Lord Petyr Baelish, famously known as Littlefinger, is the Lord of Harrenhal, Lord Paramount of the Trident, and Lord Protector of the Eyrie and the Vale of Arryn.
Appearance and Personality[]
Petyr Baelish is a thin and rather small man with dark hair threaded with grey, a sharp beard (and sharp features in general) and grey-green eyes that are apparently cold enough that they don't laugh when his mouth does. He always has the scent of mint on his breath. He tends to dress in black and his personal sigil is a silver mockingbird, as opposed to the Titan of Braavos that emblazons his family's flag.
Highly intelligent, secretive and ambitious, Petyr is well known for being extremely cunning and Machiavellian, and has been so his entire life. On account of the fact that he was born to an incredibly lowly house in the Vale, his father was a foreigner and he has a track record with several great lords (namely the Starks, Tullys, Arryns and Lannisters), people look down on him, but in person everyone appears to trust him because he seems helpful, and those who don't eventually make the mistake of eventually bowing to his silver tongue. Eddard Stark was among these people, even though Petyr cheerfully admitted that trusting him was a mistake. Even though Petyr comes from a low background, he is a better politician, schemer and mastermind than almost any other lord in Westeros - the possible exceptions include Varys and Tywin Lannister, but Petyr matches them with his serene ruthlessness and unpredictability.
Whether or not Petyr is an inherently evil man is debatable to say the least: he admits that he has always loved Catelyn Stark, and fought an almost fatal duel against Brandon Stark for her hand. When Catelyn was killed by the Freys in the Red Wedding, Petyr vengefully murdered Joffrey Baratheon at his own wedding, scheming with the fearsome Olenna Tyrell to do so. He is actually rather fearless, personally confronting the Lords Declarant whom he knew were dangerous and intent on destroying him, and playing perilous games with powerful men and women, over whom he is completely confident in his advantage. However, even these factors lead to weaknesses: Petyr may have loved Cat, but this love changed perversely when he kissed Sansa Stark and started being overtly intimate with her (which was publicly excused with the shared lie that he was her father, while she hid in the Vale).
He has a rather dry sense of humour, which he often uses to make himself seem passive and obsequious, a mask for how dangerous a man he is - in confrontations he can go from being cold and dangerous to being glib and sarcastic, the latter especially when dealing with personal opponents. One thing that many people who work professionally with him recognise that he has an almost effortless knack for creating networks of his own, in regards to loans, transactions, espionage and even developing relationships with other people to develop his own advantages. He has served ably as master-of-coin, proving his brilliance, perseverance and fierce ambition.
Petyr has no qualms about breaking sacred laws such as that of marriage, since he murdered Lysa Arryn when she threatened to expose the shared plan of murdering Jon Arryn. Petyr appears not to notice that his schemes of murder and corruption, betraying and applying to the deaths of Jon Arryn and Eddard Stark, have led almost inevitably to the death of the woman he loved, and the obliteration of her family. His catharsis from Catelyn's murder was simply to murder Joffrey, which resulted in even further dismay from the killings that followed the Purple Wedding. Therefore, it is clear that Petyr, for all his motivations, is a dangerous man to cross.
History[]
Petyr Baelish's father became a close personal friend with Lord Hoster Tully while campaigning against the Ninepenny Kings. The man took advantage of the friendship that came about by requesting that Petyr be fostered at Riverrun alongside Hoster Tully's children. Petyr became exceedingly close with the Tully children, with Catelyn and Lysa in particular taking a sisterly fondness towards him. Petyr became infatuated with Catelyn as they grew older, but she would never reciprocate these affections. While at Riverrun, Edmure Tully nicknamed Petyr as 'Littlefinger', on account of his small stature and that he came from a small barren facet of the Fingers in the Vale, and this name would cling to Petyr Baelish for the rest of his life.
When Catelyn was engaged to Brandon Stark, Lords Bracken and Blackwood attended Riverrun to settle a feud they were going through. While there, Petyr danced with the Tully girls and tried to kiss Catelyn, but she rejected him. Petyr, despondent, got drunk and had to be carried to bed by Ser Brynden Tully. Lysa, who had secretly grown infatuated with Petyr, snuck into the room and had sex with him, though in his intoxicated state Petyr mistook her for Catelyn.
Petyr challenged him to a duel for her hand. Catelyn gave Brandon her favor and shunned Petyr, and he lost the duel, receiving a savage wound from the northerner that very nearly ended his life. While he recovered, Lysa nursed him, Catelyn completely avoided him, and Petyr refused the company of Edmure, resenting him for being Brandon's squire during the duel. Lysa soon grew pregnant from her encounter with Petyr, and Hoster Tully, disgusted, had her abort it.
Petyr left Riverrun in shame and later became Master of Coin for Robert Baratheon and the Iron Throne.
Books[]
A Game of Thrones[]
Upon Catelyn's arrival in King's Landing, she is escorted to meet Petyr and Lord Varys in the Red Keep. There, Petyr reveals that the Valyrian steel dagger used in an attempt on her son's life had been his, until he lost it in a tourney bet to the Queen's brother, Tyrion Lannister. Petyr then transfers Catelyn to a room in one of his brothels, as he suspects nobody would look for her there. Upon the arrival of her husband, Eddard Stark, Petyr is present for a meeting of the small council, where he reveals to Ned that the crown is more than six million gold dragons in debt. he then escorts Ned to see his wife, and commits himself to supporting him in his investigation into the death of Jon Arryn.
Petyr later visits Eddard in the Tower of the Hand, where he reveals three of the spies instructed to watch him, and then tells him about Ser Hugh of the Vale, who had been Jon Arryn's squire before his death, but has since been knighted by King Robert. After being thanked by Lord Stark, Petyr tells him that not trusting him was the smartest thing he had done since arriving in the city.
He introduces himself to Sansa Stark during the Hand's Tourney, where he remarks how much like her mother she looks. Petyr supports the king in his wishes to have Daenerys Targaryen assassinated after they receive news of her growing pregnant. After Lord Stark resigns as Hand, Petyr visits him, and shows him to a brothel, where they find Barra, one of Robert's bastards. On their return, the party is apprehended by Ser Jaime Lannister. Petyr rides away, promising to fetch the city watch.
After King Robert is fatally maimed on a hunt, Ned summons Baelish to his chambers. He asks him to buy the support of the city watch, as a force to seize Princes Joffrey and Tommen, as well as Princess Myrcella, so that Stannis Baratheon can be declared king. Petyr advises Ned to support the claim of Prince Joffrey over Stannis, but Ned does not listen. Instead, Petyr hires the gold cloaks to turn on Lord Stark in the throne room, and he himself holds Ned at knifepoint as his men are killed, reminding Ned that he did warn him not to trust him. Petyr keeps his place upon the small council after the ascension of Joffrey as king.