Hold tight, because this is a long one. I thought I had posted the following claims and hypotheses a couple of years ago, but I cannot find that post. I did, however, find a Word document that held a big chunk of it, but was unfinished. Here follows my thoughts on Hastings (which has been mentioned too many times for coincidence), and why I think that, Stamford Bridge, and the Norman Invasion were the "last time a Starborn was running around."

Before I start, my claim: I think William the Conqueror was a Starborn. I think Hastings, and (perhaps more importantly) the Battle of Stamford Bridge represent the last time control of the Outer Gates changed hands. I think Odin and the Norse pantheon used to serve that role. I think Hastings itself was the conflict in which the Winter and Summer decided which Court would guard the Gates.

Evidence:

Word Of Jim, from the KC Signing circa 2013:

You said the Winter, rather, Knights’ mantles change fairly often? How often do the Ladies’, Queens’ and Mothers’ mantles change?
Uh, the Ladies, Queens and Mothers, their mantles change very, very, very rarely in general. I mean, Mab’s been there for better than 1,000 years. And Maeve’s been there….there was a Winter Lady before Maeve, uh, in Mab’s time. And she didn’t fare so well the last time a Starborn was running around. And so….Mab and Maeve, um, **unintelligible**, I leave things here, don’t miss ‘em.

I'll do my best to break this down as clearly as I can. It's probably best to start with some background and important details from the Word of Jim above:

Mab—and presumably Titania—have had their mantles for "better than 1,000 years." The Battle of Hastings, which kicked off the third (successful) Norman invasion of Britain, and ended the Anglo-Saxon line of succession permanently, was in 1066, for those of you who weren't aware. The conflict itself was basically one of succession—William, Duke of Normandy, was contending for the throne, which was held by King Harold, who was childless; William was his cousin (something like once removed).

But the conflict for the throne wasn't limited to the Normans and English: King Harald Hardrara, of Norway (Read: Vikings) wanted in on the action. But they got surprised at Stamford Bridge by the Anglo-Saxons, and were wrecked; out of more than ten thousand across a few hundred ships, only a few dozen ships made it home.

The following may or may not be related to the rest of this, so I'm spoilering it to keep this as tidy as I can:


Now, the Age of Vikings was well on its way out at this point, but their defeat at Stamford Bridge was pretty much the final nail in their coffin. Their influence on the world—especially Britain—was waning, and this ended it completely. Before this, if you look at transcripts of Calendars and records kept by monasteries in England, Viking invasions were basically a yearly occurrence. It was an ongoing joke with my thesis adviser that every entry ended with, "In the Summer, the Vikings invaded."

I believe strongly that Stamford Bridge represented what was taking place in the supernatural world: a transfer of power from Vadderung/Odin to the Faerie Courts. I believe this conflict effectively ended the Norse Pantheon’s stewardship of the Outer Gates. I don't think that influence is a simple binary transfer, and that there was a tumultuous period that ended with Stamford Bridge, and that the Fae had to establish their own pecking order afterward, which culminated in… Hastings.

The first major, major clue in the books (which sparked this line of thinking for me) came in Cold Days. Titania states that she and Mab haven't spoken to one another since Hastings.

To me, this implies that something happened there that fundamentally altered their relationship. I don't think they were best friends—in fact, I think they were opposites since at least their Ascension. But I believe their conflict was more... cordial before Hastings, to the point that they would, at the very least, engage in conversation, the way Harry and Marcone do; they're fundamentally enemies, but they'll work together if they have to—such as when gathering power for their Courts (and all of Faerie) or defending assaults from the outgoing King of the Hill, Odin.

I’d like to review a few facts before I get into further supposition and theorizing.

