Rickard Stark

Rickard Stark is an unseen character in Game of Thrones. He is deceased when the events of the series begin. He is not expected to appear in the series. Rickard Stark was the Lord of Winterfell and head of House Stark. He was killed by the Mad King, Aerys II Targaryen.

Background
Rickard Stark was the Lord of Winterfell and head of House Stark, one of the Great Houses of Westeros. He was the ruler of the North under King Aerys II (known as the Mad King). He is the father of Brandon, Eddard, Lyanna and Benjen Stark. He was killed by the Mad King, Aerys II Targaryen.

Season 1
When Lyanna was kidnapped by Prince Rhaegar Targaryen, the son of the King, Rickard's eldest son and heir, Brandon, rode to King's Landing seeking justice. Aerys II imprisoned Brandon and ordered that Rickard ride south to answer for his son's impertinence. Against advice, Rickard agreed, assuming that the matter would be settled through a trial or a bargain of some kind. Instead, Aerys had Lord Rickard burned alive whilst Brandon watched, and then had Brandon strangled.

The kidnap of Lyanna and the cold-blooded murder of Rickard and Brandon Stark in front of the entire Royal Court made the new Lord of Winterfell, Eddard Stark, declare war against the Targaryen family, supported by Lyanna's betrothed, Robert Baratheon, and the powerful lords Hoster Tully and Jon Arryn. This sparked the beginning of the war known as Robert's Rebellion, which led to the near-destruction of House Targaryen and its removal from the Iron Throne.

Reaching King's Landing, Lord Eddard Stark is greeted by Ser Jaime Lannister in the throne room, who recalls listening to Eddard's father and brother scream as hundreds watched them die at the whim of the Mad King. He suggests his assassination of the Mad King was an act of justice, but Eddard dismisses that as a paltry self-justification for breaking his solemn Kingsguard vows.

Eddard named his youngest son Rickon in his father's memory.

In the books
In the Song of Ice and Fire novels, Rickard's role is unchanged.