Jump to content

Are Acknowledged Bastards in the Line of Succession At All?


Arthur Dayne's Honor

Recommended Posts

legitimized bastards come after trueborn children, bastards who aren't legitimized aren't in the line of succession at all

acknowledged doesn't mean legitimized. Acknowledged bastards are like Jon Snow and Edric Storm. Their lord fathers came out and said "Hey this is my son." But they still have a bastard name .
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Actually, I think it's possible for a non-legitimized bastard to inherit, but the circumstances are typically pretty unusual. Didn't Bran consider making Larence Snow the heir to House Hornwood in aCoK?

yes I believe so. So I guess the answer to my question is that technically they aren't but if there aren't any others to inherit, like in the case of Larence Snow, it's not unheard of for the acknowledged bastard to be legitimized
Link to comment
Share on other sites

yes I believe so. So I guess the answer to my question is that technically they aren't but if there aren't any others to inherit, like in the case of Larence Snow, it's not unheard of for the acknowledged bastard to be legitimized

Well, yeah, I think generally bastards never inherit, unless the circumstances are pretty dire. Likely enough, any bastard that would inherit is probably legitimized first (since that's probably what the mechanic of legitimization exists for.)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

if all of the legit people in a House die off wouldn't the acknowledged child of the Lord of said house be legitimized .

Possibly.

When you consider everyone else dead it changes things, but I don't believe for example, Jon Snow was ever in the line of succession despite his acknowledgement and life in WF.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No, bastards have zero claim to their father's lands and titles. However sometimes they get it anyways if they happen to have a strong influence in their father's region.



Take Jon snow. If he didn't join the Night's watch and stayed in Winterfel until he was a full adult but one day all his family members just died off and there isn't a clear inheritor then its very possible he would have enough supporters to just take control. He might have to deal with some type of power struggle from a distant Stark relative but he could still win.



Same goes for Edric Storm. People really seemed to like him and if the Baratheon line died out then there's a good chance he could end up with Stormsend and it's lands.


Link to comment
Share on other sites

Actually, I think it's possible for a non-legitimized bastard to inherit, but the circumstances are typically pretty unusual. Didn't Bran consider making Larence Snow the heir to House Hornwood in aCoK?

He would surely get legitimized by Robb, wouldn't he?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

legitimized bastards come after trueborn children, bastards who aren't legitimized aren't in the line of succession at all

This is correct

Actually, I think it's possible for a non-legitimized bastard to inherit, but the circumstances are typically pretty unusual. Didn't Bran consider making Larence Snow the heir to House Hornwood in aCoK?

and only if all the heirs are dead...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is correct

and only if all the heirs are dead...

That may be correct. I think Martin said that it's actually more complicated than that in an SBS. That is, there are usually rules for inheriting and usually bastards aren't even considered, but the rules aren't as binding as they seem to be. The Blackfyre Rebellion occurred because a good portion of the realm decided to throw their lot in with a bastard, after all. Legitimized though he may be.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

GRRM confirmed that there is no rule about which order they come in. For example, if Jon Snow were legitimized by King Robert, he might (in theory) come before Robb as the eldest child, come after Rickon but before Sansa, or come after Arya. Sometimes it matters if all of the originally trueborn heirs are dead, but sometimes it doesn't. It depends entirely on what the powers that be want and there is no inherent logic or precedent that can be relied on as a rule of thumb.


Link to comment
Share on other sites

GRRM confirmed that there is no rule about which order they come in. For example, if Jon Snow were legitimized by King Robert, he might (in theory) come before Robb as the eldest child, come after Rickon but before Sansa, or come after Arya. Sometimes it matters if all of the originally trueborn heirs are dead, but sometimes it doesn't. It depends entirely on what the powers that be want and there is no inherent logic or precedent that can be relied on as a rule of thumb.

Which is why Jon's potential legitimization is so damn confusing when it comes to figuring out who the heir to Winterfell is.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Which is why Jon's potential legitimization is so damn confusing when it comes to figuring out who the heir to Winterfell is.

It's confusing on purpose though! When the dust clears and someone takes control, they will decide what is most politically advantageous for them. Jeyne Poole? Jon Snow? Bran Stark? Rickon Stark? Sansa Stark? You can pick any heir you want as long as you have a big army.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's confusing on purpose though! When the dust clears and someone takes control, they will decide what is most politically advantageous for them. Jeyne Poole? Jon Snow? Bran Stark? Rickon Stark? Sansa Stark? You can pick any heir you want as long as you have a big army.

Oh, I quite agree. It makes discussions of the future of the Starks all the more lively, too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...