1. Jim has stated that Mab has held her mantle for “over 1,000 years.” Unless the DF is actually set a century in the future, that means that the Fae Courts definitely existed during Hastings, and that Mab was the Queen of Winter.
2. The Winter Lady before Maeve was killed.
3. [The Winter Lady] “didn’t fare so well the last time a Starborn was running around.”
Originally, I had thought that Hastings was when Mab and Titania became Queens of their Courts. However, the WOJ above kind of makes that impossible. Something prior killed both Queens of Faerie, something dating anywhere from 500(ish)–1,000 AD. It’s entirely possible that there was a conflict going on between the Queens during Saint Augustine’s spread of Christianity to Britain in 595. It’s possible that the Vikings were involved. There was a lot of conflict in England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales during that period. The Danish invaded (and settled there), there were conflicts over succession, etc. It is also worth noting that I believe this to be the period during which the White Council in its current form was founded by Merlin.

Now, the Word of Jim on the “1,000 years” piece might have been disproven entirely by Peace Talks. This line, spoken by Corb during the initial attack on Marcone’s Castle, is a big, fat, honking, stinking cluebat that smacked me squarely in the face and left me a senseless:

“Old woman,” Corb taunted. “I remember you as a bawling brat. I remember your pimply face when you rode with the Conqueror. I remember how you wept when Merlin cast you out.”

Peace Talks, Chapter 29, page 276 on Nook.
“The Conqueror” is the appellation given to William of Normandy, the winner of the Battle of Hastings and King of England. There is obvious subtext here, and it actually makes me believe my earlier theory that I thought had been disproved by the WOJ!

Unless there is another “Conqueror” with which Mab rode, this means that Mab’s face was still “pimply” when she rode with William—in other words, a teenager, a young woman—and decidedly not the Queen of Winter. I think Corb was just being an a**hole when he used the adjective “pimply” (because I doubt that any Faerie Queen would really suffer from facial blemishes the way vanilla mortals do). 

No. I think that Mab was the Winter Lady at this point. For how long, I’m not sure—in fact, it may be a way to reconcile the WOJ and Corb’s taunt: Mab wasn’t THE Winter Queen for over a thousand years, but was A Winter Queen for that long.

One last note on the major players here:

“Odin” has been “Odin” for a long time. Before he was king of the hill in the Norse Pantheon, Gaul traditions held stories of “Woden,” a kind of wizard-like figure who was known for bravery and cunning. His story morphed into Odin over centuries. This is important.

Now, finally, I will get into the series of events that I think took place. I’ll try to be as clear as possible.

1. The Norse Pantheon held Stewardship over the Outer Gates for a time—or, at least, Odin, Woden, and any other “masks” (his term) he wore did. I think his stewardship ended with the Norse, however.
2.  Odin’s influence began to wane. The spread of Christianity throughout Europe likely limited his reputation over generations. I don’t think it works on American Gods rules, where belief = power, but I think it does matter. The important bit is that other challengers began to rise up.
3. The Faerie Courts begin gaining power and influence over mortal affairs. They grow significantly for a while. They influence politics. But the Summer and Winter Courts are still opposed; they aren’t working in concert. One seeks to rule the other.
4. Their political gamesmanship starts coming to a head on January 5th, 1066. The King of England dies. Succession is complicated, and several people claim the throne is theirs. Winter aligns themselves with the Normans (William). Summer aligns themselves with the Earl of Wessex (Harold).
5. Seeing a chance to weaken his strongest opponents (and likely foreseeing the death of King Edward), Odin’s own champion, Harald Hardrara, King of Norway claims he was promised the throne.
6. Harold (Summer-aligned) is crowned King. Them’s fightin’ words. Odin-aligned forces move to attack England. The date: September 25, 1066 (Gregorian). (September 19th, 1066 in the Julian Calendar—may or may not be important).
7. Summer is prepared. They attack the Viking forces at Stamford Bridge, and win. Odin retreats. It’s possible that he was distracted by an attack on the Outer Gates at this point, else I suspect he could have committed more to the fight. Regardless, the battle was lost, and Viking influence dramatically contracted permanently afterward. (This is pointed to as the end of the Age of Vikings by historians).
8. A few weeks later, William the Conqueror lands in England. The Battle of Hastings ensues. William (Winter) wins, and, essentially, becomes the King of England at this point. The date: October 14th, 1066 (Gregorian). October 8th, 1066 (Julian).
9. Here, I believe, is where the Queens die. I don’t think they fell during Hastings, but in the desperate clashes that were happening in England-Above-England. I believe that Winter and Summer clashed alongside the Normans and Anglo-Saxons.
10. I think their fight lasted for weeks. William’s fight wasn’t quite done after Hastings, too: he marched around England putting down resistance wherever he found it. He was crowned King until December 25th. In other words: the conflict continued for weeks afterward, and may very well have continued during Samhain, when Immortals can die.
11. The Queens kill each other—or, possibly, William kills them. At the beginning of this post, I claim that William is a Starborn. I think it’s possible that he was a Starborn, and might have been a Wizard for all we know (he kind of has to be for the 666-year clause to fit).

