Top 20 Shocking Game of Thrones Betrayals

Various While staying in Qarth and looking for aid, Daenerys Targaryan is distraught when her dragons are kidnapped (dragonapped?) from the house of her patron, Xaro Xhoan Daxos. In addition, one of her attendants is dead, and the other, Doreah, is missing. Soon afterwards, Xaro is revealed to have aided the warlocks in abducting the dragons. Once Dany retrieves her scaly, fire-breathing children, she and her followers find Xaro and Doreah in bed together. While Xaro is an ambitious merchant, Doreah’s betrayal probably stung more, since she’d been with Daenerys from the show’s beginning. Still, they both get what they deserve and then some!

#19: A Bannerman Betrayal

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Top 10 Game of Thrones Betrayals

“Oathbreaker” The Starks have some of the most loyal and enthusiastic bannermen in the Seven Kingdoms. But war and betrayal can make even the most faithful followers turn their coats. After Ramsay Bolton takes power in the North, more on that later, he’s approached by Smalljon Umber, the new head of House Umber. Concerned by Wildlings coming across the Wall into his land, Umber looks to pledge to the Boltons, despite their notorious loyalty to House Stark. To prove his sincerity, he gives the new Warden of the North a gift – Rickon Stark, the youngest Stark sibling. Not only is it disheartening to see a formerly stalwart ally turn on the Starks, but it’s also disappointing that Rickon’s reappearance after years away is as a captive.

“The Last of the Starks” & “The Bells” Despite how sneaky and underhanded he can seem, Varys actually has altruistic intentions. Everything the Master of Whisperers does is for the realm. So, when Daenerys starts showing some more of her father’s worst traits, Varys gets worried. Learning about Jon Snow’s true parentage from Tyrion only confirms his decision to betray her, given that Jon’s a better option, theoretically. To that end, Varys decides to contact various lords of the realm revealing Jon’s identity. Unfortunately, the list of people who know the secret is so small that the truth comes out quickly and Varys ends up roasted for it.

Various From the time he’s introduced, Jaime is widely seen as a dishonorable man. Not only is he involved with his own sister, but the Kingsguard killed his own king, the man he was sworn to protect. However, sometimes, betrayals are warranted. Through an emotional speech to Brienne, Jaime reveals that the Mad King was intending to burn his own citizens with wildfire rather than turn King’s Landing over to the rebellion. To save innocent lives, Jaime sullied his own honor and his reputation. While it’s never shown in detail on screen, this betrayal is crucial for the events of the show to take place, as well as for Jaime’s character.

“Valar Morghulis” Theon’s brief stint as conqueror of Winterfell doesn’t go well. Rather than abandon his prize, he holds on until it’s too late to escape. Outnumbered and besieged by Bolton soldiers, Theon and his men are kept awake by horns, leaving them all desperate. Nevertheless, Theon is ready with an inspiring speech to motivate his men. He really seems to get them going…right up until Dagmer, his right-hand man, knocks him out, after which they turn him over to the Boltons. This betrayal puts Theon on an incredibly painful path for the rest of the series. The only consolation is that his men didn’t get off lightly either.

#15: Arya Breaks the Faceless Men Rules

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Various After sailing to Braavos, Arya begins training with the Faceless Men, an order of assassins with the ability to change their appearances. However, while they strive to become “no one,” Arya Stark is very much herself. Her first time breaking the rules sees her kill one of the targets on her personal kill list, Meryn Trant. For this offense, her eyesight is taken away. After extensive training, Arya earns back her sight. But her next target is an actress in a play about recent events in Westeros. Arya warns her target after poisoning her drink. This puts her in the doghouse again with the Faceless Men. Luckily, she still has her Needle.

#14: Ramsay Commits Patricide

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“Home” Ramsay Bolton is a bastard, in every conceivable way. Still, his father Roose legitimizes him. But when Theon and Sansa escape his torments, Roose isn’t very happy with his firstborn. Ramsay’s ill-advised desire to kill Jon Snow also draws his ire. With the news that Roose has had a legitimate son, Ramsay is clearly threatened, as he’s still a bastard, even if he’s been legitimized. After hugging his father, Ramsay stabs him in front of several witnesses, securing his place as the new Lord Bolton.

