(Spoilers ADWD) The Hero of Bennington.

Okay, I’ll fully admit that this is more than a little tinfoilish, but I’ll ask you to bear with me. 

Some of you may remember this thread in which u/The_Wandering_Crow drew attention to the "Live free or die: Death is not the worst of evils" New Hampshire state motto. The claim was that the "Death is not the worst of evils" quote means that Jon Snow is actually alive, as this was voiced by historical figure John Stark. You may notice that John Stark is basically the same name as Jon Snow/Stark/Targar... Anyway, its obvious and I’m getting a little ahead of myself. You may also notice that in the above thread I found evidence supporting Mr/Miss Crow’s claim: a certain event where John Stark crossed into Canada and was adopted by the Abarnake Tribe after a series of events extremely similar to the... well, Jon’s series of events to join the Wildlings in ASoIaF.

This alone should gives some credit to the Jon Snow/John Stark comparison/quote theory, which came to the conclusion that, at best, the connection was an easter egg that could have some links to some popular theories claiming Jon Snow is/will not stay dead(Don't worry, I stop using forward slashes here). The evidence was simply not enough to convince people past that it was really cool connection.

Well, it’s a pity we stopped there. I give you the summarized military history of historical figure John Stark, the Hero of Bennington.

~1. He was a member of Rogers Rangers, a unit whose origins smack of the current Night’s Watch. It was started by a criminal frontiersman who was absolved of his crimes in return for military service. He went from town to town mustering his unit. They known for operating in harsh winter and mountainous terrains. They were never payed by the Government, who, while respected their service, never gave them a second thought, especially fiscally. The commander split his company into four units, one personally commanded by him. In the Battle on Snowshoes (1758) they went out on their ranging with the intention of ambushing enemy forces... they were counter ambushed and lost a large amount of men. One surviving tale says Roger Roberts, the commander himself, escaped capture by sliding 400 feet down a hill. John Stark was a member of this regiment.

Any of this sound familiar?

~2. During the battle of Bunker Hill, Stark deployed his men behind a ‘hastily constructed’ fortification to stem the advance of the British. A large formation of them approached. Stark’s men fired their obsidian arro... sorry, muskets, in a withering fire.

Okay, not as strong of a link, honestly. But here’s the kicker:

~3. John Stark has a nickname from his most famous victory: The Hero of Bennington. The British had decided to split the colonies in half by focusing their efforts on the middle lands (known for their rivers, and their FISH trade -cough cough-). A large contingent of troops went up north to secure supplies located in Bennington. This is where John Langdon, Parson Allen, and John Stark come in.

...Or where the Iron Bank of Braavos, King Stannis, and John Stark come in.

John Langdon was a highly successful sea trader, whose cashflow was threatened by the current British policies. He supported the rebellion and provided John Stark the funds to raise a large army. Sounds like the Iron Bank to me, who are angry at the current monarchy who are not paying their debts and want a new government installed.

During the siege of Bennington, Parson Allen demanded that he be involved in the upcoming battle. He went on to say that “his men would never come out again if they were not allowed to participate.” He helped lead a fairly large contingent from Massachusetts, a north east territory that's basically 3/5ths up the coastline. Threatening to withdraw support for not allowing men from a kinda-north east landlocked territory to fight with them? Sounds kinda like Stannis the Mannis to me, who is from holdings located basically where Massachusetts is and was at the time. Stannis also threatened to withdraw support for the Nights Watch when he became king for not complying with his demands, among a few other things.

The Battle of Bennington went simply like this: A strong feint drew the enemy, who outnumbered the defenders of Bennington, mind you, in for a killing blow at the flanks. Sounds like the battle beneath the wall to me.

~4. The court martial of John André. John André was found guilty of spying and in helping in the conspiracy of Benedict Arnold to surrender West Point to the British. A West Point’s senior badge look a lot like House Slynt’s colors, but with a Spartan helm instead of a spear. And if anyone can be compared to Benedict Arnold, it’s Janos Slynt.

So, what do you think? Is there more to this John Stark/Jon Stark comparison than we think? Is this easter egg a bit more than a tenuous link? Do you think there could be even more historical comparisons to the recent events than we’ve found?

I certainly hope so.

All facts found on Wikipedia. The large majority of these facts have been sourced, and have had their sources checked whenever possible. Any help expanding on the second point would be helpful!