The Battle of the Bastards may have inadvertently caused a power vacuum in the North. With Ramsay Bolton now comfortably resting inside his dogs’ stomachs, someone needs to take his place as the next Warden of the North. Typically, the king would appoint a new Warden, but King Tommen is preoccupied with the trial of his mother Cersei Lannister and his brother in law Ser Loras Tyrell. So assuming that Tommen is a bit busy to stabilize the North, who will step up to lead the largest of the Seven Kingdoms?
The obvious answer is one of two Stark siblings now residing in Winterfell. The Starks have ruled the North since the earliest days of Westeros, presiding as the Kings of the North until the Targeryan Conquest. After King Robert Baratheon’s death, the Northern houses declared Robb Stark as new King of the North, but his reign was tragically cut off at the Red Wedding.
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With Bran missing in action and Tommen a victim of the Battle of the Bastards, Sansa is technically the next Stark in line. Sansa has shown her leadership skills all season, pushing her half-brother Jon Snow into taking back Winterfell with the help of his wildling army. She also made the critical decision to request Littlefinger’s aid just before the battle, leading to the Knights of the Vale arriving just as the Stark army was beginning to falter. If the traditional rules of succession hold, the North technically belongs to Sansa.
However, it was Jon Snow’s military acumen that brought Ramsey Bolton’s reign of terror to the end. Jon Snow also already has leadership experience, as a former Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch. And as we’ve seen with both the Night’s Watch, the wildlings and Ser Davos and Melisandre, Snow has a certain stoic charisma to him that attracts willing followers to his side. And if Snow’s parentage isn’t as certain as many Game of Thrones fans believe, he could conceivably jump over Sansa as the rightful heir of Winterfell.
Besides Jon and Sansa, there are a few other Starks to consider. Bran Stark is technically still the ruler of Winterfell and the North, although many believe him to still be dead. Bran is being led south by his uncle Benjen Stark, who would also be a candidate to rule the North…if he weren’t a reanimated zombie resurrected by the White Walkers.
There’s also the scheming Petyr Baelish to consider. Petyr completed his takeover the Vale via his puppet Robin Arryn and he’s long lusted over Sansa, the daughter of his late unrequited love Catelyn Stark. Baelish is also technically still loyal to the Lannisters, even though he’s been scheming to put Sansa back in Winterfell for several years. Could King Tommen appoint Baelish as the new Warden of the North, putting him in unofficial control of two of the Seven Kingdoms?
Whoever winds up taking control of the North will have a tall task on their hands. Winter is coming and with it the undead armies of the White Walkers. A new leader of the North emerge in tonight’s episode, but they’ll have to move fast if they want to have a long reign.
“The Winds of Winter” airs tonight at 9 PM/8 PM Central.
