Prostitution

Prostitution is tacitly legal in the Seven Kingdoms, in the sense that there is no official law preventing brothels from openly operating in the major cities and towns. Organized religion does discourage prostitution, and it is socially frowned upon, but it is nonetheless present, sometimes seen as an outlet for uncontrollable male sexual desires. Secular lords and kings have not (in general) tried to shut down prostitution, as taxing brothels is a good source of revenue.

Social customs are somewhat different in Dorne, which has more liberal attitudes towards sexuality. A holdover from the old court culture of their Rhoynar ancestors’ city-states on the eastern continent is that Dornish society still contains a group of elite courtesans, known as “paramours”. Paramours are the unmarried lovers of Dornish nobles, and can be male or female. They are highly trained in courtly culture, and strictly speaking are not prostitutes. Some are even functionally treated as wives in all but name. Outsiders from the other kingdoms often dismissively think of Dornish paramours as mistresses, or as simple prostitutes.