Jon Snow 💭

“Every man who walks the earth casts a shadow on the world. Some are thin and weak, others long and dark. You should look behind you, Lord Snow. The moon has kissed you and etched your shadow upon the ice twenty feet tall."

– Jon VI, A Dance With Dragons #asoiaf

These are the circumstances of Jon Snow's birth according to #r+l=J theory. Next time, we will look at the many, MANY pieces of textual evidence from that very first novel, A Game of Thrones.

Eddard travels to the seat of House Dayne, castle Starfall, the nearest stronghold where he could hope to acquire help, to secure a wetnurse and some proper care for a very young child. Dayne's wetnurse Wylla cares for the baby, whom Ned names Jon. Only Eddard Stark and Howland Reed know the truth.

Because the baby's identity must be concealed for his safety + he already has a Stark look + Ned bringing any random orphan baby back to enjoy the comforts and privileges of being raised and educated in Winterfell would be suspect, Ned claims Jon to be his own bastard son conceived during the war.

Ned Stark enters the Tower to find his sister Lyanna dying of a fever following postpartum complications. She entrusts her newborn son to him, extracting from Ned a promise to care for him, raise him, and protect him from the wrath of Robert Baratheon and other enemies of Rhaegar or the Targaryens.

Ned Stark arrives to the Tower of Joy with six companions. There three knights of the Kingsguard confirm his sister's presence but bar his entry: they were charged with protecting Prince Rhaegar's son. After the battle only Eddard Stark and his bannerman Howland Reed are left standing.

In 283 AC Rhaegar emerges to lead royalist forces against the rebels in the Battle of the Trident, during which he's killed by Robert Baratheon. The victory of the rebels is assured, after sack of King's Landing and deaths of Rhaegar's children Eddard Stark travels to Dorne to search for his sister.

Robert's Rebellion begins after the crown executes Lyanna's father and older brother, and calls for the heads of her brother Eddard Stark and fiancee Robert Baratheon. Rhaegar and Lyanna are absent for much of the rebellion, thus there is ample time for a conception and a full-term pregnancy.

Married Rhaegar's crowning of a betrothed Lyanna as the Queen of Love and Beauty causes much scandal, further straining the relations between the Targaryen royal family and some of the Great Houses of Westeros.
Around 282 Rhaegar and Lyanna disappear together and travel to Tower of Joy in Dorne.

Now to the theory: The circumstances of Jon's birth according to r+l=j

Crown prince Rhaegar Targaryen meets Lyanna Stark during the Tourney at Harrenhall in 281 AC, where they make a connection, possibly following Lyanna's heroics as the Knight of the Laughing Tree.

Since when: #r+l=J is one of the oldest and most enduring ASOIAF theories. Since the publication of A Game of Thrones in 1996 readers have been gathering evidence to support this theory, there are archives of chatrooms, forum posts, and websites from late 90s and 00s speculating as much.

the few main characters at this point to correctly identify and begin fighting the ultimate threat of the series, the supernatural White Walkers. Jon both contains and subverts many genre tropes of a "lost prince hero" character archetype, so the reader yearns to uncover more about this hero's past.

uncovers the secret of King Robert's bastards and the Lannister bastards who are in line for the throne, the reader is invited to speculate on the identity of Ned's own claimed bastard son. As Jon Snow gains more and more import and agency as a character, the speculation grows, because Jon is one of

Why: the POV structure and plot structure of the novel A Game of Thrones draws attention to the matter of bastardy, showing that it can be a matter of great sociopolitical upheaval if just the right bastard is born to just the right people. Ned's POV chapters only reinforce the notion, as he

What: a very old, extensive, widely supported fan theory that Jon Snow is not, in fact, the bastard son of Eddard Stark as he grew up believing, but child of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark, born in the Tower of Joy in Dorne near the end of Robert's Rebellion, entrusted to Ned's care by Lyanna.

Jon Snow's parents: The Lyanna and Rhaeghar theory masterthread. PART 1

#jonsnow #asoiaf #r+l=J

source: www.tumblr.com/icesalamande...

Ned, Jon, Catelyn and Robb in the godswood by icesalamander #asoiaf

he's allowed to have an opinion 😤 #asoiaf #jonsnow

Quoted from “Interview with the Dragon” Art-lycorim #gameofthrones #houseofthedragon #asoiaf #jonsnow #daenerystargaryen #daemontargaryen #rhaenyratargaryen TikTok video by SMWeirwood

GRRM on Jon Snow and Ghost

Jon IV, A Game Of Thrones

He was who he was; Jon Snow, bastard and oathbreaker, motherless, friendless, and damned.

-- Jon IX, A Game Of Thrones

www.tumblr.com/snowsource/1...

He had a weirwood’s eyes. Red eyes, red mouth, white fur. Blood and bone, like a heart tree.

www.tumblr.com/amaati/18111...

“Corn,” the bird said, and, “King,” and, “Snow, Jon Snow, Jon Snow.” - ADWD #asoiaf

just a twinge of cosmic angst “Robb will rule, you will serve. Men will call you a crow. Him they'll call Your Grace. Singers will praise every little thing he does, while your greatest deeds all go unsung." - ACOK “Jon is the o…

Link: www.tumblr.com/buildoblivio...

Jon Snow by buildoblivion

“They do,” mused Alleras, the Sphinx, “and if there are dragons in the world again …” “Dragons and darker things,” said Leo. “The grey sheep have closed their eyes, but the mastiff sees the truth. Old powers waken. Shadows stir. An age of wonder and terror will soon be upon us, an age for gods and heroes.” He stretched, smiling his lazy smile. “That’s worth a round, I’d say.”

– ProIogue, A Feast For Crows #asoiaf

Source: www.tumblr.com/shebsart