The Women Who Walked The Desert
Whenever we think about GoT the first thing that comes to mind is dragons, ice zombies and the disaster that was the final season. But only readers know that it has been inaccurate since they decided to write a storyline without its main pov. And yes, I’m talking about Dorne and Arianne Martell.
But despite its many failures, there was only one thing pretty accurate, the location. They chose the Real Alcázar in Seville, one of the many monuments erected during the 800-year period in which arabs dominated the peninsula and multiculturalism was appreciated in the bib-ramblas as 3 different cultures coexisted in the same caliphate.
Today we’re going to take a look at The Queenmaker and analyze her caricature as that of her family relationship and love affairs with that of other relevant figure in the culture of Al-Andalus for being the most important poetess.
Wallada bint al-Mustakfi
Her father rose from his chair to kiss her on both cheeks. "The fate of Dorne goes with you, daughter," he said. [...] She did not shed a tear. Arianne Martell was a princess of Dorne, and Dornishmen did not waste water lightly.
Like Arianne, Wallada was a princess and the daughter of Muhammad III of Córdoba, one of the last Umayyad Cordoban caliphs.
"You know me, captain," Arianne had said, as the leagues rolled past. "You have known me since I was little. You always kept me safe, as you kept my lady mother safe when you came with her from Great Norvos to be her shield in a strange land.”
Wallada’s mother, Amin'am, was brought from the distant lands of Hungary. But if we look closely, Norvos has a lot of similarities with Budapest;
Situated among the hills of Norvos, on a tributary of the Rhoyne, a major river on the continent of Essos. / Budapest sits on the eastern edge of Transdanubia (a hilly region extending from the Danube to the Alps).
Gateway for caravans travelling on the ancient Valyrian roads. / Budapest being situated at the crossroads of international trade routes from Eurasia.
Norvos is a city is split in two, the High City which is on a hill and the Low City on the river. / Budapest is split in two. Buda sits on the hills on the western size of the river while Pest sits on the plain to the east of the river.
Norvos is surrounded by small walled villages supporting the main city. / King Bela IV ordered the construction of stone walls around villages after the Mongol invasion.
Home of the bearded priests. / Order of the Dragon & Order of Saint George
There were Myrish carpets on the floor, red wine to drink, books to read. In one corner stood an ornate cyvasse table with pieces carved of ivory and onyx, though she had no one to play with even if she had been so inclined. She had a featherbed to sleep in, and a privy with a marble seat, sweetened by a basketful of herbs. [...] She found a cedar chest full of her clothes at the foot of her bed, so she stripped out of the travel-stained garb she had slept in and donned the most revealing garments she could find, wisps of silk.
Dorne's economy was able to keep them independent from House Targaryen for so long, but how is that possible when they don't have gold mines like the Lannisters or agriculture like the Tyrells? Very simple, the use of water to plant unique fruits that need a warm climate like citrus or olives and the trade relations they have with Essos. Being descendants of the Rhoynar, they have a closer contact with the Archon of Tyrosh or the merchants of Qarth. That’s how Doran met Mellario in the first place.
In Al-Andalus, an irrigation system was also created that went through the subsoil of the Caliphate and thanks to arranged marriages, they won ivory and silk brought from distant China. This is the case of Wallada's mother, being the daughter of a merchant who offered his services in exchange for his daughter rising to a better social position by marrying the caliph.
The decline of the caliphate would begin with the Ottoman-Hungarian wars (1366) that blocked many trade routes and the caliphate soon began to weaken as it was surrounded by enemies (Christian kingdoms in the north and Berbers in the south), which would later generate a disintegration until they were reduced in the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada (1230-1492).
However, Prince Doran did not mean for her to wed a Dornishman. [...] When Arianne reached the age of marriage, Doran presented her with several suitors, all of whom were elderly lords (including Ben Beesbury, Walder Frey, Gyles Rosby, Eldon Estermont, and Hugh Grandison), while rejecting an offer from Lord Hoster Tully, who had invited Arianne to travel to Riverrun and meet his heir Edmure. Arianne refused all of the elderly suitors.
Wallada’s father, Muhámmad III, came to power on January 11, 1024 by assassinating the previous caliph Abderramán V. This generated a turbulent reign, since many didn’t agree that he governed without having been elected before.
That is why, just having a daughter as an heir, he thought, like Doran, to betroth her to eldery Christian dukes and counts of the north to preserve his lineage and annex certain lands, but this only generated more tension and ended up being murdered with poison in Uclés.
Days came and went, one after the other, so many that Arianne lost count of how long she had been imprisoned. She found herself spending more and more time abed, until she reached the point where she did not rise at all except to use her privy. The meals the servants brought grew cold, untouched. Arianne slept and woke and slept again, and still felt too weary to rise. Fresh meals replaced the old ones, but she did not eat them either. Once, when she felt especially strong, she carried all the food to the window and flung it out into the yard, so it would not tempt her. The effort exhausted her, so afterward she crawled back into bed and slept for half a day.
After her father’s death, Wallada was taken away from the capital to a summer residence used by the royal family called "Medina Azahara" and left isolated for a month. During that time they were debating what to do with her as she was the last of the Umayyad dynasty, one of the 4 lineages that dated back to the time of Muhammad.
Unlike Arianne who was confined in a tower, Wallada could go out to the gardens as long as she did not go outside the permitted perimeter. During that time she wrote poetry that resemble Arianne's charisma and way of being;
I am fit for high positions by Allah and am going my way with pride. I allow my lover to touch my cheek and bestow my kiss on him who craves it.
Wallada was lucky that her father's death coincided with the splendor of the political career of Abu ‘l Hazm of the Banu Jawahr. He established a republic with a council of ministers (called wazirs) to advise him. It was for this reason that after being confined, they gave Wallada her father's fortune in exchange for distancing herself from royalty.
Abu al-Waleed Ahmad Ibn Zaydun was, like Wallada, a member of the noble classes. Like Gerold Dayne being famously known as “The Sword of The Night”, he was called “The Scribe of The Night” for being the stage of the day where he had more inspiration to write his poems.
The two wrote poems back and forth, and the entire court was soon buzzing with gossip about the affair between the dashing young wazir and the beautiful princess. And then, it all began to go sour. Wallada caught him with another man and betrayed her trust, like Gerold did with Arianne after trying to kill Myrcella.
You were for me nothing but a sweetmeat that I took a bite of and then tossed away the crust, leaving it to be gnawed on by a rat.
Poison, thought Arianne. Yes. Pretty poison, though. That was how he'd fooled her. [...] Pretty boys had ever been her weakness, particularly the ones who were dark and dangerous as well.
Anyway, thanks for reading! I had a lot of fun looking into this and pulling some comparisons out. Arab culture is so underrated so I hope curiosity has awakened them some of the people that crossed with this post. Keep calm waiting for twow and Unbow, Unbent, Unbroken!
