How Cersei’s Prophecy Came Full Circle On Game Of Thrones

By Valerie Tejeda


Warning: this blog post contains major spoilers for Game of Thrones Season 8, Episode 5 ("The Bells").


Going into the penultimate episode of Game of Thrones, most viewers hoped we’d finally visualize the demise of the show’s most ruthless villain: Cersei Lannister. Nevertheless while several of us got our wish — at the cost of Jaime (R.I.P.) — Cersei’s death went down a lot differently than expected, and several are still left wondering if the Queen's death finally fulfilled the prophecy once foretold by woods-witch Maggy the Frog.


Back in Season 5, we visualize young Cersei shell out a visit to Maggy in the woods. Immediately following the witch gets a taste of Cersei’s blood (literally), she predicts that Cersei would marry a king, become a queen, would have three children who would perish before her, and could be taken down by a younger, more pretty queen. And in the books there really is also a say of her being killed by “the Valonqar,” which is High Valyrian for "little brother.”


So did all the prophecy come to pass?


"You will wed the king."


Maggy told Cersei long ago that the prince she was promised to as a young girl (Rhaegar Targaryen) would never be her spouse. As a substitute, Cersei wedded Robert Baratheon (who she later had killed), who only became king immediately after rebelling against the Targaryens (the infamous Robert’s Rebellion) to avenge the rape and kidnapping of his fiancée, Lyanna Stark (which is later revealed to be a lie as Rhaegar and Lyanna wed in secret and had a son, Jon Snow). Yet marrying Robert as a substitute opposed to Prince Rhaegar certainly fulfilled this segment of the witch’s prophecy and put Cersei in a position to later become queen of the Seven Kingdoms.


"Gold will be their crowns, and gold their shrouds."


As soon as young Cersei asks Maggy if she and the king would have children, Maggy responds with: “The king will have 20, you will have three. Gold will be their crowns, and gold their shrouds.” While the 20 children were in reference to Robert Baratheon’s several bastards, the more interesting segment of the prophecy is how all three of Cersei’s children (who she had with her twin brother/lover, Jaime) would perish before her. And however again, the witch’s prophecy came true.


Joffrey is the opening of her children to go immediately after being poisoned by Olenna Tyrell at his wedding to Margaery Tyrell. Next is Myrcella, whose life is taken right after a poisonous kiss from Ellaria Sand in Dorne. And last was Tommen, who jumped to his death immediately after Cersei blew up the Sept with wild fire with his spouse, Queen Margaery, inside.


Cersei was pregnant with a fourth child (also Jaime’s) at the time of her death in Season 8.


"You will be queen, for a time... Up until there comes another, younger and more cute, to cast you down and take all that you hold dear."


During the series, Cersei eyes more than one younger, more pretty future queen (Sansa, Margaery, Daenerys) who could possibly be accountable for her being "cast down." For the longest time it appeared to be Margaery Tyrell, who took two of her children from her (marrying both Joffrey Tommen) as well as became queen of the Seven Kingdoms, taking the title from Cersei.


But right after Sunday night’s episode it was confirmed to be the Mother of Dragons herself, Daenerys Targaryen.


Daenerys went full-blown furious Queen" by setting fire to King’s Landing and ending Cersei’s reign as queen. Also it is the destruction caused by Dany that ultimately leads to Cersei and Jaime’s death — officially casting her down and taking everything that she contained dear.


"And any time your tears have drowned you, the Valonqar shall wrap his hands about your pale white throat and choke the life from you."


Yes, the Valonqar prophecy was left out of the show. Yet, it’s a critical element in the Song of Ice and Fire novels by George R.R. Martin. In the books, Maggy tells Cersei, once your tears have drowned you, the Valonqar shall wrap his hands about your pale white throat and choke the life from you." Valonqar, in High Valyrian, means "little brother."


Some, including Cersei, speculated it could be Tyrion to take her life. Others thought it could be Jaime, her twin who is younger than her by just several minutes. And then some ideas Arya would wear Jamie’s face and do the deed.Turns out, the witch again was right about the Valonqar — it just didn’t happen how several fans predicted.


As Cersei and Jaime are trapped in the tunnels underneath the Red Keep, the walls start to collapse from Daenerys’ attack on the city. Cersei begins to weep and Jaime comforts her with his hands around her neck. It’s not as violent as him choking the life out of her, yet he did lead her to the tunnels where they died with each other. And Jaime was told to go there by Tyrion.


Though she didn't meet the gruesome end that Sansa and Arya wanted, killing Cersei this way was certainly unpredictable and categorize kind of poetic in the sense that just because the Lannister twins came into the world with each other they left the world with each other, also. Let’s just hope Cersei’s not alive under that rubble (very doubtful, nevertheless you never know) because that could be a twist nobody wants. And one the witch failed to mention.