Game of Thrones: Why Didn't Ned Stark Use Tyrion Signature Move to Survive?
When unjustly sentenced, Tyrion Lannister successfully used trial by combat twice. Why didn’t Ned Stark also demand it to save his life or die like a noble warrior?
Summary:
- In Westeros, trial by combat can be demanded by the accused party to prove their innocence in a duel.
- Ned Stark didn’t need to demand trial by combat as lords of his stature weren’t typically executed at all.
- Even if Ned demanded trial by combat, he was in no shape to face Jaime Lannister, injured or not.
Ned Stark was so clearly the main character in Game of Thrones that his sudden execution left most viewers dumbfounded; it was then that we all realized what kind of show we were watching. As impactful as it was, though, there was seemingly no reason for it to happen at all — thanks to Tyrion Lannister, we know that trial by combat existed.
Why didn’t Lord Stark demand trial by combat to save his life against the unjust accusations or die like the noble warrior he was, with a blade in hand?
Ned Stark Didn’t Expect the Execution
No one in their right mind executes lords of Ned Stark’s standing; the nobles are typically sent to the Wall, instead. This exact fate was awaiting Lord Stark, too, if not for young Joffrey’s bloodthirst from his first taste of real power. No one could have expected him ordering Lord Stark’s execution — neither Cersei, nor Ned himself.
Ned was ready for the exile, not the execution, so he didn’t see the point in trial by combat. He even relieved himself of the right for it by openly addressing his “crime” in front of the audience. Since Ned “admitted” his guilt, he didn’t have the right to trial by combat anymore and was defenseless after Joffrey’s unexpected decision.
Ned Stark Didn’t Want Trial by Combat
Lord Stark didn’t want trial by combat, either. At the Wall, where he was supposed to be sent to, he would have met Jon Snow and, as he’d promised, revealed the truth about the boy’s mother. To fulfill his promise, which was important for Ned, he needed to stay alive, which would have been… Hampered by the duel.
Ned Stark had no chances of winning the hypothetical trial by combat in King’s Landing, too. He was severely injured, and none of his bannermen were there to stand up for him. Even if they were, no one could have defeated the likes of Jaime Lannister, Barristan Selmy, or Gregor and Sandor Cleganes, all of whom served the Lannisters.
Long story short, Ned Stark saw and had no reason to demand trial by combat. The moment Joffrey Baratheon decided to execute him, he was already dead either way.