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| “ | Once a turncloak, ever a turncloak. | „ |
| ~ Unwin to Lord Owain Bourney |
| “ | This Hand is not blind, nor veiled, nor crippled. This Hand can still wield a sword. | „ |
| ~ Unwin about himself to Aegon III Targaryen and the entire royal court, comparing himself to his late predecessor Tyland Lannister. |
Lord Unwin Peake, also known as The player in the shadows, is a major character in the A Song of Ice and Fire novel series. He was the Lord of his family's three castles Starpike, Dunstonbury, and Whitegrove, and was also the head of House Peake during the Dance of the Dragons and during the regency of King Aegon III Targaryen.
During the Dance of the Dragons, he supported King Aegon II Targaryen and his supporters, the Greens, in their conflict against Rhaenyra Targaryen and the Blacks. From this war onward, Unwin became the wielder of Orphan-Maker, a Valyrian steel longsword of House Roxton. During Aegon III's regency, he became one of the Lord Regents following the death of Corlys Velaryon in 132 AC, taking his vacant seat. Unwin eventually rose as the Protector of the Realm and Hand of the King, following the death of the previous Hand, Ser Tyland Lannister, in 133 AC.
However, instead of using his power to improve the stability of the realm, Unwin, being an unscrupulous, opportunistic and untrustworthy person, would instead abuse it just for his and House Peake's benefits and interests, which made him disliked by the other regents and above all by King Aegon III, who resented his brusque and controlling personality. Following the return of the king's long-lost brother Prince Viserys, Lord Peake was furious over the terms of the ransom to pay to ensure the prince's return and he resigned as Hand of the King. He was then succeeded by Lord Thaddeus Rowan.
Unwin was thrice married and had three trueborn sons and four daughters, including Myrielle. His firstborn son died in infancy, while his eldest daughter died in childbirth at the age of twelve. Two of his daughters by his second wife died in infancy. His second son, fostered on the Arbor as a page and squire to Lord Redwyne, drowned aged twelve in a sailing mishap. By the time of the Dance, only his thirdborn son and heir Titus lived to reach manhood, and was knighted by Ser Jon Roxton after the Battle of the Honeywine, only to die six days later in a meaningless skirmish against broken men. By the time of his regency, his daughter Myrielle remained his sole living child, though it is unknown if he named her his heir.
Unwin was also the half-brother of Ser Mervyn Flowers, and a nephew of Ser Gedmund "Great-Axe" Peake and the dreaded and infamous Clarice Osgrey, who was said to have been aroused by torture. He was uncle of Ser Amaury Peake and cousin of Septon Bernard.
Personality[]
Unwin Peake is known for being proud, brusque, hard-headed and cunning. He was also ambitious, as he seeks to use his political power and influence to only strengthen and advance the interests and benefits of House Peake instead of using his power for the good of the realm. The reason he supported Aegon II Targaryen and the Greens during the Dance of the Dragons is due to his belief in the superiority of men and believe women to be inferior, as he thinks that they cannot rule over men.
Biography[]
Background[]
Unwin Peake's firstborn son died in infancy and his eldest daughter died in childbirth at the age of twelve. Two of his daughters by his second wife died in infancy. Unwin's second son had been fostered on the Arbor as a page and squire to Lord Redwyne, but at some point the boy drowned at the age of twelve in a sailing mishap. By the time of the Dance of the Dragons, Unwin's only surviving children were Titus and Myrielle Peake, with the former being his heir.
Dance of the Dragons[]
Unwin supported the greens during the Targaryen civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons. He marched forth with a thousand men and joined Lord Ormund Hightower's great host, which slowly marched towards King's Landing. After the Battle of the Honeywine, his son and heir Titus was knighted by Ser Jon Roxton for his valor. However, Ser Titus Peake died only six days later in a meaningless skirmish with a band of broken men he stumbled upon whilst scouting, leaving Unwin without male trueborn children. It is unknown which Peake family member became House Peake's heir afterward.
After the First Battle of Tumbleton, Unwin was one of the men who attempted to claim leadership over the host following Ormund's death, and he quarreled with the other would-be successors. At a war council, he stabbed Lord Owain Bourney through the eye with his dagger, declaring him a turncloak. Unwin wanted to wait at the sacked town in hopes of reinforcement from Lord Borros Baratheon. Upon learning of the unrest in King's Landing, Unwin wished to march on the capital immediately, but Ser Hobert Hightower counseled caution, and Hugh Hammer and Ulf White refused to join any attack. When the host learned of the death of Prince Aemond Targaryen, Unwin advocated for declaring Prince Daeron Targaryen to be the new Prince of Dragonstone. Together with Ser Hobert, Unwin called together eleven other lords and landed knights, with whom they formed the Caltrops. At a secret war council, the Caltrops plotted to kill the Two Betrayers.
