HOUSE ARRYN

House Arryn of the Eyrie is one of the Great Houses of Westeros. It has ruled over the Vale of Arryn for millennia, originally as the Kings of Mountain and Vale and more recently as Defenders of the Vale and Wardens of the East under the Targaryen, Baratheon and Lannister dynasties. After marrying Lady Lysa Arryn, widow of Lord Jon Arryn, and her subsequent death at his hand, Lord Petyr Baelish became the Lord Protector of the Vale. Because of his relationship with her, Baelish was able to heavily influence Lysa's son Robin Arryn. However, his role in the deaths of Jon and Lysa Arryn were eventually exposed, and Baelish was executed for his crimes. The current head of House Arryn is Lysa’s son Robin, the Lord of the Eyrie, with Yohn Royce holding actual power over the house.

Their lands are in the central-eastern region of the continent. Their seat is the Eyrie, ancestral seat of the Mountain Kings, which serves as the principal stronghold of House Arryn and is located in the Vale of Arryn near the east coast of Westeros. The Eyrie straddles the top of a peak in the Mountains of the Moon several thousand feet above the valley floor below. It is approached by a narrow causeway and road. Those who would approach the Eyrie must pass through three way-castles guarding the ascent - and then, must proceed in single file, making them very vulnerable to archers. For these reasons, the Eyrie is considered impregnable to any attack that does not involve dragons, and its defenses have never been overcome.

Following the Battle of King's Landing, the King in the North, Jon Snow, assassinated Queen Daenerys Targaryen. Afterwards, at the Great Council of 305 AC, Lord Robin Arryn, as well as Yohn Royce, were among the several lords and ladies of Westeros who elected Bran Stark as the new Lord of the Six Kingdoms. With the inaugural election, this marked the first time in Westerosi history where the crown was not passed by bloodline.

House Arryn's sigil is a white crescent moon and falcon on a blue field. Their house words are "As High as Honor."

BACKGROUND

According to legend, House Arryn was founded by Ser Artys Arryn, the Winged Knight. He is said to have flown atop a giant falcon, landing on the topmost mountain of the Vale, and defeated the Griffin King, the last of the First Men Mountain Kings. Afterward, he took the Eyrie and became the first King of the Mountain and the Vale. His descendants continued to rule the Vale ever since. The Eyrie has never fallen to invaders. During the War of Conquest, House Arryn repulsed a Targaryen invasion at Gulltown with Braavosi aid, but ultimately bent the knee peacefully as they realized they could not fend off the Targaryens forever. By submitting peacefully instead of being conquered, they were allowed to continue to rule as Lords Paramount of the Vale and Wardens of the East in the name of the Iron Throne. The Eyrie is considered impregnable and defends House Arryn from the violent hill tribes of the Mountains of the Moon.

Jon Arryn was the most recent head of House Arryn, Lord of the Eyrie, Warden of the East and Defender of the Vale. He was a respected nobleman and both Eddard Stark and Robert Baratheon fostered with him. Aerys Targaryen, the “Mad King,” condoned the kidnap of Eddard's sister and Robert's betrothed, Lyanna Stark. The Mad King had Eddard's father and brother killed for protesting against the kidnapping. When he then demanded that Eddard be turned over to the King's Justice, Lord Arryn rebelled, calling his banners to war. House Stark and House Baratheon followed suit. The rebels forged an alliance with House Tully through marriage, with Eddard married to Catelyn Tully and the then-elderly Jon to the young Lysa.

Following Robert’s Rebellion, Robert Baratheon became king and appointed Jon Arryn as his Hand. Jon served the realm well for many years as Hand of the King. He died immediately prior to the events of the series, sparking King Robert's search for a replacement. Jon is survived by his wife Lysa and their six-year-old son, Robin. Jon was investigating the legitimacy of the three children of Robert’s wife, Queen Cersei Lannister, when he died. He found that they were not Robert's offspring by comparing their appearance to Robert's bastards based on the genetic preponderance for dark hair in House Baratheon.

 MEMBERS and ALLIES

*REPRESENTED IN THE SERIES*