Game of Thrones season 8: Jon Snow's claim to the Iron Throne, explained
Jon Snow, the grandson of Aegon I Targaryen and nephew of Daenerys Targaryen
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Your support makes all the difference.**Spoilers for Game of Thrones season eight, episode four “The Last of the Starks” below**
The Mad Queens meet again. After being enraged by the deaths of nearly everyone close to her, Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) finally looks set to storm King’s Landing to take the Iron Throne.
However, as Sansa (Sophie Turner), Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) and seemingly half of Westeros already know, Jon Snow has a stronger claim to the Iron Throne. How?
Jon Snow’s parents are not Ned Stark (Sean Bean) and a random woman, but Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark. Importantly, their relationship was declared official, as the two married in secret. They also named their son Aegon Targaryen (Jon's real name).
Rhaegar was the first son of Aegon I Targaryen, AKA The Mad King, meaning that Jon’s Grandad was the last Targaryen king of Westeros.
Despite Daenerys being the daughter of The Mad King, Jon’s sex makes him the actual heir to the Iron Throne (as Varys explains, having a “cock” is very important in Westeros law). So even if Jon bends the knee to his aunt, Daenerys, those who know of Jon’s true ancestry will understand that he has the better claim to the Throne.
How exactly this will play out during the final two episodes of Game of Thrones is anyone’s guess. You can read more about Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark here and about the significance of Jon Snow’s real name, Aegon Targaryen, here.
“The Last of the Starks” was described as “an oddly structured and not hugely satisfying episode” by The Independent‘s critic. The fourth episode of the show’s final season also saw Daenerys (Clarke) suffer some devastating losses after arriving in King’s Landing to face Cersei Lannister (Headey).
You can watch the intense new trailer for the penultimate episode of the show here. Click through the below gallery to see our extensive ranking of every character in the series – from worst to best – is below.
The final season of Game of Thrones continues every Sunday. The show is available on Sky Atlantic and NOW TV in the UK.
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