Ramsay Bolton

Character description

Ramsay Snow is the bastard son of Lord Roose Bolton, known as the Bastard of Bolton or the Bastard of the Dreadfort but insists on his legitimized status as the scion of the Dreadfort. A depraved sadist, he is renowned for his savage cruelty: he openly rapes and kills peasant women for sport, tortures prisoners, and enthusiastically engages in the Bolton custom of flaying their enemies alive. Roose suspects that Ramsay murdered Roose's legitimate heir Domeric and expects that Ramsay will kill all of Roose's future children. He is described as ugly, with blotchy skin and dry, dark hair.

Overview

Ramsay Bolton is not a point of view character in the novels, so his actions are witnessed and interpreted through the eyes of other people, such as Theon Greyjoy/Reek. Ramsay is mostly a background character in the novels.

Portrayal and reception

Ramsay was portrayed in the HBO TV series by Welsh actor Iwan Rheon, who received positive reviews for his performance. Rheon had previously auditioned for the role of Jon Snow, which he lost to Kit Harington.

A Clash of Kings

While his father is at war in A Clash of Kings, Ramsay is named castellan of the Dreadfort. After Lord Hornwood and his heir are killed fighting for Robb Stark, Ramsay forcibly marries Lady Hornwood to claim her lands, before starving her to death. He escapes justice by switching places with his servant Reek, who is killed instead; Rodrik Cassel brings Ramsay, in the guise of Reek, back to Winterfell, intending to have him testify to Ramsay's crimes before being executed. However, Theon Greyjoy and the Ironborn capture Winterfell and release Ramsay in exchange for a vow of service to Theon. When Theon's hostages escape, Ramsay murders two peasant boys and convinces Theon to present the corpses as those of Bran and Rickon Stark. As the Northerners move to take back Winterfell, Ramsay persuades Theon to let him ride to the Dreadfort to gather reinforcements. He returns with an army of Bolton soldiers and massacres the Northern relief force, but then proceeds to kill the Ironborn, burn Winterfell, and take Theon prisoner.

A Storm of Swords and A Feast for Crows

Prior to the Red Wedding, Roose Bolton presents Robb Stark with a piece of Theon's skin, revealing that Ramsay has been flaying him; though disgusted, Robb acquiesces to Theon's further captivity, as Theon's father Balon has recently died and Theon's absence presents a succession crisis for the Ironborn. Following Robb Stark's death, King Tommen Baratheon legitimizes Ramsay as a Bolton. The Lannisters pass off Jeyne Poole as Arya Stark and send her north to be betrothed to Ramsay, with only the Lannisters and Boltons aware she is not the real Arya Stark.

A Dance with Dragons

In the dungeons of the Dreadfort, Ramsay has savagely tortured and mutilated Theon until he is so broken and in fear of Ramsay that he has adopted the identity of Reek. Ramsay coerces him to assist in lifting the Ironborn siege of Moat Cailin, subsequently reneging on his promise of safe passage to the Ironborn by having the garrison flayed. After Stannis Baratheon's capture of Deepwood Motte, Ramsay's wedding to "Arya" is moved from Barrowton to a rebuilt Winterfell. Following the wedding, Ramsay repeatedly abuses Jeyne. Shortly after the wedding, Jeyne and Theon escape with the help of Mance Rayder. Jon Snow later receives a letter from Ramsay claiming that he has captured Mance and killed Stannis Baratheon (who was besieging Winterfell), threatening to destroy the Night's Watch if Jon does not deliver Theon, Jeyne, and several other members of Stannis' court to Ramsay as captives. It is not revealed how much of the letter is true or if Ramsay was its actual author.

Family tree of House Bolton

TV adaptation

Ramsay Bolton was played by Welsh actor Iwan Rheon in the HBO television adaption of the series of books. Ramsay is first mentioned in Season 2 of Game of Thrones and first appears onscreen in Season 3, though Rheon is credited as "Boy" until his true identity is revealed in Mhysa.

Storylines

The circumstances of Ramsay's conception and acknowledgement do not change in the show, although in the show Ramsay's mother dies soon after his birth. Ramsay is raised at the Dreadfort, knowing nothing of his mother. At the age of eleven, he first encounters the Dreadfort kennelmaster's daughter, Myranda, and is drawn to her fearlessness, eventually taking her as his mistress. He tells her that he plans on wedding her but after his legitimization, he dismisses such promises.

Season 2

After Theon Greyjoy and his forces capture Winterfell, Roose Bolton offers to Robb Stark to have Ramsay and the men left at the Dreadfort lift the occupation. Robb agrees, with orders to spare the Ironborn if they surrender, but to bring Theon to Robb alive. The Ironborn subdue Theon and present him to Ramsay, who takes Theon prisoner, but Ramsay then proceeds to sack Winterfell and flay the Ironborn garrison for his own amusement.

