Game of Thrones: Who Perished as the Bells Tolled Over King's Landing?
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Warning: Major spoilers for Game of Thrones follow!
Game of Thrones' penultimate episode, "The Bells," named for the signal of surrender meant to halt Daenerys's army, gave us the complete destruction of King's Landing, the loss of some of our favorite characters, and the Dragon Queen's descent into madness. In a nearly episode-long sequence, Daenerys rides her lone dragon over the Westerosi capital, destroying Euron Greyjoy's fleet and the mighty Golden Company as well as thousands of innocent civilians trapped on the streets of the kingdom. Between the fire, ash, smoke, and rubble, you may have had a hard time determining who found a means of escape and who found themselves caught up in the destruction. So, we've compiled a list of everyone who lost their lives in the penultimate episode of the series. (And if you want a list of everyone who has died this season, we have that, too.)
Lord Varys, Master of Whisperers
Prior to the massacre at King's Landing, Tyrion Lannister informs Daenerys that Varys plots against her ascension by sharing the truth about Jon Snow's birthright as the heir to the Iron Throne. She immediately sentences him to death via dragon fire, a fate somewhat foreshadowed by Melisandre in season seven.
Harry Strickland of the Golden Company
As the commander of the Golden Company, Harry Strickland stands outside of King's Landing with the forces guarding the gates. Once Daenerys uses her dragons to blast a hole in the city's walls, her Unsullied charge Harry's army, and he is one of the first people to die at the end of Grey Worm's spear.
Euron Greyjoy
In an epic fight to the death, Euron attempts to kill Jaime Lannister and spill the secrets of his love affair with Cersei. However, the ironborn sea captain underestimates the Kingslayer's devotion to his queen, and finds himself on the business end of steel blade.
Qyburn, Hand of the Queen
Qyburn becomes collateral damage when he attempts to intervene in the long-gestating fight between the Mountain and the Hound. He insists the zombified knight remain by his queen's side as the walls of the Red Keep crumble around them, but the Mountain has a score to settle and simple tosses the old scientist aside like a ragdoll.
Sandor “the Hound” Clegane
The Hound enters the Red Keep to settle a long-standing feud with his brother, the Mountain, over a childhood mishap that left him physically and emotionally scarred for life. Unfortunately, the procedure that brought his brother back from the dead makes the man-zombie invulnerable to even the most vicious stabs to the heart and head. So the Hound sacrifices his own life, pulling them both over the edge of a balcony into the fiery depth below, to make sure his brother never rapes and pillages again.
Gregor “the Mountain” Clegane
Technically, the Mountain died at the tip of Oberyn Martell's poisonous spear back in season four during the Trial for Combat to determine Tyrion's fate. He is soon brought back to life by Qyburn, and the procedure seemingly makes the Mountain invincible. In season eight, his brother the Hound attempts to kill him by sticking a sword through his chest, eye, and brain with no tangible results. It's not until the Hound yanks them both over the edge of a balcony into the fiery depths below that the Mountain meets his end.
Cersei and Jaime Lannister
After managing to escape the fight with Euron, Jaime makes his way into the dungeons of the Red Keep where he meets his sister, Cersei. She begs him to find a way to save her, saying, "I want our baby to live. Don't let me die, Jaime. Please don't let me die."
As the walls crumble around them, Jaime tells her, "Nothing else matters, only us," and the pair die in each other's arms.