The Knight of the Laughing Tree.
- Rhaenyra: "A mystery knight?"
- Alicent: "No, a Cole of the Stormlands."
- — Rhaenyra Targaryen and Alicent Hightower[src]
A mystery knight[1] is a participant in a tournament who keeps his identity secret. One such combatant was the Knight of the Laughing Tree, who fought in the Great Tourney at Harrenhal.
History[]
House of the Dragon: Season 1[]
Having never heard of his house nor seen his arms, Rhaenyra Targaryen mistakes Ser Criston Cole for a mystery knight.[1]
Game of Thrones: Season 8[]
Brienne of Tarth flicks through the Book of Brothers, in which Ser Gwayne Gaunt[a] is recorded as having defeated and unmasked the Mystery Knight of Bitterbridge, revealing him to be Ser Harlan Grandison of the Kingsguard. It also says that Ser Barristan Selmy was unmasked by Prince Duncan Targaryen.[2]
In the books[]
In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, there are several known mystery knights:
- Jonquil Darke, masked as the "Serpent in Scarlet" in the War of the White Cloaks.
- Prince Baelon Targaryen, masked as the "Silver Fool" at Old Oak.
- Prince Aemon Targaryen, masked as the "Knight of Tears."
- Ser Duncan the Tall, masked as the "Gallows Knight" at Whitewalls.
- Ser Barristan Selmy, at Blackhaven at the age of 10 and six years later at King's Landing.
- Simon Toyne, at Storm's End.
- The Bastard of Uplands, masked as "Blackshield" at Oldtown.
- The Knight of the Laughing Tree, at Harrenhal.
Despite the terminology, a mystery knight is not necessarily a real knight.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 House of the Dragon: Season 1, Episode 1: "The Heirs of the Dragon" (2022).
- ↑ Game of Thrones: Season 8, Episode 6: "The Iron Throne" (2019).
External links[]
Notes[]
- ↑ The paragraph mentioning this event is erroneously placed in Arthur Dayne's entry. The opening sentence calling him the "thirdborn son to Lord Symon of House Gaunt" makes it apparent that this paragraph was meant for Gwayne Gaunt's entry.