“Blood of My Blood” The High Sparrow stirs up plenty of plots in King’s Landing. While the preacher turned influential member of the Faith’s betrayal of Cersei, the woman who helped his rise, was also tempting to discuss, we elected for another moment involving the nameless religious leader. To save Queen Margaery from a walk of shame, Jaime and House Tyrell go so far as to lead armed soldiers to reclaim the monarch. However, they’re greeted with an unexpected sight – King Tommen, Margaery’s husband, has made his own deal with the High Sparrow. He has saved his wife, but at the cost of the Sparrow having even more influence than before. Tommen may be a king, but in the game of thrones, he’s just a pawn.

Various Petyr Baelish, better known as Littlefinger, is a backstabber among backstabbers in Westeros. His first betrayal we’ll be discussing is that of Sansa, his niece by law. Littlefinger tricks her into going North, where the Boltons have control of Winterfell. Through his silver-tongued lies and persuasion, he manages to stop her from running the other way. This is a mistake on her part, as her arranged marriage to Ramsay Bolton is one of constant torment. After finally escaping it, Sansa takes her former patron to task for his actions. If he knew Ramsay was a monster, then he made an enemy of Sansa, and if he didn’t he’s a stupid. And Littlefinger is no fool.

#11: Jon Leaves Ygritte for the Night’s Watch

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“The Rains of Castamere” & “Mhysa” Jon Snow is among the most honorable characters in Westeros, and duty and honor are as important to him as his father figure, Ned Stark. After infiltrating the Wildling army, he falls for Ygritte. However, when he finds himself unable to kill an innocent, he is exposed as still having loyalty to the Night’s Watch. Following his escape from the other Wildlings, during which he kills one of them, Jon is confronted by Ygritte at arrowpoint. Although he makes a good point that she knew he was still loyal to his brothers, it’s clear that Ygritte is still hurt that he would choose the “crows” over her.

Various Jorah Mormont is one of Daenerys’s staunchest allies. But he didn’t start out that way. The disgraced knight began his time with her as a spy for Varys, reporting information about her back to King’s Landing. He even aided an assassination attempt against her. However, Jorah has a change of heart, coming to love and believe in Daenerys. Unfortunately for him, the truth comes out. An incriminating letter is sent for the purpose of making Dany distrust him. And it works – Daenerys exiles him. Jorah’s actions hurt himself, as well as Dany – a lesson for anyone set on betrayal.

Various While he was raised by the Starks, Theon Greyjoy always felt torn, since he was a ward and a hostage. When he returns to his family to secure aid for Robb Stark in his war with the Lannisters, they receive him coldly, and plan to raid the North while Robb is away. Although he plans to warn Robb, Theon ultimately decides to join his family, capturing an undefended Winterfell and killing some of the men he knew growing up, like Ser Rodrik. Robb Stark is especially hurt by his actions, since they were like brothers growing up. It’s no consolation, but Ser Rodrik is right - Theon damns himself with this betrayal.

#8: A Push Too Far

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“Mockingbird” Littlefinger is a snake made of lies, but even he has some emotions…beyond ambition. His long-held feelings for Catelyn Stark are transferred to Sansa after her mother’s death. Except, Lord Baelish’s wife, Cat’s sister, observes them when he gives Sansa an unwanted kiss. Later, Lysa, who’s a little unstable on the best of days, becomes increasingly erratic and murderous during a confrontation with her niece, almost ready to throw Sansa out the Moon Door of her mountain castle. Littlefinger steps in and talks her down – before pushing Lysa out himself. And just to twist the knife, he tells her he always loved her sister instead of her. Oof!

“The Children” Tyrion’s harsh attempts to protect his prostitute lover Shae backfire spectacularly. First, Shae returns to testify against him during his trial. While her airing the details of their affair in public is awful, her betrayal is made even more terrible when Tyrion discovers her in his father Tywin’s bed. And she uses the same pet name for him as she did for Tyrion! Oooo, that’s low. After being so betrayed by the woman he loves, Tyrion strangles her after she goes for a knife. A Lannister always pays their debts, and Tyrion pays Shae back what she was owed.

