Roose Bolton

Roose Bolton
A Song of Ice and Fire character

Michael McElhatton as Roose Bolton
First appearance Novel:
A Game of Thrones (1996)
Television:
"Garden of Bones" (2012)
Last appearance Television:
"Home" (2016)
Created by George R. R. Martin
Portrayed by Michael McElhatton
Game of Thrones
Information
Title Lord of Winterfell
Lord of the Dreadfort
Warden of the North
Lord Paramount of the North
Family House Bolton
Spouse(s) Bethany Ryswell
Walda Frey
Relatives Domeric Bolton (son)
Ramsay Bolton (son)
Kingdom The North

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 television adaptation Game of Thrones.

Introduced in 1996's A Game of Thrones, Bolton, a northern lord with his seat at the Dreadfort, is a retainer of Lord Eddard Stark. Bolton is known for being cold and calculating. Bolton's heir is his bastard son Ramsay Snow. Bolton joins Robb Stark's rebellion as (along with Greatjon Umber), one of Stark's lieutenants. He marries Fat Walda (Frey), after having been offered any Frey bride's weight in gold as a dowry by Lord Walder Frey. With the help of Arya Stark and the Brave Companions he takes and holds Harrenhal until rejoining Robb Stark ostensibly to help retake the Neck (occupied by the Greyjoys), but in truth as a conspirator orchestrating the Red Wedding, receiving the title of Warden of the North from the Lannisters.

Roose is portrayed by Michael McElhatton in the HBO television adaptation.[1][2][3]

Character description

Lord Roose Bolton is a significant vassal of Lord Eddard Stark. His seat is the Dreadfort and his sigil is a flayed man, an homage to the ancient Bolton tradition of flaying enemies. He is nicknamed "the Leech Lord" for regular leechings meant to improve his health.

Overview

Roose Bolton 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/Reek. Roose is mostly a background character in the novels.[4]

Portrayal and Reception

Roose is portrayed in the HBO TV series by Irish actor Michael McElhatton, who has received positive reviews for his performance.[5]

Storylines

When Robb Stark summons his father's vassals in A Game of Thrones, Bolton's intelligence and caution earn him a prominent command in the Northern Army. However, a succession of disasters befall Robb Stark, convincing Bolton that the Northern cause is lost. Bolton then enters secret negotiations with Tywin Lannister and Walder Frey. In A Storm of Swords, he and his men-at-arms play a critical role in the massacre of Stark bannermen and soldiers, in which Robb Stark, his mother, and many of the Starks' most loyal supporters are slain. For this service, Tywin names Bolton Warden of the North. Because every noble Northern household lost at least one son at the massacre, resentment spreads because of this appointment. When Stannis invades the North at the Wall, most of Bolton's vassals provide paltry levies.

Family tree of House Bolton

Family tree of House Bolton
Bethany
Ryswell		Roose"Fat" Walda
Frey
DomericRamsayJeyne
Poole
Notes:

    TV adaptation

    Roose Bolton is played by Michael McElhatton in the HBO television adaption of the series of books.[6]

    Storylines

    A Bannerman of the North and Lord of the Dreadfort. The Bolton family have a nasty history of keeping to very old, and barbaric ways, including flaying their enemies alive, and Roose is no exception, being suspected of not feeling any emotion. His cunning makes him a valuable ally, but his unpredictable nature makes him a dangerous one.

    Roose's background in the television series is much the same as in the books. However, in the television series he adopts Ramsay of his own accord when his mother dies soon after Ramsay's birth.

    Season 2

    Roose declares for King in the North Robb Stark and serves as a chief member of his war council, although Robb sternly admonishes Roose when he advocates flaying Lannister prisoners to obtain information. After Theon Greyjoy betrays the Starks and seizes Winterfell, Roose brings the news to Robb and offers to send his bastard son Ramsay Snow with a force of Dreadfort men to oust Theon and the Ironborn from Winterfell.

