Page 22: House Targaryen

House Targaryen is a former Great House of Westeros and former ruling family of the Seven Kingdoms. The Targaryens were once a noble family of the Valyrian Empire, a dominent power in the continent of Essos. House Targaryen was given control of the Island of Dragonstone in the Narrow Sea a number of centuries ago.

Valyrians owe their power to the fact that they have an ability to bond with and ride dragons. They are also more tolerant to extreme heat and high temperatures than other races. 

For five thousand years, the Valyrians were a great power thanks to the dragons.

Four hundred years ago, Valyria was completely destroyed in what is today called the "Doom" when a string of volcanoes erupted and completely destroyed the city.

After the destruction of Valyria, the Targaryens set their sights on Westeros and, with the help of their three dragons, spearheaded an attack that brought six of the existing seven kingdoms, unified under King Aegon I. The seventh kingdom, Dorne, joined the kingdom through a political/marriage alliance two centuries later. The Targaryens ruled for approximately three centuries until the reign of Aerys II (the Mad King), when his son Rhaegar kidnapped Lyanna Stark (Ned Stark's sister) of Winterfell for unknown reasons. This started a massive uprising led by Ned Stark, Robert Baratheon and Jon Arryn.

Generations of in-breeding have preserved in the Targaryen bloodline the classic Valyrian features of silver-white (platinum blond) hair and very fair, pale skin.

After Robert Baratheon took the Iron Throne, the remaining Targaryens, brother and sister, Viserys and Daenerys fled into exile to Essos. See blog titled The Former Rulers of Westeros for more information.

Page 4: The Iron Throne

Except for the Lands Beyond the Wall, all of Westoros is ruled by a political entity knows as the Seven Kingdoms, holding fealty to the King of the Andals and the First Men who sits on the Iron Throne in the Red Keep in the city of King's Landing.

The King appoints a Hand of the King as his most senior advisor who acts as ruler and sits on the Iron Throne when the King is absent. 

When Robert Baratheon becomes King after overturning the Targaryens, he appoints Jon Arryn as his Hand. Jon, however, is killed just after he discovers that King Robert's children were fathered by someone else. Robert then appoints Eddard (Ned) Stark as his Hand. 

King Robert is a womanizer and a drinker. He has a number of bastard children.

Ned Stark was Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North. He is killed by Cersei after King Robert dies because he knows that Cersei's son, Joffrey, is not the true heir to the throne.

Cersei Lannister, King Robert's wife and mother of three children whom the King thinks are his.

When Stark becomes Hand, he investigates Arryn's murder and discovers that Cersei's children are the result of an incestuous relationship she has with her brother Jaime. Cersei, worried about the King's reaction should he find out, has him drugged to appear very drunk and the King dies on a hunt when gored by a large boar.

Page 5: The City Watch

The City Watch or Gold Cloaks are the police force at King's Landing. They report directly to the King. The City Watch promotes by merit and not by birth status. 

The previous commander of the City Watch was Janos Slynt, a butcher's son who rose through the ranks. He is dismissed by Tyrion Lannister who is acting as Hand to the King in Tywin's absence, and exiled to the Night's Watch.

Bronn is a low born sellsword (mercenary) hired by Tyrion as his bodyguard. He is appointed commander of the City Watch by Tyrion, but dismissed by Tywin (Tyrion's father) upon his return. 

Bronn is rewarded with a knighthood for his performance during the Battle of the Blackwater and takes the formal name "Ser Bronn of the Blackwater". Even though he possesses no lands or wealth this drastically elevates his social standing. 

Page 6: The Kingsguard

The Kingsguard is an elite group of the seven most skilled knights in Westeros that serve as the royal bodyguard of the King of the Seven Kingdoms. Their duty is to protect the King and the royal family at all times. They are sworn to serve for life and are forbidden from owning land, taking a wife or bearing children. The Kingsguard is led by the Lord Commander.

Jaime Lannister is the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard and in that role sits on the Small Council.


Barristan Selmy is one of the best swordsmen in all the kingdom. After he is dismissed as Lord Commander of the Kingsguard by King Joffrey to be replaced by his uncle Jaime, Barristan makes his way across the Narrow Sea to offer his services to Daenerys Targaryen. 

Meryn Trant is cruel and is well-suited to protecting King Joffrey. He obeys his every order regardless of how ridiculous or cruel they may be. 

Sandor Clegane aka The Hound, deserts his position during the Battle of the Blackwater. He is taciturn and brutal but not without compassion. He is appointed to the brotherhood, but refuses to take vows. He is King Joffrey's personal bodyguard. 

Sandor Clegane leaves King's Landing during the Battle of the Blackwater because is horrified at and terrified by Tyrion Lannister's use of wildfire during that battle. After Sandor leaves King's Landing he is captured by the Brotherhood Without Banners (an outlaw group working against Lannister interests and protecting the common folk of Westeros) who are also holding Arya Stark and Gendry (King Robert's bastard). He manages to flea and capture Arya whom he wishes to deliver to her mother who is attending a wedding.  When they arrive at the Red Wedding, they witness the massacre and leave. 

