial are (wait for it) the ruling monarch and people he/she appoints. Basically, what I am trying to convey here is that there is no fair trial as the system is corrupt as can be and the person sitting on that throne has all the power in the world.
This is where the separation of the judiciary could really benefit them. If Westeros was to develop a court system that was independent of the monarch, existing laws such as kingslaying, adultery, murder, treason etc. would be a lot more embedded in their society. Perhaps there could be a written document titled something like ‘The Westeros Penal Code’that could be drafted and made easily accessible to the people, which explicitly lists things that are illegal. This way people’s rights will be protected better, and most importantly the ruling body can’t cherry pick when and who to apply the rules to! Now we’re not suggesting they magically set up a complex judicial system like we have today with multiple tiers, but simply an independent body with the sole purpose of upholding laws that have been implemented and holding everyone (yes, even the monarch!) to account when a crime is committed, by allowing for a fair trial.
Furthermore, in this system, the judges who make decisions can be elected by the people based on merit, preventing the monarch from influencing it with their potentially corruptible little hands. Since most of the common people are illiterate, it would only make sense that the judges who get elected are picked from the array of knowledgeable maesters or well-educated highborn individuals, unrelated to the ruling family, who would be able to make reasonable, informed decisions.
Hypothetically under the system:
Joffrey 2.0 decides to go on a killing spree → someone accuses him of murder → Joffrey 2.0 gets put on trial → the independent judges make a decision → Joffrey 2.0 found guilty and there’s nothing he can do about it. Happy days.
Of course, this is in anticipation that someone benevolent takes the Iron Throne after the chaos dies down and hopefully a smart little cookie can come up with a similar idea and it gets implemented. There are still many issues that crop up even with the system we suggested, but no system, not even the one that we have today, is perfect. It sure as heck would be a start for Westeros to becoming a more progressive society and the people can sort out the nitty gritty later as they become more educated. So there you have it, that’s how we think GoT should end, but we can almost certainly tell you that this is not how it will actually end.
Oh and on the chance that Cersei remains on the iron throne – Westeros you’re s c r e w e d.
By Andreea Dicu and Saira Oshiro