[House Lannister — Houses]
Instead, the Greyjoy fleet will ferry the Dornish army north to lay siege to King's Landing alongside the Tyrell forces, trapping Cersei and most of her army in the capitol and starving them out. Meanwhile, in response to Olenna's question of the use of Daenerys's foreign soldiers, Tyrion plans to have the Unsullied sail around Westeros and capture Casterly Rock, the true seat of House Lannister's power. Ellaria, Yara Greyjoy and Olenna agree to follow this plan. All does not go as planned, however; on their way to Dorne, Yara's fleet is decimated by her uncle Euron 's Iron Fleet, and both she and Ellaria are captured.
Tyrion is escorted into the Tower of the Hand by Gregor Clegane; he meets Jaime outside, who claims he tried to reason with Cersei until she threw him out. Tyrion then meets Cersei inside the same office both he and their father once occupied, as Hand of the King. Cersei accuses him of having tried to bring down House Lannister from the very beginning. Although she finally acknowledges that Tyrion did not kill Joffrey, she reminds him that he did kill their father, and holds him responsible for the deaths of her other children, as she believed no one would have touched Tommen or Myrcella while Tywin was alive. Tyrion truthfully claims he was unaware of Jon's bending the knee to Daenerys and expresses sincere regret for the deaths of his nephew and niece, but Cersei does not care, claiming he destroyed their House's future regardless of his intentions. Angered, Tyrion tries to goad her into having him killed, if she blames him for everything that has befallen her. Cersei looks ready to give the order to Ser Gregor, but reluctantly relents. Tyrion wonders why she allowed him to arrange the peace negotiations in the first place if she didn't expect anything to happen; Cersei turns the question back at him, wondering why he supports Daenerys as loyally as he does. Cersei dismisses Tyrion's assertions that Daenerys is better at controlling her violent impulses than she is. She expresses the horror she felt when she saw the wight, and her desire to keep her loved ones safe from them at any cost. From this and her gestures, Tyrion correctly deduces that she is pregnant with another incestuous child by Jaime.
Tyrion is a highly intelligent man who recognized from an early age that his mind was his greatest weapon, due to being born a member of House Lannister with the expectation of upholding his family's noble name, yet lacking the physical attributes possessed by his older siblings. Thus, he has committed himself to possessing a sharp intellect in order to help make up for his dwarfism, and he is frequently able to use his superior intellect to get the better of those who initially look down upon him or weasel his way out of tight situations, though he is not above resorting to using his family name and enormous fortune to bolster his position. He has also shown himself to possess a keen mind for strategy, as is evidenced in his research into defending against sieges and successfully conducting the defense of King's Landing during the Battle of the Blackwater. Tyrion prides himself on his ability to read people as easily as he does books, and he has on many occasions easily gotten the better of not just Joffrey and Cersei but also experienced players such as Littlefinger and Pycelle.
Cersei's mother died when she was four years old, after giving birth to her younger brother Tyrion. Like her father, Cersei always blamed Tyrion for her mother's death and deeply resented that her mother died so that Tyrion would be brought into the world. Tywin was constantly away from home during Cersei’s childhood and teenage years, serving as Hand of the King at the capital, with only infrequent visits back to his seat at Casterly Rock. Coupled with the death of her mother, this meant that Cersei and her two brothers were primarily raised by servants attached to House Lannister. She began an incestuous relationship with Jaime in her youth which continued despite her marriage. While Cersei had other partners in King’s Landing, Jaime always kept himself strictly for her.
Inside, Jaime warns that all the power and prestige their father built for House Lannister belongs to them now, and that once everyone sees that Tywin is truly dead, their enemies will do everything they can to take it away from them. Cersei bluntly states that their true enemy is Tyrion and that Jaime is partly responsible for Tywin's death since he was the one who released their father's murderer, and then she leaves him.
Tyrion later enters Cersei's office, and the two trade savage barbs. Although she finally acknowledges that Tyrion did not kill Joffrey, Cersei blames his murder of Tywin for the series of events that led to her younger children's deaths and the destruction of House Lannister's future. Tyrion maintains that he loved Myrcella and Tommen almost as much as Cersei and that he regrets what happened to them. He attempts to call Cersei's bluff, claiming that if Cersei genuinely blamed him for their deaths, then Gregor should just kill him right then and there. A tense moment passes in which Cersei does not give the order. Relieved, Tyrion heads straight for the wine. They continue their discussion until Tyrion realizes that Cersei is pregnant.
