The bells ringing in King’s Landing is a sound associated with multiple things: horror, the death of a king, the city under siege, and Daenerys Targaryen and Drogon burning Westeros’ capital to the ground. What they don’t typically mean is surrender, as per Davos Seaworth himself, though that’s what Game of Thrones season 8, episode 5 – fittingly titled “The Bells” – used them for. The sound was supposed to mark the end of Daenerys’ attack, but instead spurred her on, leading to one of the most controversial parts of Game of Thrones‘ ending.