Lord Peake's tent was burned by Seasmoke during the Second Battle of Tumbleton. Unwin was one of the four Caltrops to survive the battle. He came into possession of the Valyrian steel longsword of the late Ser Jon Roxton, a fellow Green commander, who died in the battle. Unwin asked Ulf White about his intentions after the battle, to which Ulf replied that he would take the Iron Throne after the greens captured King's Landing. As planned by the Caltrops, Ulf died shortly later, after drinking poisoned wine with Hobert. Unwin offered one thousand golden dragons to any knight of noble birth who could claim Silverwing, Ulf's dragon, but none succeeded. Seeing that his army was disappearing through desertion, Unwin decided to abandon the campaign toward King's Landing and retreat from Tumbleton.
Regency of Aegon III Targaryen[]
When the original council of King Aegon III Targaryen's regents was formed in 131 AC, Unwin was not offered a place amongst them. According to Septon Eustace, Unwin was angered by his exclusion. Following the death of Lord Corlys Velaryon in 132 AC, the other regents offered the empty seat to Unwin, who accepted. After the death of Ser Tyland Lannister, Hand of the King, in 133 AC, Unwin was one of the three regents who remained in King's Landing, besides the ailing Lord Manfryd Mooton and Grand Maester Munkun. Unwin insisted that the other regents, who had departed the capital before Tyland's death, had given up their place on the council by doing so. Supported by Munkun, Unwin undid all of King Aegon III's appointments, as the king had not consulted his regents in making them. Unwin instead selected his own people for the vacant offices, and named himself as Hand and Lord Protector of the Realm. He drew the Valyrian steel sword Orphan-Maker and declared that unlike his disabled late predecessor, he could still wield a sword.
Many of the appointments Unwin made concerned his own family members, or close friends. He gave white cloaks of the Kingsguard to his nephew, Ser Amaury Peake, and his bastard half-brother, Ser Mervyn Flowers. Lord Peake named Ser Gareth Long, the former master-at-arms at Starpike, as the new master-at-arms to the Red Keep, and he appointed Ser Lucas Leygood as Commander of the City Watch. Unwin placed his widowed aunt, Clarice Osgrey, in charge of Queen Jaehaera Targaryen's household. Lord George Graceford and Ser Victor Risley, two Caltrops, were appointed to the offices of Lord Confessor and King's Justice, respectively. Septon Eustace was dismissed and replaced by Septon Bernard, who was descended from House Peake. In addition, Unwin surrounded himself with a personal guard made up of ten sellswords, who soon became known as the "Fingers". By 133 AC, he had taken possession of the Valyrian steel sword Orphan-Maker.
Unwin wished to demonstrate his strength and rectitude during his time as Hand. He had the crowded dungeons of the Red Keep emptied and all the offenders punished publicly on the Feast Day of Our Father Above in 133 AC. By mid-year, Unwin's hold on power was firm. Intent on demonstrating the power of the Iron Throne, Unwin sent his uncle, Ser Gedmund Peake, with the royal fleet to end the pirate kingdom of Racallio Ryndoon and establish a presence upon Bloodstone in the Stepstones, so as to restore trade during the Daughters' War. However, as the royal fleet was not large enough to accomplish this, Unwin sent forth a raven to Driftmark, commanding Lord Alyn Velaryon to join his forces to Gedmund's. However, while Gedmund delayed on Tarth, Alyn defied orders and sailed to the Stepstones with his own fleet, crushing the Braavosi fleet at Bloodstone. This left Unwin furious, as Racallio's forces were unharmed, while the attack on the Braavosi forces could easily lead to a war with Braavos itself. Although he publicly rewarded Alyn for his actions, Unwin instructed King Aegon III to send forth Velaryon to the westerlands to deal with Dalton Greyjoy, the Red Kraken, Lord of the Iron Islands, hoping that Alyn would either suffer severe losses on the perilous journey, or would free the westerlands from the ironborn. Meanwhile, he sent Lord Mooton to Braavos to negotiate a truce and prevent war.
