The Eyrie is a castle in the Vale of Arryn, and the seat of House Arryn. Located in the Mountains of the Moon, at the peak of the Giant's Lance, the Eyrie looks out over the vale proper, and over the Gates of the Moon. Though small, the Eyrie is considered impregnable to attack. During the winter years, the Arryns descend the mountain and take up their seat in the Gates of the Moon.
History[]
It is said that Artys I Arryn, the first King of Mountain and Vale, constructed the Gates of the Moon after defeating the First Men in the Vale, thousands of years ago. His grandson, Roland I Arryn, saw the Gates as inferior to other great seats of Westeros, and so began construction of the Eyrie.
The construction took generations, and the marble used was imported all the way from Tarth. Eventually, the castle was completed, and henceforth it would serve as the seat of House Arryn, only being vacated during the winter months in favor of the Gates of the Moon at the base of the mountain.
The Arryns ruled from the Eyrie for thousands of years, untouched in their perch by any and all who would seek to cause them harm. During the War of Conquest however, while the armies of the Vale blocked the mountain paths, Visenya Targaryen rode Vhagar directly into the inner courtyard of the Eyrie. The boy king Ronnel knelt to the dragons, and was allowed to keep his seat as Lord of the Eyrie.
When King Aerys II called for the heads of Eddard Stark and Robert Baratheon, their guardian Jon Arryn refused the King's demand, beginning the war that would eventually become the War of the Usurper. After the defeat of the Targaryens, Jon Arryn became Hand of the King to Robert Baratheon, serving in the position for 14 years, before his eventual murder at the hands of the Lannisters.
When the War of the Five Kings broke out, the Arryns remained neutral, the young Lord Robert keeping locked away within the Eyrie. After the young lord's suspicious death, Harrold Hardyng ascended to the Lordship of the Eyrie as Harrold Arryn, and remained similarly absent from the war. However, after Aegon's defeat of his aunt Daenerys, Lord Harrold fell in line and bent the knee to his new king.
Recent Events[]
With winter ending, the Arryns returned to the Eyrie from the Gates of the Moon. Lord Osric, his wife and his heir returned to the Eyrie, while his remaining three children stayed a while longer with their uncle at the Gates.