Cersei has been cited by Tyrion to be one of the most dangerous people in Westeros, because of her absolute ruthlessness in the face of those she perceives as her enemies. Cersei maintains a major amount of hypocrisy, blaming Tyrion for the destabilization of her family, and blind to the fact that she was an almost central influence in the deaths of Tommen and Myrcella, and showing no sympathy whatsoever when Tyrion apologizes but cites Tywin's own cruelty towards him - the hypocrisy here is that Cersei herself has complained about Tywin's mistreatment of her, and outright threatened to 'burn [her] house to the ground' if she were separated from her children (the latter being hopelessly ironic because Cersei accuses Tyrion of decimating the position of House Lannister, where she at least contemplated it herself). In addition, Cersei was a supreme influence in the arrest of Ned Stark (since she installed Joffrey on the Iron Throne rather than leave King's Landing when Ned warned her of his intentions in order to spare her children's lives), Tyrion's arrest (since it began with Bran Stark finding her having sex with Jaime), and giving free reign for Joffrey to do as he wanted and being unable to control him (which led to the death of Eddard Stark), making her an almost undisputed influence in the War of the Five Kings, which led to her family's decimation.
In the books, after Tywin dies, Cersei becomes the new head of House Lannister, but she appoints lesser cousins to other titles Tywin held: Daven Lannister (son of Stafford Lannister ) is made the new Warden of the West, and even more distant cousin Damion Lannister is named castellan of Casterly Rock (Cersei is Lady of the castle, but she isn't there to rule it directly). No mention was made in the corresponding Season 5 of the TV series about exactly who holds the titles that Tywin used to hold - possibly implying that Cersei is the new Wardeness, but this awaits clarification.
He was forgiven for breaking his vows by King Robert Baratheon and permitted to remain in the Kingsguard as part of Robert's alliance with House Lannister, along with the marriage of Jaime's twin sister Cersei to Robert. In addition to the slaying of the Mad King, Jaime was known for his handsome looks, arrogant demeanor, and his superior and incredible fighting skills, and for his superb martial skills. He was so skilled and great with a sword, that he bragged there were only three men in the Seven Kingdoms who might have had a chance against him.
Several days later at breakfast, Tyrion tells his family that Bran is expected to live and notes his siblings' guarded reactions to the news. Tyrion informs them of his decision to journey north to see the Wall before returning to King's Landing. Jaime states that it would be kinder to let him die, due to Bran's paraplegia, but Tyrion states he would prefer to live in any case. Jaime then hints that it would be in House Lannister's best interests if Bran were to die.
Jaime is offered a sword by his father Tywin which is made of Valyrian steel from the recently reforged Ice , the Starks' ancestral sword. Jaime comments that House Lannister has always wanted its own Valyrian blade and Tywin answers that they now have two. The original was absurdly large and had plenty of steel for two swords. He then reveals to Jaime his plan to have him removed from the Kingsguard so that he can return to Casterly Rock and rule as Lord in his stead. However, Jaime tells him that he has no plans of resigning and that he will remain in King's Landing to protect the King (and secretly continue his incestuous relationship with Cersei). He also rejects that this is about his honor, as he believes that his honor is too far gone so he might as well do what he wants rather than what is expected of him. Tywin agrees to let him do so, but tells him that he no longer considers him a Lannister. Despite this, Tywin allows Jaime to keep the sword, saying that a 'one-armed man with no family needs all the help he can get'.
During the funeral of his father, Jaime meets with Cersei in the Great Sept of Baelor . Jaime warns his sister that all the power and prestige their father built for House Lannister belongs to them now and that, once everyone sees that Tywin is truly dead, their enemies will do everything they can to take it away from them. Cersei bluntly states that their true enemy is Tyrion and that Jaime is partly responsible for Tywin's death since he was the one who released their father's murderer. He is left alone in the Sept, looking at his father's corpse and feeling guilty.
