Edmure Tully

Edmure Tully is a knight of House Tully. As the younger brother of Catelyn Stark, he supports his nephew, Robb Stark, in his battle against the Iron Throne after the death of Eddard Stark. Though Edmure fights with bravery, his victories become a player in the downfall of Robb Stark, and after the Red Wedding, he loses almost everyone he has known and loved.

Details about Edmure Tully

Appearance and Personality

Edmure is a handsome man with deep-blue eyes and auburn hair. Possessing similar characteristics to his sisters, Catelyn and Lysa, his red beard perfectly compliments his face, which brightens with a smile. With a great build, he towers above his older sister, Catelyn.

Edmure is a charming man with a great personality. However, when angry, he turns sour and sullen. His love for bright attires encroaches into the battlefield as he wears bright mail for his battles. The most notable of his battle ornaments is a shield with a silver trout.

Biography

Edmure was born the youngest of three children and the only son of Hoster Tully and Lady Minisa Whent. His mother died giving birth to his younger brother, who also did not make it. Growing up, he got cited as a hot-headed boy with a good heart. Later, a young Edmure served as the square to Brandon Stark, Eddard’s brother. Originally friends with Petyr Baelish, he gave him the nickname Littlefinger. However, his relationship with Petyr soured after he got beaten by Brandon in a duel.

When he came of age, Hoster Tully rejected an offer from Walder Frey to marry Edmure to one of his daughters. Later, Arianne Martell agreed to a meeting with him for an arranged marriage. However, the event fell through as her father, Doran Martell, had already created a secret marriage pact with Viserys Targaryen.

Relevance in A Song of Ice and Fire

A Game of Thrones

When his father, Hoster, becomes ill, Edmure assumes command of the Riverlands. He gets forbidden to reveal his father’s illness and begins manning Riverrun. When he learns that Ser Jaime Lannister is amassing troops at Casterly Rock, he sends out some of his men, with Lord Vance and Piper, to guard the mountain pass. With the raids of the Riverlands by Ser Gregor Clegane, Edmure summons Walder Frey of House Frey and begins getting ready to retaliate against the Lannisters. However, his father stops him from doing so, and an order gets issued for Gregor’s arrest.

When Robert I Baratheon dies, chaos ensues in King’s Landing. Eddard Stark gets arrested and killed, and his daughter Sansa Stark and her friend, Jeyne Poole, get taken as hostages. With Arya Stark lost, Robb begins marching south on the Iron Throne. The Lannister forces, led by Tywin Lannister, defeat Edmure’s troops, and Jaime’s army destroys the men guarding the mountain pass. After the battle, Edmure gets taken as a prisoner.

When Jaime marches on Riverrun and besieges the city, Robb arrives with the Freys and others and destroys his forces. Jaime gets captured in the Whispering Woods, and his army gets annihilated. With Edmure free, he joins his nephew but gets wounded in the neck. Later, he joins the Northmen and declares Robb King of the North.

A Clash of Kings

With a red comet cutting across the skies of Westeros and Essos, Edmure convinces Robb to allow the river lords to return to their castles and defend themselves, believing that the comet is a good sign. With Tywin Lannister destroying and killing in the Riverlands, he takes in the survivors and smallfolk into Riverrrun. He then commands Ser Helman Tallhart to leave the twins and travel to the crossroads to help Lord Roose Bolton take over Harrenhal.

With Jaime held captive, some men try to sneak into Riverrun as envoys escorting Cleos Frey and free Jaime. However, they get captured and hanged. Edmure moves Jaime to the dungeons and arrests Cleos Frey. In a decisive battle called the Battle of the Fords, he defends the Red Fork against the Lannisters and succeeds in defeating Gregor Clegane.

A Storm of Swords

With Edmure away in the Battle of the Fords, his sister, Catelyn, frees Jaime Lannister and tasks Brienne of Tarth with taking him back to King’s Landing in the hopes of having Tyrion Lannister, the acting Hand of the King, free Sansa, and her sister. Upon returning and learning of his sister’s deeds, he has her confined to her dying father’s chambers and sends out ravens offering a thousand gold dragons for whoever captures Jaime.

When Robb returns from the Storming of the Crag, he praises Edmure for his victory. However, Ser Brynden Tully, his uncle, tells him how his win ruined Robb’s plans to let Tywin cross the river and get trapped. Edmure learns that his actions caused Tywin to retreat and head back to King’s Landing with the Tyrells, saving the city from Stannis Baratheon’s attack.

Upon learning that Jaime has been set free, Lord Rickard Karstark murders Willem Lannister and Tion Frey, Robb’s prisoners. Against the advice of Edmure, Robb decides to kill Rickard in Riverrun’s Godswood, costing him the alliance with the Karstarks.

Hoster Tully dies, and during his funeral, Edmure fails to ignite the funeral boat with an arrow after shooting thrice. With Robb’s alliance broken by his marriage to Jeyne Westerling, Edmure agrees to marry one of Walder’s daughters, Roslin Frey, to make amends for ruining Robb’s plan. Meanwhile, the Brave Companions, led by Vargo Hoat, capture Jaime and cut off his hand. He gets brought to meet Roose Bolton, who decides to send Jaime back to King’s Landing.

Upon arriving at the twins, Edmure meets his wife-to-be, Roslin. He gets shocked to realize she is beautiful. At the wedding, he and Roslin retreat to consummate their marriage, and while distracted, Walder Frey kills his guests, including Catelyn and Robb, and Edmure gets arrested by his father-in-law. After Joffrey Baratheon gets killed, the new king, Tommen, issues a decree denouncing Edmure as the Lord of Riverrun.

A Feast for Crows

After getting arrested, Ser Ryman Frey brings Edmure before the siege of Riverrun and threatens Blackfish, Brynden Tully, that he will hang his nephew if he does not surrender the castle. However, Brynden refuses even when Edmure is brought before the gallows. Jaime arrives at the Riverlands and takes command of the siege. He learns that Roslin Frey is pregnant with Edmure’s child. He talks with Brynden, who refuses to exchange the Westerlings for his nephew.

Realizing that Brynden is ready to die for honor’s sake, he releases Edmure and tells him that if he convinces his uncle to give up the castle, he and his wife will be allowed to live in peace, but if not, he will invade and kill everyone that tries to defend. He then leaves him with the singer Tom of Sevenstreams, who plays the Rains of Castermere. Edmure enters the castle, and after a day of waiting, he delivers it to Jaime. However, he lets his uncle escape.

Appearance in Adaptations

In HBO’s Game of Thrones, Edmure Tully’s character got portrayed by Tobias Menzies. In the tv series, Edmure has the same story arch and gets taken as a prisoner after Robb and Catelyn’s murder. He then meets Jaime, who convinces him to make Brynden surrender. Upon reaching the gates of Riverrun, he enters, and when Jaime’s troops follow, a peaceful surrender ensues. However, Brynden dies, and Walder gets killed by Arya, Edmure’s niece.

Edmure Tully: The Deposed Lord

As one of the minor characters in A Song of Ice and Fire, Edmure plays a critical role that moves the story forward. Though he defeats his enemies, his gains become part of a chain reaction that ultimately leads to Robb’s death. As a beautifully designed character, Edmure remains one of the key secondary characters in George R. R. Martins’s world. He remains the Deposed lord.

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