What was the Biggest Cause of Robb's Demise

[Celtic Cross]

The biggest cause of the North's (and Robb's) demise in the war was Renly dying and the Tyrell army defecting to the Lannisters. Nothing else really has the same impact.

 

Look at the Lannister position during the beginning of the war - bleak is an understatement. They were facing the Starks and Tullys to the north and Baratheons/Tyrells to the South and East. They were outnumbered something like three or four to one (if not more), Jaime had just been captured by Robb, King's Landing was being starved out by Renly.

After Renly died, the Lannisters gained the Tyrell army and went from being against the majority to having the majority. Further, Stannis would've had a better shot at winning at Blackwater if not for the Tyrells aiding the Lannisters. I think some people forget just how impactful Renly being taken out of the equation and Stannis losing at Blackwater really were.

[Stag_legion]

The main reason was that Stannis and Renly were unable to beat Lanisters. Walder Frey would not switch sides if Baratheons were winning the war.

This pretty much. Robb alone never had a chance, and once stannis was removed from the picture he was done for.

[Blackfish Tully]

Robb's biggest mistake was sending peace terms to Cersai/Tyrion. When you're the leader of an army you send terms to the opposing army's leader. And more importantly you send those terms to the person who weilds the true power,which in this case was Tywin. If he proposed exchanging Jaime for Sansa and Arya along with swapping other prisoners and then saying he would take his army back north and returned to winterfell as the warden of the north,Tywin might have agreed.Because as far as Tywin was concerned,Stannis was a bigger concern.

Of course Tywin would agree to those terms . He gets Robb Stark and his army off the board and Jamie back and has to give up pretty much nothing to do it.. That deal would be one of the best things that could happen for him but the fact he does not have Arya would be an issue . The question would be why would Robb ever make that deal? At that point Robb was winning and there was zero reason to make a deal with Tywin. He could have probably made a straight up trade Sansa for Jamie , but agreeing to go back North was not something he would have done at that point. 

[desire]

Having Catelyn Tully as a mother

[sarah.jenice]

Bad PR

[thelittledragonthatcould]

Having Catelyn Tully as a mother

Yup. If only Cat was Robb;s father instead of mother that House would be in a much stronger position and not the complete mess that happened with Ned and Robb at the helm.

[Lord of Westeros]

He married Jeyne Westerling, end of story.

[desire]

Yup. If only Cat was Robb;s father instead of mother that House would be in a much stronger position and not the complete mess that happened with Ned and Robb at the helm.

If only Lysa was his mother I have always wondered 

[kimim]

The biggest cause of the North's (and Robb's) demise in the war was Renly dying and the Tyrell army defecting to the Lannisters. Nothing else really has the same impact.

...

This. You can blame Robb, but the primary reason for his defeat was the shadow baby that killed Renly. At that point, the Tyrells go over to the Lannisters. Even a Stannis-Robb alliance might have fallen to the Tyrells at KL.

[Winter's Cold]

Yup. If only Cat was Robb;s father instead of mother that House would be in a much stronger position and not the complete mess that happened with Ned and Robb at the helm.

Catelyn captured Tyrion against Ned Stark's express orders, advised Robb to put Bolton in charge of his foot army, told Ned to trust Littlefinger, advised Ned to go to King's Landing, alienated Jon Snow, Robb's most trustworthy friend, and she freed Jaime. She is the second most responsible person for House Stark's demise.

[thelittledragonthatcould]

Catelyn captured Tyrion against Ned Stark's express orders,

Well that did'nt happen in the books.

advised Robb to put Bolton in charge of his foot army,

For one battle. Not for the next six months. Cat thought it was about freeing Ned and her daughters she didn't realize that Robb was going to ignore his sisters peril for a shiny crown.

 

No one forced Robb to leave Roose in charge and basically do nothing for half a year.

 

told Ned to trust Littlefinger,

But she didn't tell him to trust ONLY Littlefinger. Ned could have confided in Renly or even Bronze Yohn about what was happening. Ned could have not sent his own guards to help arrest Gregor.

Trusting Littlefinger was not to much the problem distrusting everyone else was. That was not Cat's fault.

 

advised Ned to go to King's Landing,

Which was the correct thing to do. Robert was an emotional child who would have taken offence after dragging 300 people a few thousand miles to ask Ned to be Hand.

 

Telling him no and pissing him off was not an option.

 

 alienated Jon Snow,

Boo Hoo!

 

Robb's most trustworthy friend,

No, that was Theon. The person who Cat told Robb to keep with him rather than send him on his way.

and she freed Jaime.

He should have been exchanged for Sansa at the start of the war.

 

 

She is the second most responsible person for House Stark's demise.

Not by a long shot.

[Damsel in Distress]

1. Robb's immaturity.  He betrayed his allies. 
2. Catelyn's betrayal.  She let Jaime go.

[kimim]

Well that did'nt happen in the books.

...

Sorry to mutilate your post but all this, ty. There's plenty of blame to go around, and singling out Cat is ridiculous.

What would have happened had Robb listened to his mother?

--He would keep Theon, and would keep Winterfell.

--He would keep Karstark.

--Bran and Rickon would be safe, which means Cat wouldn't release Jaime

--He would marry a Frey.

--He would still lose the war of the five kings

 I'll assume Robb wouldn't bend the knee to Tywin. Would Bolton and/or Freys assassinate him? Would he be able to return to Winterfell? Would his decision to crown himself help or hurt him in the North?