House Waynwood of Ironoaks is one of the old and proud houses of the Vale, reckoned among the more ancient lines of the eastern realm. Their seat, Ironoaks Castle, stands east of the Eyrie amid the hills and lakes of the Vale's heartland, and the broken wheel upon their green banner has flown there since before the memory of living men. Whether the house is of First Men or Andal descent is a matter antiquarians dispute; by the time the Targaryen kings united the Seven Kingdoms, the Waynwoods were already a house of long standing, known throughout the Vale for their insistence on ceremony and their uncompromising sense of old honor.
At the time of A Game of Thrones, Ironoaks is ruled by Lady Anya Waynwood, a widow of stern bearing who governs her house and lands with quiet authority. Her son Ser Morton Waynwood is her heir. The most celebrated member of the household is not a Waynwood by blood: Ser Harrold Hardyng, ward of Lady Anya and heir presumptive to the Vale through his grandmother Alys Arryn, is fostered at Ironoaks and has grown into a young knight of exceptional promise. The Lords Declarant count House Waynwood among their number, and Lady Anya's voice carries weight in any council of Vale lords, her house's age lending gravity to whatever cause she chooses to support.