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Q1:

At the end of season 7, Jon Snow refused to commit to staying in the north and not taking up arms against the Throne. Everyone in Daenerys' party thought that his integrity was too costly under the circumstances because it gave Cersei a reason to back out of an armistice.

Given the discovery that Jon had a Targaryen claim to the throne which was senior to Daenerys' claim, if Jon did make that pledge, would it not amount to giving up Targaryen's claim to the throne altogether? Wouldn't it reduce Daenerys' claim as well?

Or, rather, would his claim only extend to his function as "King of the North"?

Q2:

Sansa presses Dani, at the end of s08e02, trying to commit Dani to recognize that the North is free.

But, if Dani succeeds in taking the Iron Throne, given that Jon has Targaryen lineage, and that he was named "the king of the North", wouldn't that make the North pledged to the Throne because it is pledged to Targaryens?

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closed as too broad by Paulie_D, TheLethalCarrot, BCdotWEB, Luciano, Daeron Apr 24 at 22:51

Please edit the question to limit it to a specific problem with enough detail to identify an adequate answer. Avoid asking multiple distinct questions at once. See the How to Ask page for help clarifying this question. If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.

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    Is your question "If Jon had said he'd stay in the North (which he didn't) would that affect his claim?" If so not only is the question completely hypothetical the answer is almost certainly "no". – TheLethalCarrot Apr 24 at 13:11
  • Dani doesn't seem to think that Jon has preserved her claim to the the throne. – Raj Apr 24 at 13:20
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    @TheLethalCarrot Cersei asked Jon to pledge neutrality in the dispute between the 2 queens. It wasn't just a pledge to "stay in the North." It was also a pledge of neutrality. – grovkin Apr 24 at 13:25
  • @Raj, maybe she hasn't thought it through, yet. And no one has pointed this out to her just yet. But I am not familiar with the lore. So I don't know what quirks there are in their right of succession. – grovkin Apr 24 at 13:27
  • @grovkin And? A pledge can be withdrawn at anytime, Cersei might use it to deny Jon a claim later but in the same vein Jon supporters could just act like it never existed. All that matters, at the end of it, is who can take the throne by force. A legitimate claim isn't really necessary at the end of it all. – TheLethalCarrot Apr 24 at 13:35
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In regards to the first question; if Jon did agree not to attempt to remove Cersei Lannister from the throne, he would be giving up his personal claim to the throne as long as it was held by the Baratheon name.

This in no way would affect Dani's claim to the throne, as they exist separately in this instance, each having the right to claim it for themselves, even against each other.

For the second question, the North is currently not free, as their ruler gave up their freedom for the military support against a common enemy. Sansa's pressing of Dani is basically saying "my people want to be free, and if we survive, they still may want to be free. Be aware that my people are my priority, and you should know that we don't trust southern rulers".

Now if Jon were to take the throne, the North wouldn't be separate from the 7 kingdoms for the same reason they separated in the first place. The North follows Jon Snow. To directly answer your question, "No". Just because their "King in the North" is a Targaryen doesn't mean that they will fall in line with any Targaryen on the throne.

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  • So if Jon were to take the Throne, he would be the king of both, but separate, kingdoms? – grovkin Apr 24 at 14:22
  • No. In this case, the north would be pledged to their king, who is also the king of the other 6 kingdoms. That being said, there are 7 separate kingdoms with their own traditions and customs, but all pledge loyalty in different tiers to one ruling family. Now if Dani takes the throne, her and Jon do not marry, and she agrees to allow the north to remain a free ally, the north would pledge support to the queen, but not be under her rule. Is any of that unclear? – Lord mat1000 Apr 24 at 14:26
  • Who would be 1st in line to succeed Jon, as the King in the North? If both Dani and Sansa survive the coming battle (and for the sake of example, Jon doesn't)? – grovkin Apr 24 at 14:45
  • For the Iron Throne, Dani would be the next in line, as she would be the last Targeryan. Sansa being a Stark would still simply be lady of Winterfell, as Bran would have first choice to become King in the North, should his people support that action. However, seeing as Jon was elected to be King in the North, their next King would be by vote again. Until that time however, the North would do what they always do when they have no ruler; defer to the Stark family. – Lord mat1000 Apr 24 at 15:02

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