Varys

From A Wiki of Ice and Fire

Varys

Alias	The Spider The Eunuch Rugen
Title	Master of Whisperers
Book(s)	A Game of Thrones A Clash of Kings A Storm of Swords A Feast for Crows A Dance with Dragons
Played by	Conleth Hill
TV series	Season 1 | Season 2

Lord Varys, called "the Spider", is the enigmatic member of the small council and Master of Whisperers, or spymaster, for the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms. In the TV series he is played by Conleth Hill.^[1]

Contents 1 Character and Appearance 2 History 3 Recent Events 3.1 A Game of Thrones 3.2 A Clash of Kings 3.3 A Storm of Swords 3.4 A Feast for Crows 3.5 A Dance with Dragons 4 Quotes 5 References and Notes 5.1 See Also

Character and Appearance

Secrets are Varys’s trade, and his skill at acquiring them has earned him a reputation for being seemingly omniscient. Crucial to his trade is a spy network of children that he refers to as his "little birds".

His history of providing information to all sides, of aiding enemies, of pitting rivals against one another, and of manipulation to achieve his ends has earned him a reputation of being distasteful and untrustworthy amongst the nobles at court. In private, however, he claims to value order, stability, and peace above all, and professes loyalty to those who work for those goals as well.

Varys is a eunuch; he is plump, completely bald and effeminate. He prefers comfortable clothing, fine silks (often in outrageous colors), and slippers that allow him to walk without making any sound. His outward manner is obsequious, mysterious, and squeamish. He is a master of disguise and can easily change his appearance, gait, smell, and costume to become unrecognizable.

History

Though nothing that Varys says can be completely trusted, he claims to have been born a slave in Lys that was sold and apprenticed to a traveling folly, a troupe of mummers who worked the Free Cities, Oldtown, and occasionally King's Landing, by means of a fat little cog owned by the troupe's master. During their stay in Myr, a man offered a large sum of money for Varys, an offer his master found too tempting to refuse. The man gave Varys a potion that made him powerless to move or speak, but did nothing to dull his senses as his manhood was cut off at the stem, then burnt in a brazier in a Blood Magic ritual. Varys claims to have held a hatred for all things magical ever since.^[2]

With the ritual complete, the man had no further use for Varys and tossed him out on the streets. By that time the mummers had sailed and Varys was left alone. He resorted to begging and thievery and soon was as good a thief as any in Myr, eventually becoming recognized as the best thief in the city until a rival forced him out and he fled to Pentos.^[3] In Pentos, Varys befriended a poor sellsword named Illyrio Mopatis and they started a business where Varys would steal objects from lesser thieves and Illyrio would get the objects back for their original owners for a small fee. Soon, every man and woman in Pentos who ever had valuables stolen from them all knew who ask to get their valuables back. In addition, the thieves in Pentos soon began to seek Illyrio and Varys out, half to try (and failing) to kill them, the other half to sell them the objects they stole in order to prevent Varys from stealing them back. Varys and Illyrio grew very rich.

Varys came to the realization that information was much more valuable than gold and gems and began training his spy network, then known as "little mice", to acquire the information, letters, ledgers and charts of the wealthy and powerful. The "mice" were orphans purchased by Varys; he chose those that were small, quick, and quiet, and taught them to read and write, as well as the skills required for sneak thievery such as climbing walls and slipping down chimneys, so that they might copy the information Varys desired without disturbing or alarming their targets. These secrets increased Varys and Illyrio's wealth tenfold, and in time Varys became so infamous that word of his talents reached the ears of King Aerys across the Narrow Sea, who in his growing paranoia no longer trusted his son, his wife, or his Hand.^[4]

As spymaster in King's Landing, Varys's influence grew with Aerys's paranoia, as he was quick to point out traitors and schemers to his liege. Varys mastered the secret passages within the Red Keep and made good use of them with his spy network, who became known as his "little birds". He had them memorize the passages and come to him whenever one discovered something of importance. Notably, Varys alerted Aerys to the possibility that his son Rhaegar was using attendance at the Tourney at Harrenhal as a pretext to rally Lords to his cause in removing Aerys as king, causing Aerys to attend the tournament, the first time he had left the Red Keep in years since the Defiance of Duskendale.

Following the Battle of the Trident during Robert's Rebellion, Varys counseled Aerys to close his gates to Tywin Lannister, as he could not be trusted. Aerys, however, listened to Grand Maester Pycelle and opened the gates to the Lannister forces, who proceeded to sack the city and kill the remaining Targaryens present.

Though he continued in his post for King Robert, Varys's loyalty seemingly remained with House Targaryen. He kept a secret arrangement with Illyrio Mopatis, who seeks to put a Targaryen back on the Iron Throne. In fact, it was revealed that Varys switched the baby Aegon with that of a peasant baby. With the realm and Robert falsely believing him dead, Varys had Aegon smuggled across the Narrow Sea to be raised by Rhaegar's friend and exiled Hand of the King, Jon Connington. To conceal Connington's activities, Varys created the false story that Connington had drank himself to death after being caught stealing from the Golden Company.

