Game of Thrones is known for its ruthless, bloody battles for power, but those brutal machinations weren’t imagined out of thin air by George R.R. Martin. He looked at historical wars, assassinations, and political plots to tell the story of the Seven Kingdoms. One of the most infamous events in Game of Thrones, The Red Wedding, was based on two separate gory events in British history.

However, Martin didn’t just use historical battles for inspiration. He took people from history as well, or, at least their deaths. Within the pages of history, Martin found some of the most grisly tales of torture, execution, and murder.

Any one of these royal deaths could have easily been added to Game of Thrones, and some even sound so awful that we’d all wish it was only fiction.

1. King Alboin of the Lombards
2. Prince Igor of Kievan Rus’
3. King William II of England
4. King Edward II of England
5. William Douglas, 6th Earl of Douglas
6. George, Duke of Clarence
7. King Charles I of England

King Alboin of the Lombards

In the 6th century, Alboin, king of the Germanic Lombards in Italy, fought a couple of wars with King Cunimund of the Gepids (in modern-day Hungary). Alboin was victorious in the second war, killing the Gepid king and taking the princess as his wife. For a few years, Alboin lived with his wife, Rosamund, in relative peace. That was until he did something unbelievably cruel.

It was Lombard tradition to clean out the skull of a defeated enemy and use it as a drinking goblet. Alboin had done this with the head of King Cunimund, and he greatly enjoyed this spoil of war. One night of partying in Verona, Alboin forced his queen to drink from the cup that was her father’s skull. Rosamund was enraged and immediately plotted to assassinate her husband. It’s debated whether she poisoned Alboin or hired an assassin, but either way, who could blame her?

Prince Igor of Kievan Rus’

Extorting money from your citizens is never a good idea, but Grand Prince Igor of Kyivan Rus’ (modern-day Ukraine and Russia) was too greedy for his own good. Even after making a deal with the Slavic Drevlian people, Igor decided that it wasn’t enough and went back to take more money from them. They responded by tying his legs to the tops of two birch trees after bending the trees down. Then, they released the trees, which sprang back in place and tore Igor in half.

Igor’s wife, Grand Princess Olga, became synonymous with “hell hath no fury like a woman scorned” in her revenge for her husband’s murder. Olga schemed to have large groups of Drevlian messengers buried or burned alive, then convinced the Drevlian prince she would marry him, only to get him and his entire court drunk enough to slaughter them all.

King William II of England

William II, also known as William Rufus, was the son of William the Conqueror and was his father’s favorite son. William II inherited England from his father, while the eldest brother, Robert II, took Normandy, but people wanted one ruler over both kingdoms. William II spent much of his reign protecting his power and brutally enforcing his laws.

On a hunting trip in 1100, with his other brother, Henry, William II was shot in the chest with an arrow. Some say it was simply an accident, but others believe it was an intentional plot by Henry to gain the throne. Henry did rush back to be crowned king in the chaos of William II’s death, and before anyone could refute it. Suspicious much?

King Edward II of England

Edward II was a weak ruler who managed to make enemies out of much of the English nobility. His wife, Isabella, had to bail him out several times when he appointed his friends to lofty positions and made other poor decisions. But in 1326, Isabella and her lover had France invade Britain, and Edward II was deposed and imprisoned.

Throughout the many months of his captivity, Edward II was moved frequently so his allies (the few he still had) could not free him. His final prison was Berkeley Castle, where legend says he was killed by having a red-hot poker shoved up his rectum. This was allegedly to punish him for his relationships with his gay lovers.

William Douglas, 6th Earl of Douglas

One of the events that Game of Thrones’ The Red Wedding was based on was The Black Dinner in 1440, Scotland. A lot of schemes for power happened after the assassination of King James I of Scotland, and the Douglas clan fell prey to one of the worst. William Douglas was a 16-year-old, newly appointed Earl of Douglas, and he was to keep relations between his clan and the throne strong.

William and his brother David were invited to Edinburgh Castle to dine with King James II, who was only six and had adults managing his affairs. At the dinner, a black bull’s severed head was placed in front of William as a symbol of death. Then, William and David were taken to the courtyard, given a mock trial where they were accused of treason, and beheaded. Some accounts say the boy king pleaded for the Douglas brothers to be spared, but had to watch as they were executed.

George, Duke of Clarence

The War of the Roses was another major inspiration for George R.R. Martin, where the Lancasters became the Lannisters, and the Yorks became the Starks. During the war, family conflicts had many turning traitors, and the Duke of Clarence was one of the more infamous.

George Plantagenet was named Duke of Clarence after his brother, Edward IV, became king. George was his brother’s heir, but joined in a rebellion after Edward refused a marriage between the duke and the daughter of the Earl of Warwick. Though it took years to face any consequences, once George was sentenced to death for treason, he was drowned in a barrel of malmsey wine.

King Charles I of England

How can a king commit treason? This confusing concept is actually what happened to King Charles I after his Parliament turned against him. Charles rigidly enforced the divine right of kings, believing that anyone who disagreed with him was going against God. Parliament didn’t like not having any say in running the country, and so began the English Civil War.

Charles was captured by the Parliamentarians in 1647 and was charged with high treason. Parliament reasoned that a tyrant was treasonous to their people. Two years after his imprisonment, Charles was publicly executed by beheading in front of Whitehall in London.

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