Summary
- Family wealth, location, and allies determine the best family to be born into in Game of Thrones. Warm climates, lots of money, peace, and allies are key factors.
- House Frey gained wealth through tolls, avoiding wars over land or resources, despite the disdain from other noble houses.
- House Stark enjoyed wealth and power but couldn't escape the challenges of long winters and political troubles that nearly wiped out their family.
In the world of Game of Thrones, family is everything. Being born into a rich southern family means a life of relative comfort away from the struggles of poverty and deadly winter. On the other hand, being born into a poor family from the North means a difficult life of toil, drudgery, and cold.
A family's wealth, location, and allies all factor into which one would be the best to be born into. Being born into a rich and powerful family of Westeros would be great, unless they are facing uprisings, wars, assassinations, or broken alliances. The Starks, a fan-favorite family in Game of Thrones, would be better off than most, but facing the years-long winter is a grim prospect even for them. The best families to be born into are in warm climates with lots of money, peace, and allies.
11 House Frey
Wealth From Tolls, Not Battle
For hundreds of years, House Frey was not in charge of any of the Seven Kingdoms or even the Riverlands where they lived. They served House Tully until betraying them during the Red Wedding when they became the Lords Paramount of the Riverlands.
The Frey family's seat of power is The Twins, castles standing on either side of a long bridge, which is the only way to cross the Trident River for hundreds of miles. The Frey family became wealthy off the tolls from crossing their bridge without needing to fight wars over land or resources. While many of the Noble Houses look down on the Freys, it does not hurt to be in a wealthy family where war is a rarity.
10 House Stark
Wealth, Honor, And Legacy
The Stark family are some of the most beloved characters from A Song of Ice and Fire since many of the main characters are Starks. They were the Kings in the North and later served the Targaryens as a Noble House once the Seven Kingdoms were united.
Game Of Thrones: 10 Things You Didn't Know About House Stark
The Stark Family was the primarily focus in Game of Thrones, but there are some unknown facts that fans might not know about.
For centuries, the Starks enjoyed wealth and power far greater than most families, living in relative warmth and luxury in Winterfell. However, not even the Starks can escape the challenges of winters that last for years at a time or the political troubles that nearly led to the eradication of their family line.
9 House Targaryen
Royalty & Dragon Riders, But At A Cost Of Sanity
House Targaryen was a noble family in the powerful nation of Valyria for centuries before Aegon the Conqueror united Westeros into Seven Kingdoms under his rule. Seventeen Targaryen men ruled as king before House Baratheon overthrew them. During this time, the family endured multiple rebellions and crises but still lived in luxury and safety in King's Landing.
In addition to the troubles that a ruling family faces, the Targaryens have a genetic proclivity for mental illness, likely partially caused by inbreeding. While many would trade anything to have the luxurious life of royalty, the cost of being a Targaryen might just be too high.
8 House Arryn
Safety, Wealth, and Natural Protection
House Arryn rules over a fertile and well-protected region called the Vale of Arryn. It is relatively isolated from the rest of the Seven Kingdoms because the Mountains of the Moon are impassable in colder weather. While inconvenient, this isn't a problem for the Valemen because the region is fertile enough to be relatively self-sufficient and has access to the sea through Gulltown.
While winter brings its troubles to the snowy mountains of the Vale, the mountains serve as a natural fortress. Their defensible position has led House Arryn to stay out of conflict, even when their leader was killed. With great wealth and protection from enemies, the drawbacks of life in the mountains are minimized by being an Arryn.
7 House Baratheon
The Greatest Castle In A Great Place
House Baratheon was founded during Aegon's Conquest and only grew in power and importance. Ruling over the Stormlands in southern Westeros, they control a large portion of land that is mostly temperate rainforest. Storm's End is one of the mightiest fortresses in the known world, and so the Baratheons are safe from enemy armies in addition to winter's wrath.
One would think that being a Baratheon would be great after Robert's Rebellion when they became royalty, but this would have been the worst time to be a member of their family. Living in Storm's End as a vassal to the Targaryens, safe inside Storm's End would be much better.
6 House Tully
The Love Of The People & A Great Location
Since there was not a king in the Riverlands before the Targaryen conquest, the region was not considered one of the Seven Kingdoms. However, as the unofficial "eighth kingdom", it is a region of vital importance. It shares borders with five of the Seven Kingdoms, which left it vulnerable to attack in the days before unification, but also ensures that commerce flows through it.
House Tully rules over these lands from a castle called Riverrun, which sits where two branches of the Trident River meet. In times of trouble, sluice gates in the castle can be opened to turn Riverrun into an island and make it nearly impossible to be captured. In addition, House Tully is closer to the people it rules over than many of the Great Houses, earning respect, love, and loyalty from many of them. The Tullys have many of the benefits of the other Great Houses but with fewer targets on their backs.
5 House Lannister
Power From Riches Beyond Any Other
"Hear Me Roar" are the official words of House Lannister but more people know the saying "A Lannister always pays his debts" because of their enormous wealth. The Lannisters of Casterly Rock have more money than any other family in Westeros and their money has earned them a great deal of power (even after their coffers were revealed to be secretly empty after The War of the Five Kings).
Their home is a castle considered impregnable called Casterly Rock, which sits on a high cliff above the western coast. Historically, being a Lannister means a life of luxury and safety, despite the family's troubles with Ironborn raiders.
4 House Hightower
Prestige, Riches, And Legacy
Oldtown is the home of important Westeros institutions such as the Maesters' Citadel and the Starry Sept. Off its coast sits a lighthouse that stands taller than the Wall and shares a name with House Hightower. Maesters send white ravens from here to signal the changing of seasons.
House Hightower has presided over this city for centuries, and so they have accumulated a great deal of wealth and prestige. They have more soldiers than any of their fellow Tyrell bannermen and are said to be as wealthy as the Lannisters. A lordly life in the second-largest city on the continent so close to prestigious institutions would be better than the lives of nearly everyone in Westeros.
3 House Martell
Cultural Independence With Unique Powers
Dorne was the only region in all of Westeros able to withstand Aegon the Conqueror and his dragons. House Martell's words, "Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken" reflect the fact that their lands have never been conquered by any outside force. House Martell eventually allied with the Targaryens through marriage, which granted them the unique position of being a semi-autonomous province.
The sons and daughters of House Martell are still called 'princes' and 'princesses' because of this arrangement, and their family is still allowed its custom of granting power to the eldest child regardless of his or her gender. In addition to these benefits, House Martell is not threatened by winter or the Long Night in the same way as the rest of the continent because it is so far South. Dealing with the desert heat is an easy price to pay for such a unique combination of political, geographical, and cultural independence.
2 House Tyrell
The Best Land In Westeros
The Reach is the breadbasket of Westeros, teeming with blooming crops and flowers. It is also the most populated region of the continent, likely as a result of its mild weather and ability to produce so much food. Like other Great Houses, the Tyrells ascended to lordship by helping Aegon the Conqueror.
They live in Highgarden, a castle at the juncture of several major roads, and make a great deal of money through the trade that flows through the region. The Tyrells have kept peace by siding with the most likely winners of conflicts like Robert's Rebellion and Aegon's Conquest and then bending the knee when it is clear that they backed the wrong horse. The lush green fields of the Reach, along with the abundance of people, food, and trade make the lives of all Tyrells comfortable and happy.
- First Episode Air Date
- April 17, 2011
- First TV Show
- Game Of Thrones
- Where to watch
- HBO Max