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	{{Infobox character		{{Infobox character
			\| image = https://archmaester.site/portraits/got/gilly.jpg
	\| name = Gilly		\| name = Gilly
	\| title = Wildling woman; daughter and wife of Craster		\| title = Wildling woman; daughter and wife of Craster

Archmaesterjimmie: Red-link character article, book-canon (Corvus)

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Red-link character article, book-canon (Corvus)

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{{Infobox character
| name = Gilly
| title = Wildling woman; daughter and wife of Craster
| house = None (free folk)
| race/culture = Free folk (wildling)
| status = Alive (in the novels)
| region = Beyond the Wall; the [[Wall]]; later [[Oldtown]]
| born = 282 AC (approx.)
| died = —
| fate = Rescued from Craster's Keep by [[Samwell Tarly]]; cares for an infant swapped to protect [[Mance Rayder]]'s newborn son
| quote = I named him Aemon, for the old man, but I'm so afeared.
}}

'''Gilly''' is a young wildling woman, one of the many daughter-wives of the cruel wildling Craster, who lived beyond the [[Wall]]. Gentle, frightened, but quietly brave, Gilly becomes bound to [[Samwell Tarly]] of the [[Night's Watch]], who helps her flee her father's keep, and the two form one of the saga's tenderest relationships amid the horrors of the north.

== Background ==
Gilly was born at Craster's Keep, the squalid homestead of the wildling Craster, who took his own daughters as wives and fathered children upon them. Craster gave his daughters as brides to no man and, it was whispered, sacrificed his newborn sons to the cold gods of the wood, the [[Others]]. Gilly grew up in fear within this grim household.

== Meeting Samwell Tarly ==
When the Great Ranging of the [[Night's Watch]] under Lord Commander [[Jeor Mormont]] sheltered at Craster's Keep, the heavily pregnant Gilly begged [[Samwell Tarly]] to take her away before her child could be born, terrified that if it were a boy Craster would give it to the cold gods. Sam, timid and self-doubting, was moved by her plight, though he could promise nothing at the time.

== Flight from Craster's Keep ==
After the disaster of the ranging and the mutiny in which Craster and Lord Commander [[Jeor Mormont]] were killed, Sam fled the keep with Gilly and her newborn son through the snow. On the harrowing journey south to the [[Wall]], Sam slew a wight and, later, an [[Others|Other]] with a blade of dragonglass, becoming "Sam the Slayer," and the two grew close, with Sam coming to love her.

== Oldtown ==
At the [[Wall]], Gilly's circumstances took another wrenching turn. To protect the infant son of [[Mance Rayder]] and the wildling Dalla from [[Melisandre]]'s fires, [[Jon Snow]] arranged a secret swap: Gilly was sent away by ship to safety, ordered to take Mance's child as her own while leaving her own baby behind at [[Castle Black]] under another name. Heartbroken at the deception, Gilly nonetheless obeyed. She traveled with [[Samwell Tarly]] toward [[Oldtown]], where Sam was to train as a maester, by way of the home of his harsh father, Lord Randyll Tarly, and the two finally became lovers along the journey.

== Character ==
Gilly embodies innocence and maternal courage in a brutal world. Unschooled and timid, she nonetheless shows steady bravery in defense of her child and an unwavering loyalty to Sam. Her bond with [[Samwell Tarly]] gives both characters strength, drawing out his hidden courage and offering her the first kindness she has ever known.

== In the television series ==
In HBO's ''Game of Thrones'', Gilly is portrayed by Hannah Murray. Her rescue by Sam, their growing love, and their journey toward Oldtown follow the novels, though the show simplifies the swapped-baby storyline.

== Appearances ==
* ''[[A Storm of Swords]]''
* ''[[A Feast for Crows]]''
* ''[[A Dance with Dragons]]''

[[Category:Characters]]
[[Category:Game of Thrones]]
[[Category:Free folk]]

Gilly - Revision history

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