Lady Caswell

After the execution of her husband, Lord Caswell, the house was left in Lady Caswell's hands. She sealed the castle and let no one in who was not her own blood, a precaution that proved useless against what was coming.

One afternoon a riot broke out on the stone bridge crossing the town. Lady Caswell sent her knights to restore order and so learned the cause: staying at the Hogshead, an inn by the Mander, were Prince Maelor Targaryen, son of King Aegon II Targaryen, and his sworn protector, Ser Rickard Thorne of the Kingsguard. The crowd turned on them. Ser Rickard was killed, and Prince Maelor was torn apart by several people who wanted him as a prize. When Lady Caswell's knights finally arrived, she had Willow of the Stones, a stableboy called Sly, and the owner of the horse Ser Rickard had tried to escape on hanged from the old bridge.

Lady Caswell sent the prince's head and Ser Rickard's body to King's Landing, to Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen. Maelor's dragon egg she sent to Lord Ormund Hightower, a supporter of Aegon II who was at that moment laying siege to Grey Gardens thirty leagues away; Lady Caswell hoped the gesture would ease his fury.

It did no good: Lord Ormund Hightower marched his host to Bitterbridge. Lady Caswell offered to surrender in exchange for the lives of her children and her own, but Prince Daeron Targaryen, enraged by the death of his nephew, had no intention of showing mercy to those responsible. The town was sacked and burned; its people were put to the sword or driven into the Mander to drown.

Lady Caswell watched the slaughter from atop her castle and, knowing no wall would protect her from dragonfire, ordered the gates opened. When Lord Ormund arrived, she climbed to the top of the wall, begged him one last time to spare her children, and threw herself off to die by hanging. Lord Ormund seized her children and sent them to Oldtown as hostages.