Vassals opinion of Eddard stark

[History]

Was eddard stark a good head of house stark/lord of the north or did his time as ward of jon arryn and marriage to catelyn tully turned him into a southerner in his vassals eyes?

[Faera]

I'd say so for the most part. There's no suggestion that his marriage to Catelyn did any more than disappoint that generation of fathers that their own daughters wouldn't be Lady of Winterfell and fostering outside the North isn't an unknown practice as many other houses practice it.

They essentially started a war in order to get Eddard back when he was in prison, so they also had faith they'd probably get some nice rewards for their loyalty as well.

We never see any evidence that the principle bannermen were displeased with Eddard Stark's rule. Manderly, Umber, Karstark, Reed, Flint, Mormont, Glover and Cerwyn are the principle houses of their areas and they seem to feel Eddard carried on the centuries of just Stark rule. Barbary Dustin dislikes the Starks, especially Ned, but that's due to a personal gripe. The Boltons disliked the Starks but there were centuries of distrust between the two families.

As for the lower houses and minor vassals... I suppose their attitudes reflects their principle lords.

[Walda]

Well, we know that Jorah had a certain contempt for Eddard Stark, although the familiar way he vouches for Eddard's honour indicates that he at least did not regard Eddard as a Southerner 

Quote

“Ned Stark a traitor?” Ser Jorah snorted. “Not bloody likely. The Long Summer will come again before that one would besmirch his precious honor.”

(ACoK, Ch.27 Daenerys II)

Ser Rodrik pointed out to Bran at the harvest feast that a man does not cross a hundred leagues for a sliver of duck and a cup of wine. So we know Lord Manderly did not come to Winterfell on that occasion from merely the love of his liege. He appears to be a Stark loyalist to the core, and, from his little Wylla's fervour, to have regarded the son of Eddard Stark as the embodiment of the North.

Although there are other parts of his candid conversation with Davos that reveal other loyalties. For example he refers to Rhaegar Frey as "that smirking worm who wears a dragon’s name", and the Dragonknight is as much a hero to him as Symon Star-Eyes. That he is talking to Davos at all reveals a willingness to show some kind of limited fealty to Stannis.

White Harbor is closer to the Vale than most parts of the North, just a short sail away from Sistertown and the Fingers. Lord Borell of Sweetsister warns Davos that Manderly wasn't a Northerner, deep down. Borell himself remembers the depredations of the Starks and the Arryns from two thousand years ago, mutinous against both. But both Borell and Manderly share a personal loyalty to Eddard Stark since Robert's Rebellion

Quote

Our maester chuckled at me and told us that Prince Rhaegar was certain to defeat this rebel. That was when Stark said, ‘In this world only winter is certain. We may lose our heads, it’s true … but what if we prevail?’ My father sent him on his way with his head still on his shoulders. ‘If you lose,’ he told Lord Eddard, ‘you were never here.’ ”

(ADwD, Ch.09 Davos I)

So in the case of Lords Manderley and Borell, Eddard's relationship with them, it seems his time in the Vale, if anything, strengthened their loyalties to Eddard as the Stark of Winterfell. It brought him closer to them, by making him someone who needed their (secret) aid. 

Karstarks regard themselves more as family to the Starks than lieges, although they marched to war under Robb's banner more for the love of war and plunder than for the love of Eddard Stark, and they treat their enemies with less malevolence than their kin. Rickard Karstark reminds Robb with his dying breath that the Gods will forgive him for destroying every hope of a peace between the North and the Lannisters sooner than they would forgive Robb for executing him for treason. So clearly they regard Robb (and by extension, Eddard) as absolutely of the North. During his time as warden, Eddard seems to have managed to keep Karstark in check - apart from an unsuccessful attempt to make his six year old daughter seduce Robb, we know of no Karstark attempt to undermine Eddard's authority or dispute his claims as Lord of Winterfell.

Likewise, the Umbers seem doubtful friends, but not doubtful of Eddard as their liege, or his legitimacy as the Stark in Winterfell. It is Robb the boy they try it on for.

