House Tyrell of Highgarden

Lord Paramount of the Mander

Defender of the Marches

High Marshal of the Reach

House Crane

House Fossoway of Cider Hall

House Fossoway of New Barrel

House Graves

House Meadows

House Merryweather

House Oakheart

House Oldflowers

House Peake

House Rowan

House Tarly

House Tyrell of Greenshield

House Vyrwel

**House Tyrell of Highgarden** is one of the Great Houses of the Seven Kingdoms, being Lords Paramount of the Mander and the liege lords of the Reach. A large, wealthy house, its wealth is only surpassed among the Great Houses by House Lannister, and they are able to field the greatest armies in the realm, even though their numbers have been reduced since the independence of House Hightower and the Southlands.

Highgarden is an ancient seat of rule and the heart of chivalry in the Seven Kingdoms; the Tyrells style themselves 'Defenders of the Marches' and 'High Marshals of the Reach', and until the ascension of Tommen II, they were Wardens of the South in addition to Lords Paramount of the Mander. Their sigil is a golden rose on a green field, and their words are "Growing Strong". Members of the family tend to have curly brown hair and brown eyes.

## History

### Kingdom of the Reach

Unlike most other Great Houses, the Tyrells never ruled as kings. Instead, they trace their line of descent through the female line to the legendary Garth the Gardener, the mythical first King of the Reach reigning in the Age of Heroes, and the son of the equally mythic Garth Greenhand. Members of House Gardener, the ruling house of the Kingdom of the Reach, periodically intermarried with lower ranking houses of the Reach such as House Tyrell.

The Tyrells served as stewards to House Gardener. Ser Alester Tyrell, the founder of the house, was an Andal knight and adventurer who showed such prowess at arms that he was named the champion and sworn shield of King Gwayne V Gardener, the last of the Three Sage Kings. Ser Alester's eldest son also became a notable knight, but died in a tourney. Alester's second son, Gareth, was of a more bookish bent and never achieved knighthood, choosing instead to serve as a royal steward. He and his son Leo performed their duties so well, the Gardeners made the office of High Steward hereditary. It is from Gareth that today’s Tyrells descend.

During the minority of King Garland VI Gardener, a member of House Tyrell ruled the Reach in his name as Regent.

When Lords Manderly and Peake instigated a civil war to see their respective wives, both daughters to the senile old King Garth X Gardener, succeed as Queen of the Reach, Ser Osmund Tyrell, the High Steward of Highgarden, led an alliance of twoscore houses to put down the rebels and reclaimed the ruins of Highgarden which had been sacked by a Dornish king and his raiders. Ser Osmund placed a second cousin of the late Garth X, who has been killed by the raiders, upon the new throne as King Mern VI Gardener.

Relying on the able counsel of Ser Osmund, and later Osmund's son Ser Robert Tyrell, and finally Robert's son Lorent Tyrell, King Mern ruled well, rebuilding Highgarden and doing much and more to restore the power of the Reach and House Gardener. Mern VI was so pleased with them that he gave Ser Robert the hand of his youngest daughter in marriage, thereby allowing the following generations of Tyrells to claim decent from Garth Greenhand. That was the first marriage between the two houses, and nine more unions followed in the passing centuries.

### Targaryen Era

Following the defeat and death of King Mern IX Gardener and his other kin at the Field of Fire during Aegon's Conquest, Harlen Tyrell, hereditary high steward of the Reach, surrendered Highgarden to Aegon the Conqueror. As a reward, Harlen was granted the castle along with dominion of the Reach as Lord Paramount of the Mander. As Wardens of the South they frequently warred with the Dornishmen, who remained independent. Harlen disappeared in the Dornish sands during the First Dornish War.

During the reign of King Jaehaerys I Targaryen, the Tyrells hosted the famed Tourney of the Field of Roses.

As the Dance of the Dragons began, Lord Lyonel Tyrell was an infant, and his regent mother was judged likely to align the Reach with the House's "overmighty" bannermen, the Hightowers, and the greens. However, House Tyrell decided to take no part in the war. The Tyrell bannermen, on the other hand, were split during the war, with men of the Reach fighting on both sides. Later Ser Ulf the White would attempt to claim Highgarden for himself, as House Tyrell had taken no part in the Dance and he believed they should be considered traitors.