#6: The Purple Wedding

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Various Weddings in “Game of Thrones” rarely end well. The first we’ll be discussing involves the death of King Joffrey. The vicious boy king dies after drinking poisoned wine at his wedding feast to Margaery Tyrell. However, the culprits behind the death are soon revealed to the audience as, not Tyrion, but actually Littlefinger (of course) and Margaery’s grandmother, Olenna, both of whom are nominally the Lannisters’ allies. Littlefinger loves a scheme, and provides the means, and Olenna wants a more pliable and less awful husband for Margaery. The Queen of Thorns proves as poisonous with her deeds as with her words.

#5: Jon Kills His Queen

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“The Iron Throne” Jon Snow can’t catch a break when it comes to the women he loves. The same is true for Daenerys Targaryen when they become involved. Unfortunately for him and the realm, Dany proves to have some of the madness of her family and proves just as tyrannical as her father by burning most of King’s Landing. Several people warn him that she needs to be stopped, but, loyal man that Jon is, he seems to be committed to following her. When he confronts Dany in front of the Iron Throne, she shows little remorse. Que the passionate kiss and passionate stabbing. It’s a moment that proved controversial among fans, which likely made the betrayal sting that much more.

“The Dance of Dragons” Killing your own family is seen as the greatest crime in Westeros. And for our money, this is one of the most heinous deaths in the whole series. Stannis Baratheon’s attempts to defeat the Boltons in the North are mired by bad weather and sabotage. To help push through, his Red Priestess advisor Melisandre suggests a sacrifice – Stannis’ daughter, Shireen. While Stannis naturally balks at first, he eventually relents. Watching Shireen beg and plead for her parents to stop as she is burned at the stake is hard to watch and listen to. Shireen brought out the best in Stannis, and killing her not only ended his honor, but also his chance of victory.

“You Win or You Die” There’s plenty of blame to go around when it comes to who’s responsible for Ned Stark’s death. Joffrey going back on his word and executing him? Certainly. But Eddard never would have been in that position if not for Petyr Baelish. To wrest power from the illegitimate Joffrey, Ned conspires with Littlefinger to buy off the city guard. However, when the time comes, the Gold Cloaks turn on Ned’s men and Baelish himself holds a knife to Ned’s throat. While Ned may be entirely too trusting for his own good, this is arguably Littlefinger’s worst and most impactful deception. It leads to Ned’s death, which launches a war that engulfs Westeros for years.

#2: “For the Watch”

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“Mother’s Mercy” The Night’s Watch has unfortunately seen multiple mutinies. While Lord Commander Mormont being killed by his own men is tragic too, this moment far surpasses in terms of shock and horror. Jon Snow proves an effective leader of the Night’s Watch, but his decision to bring Wildlings across the Wall is controversial to say the least. Still, it’s the furthest thing from his and our mind when Olly tells him his uncle Benjen has returned after his long absence. Jon rushes to meet him – only to find himself led to a sign with the word traitor on it. Several Night’s Watch members proceed to stab him one after the other, including young Olly. It’s among the show’s most gut-wrenching treacheries, but it’s still easily overshadowed by a certain crimson celebration.

#1: The Red Wedding

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“The Rains of Castamere” If you’re surprised, you may still be a sweet summer child. The wedding between Edmure Tully and Roslin Frey is meant to reaffirm the alliance between House Frey and Robb Stark. However, Roslin’s father Walder, along with Roose Bolton, makes a pact with Tywin Lannister to kill Robb, his family, and his men at the wedding. The massacre is so shocking and grisly that it sends shockwaves through not only Westeros, but pop culture as a whole. Even revisiting the scene is tough. Robb’s wife and unborn child are stabbed, as is he. Catelyn’s throat is cut. They even kill his direwolf! While there are some “Game of Thrones” betrayals that are more personal, none of them can approach the impact of the Red Wedding.