When he arrives back at King's Landing, he brings the news of their defeat, and that fighting Daenerys is suicide, only to be rebuffed by Cersei's overconfidence in the Iron Bank and the mercenaries that can be hired with the ransacked gold of Highgarden. As promised, he also tells Cersei it was Olenna who had murdered Joffrey, to her initial disbelief; however, as Jaime talks her through it, pointing out that Olenna had far more to gain from killing Joffrey than Tyrion, Cersei is forced to concede he is telling the truth, and angrily berates Jaime for talking her into giving Olenna a merciful death. Jaime insists that House Lannister will follow House Tyrell into the grave if the war continues, but Cersei, to his dismay, makes it plain she intends to fight on to the bitter end, both of them knowing that Daenerys will do the same, and is more dangerous with the victory she has just achieved. Cersei surmises to say that she would rather fight and die, as she knows she will be killed even if she surrenders.
After narrowly escaping the persecution of House Stark by House Lannister , Arya is trained as a Faceless Man at the House of Black and White in Braavos , using her abilities to avenge her family. Upon her return to Westeros , she exacts retribution for the Red Wedding by exterminating the Frey male line.
Eddard confronts Cersei, who admits that her children were fathered by her brother Jaime. However, before Eddard can inform Robert, the King is mortally wounded by a boar while hunting and dies shortly afterwards. Cersei and Joffrey have Eddard arrested and send guards to take Arya into custody while she is training with Syrio. He realizes that Eddard would not send Lannister men for his daughter, and instructs Arya to flee while he faces down the guards himself. Armed only with a wooden sword, he disarms several of them and holds off one of the Kingsguard , Ser Meryn Trant . Syrio's fate after that is unknown. Arya goes first to the stable, where the men who were to take her and Sansa out of King's Landing were waiting with the baggage. The men have been killed , but she finds her sword, Needle, where she hid it in the bottom of her luggage. She is discovered by a stableboy who tries to stop her. As he comes at her, she raises her sword, and he is impaled and dies. Horrified, Arya runs away to find her way out of the castle. As a result of subsequent events, war breaks out between the forces of House Lannister and the forces loyal to House Stark , now under the leadership of Robb.
Later, Shae tells Sansa to return to her chambers and bar her door to keep her safe should Stannis breach the keep. Sansa finds Sandor waiting for her inside. He tells her that he is going north and offers to take her with him. She is reluctant to leave the potential safety of being rescued by Stannis but he warns her that all men are killers. Stannis's force is ultimately defeated by a host of House Lannister and House Tyrell reinforcements led by Tywin Lannister .
King Robb Stark was the eldest son of Lord Eddard Stark of Winterfell and his wife, Lady Catelyn . Following his father's execution , Robb was declared King in the North , won many battles against the House Lannister , but eventually he, his mother, and his forces were slain at the Red Wedding .
After they leave and the festivities begin to wind down, Catelyn becomes suspicious when she notices Black Walder Rivers close the banquet hall doors and the musicians in the gallery begin playing " The Rains of Castamere " - the song commemorating House Lannister's brutal elimination of House Reyne . Walder rises to make a toast to Robb, and Catelyn, seated beside Roose, notices that the latter is wearing mail under his clothing. Realizing they have been led into a trap, Catelyn slaps Roose across the face and screams a warning to Robb, but by then it is too late.
At no point did Joffrey control all of the Seven Kingdoms. In the first year of his reign his faction only controlled the Westerlands, the Crownlands, and a narrow strip of the southern Riverlands between the two. By the second year of his reign, his faction managed to gain control of most of southern Westeros: after the Battle of the Blackwater, he had gained control of the Stormlands and the support of the Reach, with the Vale and Dorne at least neutral to his reign. For the few short weeks between the death of Robb Stark and Joffrey's own death, he nominally extended his control over the North (under the Boltons) and Riverlands (under the Freys), though functional control would take some time, as scattered Stark-Tully holdouts continued to resist and the Boltons were loathed almost universally in the North so no-one followed them wholeheartedly. Stannis remained free and in defiance of Joffrey on Dragonstone, while Joffrey never controlled the Iron Islands at all (with the continued attacks of the ironborn remaining an ongoing problem into his younger brother's reign). The constant civil wars of Joffrey's time on the Iron Throne drained the remaining financial resources of the crown and House Lannister, drastically exacerbating what was already a massive debt crisis with the Iron Bank of Braavos .
