AFTERTHOUGHTS AND CREDITS

Credits

Special thanks to brashcandy at A Forum of Ice and Fire for her early and generous interest (and her contributions to the argumention in the Princes of Dorne). Special thanks to Lord Riusma at La Garde de Nuit for much attentive reading, several corrections and insightful comments (for instance why Ramsay, as Lord of Winterfell, could properly warn the Ironborn of Deepwood Motte and of Torrhen's Square not to linger in his lands: the Tallharts and Glovers are not proper lords, but depend directly on Winterfell), and for directing my attention to the high standards of the wiki in the French Language.

I am grateful to many others who have offered comments, and even sometimes compliments. Some forum contributions have inspired my analysis (for instance this one, this one, or even this very sloppy one) or have a familiarity with my own thinking (this one).

The notion that much has been going on Winterfell behind the scene has been proposed here. For more on the topic, one might consult Yeade's Grand Northern Conspiracy which gathers coherently many arguments developed from there (I shall point out that, for all my thinking on the topic, I am not inclined to believe either that Barbrey Dustin is conspiring with Manderly, or that Lord Wyman intends to give Jon Snow the crown of the North).

Here are a few more enjoyable resources.

From Pawn to Player is an examination of the saga from the viewpoint and through the special sensibility of Sansa Stark, with numerous original essays on related characters and themes. It starts here and is near its end point here.

The mythological, legendary and sometimes historical foundations of GRRM's universe are discussed and examined from all angles in an ongoing debate, also known as the Heresy threads, started and largely monitored by Black Crow at A Forum of Ice and Fire.

For further information in the audiovisual form, one can watch and listen to the enjoyable History of Westeros podcast.

Here is a (not so long) list of modifications to the site, documented here for the convenience of early readers. Upon reread, all I see are spelling mistakes, faulty grammar, misplaced punctuation, incoherent use of tenses that I have given up on correcting.

Update 1

I have been asked for a summary: A Rough Guide.
The Black Bat added (irrelevant to the Winterfell chapters).

Update 2

The Princes of Dorne added (irrelevant to the Winterfell chapters).
The Unhooded Man and the Butcher added. It is a rather unsatisfactory attempt to reconcile a few disparate conclusions: The hooded man is linked to Crowfood and Mance. He brought news to Winterfell to seed discord between Roose's allies. His appearance led to the murder of Little Walder by Ramsay. He might be Robett Glover.

A list of minor additions.

• The Cast of Characters: Roose is not yet Lord Paramount of the north, but he is Warden of the north.
• Space, Time, Matter: More discussion of the timeline. The secrets passages in Winterfell.

• The Bride: "Arya" curiously lacks any cloth in her bedroom before the escape.
• The Host and the Groom: Roose Bolton is not (yet) lord of the north, but Warden of the north. Further discussion of the men left at the Ruby Ford. Ramsay's warning to the Freys at Moat Cailin.
• The Goodmother's Kin: Comment on the arrival of the Freys in the north and the ironmen flayed at Moat Cailin.
• The overseeing Widow: Change of attitude of Barbrey the night before the escape. Further confirmation of the reality of Barbrey's grudge towards the Starks. More on the fiery eye of the Ryswell banner. Comments on the Ryswell quarrel. Is Rodrik Ryswell in Winterfell?
  
• The North in Disarray: Comments on the Tallhart status. A Bolton letter has been sent to Torrhen's Square.
  
• The archaic Bannermen: Funny analogy between the Norrey/Flint and the Blackwood/Bracken.
  
• The Postmen:
  
• The Soldier and the Torturers:
  
• The Purveyor: Comments on the Manderly-Umber connection along the White Knife. No more comparison between the gods of the Iron Islands and those of the Sisters. Manderly eating ham when asked about the fate of the three Freys.
• The quarrelling Castellans: Comments on Crowfood's interrogation of Arya and connection to Osha. Further comments on the Manderly-Umber, and Manderly-Karstark connections. Comments on Whoresbane and the expelled freerider. Analysis of Hother's early choice of joining Ramsay instead of going to Barrowton.
• The Pander: Mance and the imposture of "Arya".
  