Here, now, my line of thinking is much less certain. I see two most likely possibilities, and trying to square either one of them with WOJ is difficult. Which one is correct depends on the starting state of the Faerie Courts.

   A.   Mab and Titania are already in the Courts, as Ladies. The Queens die, and they both ascend. Their daughters become the next Ladies.
   B.   Mab and Titania are humans (or changelings). The conflict between Courts is so severe that the Queens and the Ladies die. Mab and Titania then simultaneously become the Ladies, and then immediately ascend to Queen. Their daughters become the new-new Ladies. Note that it may not have been “immediate.” It’s possible that the Ladies died, Mab and Titania were Called, and then the Queens died. But the Ladies had to die first.
Winter won Hastings. I believe they also beat Summer, and became the “greater” of the two Courts.

Whichever of the above happened, I finish my claims by stating that, in the aftermath of Stamford Bridge and Hastings, with Norse influence waning and the Courts growing, Odin abdicated his role as Defender of Reality, and Winter—the entity of the next greatest power and influence—took over. Summer, which lost the struggle against Winter, was granted enough power and influence to serve as the check against Winter. (I assume this role was previously filled by Jotunheim during the Norse stewardship.)

And that wraps up my thoughts on Hastings, Stamford Bridge, and the Outer Gates.

Arguments and criticisms are welcome.

So I was thinking about some scenes that I really want to see, but which aren't super-relevant to the ongoing plot. For instance, I really, really want to see Harry soulgaze his daughter for the first time. Mostly because I assume that Harry is absolutely freaking terrified of doing that, both because he's afraid she hates him and/or because he's afraid she will hate him based on what she sees. It would be an entirely new kind of vulnerability from Harry, who's had so little experience with family, and pretty much zero experience with Maggie.

I know it probably won't happen for a long time unless it's accidental since Dresden will want to put that off as long as he can, so it's not like I'm expecting it in Peace Talks (though a Murphy soulgaze is on the table, and I believe there is some anticipation in the community for that event).

What moments like this—ones that are pretty much guaranteed to happen—are you most looking forward to?

I've been trawling through the collected Words of Jim for the past couple of days instead of doing the work I should be doing, and came across one that I don't see discussed often:

When Harry is battling Sharkface in the end, is that all in his head, or did everybody there hear?
And the answer to that is yes. It’s all going on in his head, and everybody there heard. Which, if you’ll remember the closing to book 1, because book 1 was written from the perspective of a guy who has already finished his story, um, all the books are really, they're him looking back, you get to the end book 1, and Harry says “My name is Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden, but conjure by it at your own risk” which, you know, there’s a reason for that. Figured I’d just throw that in there. Really, Harry’s one of those guys whose name is more dangerous to other people than it is to him, in a lot of ways, a lot of people would be vulnerable by doing that, he’s not. We’ll get to see that in the future.

Emphasis added.

Why would Harry's Name be more dangerous to someone else than it is to him? How would Harry's name make them vulnerable, but not him? Consider that, while the entity itself is dangerous, conjuring the Erlking (as far as I can tell, the most dangerous thing Harry has summoned thus far by Name; he guessed some of Mother Winter's names, but didn't have all of them) doesn't make Harry especially vulnerable.

I invite everyone to speculate wildly about what kind of powerup Harry is going to get by the end of the Big Apocalyptic Trilogy. Is he going to become a modern day god? Merge his consciousness with the cosmos? Become the personification of magic? Keep in mind that his name doesn't change.