Recent Events

A Game of Thrones

After the Hand's Tourney, Varys disguises himself and comes to meet the Hand of the King, Lord Eddard Stark, at his chambers. He warns Eddard that Queen Cersei is trying to kill King Robert. He states that his goal is peace and stability and professes to assist Lord Eddard in his investigations against House Lannister. Varys also reveals that the former hand, Jon Arryn, was poisoned with the Tears of Lys for the crime of "asking questions".^[5]

Varys brings Ser Jorah Mormont's report of Daenerys Targaryen being pregnant to the Small Council, which results in King Robert's command to assassinate both her and her unborn child. He meets Illyrio below the Red keep where they discuss how to delay a war between Stark and Lannister until the right time.^[6]

When King Robert is slain, Varys remains master of whisperers for King Joffrey. When Joffrey demands that someone take blame for his father's death, Varys suggests Ser Barristan Selmy. Joffrey and Cersei dismiss Selmy, a move many outside the council saw as a folly.^[7] Selmy later joined Daenerys Targaryen in the east as a result of his dismissal.^[8]

After Eddard Stark is imprisoned, Varys visits him disguised as a jailor and persuades Ned that for the sake of his daughter Sansa's life he must falsely confess to treason so Cersei will allow him to take the black, thus delaying a war between Stark and Lannister. When Ned shows reluctance, Varys insinuates that the Lannisters will kill Sansa if Ned continues to defy them. Ned asks who Varys truly serves, and Varys claims that the purpose of his machinations is not for personal power, honor, or loyalty, but simply the best intentions for the realm as a whole.^[9]

Despite Varys's intentions to spare Eddard Stark's life, Joffrey goes against the council's wishes and decides at the last minute to have Ned Stark executed instead of allowing him to take the black much to the shock of Varys and the other onlookers.^[10]

A Clash of Kings

The arrival of Tyrion Lannister in King's Landing to serve as Hand of the King sees an uneasy alliance formed between Varys and Tyrion, with Varys providing Tyrion with information as to the goings-on in the city and the capital. Varys assists Tyrion in gaining control of the city watch and informs him that Ser Lancel Lannister was sleeping with queen Cersei.^[11][12]

Varys assists Tyrion in protecting Shae, setting a up a secret route through which he can visit her and keep her true identity secret from Cersei.^[11] During their work togther, Varys reveals to Tyrion the origins of how he became castrated.^[12] It is also revealed that Varys was the one who sent Gendry with Yoren to join the Night's Watch, so the boy would not be killed by Cersei's agents simply for the crime of being Robert's bastard.

A Storm of Swords

After Tyrion Lannister's recovery following the Battle of the Blackwater, he seeks out Varys and seeks to resume their alliance, which includes his assistance in continuing to facilitate his trysts with Shae. Varys obliges him, though when Tyrion is put on trial for the murder of King Joffrey, Varys testifies against Tyrion, providing notes on conversations between the two and a great deal of seemingly damning evidence.

After Tyrion is condemned to die, however, Varys is forced by Jaime Lannister, at swordpoint, to release Tyrion. He does so, and on the trip through the secret tunnels beneath the Red Keep leads Tyrion past a ladder that Tyrion recognizes as leading to the chamber of the Hand of the King. Against Varys's protestations he climbs the ladder to kill his father Tywin.

A Feast for Crows

After Varys's part in Tyrion's escape and Tywin's murder, he vanishes without a trace. A dungeon turnkey named Rugen disappears as well. In Rugen's living space a Tyrell coin is discovered and shown to Cersei, increasing Cersei's already-abundant mistrust of House Tyrell. It is believed by many readers that Rugen is an alias of Varys's, due to the identical description of the turnkey with Varys when he visited Ned Stark in the Black Cells.

Cersei, now ruling in King's Landing as Queen Regent to her son Tommen, appoints Qyburn to fill the position of Master of Whisperers. Qyburn notes that many of Varys's spies came to him with secrets to sell, reinforcing Cersei's belief that Varys had always oversold his value to make people dependent on him and more vulnerable to his schemes.

A Dance with Dragons

Varys employs the secret passages to enter the chambers of Grand Maester Pycelle and kill him. He then dispatches one of his "little birds" to fetch Kevan Lannister, now Lord Regent after Cersei's disgrace, under the pretext that the Grand Maester has a message for him.

Upon his entering the rookery, Varys shoots Kevan with a crossbow, going on to apologize and note that his actions are not out of malice but rather because Kevan's competent leadership threatened to undo Cersei's follies and years of Varys's careful planning. He explains to Kevan that Aegon Targaryen is still alive, and notes the preparation being undertaken in making him a true leader, noting that his death will sow further dissent between the Lannisters and Tyrells, making the realm easy prey for Aegon to arrive and be proclaimed as King, for the good of the realm. Varys then summons several of his "little birds" to end Ser Kevan's suffering.

Quotes

“

The storms come and go, the waves crash overhead, the big fish eat the little fish, and I keep on paddling.' - Varys to Tyrion [11]

”

“

Why is it always the innocents who suffer most, when you high lords play your game of thrones? --Varys, to Eddard Stark[13]

”

References and Notes

This page uses content from the English Wikipedia. The original content was at Characters from A Song of Ice and Fire. The list of authors can be seen in the page history of Characters from A Song of Ice and Fire. As with the A Wiki of Ice and Fire, the content of Wikipedia is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.

See Also

• See also the article on Varys on the Game of Thrones wiki.