The keep at Casterly Rock sits on top of a gold mine, built into the very rock. The gold of Casterly Rock, Castamere, the Pendric Hills and the Golden Tooth has made them the wealthiest of the Great Houses. Thus the Lannisters became an Andal house, though their First Men name lived on. In time, the Lannister kings also wed their children to Andals, and when King Gerold III died without male issue, a council crowned the Andal husband of Gerold’s only daughter, Ser Joffrey Lydden, who took the Lannister name.
They also took Andal sons and daughters as wards and fosterlings at Casterly Rock to prevent betrayals such as those that had happened in the Vale. The first known King of the Rock was Loreon I Lannister, although Lann the Clever has posthumously been called by the same title.ĭuring the Andal invasion of Westeros, House Lannister initially fought the invading Andal warlords and adventurers that ventured into the westerlands but then took a policy of arranging marriages between them and the daughters of the local First Men houses. Meanwhile, the Lannisters of Casterly Rock grew to become Kings of the Rock. The Lannisters suddenly appear as First Men in historical records of the Age of Heroes, ruling large portions of the westerlands from Casterly Rock just as the Casterlys vanished from the chronicles.Īccording to a semi-canon source, members of lesser branches of the family left Casterly Rock and developed a nearby village into the city of Lannisport, forming House Lannister of Lannisport. His surrender to Aegon the Conqueror convinced Aegon to allow the Lannisters to remain the liege lords of the westerlands. Though King Loren I Lannister escaped, he was captured the next day by Targaryen forces. The Lannisters reigned as Kings of the Rock until the Targaryen conquest, when they were defeated at the Field of Fire. Through the female line they boast of descent from Lann the Clever, the legendary trickster of the Age of Heroes who tricked the members of House Casterly into giving him Casterly Rock during the era of the First Men. Their official motto is “Hear Me Roar!” However, their unofficial motto, equally well known, is “A Lannister always pays his debts.” The Warden of the West is a Lannister by tradition.įair-haired, tall, and handsome, the Lannisters are the blood of Andal adventurers who carved out a mighty kingdom in the western hills and valleys. Their sigil is a golden lion on a field of crimson. Their seat is Casterly Rock, though another branch exists that is based in nearby Lannisport. Killed by Arya Stark at an inn in the Riverlands.House Lannister of Casterly Rock is one of the Great Houses of Seven Kingdoms, and the principal house of the westerlands.