Season 3

Ramsay sends word to the Stark forces at Harrenhal claiming that the Ironborn sacked Winterfell and fled before the Bolton forces arrived. In the Dreadfort dungeons, Ramsay's men gruesomly torture Theon while Ramsay watches in the guise of a cleaning boy. Claiming to be a servant of Theon's sister Yara, he sets Theon free before sending his men after Theon, only to follow and kill them when they recapture Theon. Theon confesses that during his conquest of Winterfell he used two farmer's boys to fake the murders of Bran and Rickon Stark, as Ramsay pretends to lead Theon to Deepwood Motte, the castle Yara holds. In reality, Ramsay leads Theon in a circle back to the dungeon and reimprisons him, psychologically tormenting Theon with the revelation that he was the architect of his suffering all along.

After severing Theon's pinky, he has Myranda seduce him to confirm Theon's reputation for being well-endowed, before severing his genitals. He sends the removed appendage to his father Balon, threatening to further mutilate him and to flay the other Ironborn invaders unless they flee the North. Theon begs Ramsay to kill him, but Ramsay states that Theon is more useful alive. Noting Theon's stench, he dubs him "Reek" and beats him until he responds to his new name.

Season 4

With Myranda by his side and Reek chasing behind as his loyal servant, Ramsay kills his bedwarmer Tandy by sending his vicious hounds to maul her. When Roose Bolton returns to the Dreadfort, he reprimands Ramsay for having overstepped his boundaries as castellan by mutilating a valuable hostage and sending terms of surrender to the Greyjoys. Infuriated, Ramsay demonstrates his brainwashing of Reek by having him reveal that Bran and Rickon Stark are still alive, and having Reek shave him without harming him, even after revealing Roose's murder of Robb Stark. Impressed, Roose orders Ramsay and Reek to lift the Ironborn occupation of Moat Cailin. Yara and her men infiltrate the Dreadfort and try to rescue Theon, but he refuses to go with her, fearing another of Ramsay's tricks, and Ramsay chases the Greyjoy soldiers away with his hounds. Pleased with Reek's loyalty, Ramsay has him pose as Theon to convince the Ironborn of Moat Cailin to surrender, with promise of safe passage, though Ramsay reneges on his word and flays the entire garrison. As reward for his success, Ramsay is legitimised as a Bolton. He then accompanies the rest of House Bolton in moving to Winterfell.

Season 5

Ramsay draws the ire of Roose after flaying the family of a Northern lord who refuses to pledge fealty. In order to placate the other Northern houses and to solidify the Boltons' hold on the North, Ramsay is betrothed to Sansa Stark, publicly believed to be the last living Stark. Though he initially feigns kindness to Sansa, after Myranda shows her Reek in the kennels, Ramsay uses Sansa's contempt for Reek as psychological torment, by having him apologise for "killing" Bran and Rickon, having him give Sansa away at the wedding, and ultimately forcing Reek to watch as he rapes Sansa on their wedding night. When Sansa begs Reek to signal for help, Reek instead warns Ramsay, who flays a maid who had tried to help Sansa.

With Stannis Baratheon's forces camped and ready to march on Winterfell, Ramsay persuades Roose to let him and twenty men infiltrate his camp and destroy his supplies. The plan succeeds, triggering a domino effect in which Stannis has Melisandre sacrifice his daughter Shireen to assure victory and much of his army deserts him. The sparse Baratheon army marches on for Winterfell but Ramsay leads the Bolton cavalry to defeat them with ease. In the chaos of the battle, Theon kills Myranda and flees with Sansa just as he returns to Winterfell.

Season 6

After mourning Myranda, Ramsay is warned by Roose that he faces being disinherited if Sansa is not recovered and Roose's unborn child is a son. Ramsay sends his best hunters after Sansa and Theon, though they are all killed by Brienne of Tarth. After Roose's wife Walda gives birth to a boy, Ramsay promptly murders his father and has his hounds maul to death Walda and his newborn half-brother, securing his position as Lord Bolton and the official ruler of Winterfell.

Ramsay is approached by Smalljon Umber, who asks for his help in defending the North against the recently resurrected Jon Snow and his wildling army. To secure their alliance, he has brought him Osha and Rickon Stark, who were previously under the protection of Smalljon's now-deceased father, the Greatjon. Ramsay kills Osha when she tries to assassinate him, and throws Rickon in Winterfell's dungeons. He then sends a letter to Jon Snow at Castle Black, threatening to exterminate the wildlings and have Rickon and Jon killed if Sansa is not returned to him.

When Jon Snow responds by leading an army of Wildings and assorted Stark loyalists on a march towards Winterfell, Ramsay releases Rickon and tells him to run to his half-brother before killing him with an arrow to the heart. With Jon having charged out in a futile attempt to save Rickon, his forces follow behind and are drawn out of their position. The Bolton phalanx quickly surrounds the Starks, but the Knights of the Vale arrive and overwhelm the Boltons. Ramsay flees to Winterfell, and kills the giant Wun Wun when he breaches Winterfell's gate, but is attacked and brutally beaten by Jon. Locked in the kennels, Ramsay is visited by Sansa, who watches as his hounds mount him. Ramsay insists his hounds won't harm him but, having starved them for a full week, he is helpless as they eat him alive. Ramsay's death marks the end of House Bolton and its rule in the North.