Meryn Trant

Meryn travels north to Winterfell with King Robert Baratheon, who goes there to offer Eddard Stark the office of Hand of the King. At the Tourney of the Hand he takes part as a jouster, beating Harwin before falling to Ser Loras Tyrell.

After Eddard Stark's arrest, he is ordered to seize Arya Stark, but a dancing master named Syrio Forel blocks him and the capture fails. In the throne room he watches Barristan Selmy get cast out of the Kingsguard and joins in mocking the old knight.

King Joffrey uses him to keep Sansa Stark in line, turning him into part of the fear that surrounds her at court.

At the joust held for Joffrey's name day, Meryn splinters two lances against Hobber Redwyne, unhorsing him on the second pass.

He survives the riot that breaks out in King's Landing when the crowd attacks the royal party returning from seeing Princess Myrcella off to Dorne. Tyrion orders him and Boros Blount to search for Sansa Stark, lost in the chaos, though it is Sandor Clegane who ends up bringing her back safe.

During the battle of the Blackwater he is assigned to guard King Joffrey personally. Once the fighting ends, he spends hours with the rest of the Kingsguard knighting the soldiers who distinguished themselves defending the city.

He guards the drawbridge of Maegor's Holdfast during a visit by Tyrion Lannister to his father Tywin.

On the order of Queen Regent Cersei Lannister, he escorts Sansa Stark, alongside Osmund Kettleblack, to the royal sept on the day of her wedding to Tyrion.

After Joffrey marries Margaery Tyrell, Meryn and Loras Tyrell lead the royal procession back to the Red Keep for the wedding feast. When the king begins choking at the table, it is Meryn who tries to help him, forcing his mouth open and pushing a spoon down his throat.

Jaime Lannister, now Lord Commander, rebukes him for failing to protect the royal couple in his absence. At Tyrion's trial, Meryn testifies about the time Tyrion struck Joffrey after the riot and brings up other threats the dwarf made against the king. Later, in the Tower of the Hand of the Kingsguard, he voices his suspicion that Joffrey was poisoned through his wine; Jaime chides him for having obeyed Joffrey's earlier order to beat Sansa and tells him to answer to no one now but himself, Queen Cersei, and Lord Tywin.

After Tywin Lannister is found dead in the Tower of the Hand, Meryn stands guard over his chambers until Cersei arrives and tasks him with finding the missing Varys.

He escorts the queen and young King Tommen to Tywin's wake at the Great Sept of Baelor, and watches the doors during the feast following Tommen's wedding to Margaery. When men bring Cersei a head they claim is Tyrion's, she has it handed to Meryn; later a Tyroshi brings another false head, and this time she orders Qyburn to cut off the liar's nose.

He watches over Tommen's sleep and his new kittens, and joins Cersei's retinue when she goes to meet the new High Septon. A sparrow grabs him by the wrist asking him to support the Faith, and Meryn wrenches free; Cersei stops him from drawing his sword on the crowd.

When Cersei forces Grand Maester Pycelle to admit publicly that Margaery is no maiden, the queen, fearing Meryn could become Margaery's champion as a member of the Kingsguard, has him feign illness to keep him out of the contest.

Meryn is present at the Red Keep during Cersei's walk of atonement through the streets of King's Landing.

He stands guard outside the Tower of the Hand the night Kevan Lannister is murdered.

He is described as a tall man with a sullen face, drooping eyes, and reddish beard. As a member of the Kingsguard he wears a shirt of enameled, gilded scales, a tall helm crowned with a golden sun, greaves, gorget, and gauntlets of gleaming plate, and a heavy wool cloak clasped with a golden lion; he fights with a longsword and shield.

Jaime Lannister considers him cunning and cruel, and he is known as a man loyal to Cersei Lannister. Sansa Stark sums up her opinion of him in one dry line: "You're no true knight, Ser Meryn."