Page 7: The Small Council

The Small Council is a chamber of Lords who advise the King and the Hand. The positions are:

Master of Laws: Renly Baratheon (younger brother of King Robert Baratheon) abandons this role to fight for the Iron Throne.

Master of Coin: Petyr Baelish aka Little Finger is a skilled manipulator who owns brothels in Kings' Landing. He is later replaced by Tyrion Lannister (the King's uncle).

Master of Ships: Stannis Baratheon (the oldest of King Robert Baratheon's two bothers). When Robert Baratheon dies, the position becomes vacant as Stannis is fighting for the Throne. 

Master of Whisperers: Vary aka the Spider, advises on matters of espionage and state intelligence. He is a eunuch with a large network of informants in Westoros and Essos. 

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard: Jaime Lannister is appointed by King Joffrey to replace Barrister Selmy in this role. 

Grand Maester: PycellePycelle is the King's personal Maester who advises on history, science and medecine and all other matters. He pretends to be weak and feeble when in fact, he's in pretty good shape and uses the services of prostitutes regularly. He has served under three Kings.

Page 8: The Maesters

Maesters are an order of scholars, healers and learned men in the Seven Kingdoms also known as the Knights of the Mind. It is not a religious order but it is all-male. 

Almost every castle or noble family has its own Maester to give counsel, teach children, attend to medical needs and to send messages via ravens.

Maesters are associated to the place where they are and have no political affiliations. They are loyal to whatever family lives in the castle or house. Maesters give up their right to inherit and must remain celibate. 

The headquarters of the Order of Maesters is the Citadel located in Oldtown in the Reach. New recruits are trained there and when they graduate are assigned to a castle or town. 

The entire order is ruled by the Conclave, the council of Archmaesters who reside in the Citadel. The Grand Maester is the most senior member of the order and he serves the Iron Throne and is a member of the Small Council.

The Conclave predicts the weather and the change of seasons. In season 2, they agree that summer has ended and that fall has started. They send this news across Westeros by white ravens. 

Knowns Maesters are:

Grand Maester Pycelle of the Red Keep at King's Landing.

Maester Aemon of Castle Black (at the Wall). At the end of the third season he sends a message to all the lords of the Seven Kingdoms saying that help is needed to fight off the White Walkers.

Qyburn, an ex-Maester who was expelled for conducting unethical human experiments. He fell into service at Harrenhal and then followed Jaime Lannister to King's Landing tending his wound.

Page 10: Beyond the Wall

Beyond the Wall is the large area of Westeros that lies North of the Wall. It is the only part of the continent that is not part of the realm of the Seven Kingdoms. 

The lands beyond the Wall are mostly uncharted. Immediately North of the Wall on the East, is the Haunted Forest, a vast taiga-forest extending from the Wall to the furthest uncharted North called the Lands of Always Winter. On the West coast is a large mountain chain called the Frostfangs. There are rumours that the Frostfangs contain valleys that are heavily settled because they are heated by volcanic activity.

The People

The lands beyond the Wall are inhabitated by numerous tribes of "Free Folk" known by the people of the Seven Kingdoms as "wildlings". Some are semi-nomadic hunters, some are little more than savages and primitive raiders, but others are settled in small villages. 

The Lands of Always Winter is an area where there is always snow even during the warmest of summers. The wildlings control some areas, but it extends into subarctic wastelands that are not hospitable to human life. It is said that White Walkers originate from this region.

White Walkers differ greatly from humans. They are taller and have long whispy white hair. They have pale white skin that is wrinkly but stretched tautly across their frames, giving them a gaunt and mummified appearance. They have glowing blue eyes.

Mance Rayder is a wildling that is left at Castle Black as an infant. He is raised there and becomes a well-respected member of the Watch. As a young man, he deserts his post to live with the wildlings. He manages to unify a number of tribes and becomes King-Beyond-the-Wall. 

Tormund Giantsbane is a renowned leader and raider among the Free Folk and Mance Rayder's most trusted lieutenant.

Ygritte is a Free Folk spearwife (warrior woman) who is part of the force lead by Mance Rayder. She falls in love with Jon Snow (a Night Watchman).

Mance has unified the Thenn, the Hornfoots, the Ice-River Clans, the Cave People and the Giants even though they don't get along with each other. A long winter is expected and the wildlings want to flee South in terror of the White Walkers. They have a better chance of success if they work together.

The giants are a non-human race considered to be mythical by the people of the Seven Kingdoms, but who do exist in reality.

Craster is a wildling who lives in a fortified homestead called Craster's Keep. He sometimes shelters Night's Watchmen in return for otherwise leaving him alone and occasional bribes.

Craster has a number of wives and daughters. When his daughters get old enough, he marries them and incestuously fathers children with them, getting rid of male offspring by leaving them for the White Walkers.

Gilly is one of Craster's daughters. She gives birth to a son and runs away with Samwell Tarly (a Night's Watchman).

The Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, Jeor Mormont, is killed by his own men who rebel when Mormont does not stand up to Craster.