The Cerwyns, Hornwoods, Tallharts, and Glovers seem to have all accepted Eddard as the Stark in Winterfell absolutely, from long tradition and neighbourliness. Roose Bolton never gave him cause for complaint, although all his neighbours have some misgivings about the Lord of the Dreadfort.

We know that Eddard had been a cold and aloof leader, obsessed with honour. That he had been planning a great battle against the wildling beyond the wall, before Robert called on him to be Hand of the King.  That he dined with the Flints and the Norreys, the Buckets and the Wulls, so they were bound to him personally, as well as through blood ties from his great-grandparents era. They too regarded him as a great Northerner. 

The exception seems to be Lady Dustin. Not because Eddard's time in the Vale made him less a Northerner in her eyes, but because she despised him. Although her admitted reasons for despising him are selfish and petty - because she was not the daughter of a Southern lord important enough to offer an army with his bride that would otherwise be denied him. Or because her husband's bones were left by Eddard far in the south,in the red wastes of Dorne, while his sister's were important enough for him to carry home. Either Lady Dustin has craftier motives that she is hiding from Theon, or she blames Eddard for herself being born into the lesser nobility of the North, and being more partial to his own loved ones than hers. Not very reasonable or sensible.

TL:DR Eddard does not appear to have been viewed as a Southerner by his vassels, and he does seem to have kept his troublesome vassels pulling together when he gathered their banners for war, and reasonably peaceable when the war was over, for 18 years after.

[Stormking902]

It seems Lord Eddard was respected and feared (Roose) by all of his Vassals, Great Jon thinks of Ned as an old friend, Manderly are fiercely loyal, Howland Reed loves Ned, he sat down for dinner with even the smallest of Northern houses which they all loved him for. The Starks and Lannisters seem to be very well loved and or feared enough for all there Vassals to stay loyal. Roose only abandoned Robb when he knew Robb lost and used the opportunity to advance his house as far as possible. 

[John Suburbs]

I think that when Ned returned to Winterfell after the death of his father at, what, 19?, 20?, then called his banners and marched south to overthrow a dragon king he gained the respect of all the northern lords. And in the following years, they may not have agreed with all of his decisions but at least he was a straight-shooter and a man of his word, which is all anyone should expect from their lord.

[BRANDON GREYSTARK]

They loved him . The Starks was more a king to his vassals than any Targaryen king .

[The Sunland Lord]

The Ned was probably the most liked liege lord by his vassals. 

[Alexis-something-Rose]

The northmen are risking everything to rescue Arya in ADWD and those that are at Winterfell are there because they thought she was there. I think it says everything about the level of respect everyone had for Ned.

[Dorian Martell's son]

On 5/16/2018 at 8:30 PM, History said:

Was eddard stark a good head of house stark/lord of the north or did his time as ward of jon arryn and marriage to catelyn tully turned him into a southerner in his vassals eyes?

everybody loved the ned save barbry dustin 

[Hugorfonics]

5 minutes ago, Dorian Martell's son said:

everybody loved the ned save barbry dustin 

And other Ryswells, and Roose, that we know of.

To the OP. He's a Lord. Vassals love their Lord, or at least act like it. Lady Westerling put her daughter's feelings behind Tywins plans. Florent fought for Maces friend, instead of their own family. The Dornish scream for their sandsnakes while the Ironborn mourn their king, etc.

All houses have patriots. The North may be more then other lands but I'd say it's more to do with The Stark, then The Ned

[John Suburbs]

I'm not entirely convinced that Barbie's Ned-hate speech to Theon was on the level. I suspect that the purpose of that little trip to the crypts was to cover the tracks of whomever was coming into the castle via a secret entrance. It wouldn't do to have a single line of footprints suddenly appear in the snow, and they need to remove all the debris from the door anyway. So what better way to accomplish that than have Lady D concoct a story about hating Ned Stark and checking the crypts to make sure his bones haven't returned?

And it was right after that that the murders began.