Episode two of Game of Thrones season eight was titled A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and saw Jon Snow (played by Kit Harington) and the others getting ready to take on the Night King (Vladimir Furdik) and the army of the dead. As part of the battle strategy, many of the women and children would be hiding down the in the dank Crypts of Winterfell, which is a mausoleum to House Stark and holds many family members old and new. However, many have been speculating about whether the Night King will reanimate the corpses buried within the Crypts and if they will be used to kill those inside the castle.
WARNING: This article contains spoilers from all seasons of Game of Thrones
Who is buried in the Crypts of Winterfell?
The Crypts of Winterfell was built thousands of years ago and contains not only the kings of the North and their families but also the lords of Winterfell.
There are tombs of Starks dating back generations in the crypts of Winterfell, however, only statues of kings and lords were made traditionally for their tombs.
Ned Stark (Sean Bean) broke with this tradition and had statues of his dead brother Brandon Stark and his sister Lyanna Stark (Aisling Franciosi) made to honour them and placed in the crypts.
The most recent people to have been buried in the crypts are Brandon, Lyanna and their father Lord Rickard Stark.
Following Ned’s death, it’s unclear if his bones were taken back to Winterfell and buried in the crypts. Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley) did have her husband’s remains returned to her but it’s uncertain whether they made it back to the Starks’ ancestral home.
Although Ned is not buried in the crypts, there’s a statue of him down there to symbolically honour him as the former Lord of Winterfell.
Sadly, neither Catelyn nor her son Robb Stark (Richard Madden) made it back to the Crypts following their deaths at the Red Wedding.
Instead, Catelyn’s corpse was thrown into a river and Robb is thought to be rotting near the Green Fork.
In the TV show, which has moved past the events of the George R.R. Martin novels, Rickon Stark (Art Parkinson) was buried in the crypts after he was killed in the Battle of the Bastards by Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Rheon).
According to free folk legend, Bael the Bard disappeared from Winterfell after he kidnapped Lord Brandon Stark’s daughter.
The legend goes on to suggest the couple later emerged from the crypts, where they’d been hiding, with a baby who would be the heir of Winterfell.
In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, other Starks mentioned in the tombs include Edric Snowbeard, Brandon the Shipwright, Theon Stark, and Beron Stark.
There’s also Artos the Implacable, the younger brother of Lord Willam Stark, who has a statue built for him.
The most recent episode of Game of Thrones suggested things could go awry at the Battle of Winterfell with the old, young and sick taking refuge down in the depths of the crypts.
Many have suggested the dead Starks will be given another lease of life by the White Walkers and kill all those within the crypts.
This theory was first alluded to in the Crypts of Winterfell teaser which was dropped back in January by HBO.
In the short teaser, Jon, Arya and Sansa were seen walking through the crypts as they passed statues of Ned, Lyanna and Catelyn – presumably the latter was added as a tribute to her.
As the trailer continued, a cold, icy mist descended upon the crypts and Jon’s torch was blown out by a swift gust, suggesting the Night King and his army were coming.
The teaser, much like this week’s episode, foreshadows the Battle of Winterfell and strengthens the theory that the crypts hold importance.
Game of Thrones season 8 airs on HBO on Sundays at 9pm ET and on Sky Atlantic and NOW TV on Mondays at 2am & 9pm.
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