Castamere

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The westerlands and the location of Castamere.
The westerlands and the location of Castamere.
Castamere
The westerlands and the location of Castamere.[1]

Castamere is a ruined castle[2] located south of the Crag and west of Ashemark in the northwestern westerlands;[1] also nearby is Tarbeck Hall.[3] The former seat of House Reyne, Castamere contains gold[4] and silver mines.[5]

History

Named after a nearby pool of blue water,[5] Castamere began as a mine like Casterly Rock. The rich veins of gold and silver allowed House Reyne to become nearly as wealthy as House Lannister during the Age of Heroes. After building curtain walls to guard the entrance with two stout towers, the Reynes constructed keeps and halls. As the gold and silver dried up, the mine below was widened and converted into halls, galleries, bedchambers, and a vast underground ballroom. While the surface fortifications resembled those of a minor lord or landed knight, nine-tenths of the the castle was subterranean.[5]

Kevan Lannister, the second son of Lord Tytos Lannister of the Rock, served as first page and then squire to Robert Reyne, Lord of Castamere. Following the War of the Ninepenny Kings, tensions rose between the Reynes and Lannisters during the rule of Tytos. Castamere was where the opposing sides met to exchange hostages. Peace was short lived, however.[5]

During the ensuing Reyne-Tarbeck rebellion, the Reynes retreated to Castamere after the destruction of Tarbeck Hall. With Roger wounded and many of their men killed in battle, the Red Lion's brother, Ser Reynard, abandoned the surface castle for the safety of the mine's oak-and-iron gate. Tytos's heir, Ser Tywin Lannister, ignored Reynard's offers and had his miners bury Castamere's entrances beneath stone. The Lannisters then dammed the pool's stream and diverted it into a mine entrance, flooding the underground chambers of Castamere and drowning those trapped inside. Tywin also had the surface buildings put to the torch. The fate of the Reynes and Castamere is remembered in the song "The Rains of Castamere".[3][5]

Recent Events

A Clash of Kings

During the War of the Five Kings, Lord Greatjon Umber captures the gold mines of Castamere after the Battle of Oxcross.[4]

A Storm of Swords

For their part in the downfall of House Stark during the War of the Five Kings, House Spicer receives Castamere and Ser Rolph Spicer is named Lord of Castamere.[6]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 George R. R. Martin's A World of Ice and Fire, map of Westeros.
  2. George R. R. Martin's A World of Ice and Fire, Castamere.
  3. 3.0 3.1 A Storm of Swords, Chapter 19, Tyrion III.
  4. 4.0 4.1 A Clash of Kings, Chapter 39, Catelyn V.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 The World of Ice & Fire, The Westerlands: House Lannister under the Dragons.
  6. A Storm of Swords, Chapter 72, Jaime IX.