House Hightower

House Hightower are a House of First Men origin from The Reach. Their seat is Oldtown.

Arms of House Hightower. Words: “We Light the Way”

History

Stone-paved Oldtown stands at the mouth of the Honeywine, where men have lived since the Dawn Age. At the city’s heart rises Battle Isle, crowned by a square black-stone fortress whose builders remain unknown. When the chronicles first name the Hightowers, they already rule from that ancient stronghold, raising a succession of wooden beacon-towers to guide trading ships through fog-shrouded Whispering Sound. Legend credits Uthor of the High Tower with commissioning the fifth tower, this time in stone, two hundred feet tall, said by some to be the work of Brandon the Builder. Meanwhile, Prince Peremore “the Twisted” gathered philosophers, healers, and alchemists to satisfy his boundless curiosity; after his early death, King Urrigon granted those land beside the Honeywine—ground that grew into the Ravenry.

As Oldtown’s wealth swelled, its prosperity drew raiders: Samwell Dayne “the Starfire,” Qhored the Cruel and his ironmen, and Gyles I Gardener “the Woe” each sacked the city in a single bloody century. In answer, King Otho II Hightower encircled Oldtown with massive stone ramparts; though the effort beggared the realm for three generations, those walls thereafter broke every would-be conqueror.

Oldtown’s last crowned ruler was Lymond “the Sea Lion” Hightower, who slew King Theon III Greyjoy in battle, pressed captured ironborn into labour improving the defences, and built a fleet unmatched. Rather than clash with Highgarden, Lymond bound his line to the Gardeners: he took King Garland II’s daughter to wife and gave his own daughter to the king in return. The pact ended Hightower kingship, yet raised the house to Lordship of the Reach; Highgarden undertook to guard Oldtown by land, while the Sea Lion’s ships watched over the Sea.

Freed of inland wars, successive Hightower lords gazed outward, to the sea and the lands beyond. Lord Jeremy doubled the city’s wealth through trade, and his son Jason rebuilt the tower a hundred feet higher.

Under Lord Byren Hightower, Oldtown saw a gradual but decisive transformation with the arrival of the Andals. Initially invited to help defend the city and rebuild after Ironborn raids, they soon became trusted allies, fighting alongside the Hightower fleet to reclaim the Arbor and defeat the Ironborn at sea. Their victories and shared bloodshed earned them the acceptance of Oldtown’s people, along with their faith in the Seven, which began to replace the worship of the Old Gods for much of the population. Noble Andal houses such as the Costaynes and Gracefords rose in prominence, forging ties with the Hightowers through combat, loyalty, and marriage. Yet not all welcomed the change, most notably Jorin Hightower, who distrusted the Andals and feared their growing influence under Magnar Byren Hightower, whose reign deepened their integration into Oldtown’s politics and society.

Notable Members of House Hightower

• Uthor of the High Tower – He was the early Hightower king who transformed Oldtown’s wooden beacon into a towering fortress of stone and famously wed Maris the Maid.
• Prince Peremore “the Twisted” – His passion for learning inspired 'Peremores Order' that now dwells beside the Honeywine.
• King Otho II Hightower – As a King he encircled Oldtown with colossal stone walls after a century of ruinous raids.
• Lord Lymond “the Sea Lion” Hightower – He was the last crowned King of Oldtown, famed for smashing an ironborn invasion and binding his realm to the Gardeners by marriage.
• Lord Jeremy and Lord Jason Hightower – Expanded trade and raised the beacon higher.
• Lord Jonn 'Young' Hightower – Became the Lord of Oldtown as a child during the Andal invasions.
• Lord Byren Hightower – Lord of Oldtown under the rule of King Gunthor 'Whitehand' Gardener during the Andal Invasions.
• Lord Edgar Hightower – Lord of Oldtown under the rule of King Gunthor 'Whitehand' Gardener during the Andal Invasions.