Game of Thrones Season One Ultimate Unofficial Guide: The Game of Thrones Season 1 by Cole James

after leading a successful raid against the Lannisters. The eldest Stark daughter, Sansa, was betrothed to Prince Joffrey in an arrangement made by Robert before his death to unite the Baratheon and Stark Houses. She is obliged to remain at King’s Landing after Ned’s death. The younger daughter, Arya, is forced to hide disguised as a boy for her own safety after her father’s death and is traveling with a group headed for The Wall. The two younger boys remain at Winterfell as the only Stark representatives at home.
Baratheon
    The Baratheons took hold of a fortress in the Stormlands called Storm’s End, the oldest stronghold in Westeros, during Aegon’s conquest. The Stormlands is an area originally ruled by the Storm Kings from the Age of Heroes. Orys Baratheon, rumored to have been Aegon the Conqueror’s bastard brother, defeated Argillac the Arrogant, thus ending the line of Storm Kings and securing the Stormlands for the Targaryens. When Robert usurped the throne, he gave control of Storm’s End to his youngest brother, Renly, and gave Dragonstone, the Targaryen ancestral home, to his soldier brother, Stannis. Renly finds allegiance with House Tyrell of Highgarden from where his lover, Ser Loras Tyrell, hails. Robert dies from a wound suffered during a hunt, unaware that the three Baratheon children are not of his blood. Aside from the many bastard children Robert fathered, his royal bloodline died with him. Both of his brothers are preparing to fight against the Lannisters for the throne. Stannis is the rightful heir and Renly has been convinced by House Tyrell that he should be king.
Lannister
    In any power struggle, there needs to be a wealthy family with influence over everything. In this story, the Lannisters are it. Their vast wealth stems from the numerous gold and silver mines contained within their territory called the Westerlands. According to folklore, a celebrated trickster known as Lann the Clever swindled the castle stronghold out of the Casterly grip, thus beginning the Lannister reign of the Westerlands. It appears that swindling is an ancestral Lannister family trait.
    At the head of the Lannister family is Tywin Lannister, who served as Hand of King Aerys for twenty years before resigning his position just before Robert’s rebellion and take over. He and his wife Joanna had three children: twin siblings, Cersei and Jaime, and youngest son, a dwarf named Tyrion, whom their mother gave her life birthing. The Lannisters’ main concern is protecting their family name and ensuring its legacy. After Jaime murdered King Aerys, Tywin ordered the death of all the remaining Targaryens, including the children. He arranged a marriage between his daughter Cersei and newly crowned king, Robert Baratheon. Jaime Lannister has served as a member of the Kingsguard for both Aerys and Robert. Cersei has three children sired by Jaime, a secret to which only a dead and quiet few are privy. Robert and most others think the children are his, making the eldest, Joffrey, heir to the Iron Throne. This means that Lannister blood will be ruling under Baratheon name, which is exactly what has been happening since Robert took the throne.
    At the end of the season when Joffrey inherits the throne, he appoints his grandfather, Tywin, as his Hand and promotes Jaime to captain of the Kingsguard. Executing Ned on charges of treason starts war with Robb Stark and his allegiances from The North. Cersei struggles to maintain composure. Tywin sends Tyrion to King’s Landing to substitute in his place as Joffrey’s Hand since Tywin must remain on the battlefield. He instructs Tyrion to get Cersei and Joffrey under control because they are interfering with his power strategies and have started an irrefutable and unnecessary war.

Targaryen
    The Targaryens, although only one in the active bloodline now remains, were once a powerful House that occupied the King’s Landing region known as Dragonstone. It is said to be an active volcano