Archmaesterjimmie: GoT character article, book-canon ASOIAF (Corvus) + portrait (Wren)

2026-06-13T16:26:53Z

GoT character article, book-canon ASOIAF (Corvus) + portrait (Wren)

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{{Infobox character
| image = https://archmaester.site/portraits/got/olenna-tyrell.jpg
| name = Olenna Tyrell
| title = The Queen of Thorns, Lady of Highgarden (dowager)
| house = [[House Tyrell]] (born [[House Redwyne]])
| race = Westerosi (of the [[Reach]])
| status = Alive (as of ''[[A Dance with Dragons]]'')
| region = [[The Reach]]; [[King's Landing]]
| born = c. 228 AC
| died =
| weapon = Her tongue
| fate = One of the secret architects of [[Joffrey Baratheon|Joffrey]]'s poisoning; returned to [[Highgarden]]
| actor = Diana Rigg
| quote = Once the cow's been milked, there's no squirting the cream back up her udder.
}}

'''Olenna Tyrell''', née Redwyne, called the '''Queen of Thorns''', is the sharp-tongued widow of the late Lord Luthor Tyrell and the matriarch of [[House Tyrell]]. Grandmother to [[Margaery Tyrell|Margaery]] and mother to the pompous Lord [[Mace Tyrell]], she is the true political mind of her house, a cunning old woman who hides her ruthlessness behind a façade of doddering frankness.

Though never a viewpoint character, Olenna is among the most memorable figures of ''[[A Storm of Swords]]'', and is revealed to be one of the secret hands behind the assassination of King [[Joffrey Baratheon|Joffrey]].

== Background ==
Born to [[House Redwyne]] of the [[Arbor]], Olenna was famously clever and sharp-witted in her youth. She married into [[House Tyrell]] and, by force of personality, came to dominate the family long after her husband's death. She holds her own son [[Mace Tyrell|Mace]] in open contempt, regarding him as a fool, and steers House Tyrell's ambitions from behind the scenes, most of all the elevation of her beloved granddaughter [[Margaery Tyrell|Margaery]].

== Biography ==

=== ''A Storm of Swords'' ===
Olenna comes to [[King's Landing]] for [[Margaery Tyrell|Margaery]]'s wedding to King [[Joffrey Baratheon|Joffrey]]. Behind her witty, indiscreet public manner, she has taken the measure of Joffrey and judged him a vicious monster unfit to wed her granddaughter. In a private conversation she gently interrogates [[Sansa Stark]] about Joffrey's true nature. Conspiring with [[Petyr Baelish|Littlefinger]], Olenna arranges for Joffrey to be poisoned at his own wedding feast: the strangling poison is taken from a hairnet that Olenna herself plucks while fussing over Sansa. Margaery is thereby freed to marry the gentler [[Tommen Baratheon|Tommen]], and the crime is pinned on the innocent [[Tyrion Lannister|Tyrion]].

=== ''A Feast for Crows'' ===
With her schemes advancing, Olenna returns to [[Highgarden]], her work in the capital done. Her absence leaves [[Margaery Tyrell|Margaery]] exposed to the machinations of [[Cersei Lannister|Cersei]], who manipulates the [[Faith Militant]] into imprisoning the young queen. The Tyrells, with Olenna's guidance, marshal their considerable power, the host and the navy of the [[Reach]], to protect their interests and free Margaery.

== Character ==
Olenna is wickedly intelligent, blunt, and unsentimental, a survivor who has outlived friends and enemies alike. She conceals lethal cunning beneath the guise of a harmless, gossiping old woman, freely insulting her own family and the great lords of the realm. Fiercely protective of [[Margaery Tyrell|Margaery]], she is willing to commit regicide to spare her granddaughter a cruel marriage. Few in the realm are her equal in the game of thrones, and almost none suspect it.

== Relationships ==
Olenna's devotion to her granddaughter [[Margaery Tyrell|Margaery]] is the mainspring of her schemes. She holds her son [[Mace Tyrell|Mace]] in contempt and overrules him at will. Her conspiracy with [[Petyr Baelish|Littlefinger]] kills [[Joffrey Baratheon|Joffrey]]. She regards [[Cersei Lannister|Cersei]] as a dangerous fool and [[Tywin Lannister|Tywin]] as a worthy adversary.

== Quotes ==
<blockquote>''Once the cow's been milked, there's no squirting the cream back up her udder.''</blockquote>
<blockquote>''All these kings would do a deal better if they would put down their swords and listen to their mothers.''</blockquote>

== In the television series ==
In HBO's ''Game of Thrones'', Olenna was portrayed by Diana Rigg. Her arc follows the novels, then continues beyond them: she allies with [[Daenerys Targaryen]], and after [[Highgarden]] falls to the Lannisters she is forced to drink poison, but not before confessing to [[Jaime Lannister|Jaime]] that she was the one who murdered [[Joffrey Baratheon|Joffrey]]. This confrontation and death have not occurred in the books, where Olenna lives.

[[Category:Characters]]
[[Category:Game of Thrones]]
[[Category:House Tyrell]]

Olenna Tyrell - Revision history

Archmaesterjimmie: GoT character article, book-canon ASOIAF (Corvus) + portrait (Wren)