Science and Technology

The developmental level of science and technology in Westeros, and The Known World as a whole, is roughly comparable to real-life Late Medieval levels.

General
Author George R.R. Martin has stated that the storyline in his A Song of Ice and Fire novels is partially (and loosely) inspired by the War of the Roses, the civil war that occurred in England in the late 1400's following its defeat in the Hundred Years' War. Just as the War of the Roses was fought between the Yorks and Lancasters, the conflict in Game of Thrones is between the Starks and Lannisters. The technology level in their society more or less matches Late Medieval Europe, i.e right before the use of gunpowder and cannons revolutionized medieval warfare and brought it into the Early Modern era.

Magic was prevalent in the world in the long-distant past, but for many centuries, magical power has dwindled in the world, as has knowledge of its use. While a handful of odd cults still believe in magic, such as the Alchemists' Guild or Warlocks of Qarth, they can do little to substantiate their claims. The general population considers magic to have never existed at all and to be simply mythical; a view promoted by the Order of Maesters, who champion a world based on science and reason, and scorn the very idea of magic. The mighty Valyrian Freehold was built using the powerful dragons, who were rumored to share a deep link with magic. However, most dragons were killed in the Doom of Valyria four hundred years before the narrative of ''Game of Thrones begins, and even the last dragons which belonged to House Targaryen died almost two centuries ago (largely used up in a Targaryen civil war).

Science and technology have not significantly advanced in the past several centuries. Recorded history is indeed vastly longer in the fantasy-world than in real-life: the Valyrian Freehold existed for an astonishing five thousand years before its fall. Written history in Westeros begins with the Andal Invasion six thousand years ago, albeit much of this is fragmentary and biased (see main article "Timeline"). It is possible that in earlier ages when magic was more prevalent, the drive to innovate new tools with science, leaving technology levels static for many centuries. Even so, while the general rule holds that gunpowder has not been discovered, there is not a one-for-one correspondence between the technology level in the real-life Middle Ages and the fantasy world of Westeros. For example, certain medical knowledge is much more advanced and accurate in Westeros than it was in the Middle Ages (partially because certain discoveries in history have been accidental, i.e. penicillin, not the culmination of a long aggregation of previous discoveries). The peoples in Westeros and beyond are also capable of producing vast feats of architecture, such as the Red Keep in King's Landing, without the use of magic at all.