Unsurprisingly, for a series about the battle to rule, Game of Thrones sees plenty of people take the crown over the course of eight seasons. Some of these rulers actually sat on the Iron Throne itself while others simply grabbed an army and declared themselves King (or Queen), but all of them have ruled in Westeros.
However, this list does not include leaders (who may or may not be considered 'rulers') who were not in Westeros - the Dothraki and Khal Drogo or the rulers of Mereen are not included, nor is Mance Rayder - because although he is the 'King Beyond The Wall', the Wildlings do not kneel the way the southerners do. However, from the War of the Five Kings to Cersei's ill-fated children, these are all the rulers of Westeros, ranked from best to worse (and taking into account the events of the series, not the books).
13 Sansa Stark
The Queen in the North, Sansa is an impressive ruler - even if fans didn't get to see much of it. She's learned warfare and battle tactics, as well as manipulation and how to play politics from some of the best in the realm, and she has taken a throne for a Kingdom that she understands and loves deeply. Her people love her, too, making her the best ruler on the show.
12 Bran Stark
Potentially an even better ruler than Sansa is her brother Bran, who ends the series as the ruler of the Six Kingdoms... however, it's difficult to really know how great he will be, given that (like Sansa) there's barely any time to see him rule. However, as the Three-Eyed Raven, Bran has the combined knowledge of the entire history of Westeros, and is incapable of being swayed by emotion, which are powerful attributes in a King.
11 Renly Baratheon
Renly's rule was cut too short to really know how capable he would have been, however, he seemed a decent ruler (admittedly one who was a little too pleasure-seeking for some). He was willing to marry for politics rather than love, and was forming some solid battle plans before Stannis and Melisandre murdered him.
10 Tommen Baratheon
Tommen, like Renly, didn't exactly rule for long enough for fans to make a proper judgment. Unlike his brother Joffrey, he seemed decent, and with Margaery there to guide him, Tommen had the potential to become a great King, in time.
However, his mother's murderous actions robbed him of his wife, and led to the end of his brief reign.
9 Jon Snow
Jon Snow was briefly crowned King in the North, but he didn't really live up to it - and it's worth noting that he didn't really want it, either! The Northmen became disillusioned with him after he joined forces with Daenerys, and he's simply to upright to play the politics of the realm. He was far from a terrible ruler, but he is much better suited as a Wildling.
8 Robb Stark
Robb is another one of the Kings who had a brief reign during the War of the Five Kings - and while he had great potential and support, he falls down on one very important level: he went back on his word with an ally. Not only is this far from honorable, but it's a terrible thing for a King to do - and he paid the price (and then some) when his family were slaughtered by the man he betrayed.
7 Balon Greyjoy
Balon Greyjoy rebelled and set himself up as a ruler before the events of the series, and then again became embroiled in the War of the Five Kings.
He was far from a great ruler, though - and when he was beaten in battle, he would hightail it back to the Iron Islands and give up. He was cantankerous, cruel, and harsh, none of which make him particularly suited as a King.
6 Robert Baratheon
Robert actually managed to hold the Iron Throne for years - an impressive feat, given how few others do in the series. He also started out as a good King - a proud warrior, who fought to overthrow an insane tyrant, and who had the support of the noble men he fought with. However, it became clear that Robert was a fighter, not a ruler. He ignored his duties to drink, hunt, and visit brothels, he hit his wife for questioning him, and he seemed to want to pass off his responsibilities on his Hand.
5 Stannis Baratheon
Another Baratheon who should not have been King, Stannis also starts out as a solid candidate, but is warped by ambition and religion. He is too easily led by Melisandre, who gets him to commit all kinds of heinous crimes for the promise of a crown, and his treatment of his own family is appalling. He may not have abandoned his responsibility to drink and play like his brother, but he burned his own child at the stake - and that is far, far worse.
4 Euron Greyjoy
Now we reach the truly terrible rulers - and Euron Greyjoy, the King of the Iron Islands, is definitely up there. From the get-go, he is a psychopath, and takes great joy is murder, plunder, and torture. He wants power, and will do anything to get it - but he's also manipulative and treacherous, not just violent.
3 Daenerys Targaryen
Daenerys is a complicated character, and is only ranked where she is because of the events of the final seasons (book readers can still hold out hope for a better end for her!). In the earlier seasons, Daenerys was an excellent ruler - she cared about the people, liberated slaves, looked for ways to change the places she ruled, commanded respect, and listened to her advisors.
However, in the final seasons, her good intentions and Targaryen blood combined to create a terrifying dictator. She became an indiscriminate murderer, slaughtering the people of King's Landing in a rage, and then declared her intention to subdue everyone else she could march to.
2 Cersei Lannister
Onto the second mass-murdering Queen of the series: Cersei Lannister. Another ruler who slaughtered a huge chunk of the King's Landing population, Cersei also turned into a dictator Queen with a thirst for violence... but she's far worse than Daenerys. Unlike the Dragon Queen, Cersei has no mitigating early kindness, as she's always manipulative and vicious, and turns her firstborn son into a spoiled sadist. There's some sympathy for her, though, as she has spent her life being treated poorly, forced into marriages for politics when she had a mind built for intrigue and power. However, that's really not an excuse for killing quite so many!
1 Joffrey Lannister
Finally, we have Joffrey - hands down, the worst ruler in Westeros. This may be controversial, because unlike both Daenerys and Cersei, he didn't murder innocents by the hundred (only by the handful), but there's one thing that places him at the top: he does not have a single redeeming factor. Unlike Daenerys and her good intentions, or Cersei and her frustrations with being denied agency, Joffrey is pure, undiluted awful. He tortures for fun - both emotionally and physically - he couldn't care less about his actual subjects, he's selfish, cruel, capricious, and dishonorable. Poison almost seems too good for him!
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