Doctor Who: 6 Things That Explain The Matt Smith Era

6. Beginnings Of The Silence

The Silence isn't a race, but a religion, originally the Papal Mainframe, led by Tasha Lem. It changed to the Silence when its main objective became to stop the Doctor from speaking his name when the question was asked; we found that out in 'The Time of the Doctor'. So its origins were peaceful: they were trying to protect the universe from a second Time War, and the creatures that were to become synonymous with the religion were in fact genetically engineered priests. It does make sense for memory to play a part in confession, after all. It was from this one base floating over Trenzalore that the Silence grew. As Lem mentioned, other branches and factions of the religion grew, each trying to prevent the Doctor from answering the question, "Doctor who?", and presumably, they were trying to prevent it being asked at Christmas, during the Doctor's final battle. With me so far?