In 133 AC, Queen Jaehaera Targaryen died by impalement, apparently having committed suicide. It was rumored, however, that she had been murdered. Archmaester Gyldayn considers Unwin as the only possible candidate for having ordered Jaehaera's death, if indeed she had been murdered, and suggests Ser Mervyn Flowers, the white cloak guarding Jaehaera's door the night of her death, or one of the Fingers as the possible killers. According to Gyldayn, Unwin's motive would have been the succession of the Iron Throne, as Aegon III was not like to father an heir on the queen, leaving only the potential son of Aegon III's half-sister Baela Targaryen, who was expecting with her husband, Alyn Velaryon.
Seven days after Jaehaera's death, Unwin declared that Aegon would wed Myrielle Peake, Unwin's daughter. Many lords disapproved of the match and voiced their criticism. Lord Cregan Stark suggested the north would look on the match with disfavor, Lord Kermit Tully called it presumptuous, Lord Benjicot Blackwood questioned the haste of the match, and Grand Maester Munkun's support began to waver, acknowledging that the match would be seen as advancing Peake interests rather than being for the good of the realm. Several highborn ladies wrote to the crown, proposing their own relatives as Aegon's bride (or themselves, in some cases). Due to pressure from the lords and ladies of the realm, Unwin instead announced what became known as the Maiden's Day Ball in King's Landing, where the king would be able to choose his own bride.
Lord Peake restricted the ball to maidens of nobility under the age of thirty to limit the attendance, but more than one thousand young women from throughout Westeros and even Essos came to King's Landing in hopes of marrying the king. Many women were injured or scandalized before the ball, and lords spoke of the "Maiden's Day curse". The unfortunate victims included:
- Lady Cassandra Baratheon, who was widely rumored to have had a part in Queen Jaehaera's death, resenting the fact she could not become Queen Consort of the late King Aegon II Targaryen. It was no secret that she disliked Jaehaera for this reason, and hated being one of her lady companions.
- Ysabel Staunton, who was said to be a sot fond of wine.
- Elinor Massey, who was rumored to have been deflowered.
- Rosamund Darry, who was said to have had six nipples, for her mother had supposedly lain with a dog.
- Lyra Hayford, who was accused of having smothered her infant brother in a fit of jealousy.
- The "three Jeynes"—Jeyne Smallwood, Jeyne Mooton, and Jeyne Merryweather—who were said to dress in squire's garb and visit brothels, fondling women as if they were boys.
- Tyshara Lannister, who was found abed with a groom. Although she claimed the man had climbed through her window uninvited, Grand Maester Munkun confirmed her maidenhead to be broken.
- Lucinda Penrose, who was set upon by outlaws whilst hawking, and her nose was slit, disfiguring her.
- Falena Stokeworth, who took a tumble down the stairs and broke her leg.
- Lady Buckler and her daughters, who drowned while on their way to King's Landing when their boat sank in Blackwater Bay.
- Several Volantene maidens, all daughters of ancient houses of the Old Blood of Valyria, who were carried off by corsairs from the Basilisk Isles while on their way to King's Landing.
It is widely believed that any of these events were likely engineered by Lord Peake, who hoped to have his daughter be queen.
Unwin had Myrielle arrive at court a fortnight before the ball, making sure she spent as much time as possible with the king. Aegon and Myrielle dined together half a dozen times and it seemed like the king was fonder of Myrielle than he ever was of Jaehaera. When the day of the ball finally arrived, each maid was presented before the king. King Aegon quickly grew bored and his growing disinterest as hours passed only benefited Lord Peake further. When only a few maidens remained, Lady Baela Targaryen and Lady Rhaena Targaryen suddenly arrived with their kinswoman, Daenaera Velaryon. Afterwards, the king summoned his cupbearer, Gaemon Palehair, who announced that the king would marry Lady Daenaera. His plans foiled by the twins, Lord Peake developed a special hatred for Baela and Rhaena. According to Mushroom, Unwin was paranoid and convinced that the pregnant Baela was plotting to kill the king if she had a boy and said as much to Ser Marston Waters once.
When Lord Unwin threatened to resign his position in 134 AC, his threat was accepted by his co-regents. Although he left King's Landing, all of Unwin's appointments kept their posts after his departure.
