Galen is the secondary antagonist in the novel Assasin's Apprentice, the first book in The Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb, which is the first trilogy in the "Realm of th Elderings" Saga. He also serves as an overarching antagonist throughout The Farseer Trilogy and The Tawny Man Trilogy. He is a master of a form of telepathy known as "The Skill", who secretly conspires with Regal Farseer to take the throne.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Galen was a bastard born to Queen Desire. When Desire brought him to Buck Keep, she arranged for him to be trained by Skillmaster Solarity. After his training, he helped train the princes Chivalry and Verity, even though they were both far more powerful than him in The Skill. He tried to torment prince Verity. In an attempt to stop Galen, Chivalry tried to control him with The Skill and accidentally made him Galen obsessed with him. When FitzChivalry, Chivalry's bastard son, arrived at Buck Keep, Galen hated him for ruining Chivalry's reputation. After Solarity's death, Galen became Skillmaster at Buck Keep.
Galen hated those with the ability to communicate with animals, known as "Witted Ones" or "Old Blood". He once found about about a young girl who suppossedly had the ability to communicate with a bird and he murdered her.
Assassin's Apprentice[]
When the Red Ship Raiders attacked The Six Duchies, King Shrewd needed a Skill Coterie and ordered Galen to train potential Skill Users. At the insistence of Chivalry's widow, Patience, Galen was ordered to train Fitz as well. Galen regularly beat and abused his students, particularly Fitz. He would beat whomever arrived last to class. He also ordered his students to deny themselves rich foods. When Fitz took meat to feed his dog, Galen viciously beat him. He also managed to brainwash his students to support his brutal methods and hate those that were punished.
In a training session, Fitz was doing well, by using the Wit to channel energy from his pet dog, Smithy. However he ended up giving into Skill Addiction, causing him to lose control. Galen beat Fitz, and then used the skill to drive him to suicide, as well as block off his ability to use the Skill properly. Galen left Fitz to kill himself. However, Fitz managed to save himself by connecting to Smithy. When Fitz's Guardian found out about this, he dragged Galen to the Witness Stones and beat him in a fight.
In the upcoming sessions, Fitz starts to fail, due to the Skill Block Galen placed. He tested all of the students by sending them to the middle of nowhere, and they had to use the Skill to fidn their way back. Since Fitz could not use the Skill, Galen intended him to fail and be killed by Forged Ones in the attempt. He also tried to have Burrich assassinated, however Fitz used the Wit to connect with Smithy and save Burrich.
There was a ceremony in which Kettricken was to be betrothed to Verity. Verity was too busy to attend, as he was using the Skill to battle Red Ship Raiders, so he attended telepathically via the Skill. Under Regal's instruction, Galen tried to use the Skill to sap Verity;s strength and kill him. However, Fitz warned Verity who killed Galen instead.
Galen's Legacy[]
Galen's Coterie had been brainwashed by Galen to support Regal. Under Regal's instruction, they encouraged attacks of Forged Ones and Red Ship Raiders in order to weaken Verity's rule. They also assassinated King Shrewd. When Regal rose to power, they aided him in his tyranny and genocide of the Witted Ones. Regal sent the Coterie to unlock the Stone Dragons, however, Fitz killed all of the member's of the Coterie.
Due to Galen's Skill Block, Fitz remained unable to use the Skill properly throughout the events of the Red Ship wars and beyond, which impeded his abilty to protect himself against Galen's coterie and other enemies. He also was unable to properly communicate with and find Verity. Fitz remained unstable with The Skill until decades later when he is healed by the other members of Dutiful's Coterie.
 Villains
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Regal Farseer | Galen | Kennit | Pale Woman | Duke of Chalced | Ellik | ||