Anointment Crisis

The Anointment Crisis is an ongoing schism within the maesters between those supported by the Seneschal and the Citadel, and those supported by the High Septon. The crisis began in the aftermath of the Red Death, when distrust of maesters reached new heights and the faithful sought atonement for sins. The High Septon decreed that all maesters must swear an oath to uphold the values of the Seven and allegiance to the High Septon first and foremost. The Seneschal responded by decreeing that any who made such oaths would be barred from the Citadel. Those that took the oaths came to be known as the Anointed Maesters, while those who refused are known as the Unanointed Maesters.

Origins
At the dawn of the fourth century after the conquest, the reputation of the maesters began to gradually decline, particularly in the eyes of the smallfolk and the lesser nobility. Salacious rumors began to spread of the maesters’ purported immorality, all given credence by the scandalous behaviors of a few decadent individuals among their ranks. Gossip soon gave way to suspicions of conspiracy, as the smallfolk found the elusive maesters an easy scapegoat in times of hardship.

Some spoke of the maesters’ hidden hand in much of the tumult experienced by the realm, a notion that spread from the common rabble to the lowest noble houses. Perpetually frustrated by the apparent immovability of their status, many lesser lords throughout the realm grew distrustful and resentful toward their maesters, believing that they served only the interests of the high nobility. After Viserys’ failed attempt to usurp the throne by force, many alleged that the maesters had plotted the preceding assassination of King Rhaegar Targaryen - as he had been especially beloved among the common people.

For a few decades, however, rumors of the maesters’ hidden evils belonged only at the fringes of public discourse. It was during the outbreak of the Red Death that such sentiments began to prevail, as no living man had seen so devastating a plague in his own lifetime. Moreover, the Archmaester had recalled all household maesters to the Citadel shortly before the disease’s arrival in Westeros. Many saw the suspicious timing of this as infallible proof that the maesters were - at the very least - concealing truths from the common people. Others regarded the plague as the gods’ punishment for sins, and believed they had a holy obligation to root out immorality.

Some maesters suffered attacks at the hands of angry mobs as they traveled along the roads; that many of them were traveling to Oldtown instead of staying home to help the sick was seen as further proof of their secret complicity. Agitators in Oldtown began to persuade the city’s common folk that the maesters were wholly responsible for the Red Death, bringing the backlash to new heights. This culminated with the storming of the Citadel by a massive mob; some two hundred maesters were killed before House Hightower intervened to suppress the attack. Entire sections of the Citadel were put to the torch, and with the loss of lives came the destruction of treasured knowledge.

The High Septon’s Decree
In the aftermath of the Citadel’s storming, the maesters faced the monumental task of restoring the institution to its prior condition. Desperate for aid and fearful of further persecution, a small group of prominent maesters from the Citadel traveled to King’s Landing for an audience with the High Septon. They offered to swear the Citadel to the service of the Faith in exchange for his patronage and favor.

After deliberating with the Most Devout, the High Septon presented his terms. All maesters would swear an oath of allegiance to the High Septon above all others, and would be required to uphold the values of the Faith. They would further be required to spend two years studying as septons as a precondition to receiving their chains. With his terms accepted, the High Septon then decreed to the realm that all maesters must be held to these obligations, and that those who do not would be deemed heretical sinners.

The consenting maesters returned to Oldtown, bringing with them gold, relics, and knowledge provided by their new patron. When the Seneschal was informed of the bargain they’d struck, however, he barred these maesters from reentering the Citadel. He then issued a decree of his own, in opposition to the High Septon: all maesters who have taken oaths to the Faith would be forever refused admission into the Citadel.

Current State of the Crisis
At present, the maesters remain divided between two rival sects. The lords of the realm may request a household maester from either the Citadel or the Faith, though either choice carries its own set of consequences.

The Anointed Maesters
Those loyal to the High Septon can be distinguished by a link in the shape of the seven-pointed star in the middle of their chains. In those regions where the Faith of the Seven prevails, anointed masters are generally held in much higher regard than the unanointed by both commoners and noblemen alike. Because of their lack of access to the Citadel, the anointed maesters lack much of the long-preserved knowledge still kept by their unanointed counterparts. However, the patronage of the High Septon has enabled them to amass a new collection of writings and relics, often donated by pious lords.

The anointed maesters are based out of a new citadel established in King’s Landing as a part of the Great Sept, known colloquially as “the Stacks.”

The Unanointed Maesters
Those still loyal to the Citadel have distinguished themselves in recent years by wearing black robes in lieu of the traditional gray. They are generally despised by smallfolk and pious nobles, though many lords quietly regard them as more capable and knowledgeable than their anointed counterparts. With control of the Citadel, they maintain exclusive access to a much greater wealth of ancient tomes and artifacts - though this collection was irreparably damaged during the storming of the Citadel. Furthermore, they receive less patronage than the anointed maesters, and are thus less capable of acquiring new articles of knowledge.

The unanointed maesters are based out of the original Citadel in Oldtown.