A major point in the story is that Joffrey has absolutely no redeeming qualities other than that he is rather handsome. He is not simply cruel, but an utter imbecile, and so incompetent he can only be regarded as dangerous, even when dealing with his power base in House Lannister. From a standpoint of ruthless practicality, Joffrey is an insane idiot who does more harm to House Lannister than good. Even so, people in the narrative who haven't met Joffrey, or only seen him in public events at King's Landing, have difficulty accepting that he is is a cruel lunatic. This goes against the simplistic world view that has been impressed on them by their own popular culture of romance songs and poetry. Sansa, in particular, became obsessed with Joffrey after encountering him simply because he was very handsome, even though she knew absolutely nothing about his personality.
In the books, Joffrey dies after the other two "usurpers" Balon and Robb, against whom Stannis and Melisandre performed the leech ritual . Similarly to the deaths of Balon and Robb, it seems that Joffrey's death did not get Stannis even one step closer to the Iron Throne. However, since Stannis is still alive in the books, it can be argued that Joffrey's death may assist him indirectly : it has triggered a chain of events that resulted in Tywin's death - and from that point began the gradual decline of House Lannister, mainly due to Cersei's total incompetence as a ruler. Considering how far the show strayed from the books (in respect of the plotlines of Sansa, Dorne and more), it is not impossible that Stannis will survive the battle in the ice , and may take advantage of the unstable state of affairs at King's Landing.
That night Edmure is introduced to his bride Roslin Frey , discovering much to his relief that she is a beauty. The wedding and the feast that follows it are quite celebratory and lively affairs, with all the participants in high spirits. As the celebrations reach their heights Lord Walder calls for the bedding ceremony. Robb agrees and the bride and groom are carried off to their wedding bed, Roslin carried off by the male guests and followed closely by Edmure, who is collected by the Frey women. After they leave and the festivities begin to wind down, Catelyn becomes suspicious when she notices Black Walder Rivers close the banquet hall doors and the musicians in the gallery begin playing " The Rains of Castamere " - the song commemorating House Lannister 's decisive and brutal victory against the rebellious House Reyne of Castamere . Walder rises to make a toast to Robb, and Catelyn, seated beside Lord Roose Bolton , notices that the latter is wearing mail under his clothing. Realizing they have been lead into a trap, Catelyn slaps Roose across the face and screams a warning to Robb, but by then it is too late. Lord Walder signals his men to attack. In what becomes known as the infamous Red Wedding , Lothar draws a knife and repeatedly stabs the pregnant Talisa in the stomach, killing her. Before he can react, Robb is shot by the musicians with crossbows several times and falls to the ground. Numerous other Stark men are killed by the crossbow bolts or set upon by Frey soldiers.
Despite his wayward ways and liberal attitude towards sexuality, Oberyn was very devoted to his family, telling his lover Ellaria that any other person would always have to wait behind her for his affection. He was very close with his sister, Elia, and took her death very hard. As a result, he had a strong and fierce hatred for House Lannister , especially towards Tywin Lannister , whom he believed ordered his sister's murder. He also developed a resentment toward his deceased brother-in-law Rhaegar Targaryen for (from Oberyn's perspective) being unfaithful to Elia and "stealing away another woman ", which in turn led to a war that cost all of them their lives.
Due to their shared hatred for House Lannister, Oberyn and Tyrion form a bond of sorts. Oberyn offers to take Tyrion to live in Sunspear with the Martells, should he defeat Gregor Clegane and gain Tyrion his freedom, in order to get him away from the vengeful Cersei, who may still attempt to have him killed. Oberyn loses the duel against Clegane, however, and is killed, though he manages to poison him with manticore venom in the process.
Sandor Clegane is a skilled warrior in the service of House Lannister , known primarily for the horrible facial scarring he bears on the right side of his face, and for his fierce demeanor and lack of chivalry. Sandor is the younger brother of Ser Gregor Clegane , nicknamed "the Mountain", a monstrously huge knight and arguably the most feared man in Westeros . In his youth, Gregor nearly burned off half of Sandor's face because he found Sandor playing with a toy that Gregor had discarded. Sandor didn't even "steal" it, he was merely playing with it and assumed he didn't need Gregor's permission. Without warning or uttering a word, however, Gregor grabbed Sandor and "punished" him by holding his head into a burning brazier. Gregor was only forced to stop after half a dozen servants managed to pry him away from his brother. The incident left severe burn scars over the right half of Sandor's face, thus he usually wears his hair long on that side to cover them. Instead of blaming Gregor, their father merely stated Sandor's bed caught fire. Ever since, Sandor has been deeply afraid of fire .
