On a TV show like Game of Thrones, where just about every character has an ulterior motive, Margaery Tyrell always stood out as being one of the most shameless. You have to admire her determination. She was always prepared to do anything that was required of her to become queen, going through three marriages to get there.
In order to cement her position and stay loyal to House Tyrell, she made some pretty bold moves, never thinking twice if it meant bringing her closer to her goals. Keep reading for a reminder of the most shameless things that Margaery Tyrell ever did.
10 Tried To Get Sansa To Marry Loras For Political Reasons
To be totally honest, Sansa could have married a lot worse than Loras Tyrell. She did, actually, when she married Ramsay Bolton. But that doesn’t mean that Margaery set Sansa up with her brother because it was a nice thing to do. It was a political move to bring the North under the control of her House.
In Westeros, trying to arrange a marriage for purely political reasons isn’t really scandalous or out of the ordinary. But judging by everyday standards, it’s a pretty bold move to convince your friend—who’s already extremely fragile—to marry your brother just because it will benefit your family.
9 Called Cersei Her Sister
Cersei Lannister is the one person in Westeros that you really don’t want to aggravate. Margaery got a little too cocky in her interactions with Cersei when she found out that Cersei was set to wed her brother Loras. Saying that they’d practically be like sisters soon was the wrong move, and Cersei let her know it.
While other characters might have sat back and taken the dig, Cersei didn’t hesitate to tell Margaery the story behind the Rains of Castamere and then threaten to have her strangled in her sleep if she ever repeated her mistake.
8 Mocked Cersei In Front Of Her Friends
Unfortunately, Margaery didn’t learn from her first experience of trying to mock Cersei. She believed she was untouchable once she married Tommen and became queen, so much so that she actually had the nerve to make fun of Cersei in front of her friends.
After marrying Tommen, Margaery started dressing like Cersei and rubbed her relationship with him in Cersei’s face. She also rubbed in the fact that she was queen—something Cersei always aspired to be. To make matters worse, Margaery and her friends laughed at Cersei as she left in defeat.
7 Allowed Tyrion To Take The Fall For Olenna’s Crime
Despite the façade that she put up in front of Septa Unella and the High Sparrow, Margaery Tyrell always remained faithful to House Tyrell. So much so that she was even willing to hide the truth if it meant protecting her family members. That’s exactly what she did at Tyrion Lannister’s trial.
By the time Tyrion went on trial for Joffrey’s murder, Margaery knew that he was innocent. After hearing her grandmother Olenna comment that she could have never let Margaery marry Joffrey, she knew that Olenna was the culprit behind his murder. Still, she didn’t say anything to absolve Tyrion.
6 Knowingly Married Her Brother’s Lover
It would have to take a lot of nerve and a very strong stomach to marry your brother’s lover. But that’s exactly what Margaery did by marrying Renly Baratheon. We saw that Renly and Loras were romantically involved while Margaery was married to Renly. More bizarre still, Margaery knew about the affair and was okay with it.
This just reinforces how determined Margaery was to rise to the role of queen and how little she cared about the relationships that actually got her there. Very few people could knowingly marry their brother’s lover!
5 Stopped Her Procession To Walk Around Flea Bottom
It became clear very early on that Margaery Tyrell was different from the queens who had come before her. She made a huge effort to appeal to the common people and win their hearts—something that Cersei had definitely never bothered to do.
A standout moment was when Margaery stopped her royal procession to visit the slums of Flea Bottom. Walking around Flea Bottom might not seem like a big deal, but this definitely went against royal protocol, royal tradition, and the wishes of her mother-in-law Cersei.
4 Plotted To Get Rid Of Her Mother-In-Law
There are probably a lot of people out there who would love to get rid of their mother-in-law. Margaery Tyrell had enough audacity to actually attempt it. Almost immediately after she married Tommen, Margaery began plotting how to get Cersei out of King’s Landing so she wouldn’t have to deal with her.
After Tommen told Margaery that Cersei was unhappy in King’s Landing, Margaery grabbed the opportunity with both hands. By telling Tommen that Cersei would always control him and treat him like a child while living in the capital with them, she very nearly got Cersei kicked out of King’s Landing.
3 Snuck Into Tommen’s Bed Chamber To Manipulate Him
Sneaking into a king’s bedchamber to manipulate him is a pretty bold move. But it’s not too bold for Margaery Tyrell, who did this almost as soon as she’d set her sights on Tommen. In the middle of the night, she crept into his bedchamber and set to work on wrapping him around her finger.
She appealed to him by making friends with his cat, Ser Pounce, getting him to talk about his feelings about Joffrey, and even kissing him on the forehead, hinting of more to come. Though Tommen saw this as a sign of friendliness and romantic interest, it was just Margaery doing what Margaery does best: manipulating.
2 Married Joffrey Baratheon Knowing His Character
Out of everything that Margaery Tyrell did in her short life, before she was swiftly killed in the Sept of Bailor by Cersei’s explosion, the single thing that took the most nerve had to have been marrying Joffrey Baratheon, knowing what a monster he was. Of course, thanks to Olenna, Margaery didn’t actually spend any time being his wife, but she didn’t know that would be the case when she agreed to marry him.
She was so determined to be queen and so confident in her abilities to manipulate Joffrey that she was willing to be married to one of the evilest characters on the show.
1 Married Her Dead Husband’s Brother
In real life, marrying the brother of your dead husband is a pretty shameless move. For most people, it would be the scandal of a lifetime. In George R.R. Martin’s world, it’s decidedly less shameless but still takes some boldness nonetheless.
Before Joffrey’s body had even had a chance to cool, Margaery had already set her sights on Tommen. As soon as the mourning period was over, she was married to Tommen, such a short time after her wedding to his brother. Again, it all reinforced how both Tommen and Joffrey were not really people to her—just tools to bring her closer to the crown.
