Summary
While HBO’sGame of Thronesdeviated from the source material on several occasions, one of its biggest criticisms was that it ruined the character arc of Tyrion Lannister by omitting a crucial part of his backstory. Although it is established that he drowns his inadequacies in wine and trysts, it is not entirely revealed how his former wife, Tysha, contributed to his sorrows.
In the novels ofGame of Thrones, Tyrion bitterly refers to her as “Lady Tysha of House Silverfist”, the sigil of which has “one gold coin and a hundred silver, upon a bloody sheet” — thus, alluding to the painful end of his marriage to her.
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The Backstory of Tyrion’s First Wife
InGame of Thrones, Tyrion first mentions his former wife tothe sellsword Ser Bronnand the prostitute Shae. He shares that he was sixteen years old when he first met Tysha, an orphaned wheelwright’s daughter. He and his brother Jaime were riding when they found her being accosted by two men. While Jaime chased the attackers, Tyrion took Tysha to the nearest inn to take care of her. They eventually spent the night together, and he asked her to marry him the very next morning:
I forgot how afraid I was around girls, how I was always waiting for them to laugh at me, or look away embarrassed, or ask me about my tall, handsome brother. I forgot everything but Tysha.
After they found a drunk septon to marry them, they spent the next two weeks blissfully happy together. However, when the septon sobered up, he informed Lord Tywin about the marriage. Furious that a commoner dared to marrysomeone from House Lannister(even if it was Tyrion), Tywin ordered Jaime to lie to his brother that Tysha was actually a prostitute, hired by him “to make a man” of Tyrion. Afterwards, Tywin forced Tyrion to watch a garrison of his soldiers sexually assault Tysha. He even paid her with silver for each man: “By the end, she had so much silver that the coins were slipping from her fingers and rolling onto the floor.”
This version slightly differs from what is narrated in the novels: Tyrion tells Bronn and Shae about his first wife on separate occasions; he was only thirteen when he met her; and Tysha was the daughter of a crofter instead. The biggest change though is that Tywin also made Tyrion violate her after his men: “He gave me a gold coin to pay her, becauseI was a Lannister and worth more.”
Does Tyrion Kill Tywin Because of Tysha?
The truth about Tysha is never revealed on the show — which is especially surprising because, according to the books, it is what primarily motivates Tyrion to kill his own father. When Tyrion is imprisoned after being falsely accused of murdering Joffrey,Jaime helps him escapebefore having a rather heartfelt moment with him. Instead of immediately fleeing withVarys, the Master of Whisperers, Tyrion heads to Tywin’s chambers — only to find Shae in his bed. She lunges at him with a knife, but Tyrion manages to strangle her in the ensuing struggle. Distraught, he takes Jeffrey’s crossbow and confronts Tywin in the privy. At first, Tywin tries to mollify him, but when he dismisses his love for Shae and calls her a “whore” one too many times, Tyrion kills him with two bolts to the chest.
InA Storm of Swords, Tyrion takes revenge for Tysha rather for his own sake. After releasing Tyrion from his cell, Jaime finally confesses that he lied about Tysha as Tywin thought Tyrion needed “a sharp lesson” for marrying “a lowborn”. He assumed that Tywin only wanted to annul their marriage, and was unaware of his actual plans. An enraged Tyrion proceeds to strike Jaime, and he even discloses how Cersei has been unfaithful to him. Tyrion also lies thathe did poison Joffreyto trigger him further, before setting out to find Tywin.
While Tyrion also kills Shae in the books, it is out of pure rage instead of self-defense, as she pleads for mercy. When he corners Tywin in the privy, he demands to know about Tysha, but his father does not even recognize her name at first (or, at least, pretends not to). He finally recalls, “Ah yes. Your first whore […] She’d learned her place.” Inan interview with EW, George R.R. Martin explained that, even though Tysha was not actually a prostitute, Tywin still perceives her to be one:
Tywin is convinced that since he doesn’t love Tyrion, then no one can possibly love Tyrion. So it’s obviously some lower-class girl who’s just trying to get the dwarf into bed because he was a Lannister, so she could become a lady […] basically the equivalent of being a whore.
When asked again where Tysha had gone, Tywin insults her once more (“Wherever whores go”) — prompting Tyrion to impale him with one crossbow bolt. As Bronn also says to Tyrion earlier about the incident, “I would have killed the man who did that to me.”
InA Dance with Dragons,while traveling in Essos, Tyrion asks several people without context, “Where do whores go?” Haunted by Tywin’s words, he clings to any hope that he would be reunited with her one day.
Is Tysha the Sailor’s Wife?
Although the fate of Tysha is unknown, there is a popular fan theory that she could be the courtesan known as the Sailor’s Wife. She is introduced inA Feast for Crows, when Arya Stark is staying inthe city of Braavos. Since she does not disclose her real name, she is called the Sailor’s Wife as she requires that every man must marry her before taking her to bed – supposedly a tribute to her first husband, who got “lost at sea”. She prays for his return at the Isle of the Gods: “She thinks that if she finds the right god, maybe he will send the winds and blow her old love back to her.”
There is speculation that she is probably trying to hide Tyrion’s identity by stating that he was lost at sea. Assuming that she used the money she was given on that dreadful day to escape Westeros, it is possible that the theory could be true — especially considering how she maintains that men should marry her for her services (most likely a dark nod to her marriage to Tyrion). This would also mean that she wishes that Tyrion would find his way back to her as she is still in love with him.
The biggest piece of evidence to support this theory is that the Sailor’s Wife has a fourteen-year-old daughter called Lanna (probably derived from the family name of Lannister). Not only does she have fine, golden hair (a defining Lannister trait), but she is also the same age as her mother was when she gave birth to her — which places the Sailor’s Wife in the same age bracket as Tysha when she married Tyrion.
Of course, there are also a few counterarguments, including the fact that Yna,who practices blood magic, believes that her first husband is actually dead.
Game of Thrones
Game of Thrones, based on the Song of Ice and Fire book series by George R.R. Martin, tells the sprawling story of warring families in Westeros. This includes the Starks, the Lannisters, the Baratheons, and the Targaryens. Along with human conflicts, Westeros is also threatened by the re-emergence of dragons, and an undead enemy from beyond the Wall.