When Daeron I Targaryen, the Young Dragon, attempted the conquest of Dorne, Lord Lyonel commanded the army that invaded via Prince's Pass. After the initial victory, Daeron appointed Lord Tyrell as governor of Dorne. Lord Tyrell liked Dornish women and one night he pulled the rope that would signal for a wench to come to his bed, and a hundred scorpions fell from the canopy instead. His death sparked new revolts, and the conquest was undone in a fortnight.

Lord Leo "Longthorn" Tyrell participated in the tourney at Ashford Meadow, beginning the tourney as one of the champions. Both Prince Aegon Targaryen and Ser Duncan recognized him as a formidable opponent, one that Duncan would better avoid.

During Robert's Rebellion, House Tyrell stayed loyal to King Aerys II Targaryen. Lord Mace Tyrell's forces achieved victory against Lord Robert Baratheon at the Battle of Ashford. Mace likes to take credit for the success, but it was the van under command of Lord Randyll Tarly that put Robert to flight. Mace's cousin, Ser Quentin Tyrell, died in the battle. Mace went on to besiege Storm's End for almost a year. He bent the knee to Lord Eddard Stark after King Aerys II Targaryen had been killed in the Sack of King's Landing. The new King Robert I Baratheon accepted the Tyrells back into the king's peace.

### After the Great Council

The Great Council that put Myrcella into power not only ensured the continuity of Robert Baratheon’s line, but placed the Tyrells in a position that any house in the Seven Kingdoms envied. After negotiations and dealings that secured the princess’ ascension, the Tyrells latched onto her and placed themselves at the head of her regency council and subsequently betrothed her to Willas Tyrell. This marked a dynastic shift, as their children would take on the Tyrell name instead of Baratheon.

After a long and prosperous reign as both Lord of Highgarden and King-Consort to Queen Myrcella, Willas Tyrell passed away, leaving his son Tommen to take on the lordship of Highgarden. Though he wasn’t Warden of the South like his Tyrell forefathers, upon the death of his mother twelve years later, his Lord Paramountcy was joined by the title that had awaited him since his birth; Lord of the Seven Kingdoms.

Tommen II was the first Tyrell king to rule Westeros, and to further the dynastic ambitions laid out by his predecessors, he abolished the lordship of Highgarden and named his son, Alester, the Prince of Highgarden - formalizing the integration of the Reach and the Crownlands into a single royal dominion. The House of Tyrell brought forth an era of peace and bounty, and King Tommen enjoyed his reign at its apex.

### The Sundering of the Reach

But peace could last only for so long. When his time came, the warrior-king’s heir proved to be a weak-willed and indecisive king, who found himself largely overshadowed by his brother, Lyonel. A man said to have been more like Tommen and Willas  than his elder brother, it was Lyonel that the Reachmen came to look up to when he was named the Prince of Highgarden. It took a few years for King Alester to present a son, but when Prince Garlan was born, the lords of the Reach weren’t quite receptive of his installment as the new Prince of Highgarden.

At first, they tried a diplomatic approach; they brought their concerns to Lyonel about his brother’s decision, and the brave Arlan Fossoway suggested that he should keep Highgarden and rule the Reach as the Lords Paramount had before. But as it went on and Alester ignored them, they began calling for action. Lyonel, who wished to abide by his brother and give way to the young prince, kept listening to his friends and eventually changed stance.

The Declaration of Highgarden was the spark to the wildfire that would engulf the Reach in the flames of war. Even from the Westerlands, Stormlands, and Dorne, lords raised their banners and flocked to either brother's side. Lyonel and his forces carried the banner of the White Rose to call back to the legacy of House Gardener, and reinforced by the Westerlands and much of the northern Reach, they were on a sure path to victory. It was the unexpected death of Prince Lyonel in battle that altered the course of history. Hearing word of this, King Alester quickly regretted the feud and called for peace, and at the Treaty of Highgarden he gave in to the demands of the Reachlords - although while still rewarding those, who remained loyal to the Crown.

The Reach would then be split into thirds, with the seasoned son of Garlan Tyrell of Greenshield given the Mander, and the Hightowers - staunchest supporters of King’s Landing - coming into their own as Lords Paramounts of the Honeywine. Since then, tension has brewed between the Tyrells of Highgarden and the ever loyal Hightowers over the latter’s ascent.