King Garth the Gardener, also known as Garth Greenhand, was a legendary King of the First Men in the Age of Heroes.

Biography[]

Garth was the founder of House Gardener and the first King of the Reach. According to legend, Garth Greenhand wore a crown of vines and flowers and was said to make the land bloom.^[1]

King Garth's line ruled the Reach until Aegon's Conquest, becoming extinct with the death of Mern IX, the last King of the Reach. Nevertheless, several of the noble houses of the Reach, such as House Tyrell and House Florent, claim their descent to Garth Greenhand.^[1][2]

In the books[]

In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, half of the great noble Houses from the Reach claim descent from Garth Greenhand and House Gardener, of which House Tyrell and House Florent are the most prominent. Other powerful noble Houses in the Reach descended from Garth are House Rowan and House Oakheart. Because House Tyrell never ruled as kings, and because they are only one of several Houses that claim descent from Garth (and not even as close a descent as the Florents possess), they have always felt somewhat uneasy in their claim to dominion over the Reach.

A large number of Garth's successors were named after him. There were ultimately at least twelve kings of the Reach named Garth, including the original, as there is mention of a coin minted during the reign of "Garth XII".

The World of Ice and Fire sourcebook expands on the legends of Garth Greenhand, and make it clear that, like most characters from the Age of Heroes, they are all very old, unverifiable, and contradictory, to the point where the maesters pay little historical credence to them. In many versions, he is the father or ancestor of not only the Reach's major Houses, but the Great Houses of the other Kingdoms as well – Brandon the Builder is said to be one of his many sons. Garth is also sometimes equated with the First King (the hypothetical first First Man to declare himself a king over a portion of Westeros).

The sourcebook makes it clear that Garth the Gardener is not Garth Greenhand, but one of his many sons. Whereas the Gardener was the King of the Reach, the Greenhand was the High King of the First Men who, according to one story, led his people from Essos across the Arm of Dorne and was the first human to ever set foot in Westeros.

Garth Greenhand's legendary children are said to be the progenitors of many great houses of Westeros. These include:

• Garth the Gardener, the founder of House Gardener and builder of Highgarden.
• John the Oak, the founder of House Oakheart, said to have been born of a union between Garth and a giantess.
• Gilbert of the Vines, the founder of House Redwyne and inventor of wine.
• Foss the Archer, the founder of House Fossoway.
• Brandon of the Bloody Blade, who warred against the children of the forest and giants, driving them from the Reach. He is said to be an ancestor or even father of Bran the Builder, the founder of House Stark.
• Maris the Maid, queen to Uthor of the High Tower, the founder of House Hightower. Her sons, Urrigon and Peremore Hightower, founded the Citadel and the Order of Maesters respectively.
• Owen Oakenshield, who drove the selkies and merlings from the Shield Islands. The island of Oakenshield is named after him.
• Bors the Breaker, the founder of House Bulwer.
• Rose of Red Lake, the founder of House Crane, said to be a skinchanger who could assume the form of a crane.
• Ellyn Ever Sweet, the founder of House Beesbury and first beekeeper.
• Rowan Gold-Tree, the founder of House Rowan. Lann the Clever, the founder of House Lannister, is said to have been her bastard son.
• Florys the Fox, mother to the founders of Houses Ball, Florent, and Peake. She is also said to be the mother of Lann the Clever in tales conflicting with those of her sister Rowan Gold-Tree. Like Lann, she is described as a trickster who kept her three husbands completely unaware of one another.
• Harlon the Hunter, joint founder of House Tarly with his twin brother.
• Herndon of the Horn, twin brother of Harlon the Hunter.

Appearances[]

• – "The Age of Heroes" (illustrated)
• – "House Tyrell" (illustrated)
• – "House Tarly" (mentioned)
• – "Highgarden" (illustrated)

References[]

External links[]

• Garth the Gardener on A Wiki of Ice and Fire
• Garth Greenhand on A Wiki of Ice and Fire

v • d • e House Gardener
Head	Vacant (extinct)	Heir	Vacant (extinct)
Seat	Highgarden	Region	Reach
Titles	King of the Reach
Ancestors	Garth the Gardener · Harlon the Hunter · Herndon of the Horn · Mern IX Gardener