Between Gendry Baratheon, the bastard son of the king, and Jon Snow, the last Targaryen, who would have more claim to Game of Thrones‘ Iron Throne?
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Gendry is the bastard son of King Robert Baratheon, who inherited all his father’s titles after he was legitimised and was appointed the new Warden of the South. His mother was a tavern wench, and after she died, he became a blacksmith. He met, befriended, fell in love with and eventually proposed to Arya Stark. He is one of the more enjoyable characters from Game of Thrones. However, several fans were curious about how much of a claim Gendry Baratheon actually had to the Iron Throne and whether that surpassed Jon Snow’s claim.
Gendry’s Claim to the Iron Throne
Robert Baratheon won his seat on the Iron Throne as his place as the King of Westeros by right of conquest, meaning that he and his heirs have a legitimate claim to the Iron Throne and have replaced the Targaryens as the royal family.
The problems for Gendry come in with his mother. Until Daenerys Targaryen legitimises him at the end of the series, Gendry had no claim to the Iron Throne. He didn’t even have a bastard surname because his father never acknowledged him (mainly because Robert Baratheon had no idea he existed). So Gendry probably had the least claim to the Iron Throne.
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Jon Snow’s Claim to the Iron Throne
Jon is a different story. He was never a bastard but the legitimate heir to Rheagar Targaryen, the oldest of the Mad King’s three legitimate children. Had it not been for the murder of the Mad King and the usurping of House Targaryen, Rheagar would have been the rightful (and direct) heir to the Iron Throne.
His claim to the throne is stronger because almost the entire Baratheon line is dead. All of Robert’s “legitimate” children died without heirs of their own. Stannis and Shireen are dead, as well as Renly. With no descendants of the new royal family left to stake their claim on the Iron Throne, the rule should once again be returned to House Targaryen. It also helps that Robert staked his claim to the Iron Throne by using the fact that he was heir to House Targaryen through his grandmother, the younger sister of Daenerys’ grandfather.
One could argue that putting Jon on the Iron Throne would simply be restoring the way of things. Technically speaking, the Seven Kingdoms have been rebelling against House Targaryen since Robert first began his rebellion. Putting a Targaryen on the Throne (Jon or even Daenerys) would officially end the years-long rebellion.
Both men have issues standing in the way of their claim to the Iron Throne, but as the son of the heir of the Mad King, Jon Snow has a much better claim to it than Gendry does. Even Daenerys has a better claim to the Iron Throne than Gendry, primarily because she is a full-blooded Targaryen.
It would probably matter more if either man actually wanted the Iron Throne, but that doesn’t appear to be the case.
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TL;DR
- Fans wondered if Gendry has a stronger claim to the Iron Throne than Jon Snow.
- The fact that he is a bastard and his father’s lack of acknowledgement puts a lot of holes in his claim to the Throne.
- As a direct heir, Jon has a significantly better claim.
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