The Iron Islands is an archipelago in Ironman's Bay, located in the Sunset Sea off the western
coast of Westeros.
The main grouping of islands numbers thirty-one, with the seven major isles being Pyke, Great
Wyk, Old Wyk, Harlaw, Saltcliffe, Blacktyde, and Orkmont.
Eight days sail northwest of Great Wyk is a smaller grouping of thirteen islands clustered
around the Lonely Light.
Some of the Iron Islands are used for sheep grazing or are uninhabited.The islands are
ruled from Pyke, the seat of House Greyjoy on the island of the same name.
Bastards of noble origin from the Iron Islands receive the surname Pyke.
The Iron Islands are small, barely-fertile rocks with few safe harbors because the seas
around the isles are stormy.
Maesters believe the Iron Islands were settled by the First Men many thousands of years ago.
Legends claim that the First Men discovered what would be called the Seastone Chair, throne
made of a block of oily black stone carved into the shape of a kraken, upon the shores
of Old Wyk.
There is no evidence the islands were inhabited by children of the forest or giants, and humans
worshipped the Drowned God instead of the old gods.
The drowned men, the priests of the isles, claim the ironmen are not First Men but were
created in the image of the Drowned God, and they therefore may have a connection with
merlings.
Some also suspect that the isles were originally inhabited by the Deep Ones, a dark and vile
race of half-men, half-fish creatures, who lurked in the depths of the oceans and harassed
the coastlands., and that they are the ones who left the Seastone Chair behind.
Most ironborn, however, believe that their ancestors were an offshoot of the First Men
who simply crossed to the isles on boats, where their culture developed differently
from their mainland cousins.
The ancient First Men kept thralls, hinting that the ironborn were also First Men who
retained the practice in their isolation.
According to legend, the islands were ruled by the Grey King during the Age of Heroes.
Grey King was a legendary monarch of the Iron Islands who is said to have ruled for 1,007
years.
All of the great houses of the islands claim descent from the Grey King, including House
Greyjoy, with the exception of House Goodbrother, who claim descent from the Grey King's loyal
eldest brother.
Legends say the Grey King slew the sea dragon Nagga, the first sea dragon, able to feed
on krakens and leviathans and drown islands when angry.
After Grey king killed Nagaga, the Drowned God turned the sea dragon's bones to stone.
From the bones was made the Grey King's Hall, on the shores of the island Old Wyk, which
Grey king heated with Nagga's living fire.
He took a mermaid as his wife so his children could live on land or in water.
The Grey King's skin turned as grey as his hair and beard as he ruled over centuries.
He eventually he cast aside his driftwood crown and walked into the sea to descend to
the watery halls of the Drowned God to take his place at the right hand of the god.
The Storm God snuffed out Nagga's fire after the Grey King's death and the sea stole his
throne, with Nagga's bones the only remnants of the Grey King's Hall.
The Grey King is said to have had a hundred sons who fought after his death.
The sixteen who survived divided the Iron Islands amongst themselves.
For much of their history, each island was its own kingdom and had its own kings, a rock
king who ruled the land and a salt king who commanded at sea.
These petty kings constantly fought with each other, and raided the First Men of mainland
Westeros for timber, crops, and thralls.
The islands were first unified when a powerful priest of the Drowned Men, Galon Whitestaff,
decreed it was sinful for ironborn to make war upon other ironborn.
The other drowned men preached his word throughout the isles, until the various kings and longship
captains convened on Old Wyk at Nagga's Bones for the first kingsmoot, to select one High
King of the Iron Islands to rule over all.
Galon decreed the title was not hereditary, but upon the death of each High King a new
kingsmoot would be convened to elect another.
The new high kings were also called driftwood kings because of their crowns of driftwood.[1]
The kingsmoot ended the petty wars between each of the isles, and with their new unified
strength, the high kings began to conquer other lands instead of just raiding them.
Under the rule of King Qhored the Cruel, the ironborn brought much of the western coast
of Westeros under the rule of the Iron Island, including lands as far as Bear Island, the
Arbor, and Oldtown.
They were gradually lost by his successors, however, as mainland houses such as the Hightowers,
Gardeners, and Lannisters increased in strength.
The high kings came from numerous houses, with most coming from Houses Greyjoy, Goodbrother,
and especially Greyiron.
The iron price in ironborn culture refers to warriors acquiring possessions by taking
them from defeated adversaries, rather than purchasing items with currency, which is referred
to as the gold price.
It is closely associated with the ironborn's Old Way of raiding and reaving.
Thralls and salt wives are acquired only through reaving, never through transactions.
Salt wife is a concubine.
They are the women kidnapped by the ironmen during raids.
An ironborn may keep several salt wives, but only one ironborn "rock wife".[1] Salt wives
are bound to their captors in a religious ceremony, though it is considered a lesser
ceremony than that of their rock wife.
The number of salt wives kept by an ironman is a symbol of status and virility.
Unlike Dornish paramours, salt wives have a low status in the society of the Iron Islands,
on the same level of thralls.
They are not, however, considered whores or slaves, and their sons can even inherit property
or lands.
Houses descended from salt wives are looked down by the members of older ironborn houses.
House Greyjoy of Pyke.
It rules over the Iron Islands from the Seastone Chair in the castle of Pyke.
The head of the family is traditionally known as the Lord Reaper of Pyke.
The Greyjoys of Pyke claim descent from the Grey King of the Age of Heroes.
Legend says the Grey King ruled not only the western isles but the sea itself, and took
a mermaid to wife.
In the era when the ironborn chose their rulers through the kingsmoot, only Houses Greyiron
and Goodbrother produced more kings than the Greyjoys.
