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  === Barristan Selmy ===
  Ser Barristan Selmy, called Barristan the Bold, is hailed as a hero throughout Westeros and is the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard. He serves as the third-person narrator for four chapters in ''A Dance with Dragons''. Although he is over sixty at the start of the series, he remains a remarkable fighter and is the most celebrated and respected living knight. He has been a member of the Kingsguard for most of his life and served three kings. He remained loyal to House Targaryen during Robert Baratheon's rebellion, but he later accepted Robert's pardon and held his position as commander. He is dismissed by Cersei upon Joffrey's succession to the throne. In ''A Clash of Kings'', he begins serving the exiled princess Daenerys Targaryen. He exposes Ser Jorah Mormont, Daenerys's most trusted adviser, as a former spy for Robert. When Daenerys disappears in ''A Dance with Dragons'', he becomes a POV narrator and launches a coup against her husband. He then reluctantly rules Meereen in her stead under the title the Queen's Hand until she returns.
  In the HBO television adaptation, in which he is portrayed by Ian McElhinney, he is mortally wounded in a battle with the Sons of the Harpy in the fifth-season episode "Sons of the Harpy". When asked about the manner in which he was notified of his character's death, McElhinney commented, "It proves you should probably not read the books."