In A Song of Ice and Fire , House Clegane is a minor vassal house sworn to the Lannisters. Ser Gregor Clegane is an eight-foot-tall knight known as the "Mountain That Rides", and is the most feared warrior in the Seven Kingdoms, as well as Sandor's older brother. The Clegane brothers detest one another, resulting in Sandor leaving home at a young age to work as a sellsword and freerider. Sandor is known as "the Hound" for the three dogs which are his house emblem and for his fierce loyalty to House Lannister.
Ser Gregor Clegane , popularly known as the Mountain That Rides or simply the Mountain , was a knight of House Clegane in service to House Lannister , the older brother of Sandor Clegane , and a notoriously fearsome, extremely lethal, and much-feared warrior, with a tendency toward extreme and excessive violence.
Ser Gregor Clegane was the head of House Clegane , a knightly house from the Westerlands , and the elder brother of Sandor Clegane . When Sandor and Gregor were children, Gregor held his brother's face in a fire for playing with one of his toys without permission, horrifically scarring him. Gregor was a landed knight rather than a full-fledged lord. Gregor was monstrously huge, he was the largest, strongest, and most feared man in Westeros . His monstrous strength and size were unmatched, and he was one of the most powerful and dangerous people in the Seven Kingdoms . He was feared throughout Westeros with a reputation for ferocity, brutality, and anger. He has committed unspeakable acts of violence, such as brutally torturing his victims to death, viciously raping women, and murdering children. He was a fiercely loyal retainer and servant of House Lannister , particularly to Tywin .
Littlefinger also visits the camp to treat with Renly. He makes a point of provoking Margaery about her husband's sexuality and she affirms her loyalty to Renly. Renly treats with King Stannis , but is unable to reach a compromise. Renly is killed in mysterious circumstances, and Brienne is blamed for his death. Margaery convinces Loras to flee the camp with her before Stannis arrives. Littlefinger accompanies them to Highgarden having gauged Margaery's ambition to become queen. Petyr sways House Tyrell into siding with House Lannister. As a result, House Lannister is victorious at the Battle of the Blackwater .
She explains that the song refers to House Lannister's destruction of the rebellion of House Reyne of Castamere. This is meant to imply similarities between the ambitions and position of Houses Reyne and Tyrell and that the same fate may fall upon House Tyrell if they plot against the Lannisters. Cersei also threatens to have Margaery strangled in her sleep if she ever dares to call Cersei sister again. During the wedding dinner, Margaery is seated with her grandmother Olenna, who talks about what the dynamics of the Lannister and Tyrell families will be after Loras married Cersei, with Margaery shooting her grandmother a withering glare when Loras storms out.
Although Cersei is initially delighted in wiping out her enemies in the Faith (and a rival in Margaery), as a result of Margaery's death, Tommen commits suicide after he sees the burning sept from his chambers, leading to Cersei seizing the Iron Throne . Without Margaery to act as a link in the alliance between House Tyrell and House Lannister, and vengeful of her progeny's death at the hands of Cersei, Olenna aligns Highgarden's forces with Daenerys following a meeting with the Sand Snakes of Dorne .
Cersei ignores everything Olenna says, only saying that House Lannister has no rivals. She then reiterates to Olenna that the Crown is not holding Loras, and that the High Sparrow will inevitably release him. She then invites Olenna to the inquest into the charges about Loras (as there isn't yet enough evidence for a trial). Olenna watches as her grandchildren refute Loras's sexuality, but things take a turn for the worse when Olyvar 's testimony damns them both. As Loras and Margaery are arrested, Olenna looks threateningly at Cersei.
Brightroar , the Valyrian sword of House Lannister , was lost in an expedition to Valyria centuries ago. An attempt to find it, led by Tywin Lannister 's younger brother Gerion, apparently ended in failure, with no-one returning from the expedition. At least three times Tywin offered to buy Valyrian longswords from impoverished lesser houses, but his offers were firmly rejected. The little lordlings would gladly part with their daughters should a Lannister come asking, but they cherished their old family swords. This is what Jaime was referring to in " Two Swords " when he says that Tywin has wanted a Valyrian steel sword in the family for a long time.