• The Washerwomen:
  
• The Animal Powers: Horses are not in use by skinchangers. Comparison of the Crakehall Freys with pigs.
  
• The Immortals:
  
• Off Stage: More on Dagmer Cleftjaw's reaction to the Bolton letter sent to Torrhen's Square.
  

• The hooded Man and the Kinslayer: Further discussion of the Rowan-Theon dialogue.
• The Horn of Winter: More on the Maid of Winter motif. Comparison of the sound of horns with the three bells of Norvos.
• The Murder: A few more detail on Ramsay's falchion, Ramsay's bedroom and Walda's behavior.
  
• The Conspiracy: More on the Umber-Manderly connection along the White Knife.
  
• The Congresses of Skulls: Remark on Clarence Crabb riding and auroch (and not a horse, not an elk).

• Seven Days of Battle: The "Umber does not fight Umber" axiom probably means that Whoresbane would stay inside Winterfell rather than go out and fight Crowfood. Possibility of a Dagmer Cleftjaw intervention. Manderly forces are probably waiting to ambush the Boltons at some crossing of the White Knife. Discussion of possible traitors among the mountain clans.
• Winterreise: Discussion of the personification of Winter, especially the Maid of Winter motif. Discussion of the attitude of northmen towards the snowstorm and the old gods.
  
• Epistolary Epilogue: Discussion of the authorship of the letter sent to Deepwood Motte.

• Compilation of apparent Errors: Manderly's musicians never manifest themselves. Crossbowmen shooting in the blizzard, when the visibility is reduced to ten feet. The Ryswell family contradiction. Excess of horses in the Great Hall.

• A True Queen: The burning tree on House Marbrand's sigil is not necessarily a weirwood.
• The Black Bat: It seems that Harren the Black did not have any daughter.

Update 3

• A Rough Guide: Last section on the letter modified slightly.

• Space, Time, Matter: Discussion of the moment of Winter in the north and comparison of the chronology with the events in the south.

• The Pander: The interaction between Val and Mance in Castle Black. Did Mance and Val communicate before Mance left? Did Mance go directly to the Last Hearth when he searched for the grey girl on a dying horse? Is the last soft sad song sung by Mance the Last of the Giants? A long discussion on the status of Val in Stannis' eyes, which in turn sheds light on Della, as Mance's queen.

• The Unhooded Man and the Butcher: More on the news of the Greatjon's liberation.
• The Horn of Winter: Three sections have been added : 1) Two dreams of Jon Snow's could hold a clue concerning the location of the Horn of Joramun. 2) A proposed explanation of the sentence And Joramun blew the Horn of Winter and woke the giants from the earth, under the light of the song The Last of the Giants. 3) A little study of glyphs and runes throughout the story.One can note that it is possible that the horn is blown without destroying the Wall (indeed, Joramun blew his Horn, and the Wall has never been destroyed).

• Winterreise: Discussion of the time of the arrival of Winter in the north, which could coincide with Val's arrival and a certain sound heard in Winterfell.
  
• Epistolary Epilogue: Simplification of the argumentation. (No more comparison between Mance and Marillion, both singers, prisoners in an empty castle, and subject to torture. No more comparison with the horn of Euron.). Discussion of many small points. A further argument: Mance could conceivably know the moment of Val's return to the Wall.
  

• A True Queen: Discussion of Ser Axell Florent's views on Val, which could be understood in various ways.
• The Black Bat: Is the black bat of the Lothstones an allusion to the Black Dread?

Update 4

• From Darkness to Darkness added. First part of a series on the Citadel.
• From Ruled to Ruler added. Second part of a series on the Citadel.
• New Events in Oldtown added. Third part of a series on the Citadel.