Game Of Thrones: 10 New Characters For Season 5

10. The High Sparrow

The High Sparrow, a derogatory nickname for the new High Septon, is the leader of the Faith of the Seven, the dominant religion practiced by the people of Westeros (except for Melisandre and the Cult of R'hllor). Essentially, he is the equivalent of the Pope of Westeros. He is called the "High Sparrow" because before his election to the office of High Septon, he was a member of the Sparrow denomination of the Faith: basically a monk who had no material possessions and stuck to a life of poverty. During the events of A Feast For Crows, Queen Cersei Lannister visits with the High Sparrow to deal with the problem of debt - the court owes the Faith over one million golden dragons. In order to cancel this debt, Cersei allows the High Sparrow to reinstate the Faith Militant, or the "army of the Faith", which gives the High Sparrow and the Faith unprecedented power in King's Landing. Cersei soon devises a plot to topple Margaery Tyrell, whom she views as a rival, and plants evidence that Margaery is an adulteress. Although the High Sparrow has Margaery arrested, the charges backfire on Cersei when similar charges come to light about her, and she herself is captured. The High Sparrow forces her to undertake a "penance walk", a punishment in which Cersei must walk naked all the way across King's Landing. The High Sparrow will have a minor role in early Season 5 that will eventually lead into a more major one, and the character will likely appear in around 5 of the 10 episodes of the season.