Character
Roose Bolton is a fictional character in the A Song of Ice and Fire series of fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin, and its HBO television adaptation Game of Thro…
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Investigate this subjectRoose Bolton is a fictional character in the A Song of Ice and Fire series of fantasy novels by American author George R. R.
Roose Bolton is a fictional character in the A Song of Ice and Fire series of fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin, and its HBO television adaptation Game of Thrones, where he is depicted by actor Michael McElhatton.
Introduced in 1996's A Game of Thrones, Roose is lord of House Bolton, the second most powerful Northern house behind the Starks. The Boltons are notorious for their cruelty and custom of flaying their enemies. He also appears in A Clash of Kings (1998), A Storm of Swords (2000), and A Dance with Dragons (2011).
Roose joins Robb Stark's rebellion as one of his chief lieutenants. However, he secretly orchestrates the Red Wedding alongside Lord Tywin Lannister and Lord Walder Frey, receiving the title of Warden of the North and dominion over the Northern kingdom after personally murdering Robb. His rule is punctuated by unrest and several forces conspire to unseat him.
At the beginning of A Game of Thrones, Roose is a bannerman of Lord Eddard Stark; his seat is at the Dreadfort. He is known as the Leech Lord due to regular leechings meant to improve his health, and abstains from consuming alcohol. He served House Stark in Robert's Rebellion and the Greyjoy Rebellion.
Roose is often described as an unassuming-looking man, ageless, clean-shaven, with pallid skin and an apathetic demeanor. His most prominent feature is his strangely pale and cold eyes, so light as to almost blend with the sclera. He is described as mild-mannered, but also remorseless and unforgiving. While his voice is small and soft, he does not need to raise it to inspire silence and attention; Ser Jaime Lannister and Robb Stark both remark that even just his silence is threatening. His personal motto is "A peaceful land, a quiet people". He often wears a pale pink fur cloak embroidered in blood-red to symbolize his family's custom of flaying.
Roose illicitly practices the ancient and banned tradition of the first night, in which a male lord has the right to have sexual intercourse with his female subjects on their wedding nights. This practice resulted in the birth of his bastard son, Ramsay Bolton. He ordered his depraved servant Reek to help raise the child. Roose had only one trueborn son, Domeric; Roose suspected that Ramsay had poisoned Domeric to become his heir. Left without a trueborn heir, Roose brings Ramsay to the Dreadfort to serve as its castellan.
Roose is not a point of view character in the novels, so his actions are witnessed and interpreted through the eyes of other people, such as Catelyn Stark, Arya Stark and Theon Greyjoy.
Roose answers Robb Stark's call to arms in his campaign against the Iron Throne and House Lannister. Robb gives Roose command of part of the Northern army when the host splits up at the Twins, and he leads the attack on Tywin Lannister's forces in the Battle of the Green Fork. The battle ends in a Lannister victory, and Roose retreats with the survivors to the causeway of Moat Cailin. However, Roose's defeat allows Robb to secure a larger victory and to capture Jaime Lannister.
To establish an alliance with House Frey, Lord Walder Frey offers Roose one of his female family members in marriage, along with her weight in silver as part of the dowry. Roose chooses Walda Frey, the fattest female of House Frey. He also makes an alliance with the Brave Companions, Essosi mercenaries originally employed by Tywin, to help the Northerners capture Harrenhal from the Lannister force occupying it. After capturing Harrenhal, Roose takes Arya Stark as a servant, mistaking her for a commoner.
While at Harrenhal, Roose works to weaken Robb's position, sending the Northern army on suicide missions. Vargo Hoat brings Jaime Lannister to Harrenhal, having cut off Jaime's hand in the hope of blaming Roose and preventing the Boltons from allying with the Lannisters. Roose has Jaime sent back to King's Landing after Jaime assures Roose that he will not blame him. Roose then travels to the Twins for Edmure Tully's wedding to Roslin Frey. At the wedding, which is later referred to as the "Red Wedding", the Freys betray House Stark, and Roose personally murders Robb by shoving a knife through his heart. It is revealed that Roose had conspired with the Freys and Tywin Lannister to betray the Starks. As a reward for his service, Tywin names Roose the new Warden of the North.
Roose returns to the North with his forces, joined by two thousand Frey men. Meeting with Ramsay—now legitimised as a Bolton—and a captive Theon Greyjoy, the Boltons travel to Barrowton for Ramsay's wedding to Jeyne Poole, who has been forced to assume the identity of Arya Stark. After hearing that Stannis Baratheon has captured Deepwood Motte, Roose decides to move the wedding to Winterfell to bait Stannis out. The Boltons and their Northern allies—many of whom are only grudgingly pledging fealty to the Boltons, or plan to betray them—remain at Winterfell after the wedding in anticipation of Stannis's attack. Tensions are high during the wedding due to the Northmen's anger at the Freys. Three of the Freys who had been traveling with Lord Wyman Manderly of White Harbor—who lost his younger son, Ser Wendel Manderly, at the Red Wedding—have vanished. It is heavily implied that they were killed and turned into pies that Wyman offers to the Freys and Boltons, some of which he eats himself. Lady Barbrey Dustin of Barrowton, the younger sister of Bethany Ryswell, tells Theon that Roose has no feelings and enjoys manipulating people for amusement. She also hints that Roose aspires to become King in the North, not just Warden, because the Lannisters are weakened. When Walder Frey's grandson, Little Walder Frey, is found murdered, their uncle Ser Hosteen Frey attacks Wyman, leading to a fight during which men from White Harbor and the Freys are killed. Roose then forces them both out of Winterfell to face Stannis, aiming to weaken both the Freys' and the Manderlys' armies.
Roose Bolton is played by Michael McElhatton in the HBO television adaptation of the book series. He and the rest of the cast were nominated for Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Performance
Source: Roose Bolton (CC BY-SA)
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