Sword of Winter

The title "Sword of Winter" was created in 421 AC by Queen Lyanna Stark to serve as a voice for the people of the North, a champion of their will, and a protector of their wellbeing. The decision was made when the legendary sword "Longclaw" was brought to the North by Prince Alexander Bracken. It was meant as a gift to House Mormont, in recognition of the blade having once been their ancestral weapon, and was presented to Jorah Mormont who was hesitant to accept it. He is quoted as saying "[The Sword of Kings] is not meant to be held by merit of something so vain as bloodlines alone."
Acknowledging his feelings, Queen Lyanna declared that Jorah would keep Longclaw, not because of his name, but because of his merit as a swordsman and his dedication to the North. Seeing it as a solution to multiple problems, she created a title to go along with the blade and bestowed both to Jorah. The title would then be his to pass on to whoever he saw fit, whoever he believed best embodied the two qualities Queen Lyanna had seen in himself, allowing him to train a successor that will take his place when he passes on from this world.
The title was later defined more thoroughly, records of such details having been recorded by the Maester of Winterfell and sent to the Citadel so that their validity cannot be questioned in the future. These details are as follows:

• The Sword of Winter cannot be given orders by anyone but the ruling Monarch of the North, and even then those orders can be rejected if the Sword of Winter feels they go against the "Good of The North" (The Sword of Winter is beholden only to the North itself and her people. The "Good of the North" is generally considered to be balanced between the will of the people and their wellbeing, both in terms of safety and prosperity.)
• No paths are closed to The Sword of Winter so they may carry out their duty as quickly as possible. The Sword of Winter has no extra authority to give orders to normal Northern lords or soldiers except orders to move aside or open doors/gates, but such orders as described must be followed by all lawful citizens of the Kingdom of the North.
• The Sword of Winter will choose an heir who will inherit the title upon their death. This heir must be first and foremost chosen by merit of swordsmanship and dedication to the North. If no heir is chosen before the Sword of Winter's death, the ruling Monarch of the North may appoint a new Sword of Winter instead. The Ruling Monarch may also chose a new Sword of Winter while the current one still lives if they feel that they no longer have the North's best interest at heart, though to complete the process the current Sword of Winter must be bested in single combat by the challenger chosen by the Monarch.
• The Sword of Winter may gather an army to help achieve their goals. To this end, people of the North may voluntarily swear an oath to The Sword of Winter, and those who do, from then on, can only be given orders by the Sword of Winter. This is known as the Winter Oath. The rights and authorities held by the Sword of Winter are partially extended to those who take this oath, but the oath is taken for life and cannot be nullified by anything but death.

Type

Nobility, Honorific / Ceremonial

First Holder

Aegon Targaryen

Current Holders

• Jorah Mormont

Related Locations

• The North

Related Organizations

• Kingdom of the North