    Season 3

    Following the Northern army's arrival at Harrenhal, Roose presents a letter from Ramsay claiming that the Ironborn sacked Winterfell before fleeing. Robb orders Roose and the Bolton forces to hold Harrenhal while the rest of his army rides to Riverrun. One of Roose's man-at-arms, Locke, captures the escaped Jamie Lannister and his escort Brienne of Tarth, cutting off Jamie's swordhand in the process, before bringing the two to Harrenhal. Roose agrees to let Jamie go, but keeps Brienne as a hostage, though Jamie later returns to secure her release. He then meets up with the Stark army at the Twins for the wedding of Edmure Tully and Roslin Frey. However, it is revealed that Roose has conspired with Lord Walder Frey to betray the Starks, and after the wedding the Freys and Bolton slaughter the Stark forces, with Roose personally killing Robb. As part of the Bolton-Frey alliance, Roose agrees to marry Walder's daughter Walda - Walder offers him the bride's weight in silver as dowry, so Roose decides to marry the fattest of Walder's daughters. In the aftermath of the massacre, Roose hints to Walder that his betrayal of Robb was motivated by resentment at having his advice ignored by Robb. Roose also reveals that Winterfell was actually sacked by his bastard Ramsay, who subsequently flayed the Ironborn garrison there and took Theon prisoner, for his own amusement. As reward for his defection, Tywin Lannister names Roose the Warden of the North.

    Season 4

    With the Ironborn holding Moat Cailin - the fortification barring passage between the North and the rest of Westeros - Roose is forced to smuggle himself back into the North. Upon his return to the Dreadfort, he chastises Ramsay for having gelded Theon and sending terms of surrender to the Greyjoys without his approval, while reminding Ramsay of his bastard parentage. Insulted, Ramsay demonstrates how effectively he has broken Theon (whom he has since renamed "Reek") by having Reek shave him, even after revealing Roose's murder of Robb, while also coaxing Reek into revealing he faked the deaths of Bran and Rickon Stark. After Ramsay points out that the other Northerners will turn on the Boltons if it is revealed that there is a living male Stark, Roose tasks Locke with hunting down Bran and Rickon and killing Jon Snow, Robb's bastard half-brother. Roose also sends Ramsay and Reek to lift the siege of Moat Cailin; when Ramsay is successful, Roose presents him with a royal decree of legitimisation as a trueborn Bolton. Roose subsequently moves to rebuild and occupy Winterfell.

    Season 5

    In the aftermath of Tywin Lannister's death and Ramsay's murder of a disobedient vassal and his family, Roose seeks to secure House Bolton's position by arranging to have Ramsay marry Sansa Stark, supposedly the last trueborn Stark alive. In doing so, Roose seemingly secures an alliance with the forces of the Vale and its Lord Protector Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish (unaware that Baelish intends on having the Bolton army decimated by the approaching Baratheon army before defeating the victor with the Vale's army). After Ramsay torments Sansa by having Reek serve them at dinner, Roose announces that he and Walda are expecting a son. However, later Roose privately reassures Ramsay of his position as his heir, and asks him to assist in defeating Stannis Baratheon's army. To this end, Roose permits Ramsay and his men to launch a sneak attack on Stannis' camp, destroying the army's supplies. With the supplies destroyed and most of Stannis' army subsequently deserting him, the Boltons easily defeat the Baratheons when they attempt to lay siege to Winterfell, but in the aftermath of the battle Reek and Sansa manage to escape.

    Season 6

    Despite their victory over Stannis, Roose warns Ramsay that the North will someday have to face the Lannisters, and chastises him for allowing Sansa and Theon to escape, as Sansa was crucial to unifying the North. He implies that if Sansa is not recovered, Ramsay's position as heir may be usurped by Walda's baby. Soon afterwards, it is announced that Walda has given birth to a boy; Ramsay promptly drives a dagger into Roose's gut, before setting his dogs upon Walda and the baby.

    References

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