House Dayne

House Dayne of Starfall is a noble house from Dorne. They are vassals to House Martell of Sunspear. Their seat is the castle of Starfall.

Their ancestral weapon is Dawn, a blade forged from the metal of a fallen star. The Dayne knight that bears the sword is granted the title of "the Sword of the Morning".

House Dayne's sigil consists of a white sword and a falling star on a purple field.

History
House Dayne can trace its roots back to the Dawn Age. Starfall is built on an island at the mouth of the Torrentine River, where the first Dayne is said to have tracked a falling star and found a magical stone. In present-day Westeros, House Dayne is best known on their ancestral sword Dawn, and the "Sword of the Morning" who wields it.

Although considered "stony" Dornishmen, the Daynes' appearance is different from common Rhoynish Dornishmen. Many have blue or purple eyes, and hair color ranges from dark to pale blond.

House Dayne fought several battles with houses from the Reach. It was defeated by House Martell in Nymeria's War, and later assisted the Martells in unifying Dorne and subduing other Dornish houses. The Daynes have been loyal to the Martells ever since, and fought House Targaryen in the First and Second Dornish War. On one occasion, they raided Oldtown far behind enemy lines.

The Martells and their vassals rallied behind the Targaryens in Robert's Rebellion. The legendary knight Arthur Dayne was killed in the Showdown at the Red Mountains, one of the last battles in the war. Although killing or disarming all of his opponents with ease, he was stabbed in the back by Howland Reed, whom he thought he had mortally wounded early in the fight, and subsequently killed by Eddard Stark.

It remains to be seen how House Dayne will react to Ellaria Sand's coup in Dorne.

Known members

 * Lady {Dyanna Dayne}, wife to King Maekar I and mother to his sons: Aerion, Aemon, and Aegon.
 * Lord {Beric Dayne}, Lord of Starfall.
 * Ser {Arthur Dayne}, the Sword of the Morning, his second son, stabbed in the neck by Howland Reed and finished off by Ned Stark at the Tower of Joy during Robert's Rebellion.

In the books
In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, members of House Dayne are Stony Dornishmen, whose characteristics mostly resemble the rest of the Seven Kingdoms in look, customs and traditions (being composed of the same First Men/Andal mixture). Unlike the rest of the more Rhoynish-looking Dornishmen, however, they have pale skin with hair ranging from dark brown to pale blond and they often have violet eyes, though according to George R.R. Martin they are not of Valyrian descent.

Members in the books:
 * Lord Edric "Ned" Dayne, Lord of Starfall. A member of the Brotherhood Without Banners and a squire of Beric Dondarrion.


 * Ser Arthur Dayne aka the Sword of the Morning, his uncle. Died at the Tower of Joy.
 * Ashara Dayne, his aunt. The manner of her death remains a mystery.
 * Allyria Dayne, his aunt.
 * Ser Gerold Dayne aka Darkstar, from a lesser branch of the family seated at High Hermitage. Attempted to murder Myrcella (who survived but was terribly disfigured). Currently is on the run.