The iron lords, including the Greyjoys, intermarried with the victorious Andals when they invaded
the Iron Isles.
King Harren the Black of House Hoare ruled all the lands between the mountains, from
the Neck to the Blackwater Rush.
When Harren and his sons perished in the burning of Harrenhal, Aegon Targaryen granted the
riverlands to Edmyn Tully of House Tully.
The surviving lords of the Iron Islands fell into chaotic squabbling, leading Aegon to
invade the islands to subdue them.
After they bent the knee Aegon allowed them to revive their ancient custom and chose who
should have the primacy among them.
They chose Lord Vickon Greyjoy of Pyke.
The Greyjoys have kept themselves distant from the other Great Houses, rarely taking
part in events on the mainland, which they call the "green lands", even when asked.
At various times the Greyjoys have tried to return to their ancient practices of raiding
the western coastlines.
At the beginning of the Dance of the Dragons, the Lord Reaper of Pyke, Dalton Greyjoy, was
offered the position of master of ships to replace Ser Tyland Lannister, who had been
made master of coin of King Aegon II Targaryen.
Dalton, the Red Kraken, instead sacked Lannisport and sent the ironborn to raid the coasts,
capturing Kayce and Faircastle on Fair Isle.
Dalton defied the Iron Throne for two years, but he was eventually murdered in Faircastle.
Lord Dagon and the ironmen later raided the coastal areas of Westeros, sacking the town
of Little Dosk.
Lord Beron Stark gathered swords and House Lannister built ships in an effort to drive
Lord Dagon and his ironmen back to the Iron Islands,[7] and Dagon was ultimately unable
to resist the Targaryens.
Lord Quellon Greyjoy tried to reform the ironborn and integrate them with the mainland, but
he was killed late in Robert's Rebellion.
His son, Lord Balon Greyjoy, rejected Quellon's reforms and desired a return to the Old Way.
He created the Iron Fleet and led his own rebellion against the Iron Throne, declaring
himself King of the Iron Islands, like many of his ancestors.
Despite initiating several strong early strikes, such as burning of the Lannister fleet at
anchor, he was defeated.
Balon's own fleet under the command of his brother Victarion burned and his two eldest
sons Rodrik and Maron were slain during the war.
His last son Theon was given as a hostage and ward to Lord Eddard Stark after he swore
fealty to House Baratheon of King's Landing.
Since their revolt, the Greyjoys have been as insular as ever.
With Theon living in the green lands, Lord Balon raised his daughter as his heir.
Balon exiled his brother Euron when he raped the salt wife of their brother Victarion,
Lord Captain of the Iron Fleet.
Victarion was forced to kill his wife to retain his honor.
Since then Euron has sailed the world aboard the Silence, reaving and pillaging, unwelcome
in the Isles while Balon still lives.
Another brother, Aeron Damphair, had been changed by his experience of washing overboard
during the Battle of Fair Isle, and became a priest of the Drowned God.
Pyke is an ancient stronghold.
It was originally built on a cliff jutting out into the sea, but over time the cliff
has eroded, leaving the castle's towers standing on series of small, barren rock stacks, surrounded
by water.
Since there is no safe anchorage at Pyke, those who wish to travel there have to sail
to nearby Lordsport.
The towers are connected by swaying rope bridges.
The keep, its towers, walls and bridges are made of the same grey-black stone of which
the rest of the island is composed.
In the thousands of years the keep has stood, it has become covered with green lichen.
A curtain wall encloses the headland of fifty acres and the cliffs around the foot of the
wide stone bridge which extended out to the largest islet.
The stables, kennels and livestock are located on the headland.
The Great Keep, Kitchen Keep and the Bloody Keep each sit on their own islands.
Towers and outbuildings are located on stacks beyond them, linked to each other by covered
archways where the pillars stood close and by long, swaying walks of wood and rope when
they did not.
To get to the Sea Tower, one must cross three bridges, the last of which is made of rope.
• The Great Keep is massive and caps the largest islet.
It is connected to the Bloody Keep by a covered stone walkway.
Its long smoky hall contains the Seastone Chair.
• The Bloody Keep or Guest Keep is one of the largest sections of the castle.
It lies on its own island, further out than the Great Keep.
Its halls are larger and better furnished.
It received its name a thousand years ago when the sons of the river king, Bernarr II
Justman, were slaughtered within it and their pieces returned to their father on the mainland.
To get to the Great Keep one must use a covered stone walkway.
• The Kitchen Keep sits on its own island.
It lies further out from the mainland than the Great Keep.
• The Sea Tower rises from the outermost island at the far reaches of the island.
It is the oldest part of the castle, and is round and tall.
The base of the tower is white from centuries of salt spray and is crooked.
To get from the Great Keep to the Sea Tower, one must cross three bridges.
The tower contains the solar of Lord Greyjoy.
• The gatehouse is separated from the Great Keep by a high bridge.
The walls of Pyke run in a crescent moon from cliff to cliff, with the gatehouse providing
entry, located in the center portion of the wall and including an iron portcullis to provide
additional protection should the wall be attacked.
There are three towers to either side; the southernmost tower is new, made of a paler
grey stone, after the old southern tower had been destroyed during Greyjoy's Rebellion
when King Robert I Baratheon breached the walls.
The words of house Greyjoy are: "We Do Not Sow."
As much as Greyjoys and other ironborn would brag about their reaving lifestyle, they simply
do not have other choice.
Iron islands are too poor in resources to support the whole population.
Sea trading would be another prosperous way of living, and one does not even need to sow
in order to trade.
Actually, even saying "iron price" could change it's meaning through time by the
influence of the Iron Bank.
But that is matter of a distant future.
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See ya.
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