Ygritte

"You know nothing, Jon Snow."

- Ygritte

Ygritte is a recurring character in the second season. She is played by Rose Leslie. Ygritte is a Wildling who lives north of the Wall. She is part of the Wildling force under the leadership of Mance Rayder.

Background
Ygritte is a beautiful and cunning Wildling with a quick wit and, resilient attitude. Her most distinctive physical feature is her long red coloured hair. Living north of the Wall, she is well skilled in survival and is loyal to Mance Rayder's cause. She values her status as a free woman, and disparages those that live south of the Wall for accepting oaths of fealty. Having a keen understanding of men, she is not hesitant to turn things in her favour using her sexuality.

Ygritte believes that because Wildlings and Northerners are both descended from the First Men, there is no need for them to be fighting, and that only the Wall divides them. As with other Wildlings, Ygritte understands that the real threat lies with the impending invasion of the White Walkers.

Season 2
Ygritte is captured by Jon Snow and Qhorin Halfhand as the sole survivor of their assault on her watchpost. She begs her captors to burn the bodies, but Qhorin questions her motives, he then instructs Jon to execute her telling him to catch up with them after the deed is done. Ygritte begs Jon to get it over with and awaits the stroke from his sword, but he cannot bring himself to do it. His hesitation allows her to escape, but Jon recaptures her, separating from his brothers in the process. With night approaching, Jon refuses to make a fire, forcing them to sleep out in the cold. Ygritte convinces him to huddle next to her to share body warmth. She then unsuccessfully makes sexual advances towards Jon.

After a cold night Ygritte and Jon continue on to catch up with Qhorin Halfhand. On the way she argues with Jon. After learning he's a Stark of Winterfell, she criticizing him for ignoring their common descent from the First Men. She states that the animosity of the southerners to the Wildlings is arbitrary, given that the Wildlings are only distinguished from them by living north of the Wall when it was constructed. She furthermore mocks Jon's sexual experience and the oath of the Night's Watch, and taunts him by offering to teach him how to have sex. She manages to escape again, and leads him into an Wildling ambush.

Ygritte brings Jon to the Lord of Bones who orders him executed. She convinces him that Mance will want to question Jon because of his Stark blood. The Lord of Bones has a prisoner of his own; Qhorin. The Halfhand tells Jon that the rest of the men were killed while they searched for him and angrily knocks Jon over. Ygritte is intrigued by the bad feeling between them

During their way back to Mance Rayder's camp, Ygritte playfully mocks Jon by tapping him on the back of the head with the flat side of his sword, Longclaw. Jon responds by saying she looks like a "baby with a rattle" and that she has "never swung a sword, have you?". Qhorin advances his plans of portraying Jon Snow as a traitor to the Night's Watch by attacking him. The Lord of Bones allows them to battle, and Ygritte passes Jon his sword. During the exchange, Jon slays Qhorin, who recites the oath of the Night's Watch to Jon in his last breath. Ygritte and the rest of the band are stunned. Jon's hands are freed, and he and Ygritte stand before Mance Rayder's encampment.

In the books
In the Song of Ice and Fire novels, Ygritte is a wildling spearwife in the force led by Mance Rayder. She is described as skinny, but well-muscled with a round face and a pug nose. Her most distintive feature is her crooked teeth and her fiery red hair. The wildlings consider red hair and those who have it to be 'kissed by fire', a sign of great luck and fortune.