Later Life[]
During the Lysene Spring in 135 AC, a conspiracy against House Rogare occured at court in King's Landing. It was claimed that the Rogares were plotting to assassinate King Aegon III Targaryen in order for his brother, Prince Viserys Targaryen, to ascend the Iron Throne, making his wife Larra Rogare the Queen Consort of the Seven Kingdoms and her children the heirs. This eventually led to eighteen days of the Secret Siege within the Red Keep. Ultimately, the real conspiracy against House Rogare was unraveled and the conspirators were arrested. The ploy's objectives included framing Lady Larra for the previous attempted murder of Queen Daenaera via a Lysene poison. Many in Westeros suspected Lord Unwin Peake was the mastermind who ordered all this ploy, as all the conspirators found guilty were men and women he had named to positions of power when he was Hand of the King. Unwin's guilt was never conclusively proven, yet few doubt Unwin was involved in this ploy even to this day. The only person found involved in the conspiracy that was spared from any harsh punishments was Lady Cassandra Baratheon, due to her high birth.
After most of the conspirators turned out to be members, relatives and friends of House Peake, Ser Gedmund Peake was named Lord Admiral and Master of Ships by the Crown to appease Unwin and his supporters.
Unwin's further life and role in politics afterwards are unknown. He is remembered in history as the "player in the shadows." It is also unknown if the sword Orphan-Maker was ever returned to House Roxton, if it's still owned by House Peake, or if it ended up somewhere else.
Known friends and supporters of Unwin Peake[]
Lord Peake filled the royal capital of King's Landing and the court with numerous friends, allies and household members of his. This included allies in the King's council of regents and the small council, the Faith of the Seven, House Targaryen's own household, the Kingsguard, and the City Watch. The prominent known ones are:
- Septon Bernard, the court septon of the Red Keep
- Ser Mervyn Flowers of the Kingsguard
- Lord George Graceford, the Lord Confessor, and former Green and Caltrop
- Ser Lucas Leygood, Commander of the Gold Cloaks
- Ser Gareth Long, Master-at-arms at the Red Keep and previously master-at-arms at Starpike
- Clarice Osgrey, Mistress of the Queen's household
- Ser Amaury Peake of the Kingsguard
- Ser Gedmund Peake, Master of Ships, Lord Admiral, and commander of the royal fleet
- Ser Victor Risley, King's Justice, and former Green and Caltrop
- Tessario the Tiger, captain of the Fingers
- Ser Marston Waters, Lord Commander of the Kingsguard and former Green
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Despite all his allegations of having hurt and murdered various noble and royal figures, and all his schemes and abuses of power, Unwin managed to walk out of court and quit the game of thrones without suffering any punishment. This also goes against Cersei Lannister's belief that when one plays the game of thrones they can only either "win or die", without any middle ground, yet Unwin quit his game and stayed alive. As no further history of Lord Unwin's life is known so far, it is assumed he died of natural causes.
- Readers speculate he was also responsible for the attempted murder of Queen Daenaera Velaryon and the murder of Gaemon Palehair, as both kids were poisoned with the Tears of Lys, with only Daenaera being timely saved. Gaemon was possibly an unfortunate accidental victim, as he was of no political value. However, there is no evidence that Unwin was involved in this and many other people had reasons to want the queen dead. In-universe, this is the only conspiracy that the historians don't pin on Unwin.
- However, even in-universe Daenaera's poisoning is considered to be related to the conspiracy against the Rogares, especially after the confessions of Cassandra Baratheon, Lucinda Penrose, and Priscella Hogg and their terror at hearing any accusations toward their mistress Clarice Osgrey, Unwin's aunt.
- If Unwin is truly responsible for murdering Queen Jaehaera Targaryen, then this makes him responsible for ending King Aegon II Targaryen's line. Even more if he caused the death of Gaemon Palehair, who was rumored to have been Aegon II's bastard son. The other children of Aegon II were all unidentified bastards who got lost through history.
- Because of this, some readers jokingly called Unwin a secret Black supporter.
- Unwin's family, House Peake, is a reference by George R. R. Martin to the books of the late English writer, artist, poet, and illustrator Mervyn Peake, which are among his reading recommendations. Two members of House Peake are named Titus, being Unwin's thirdborn son, Ser Titus, and the current head of the family, Lord Titus Peake, who's married to a Lannister. Both characters are named after Titus Groan, the main protagonist of the Gormenghast novel series. Unwin's half-brother, Mervyn Flowers, is named after Mervyn Peake. Unwin's aunt, Clarice Osgrey, is a reference to Clarice Groan, aunt of Titus Groan. House Peake's seat, Starpike, is a reference to Steerpike, the main antagonist of the series.
