Character overview
Tywin is Lord of Casterly Rock, Shield of Lannisport, and Warden of the West. Born heir apparent to Lord Tytos Lannister, who was perceived as a weak and ineffectual leader, often ridiculed by his bannermen, and was known as "the toothless lion", Tywin developed an early distrust of mockery and laughter. When the Lannister bannermen of Houses Reyne and Tarbeck eventually revolted against the Lannisters' rule, the 19-year-old Tywin led the Lannister army in defeating the rebellious vassals by exterminating their Houses. The song "The Rains of Castamere" was written as a tribute to the event.
Tywin eventually married his first cousin, Joanna. When she died giving birth to their dwarf son Tyrion, it is said that "the best part of Tywin died with her". He never remarried. Tywin strongly resents Tyrion for Joanna's death. When Tywin discovered that the young Tyrion had secretly eloped and married Tysha, a peasant's daughter, he had Tyrion's marriage forcefully annulled, telling him that the entire love affair was a plot by Jaime to get Tyrion to lose his virginity, his love being nothing more than a hired prostitute. Tywin then had his guards gang-rape Tysha in front of Tyrion and forced Tyrion to rape her last.
When Aerys II Targaryen became King of Westeros, he appointed Tywin Hand of the King, a position regarded as deputy and second-in-command to the King, making Tywin the second-most powerful man in the realm. Over the years, as Aerys became increasingly paranoid, he stopped trusting Tywin, believing him to have become too powerful. He appointed Tywin's eldest son Jaime to the Kingsguard, robbing Tywin of his preferred heir. After that, Tywin resigned as Hand of the King and returned to Casterly Rock.
During Robert Baratheon's rebellion, Tywin remained neutral until Robert had all but won the war. He then captured King's Landing through treachery and ordered the murder of the royal family before Ned Stark could capture the city. Fearing Tywin's wrath, the Mad King ordered Jaime to kill his father and commanded the city of King's Landing to be burned down with wildfire. Instead, Jaime murdered Aerys, betraying his vow to protect the king and earning the hatred of Westeros, despite saving the city's population. Following the war, Tywin agreed to a marriage between his daughter Cersei and the new king Robert Baratheon, who pardoned Jaime and allowed him to continue his service as a member of the Kingsguard. Tywin returned to Casterly Rock to rule the Westerlands. At the beginning of the series, Tywin is described as a broad-shouldered man in his fifties with thin but muscled arms. After he had started going bald, he began shaving his head but grew out bushy golden side-whiskers. He is said to have pale green eyes flecked with gold.
Tywin Lannister is not a point of view character in the novels, so his actions are witnessed and interpreted mainly through the eyes of his estranged dwarf son, Tyrion Lannister.
