Renly Baratheon
| Character | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Renly Baratheon |
| Occupation: | King of the Seven Kingdoms, Lord of Storm's End |
| Relationships: | Robert Baratheon (brother), Stannis Baratheon (brother), Loras Tyrell (lover), Margaery Tyrell (wife) |
| Fandom: | Game of Thrones, A Song of Ice and Fire |
| Other: | played by Gethin Anthony |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Renly Baratheon is a fictional character from A Song of Ice and Fire, and was played by Gethin Anthony on the HBO television series Game of Thrones.
While Renly certainly does have his flaws, it’s evident—based on his interactions with other characters and historical background— that Renly’s blithe smile seems to hide the mind of a tactician. And, while many may dismiss him as frivolous or disagree with his methods, the young self-crowned king is certainly more than he seems.[1]
Canon
When we first meet him, Renly is "near twenty" years old. Renly is Master of Laws in King's Landing. He prefers to wear the colors gold and green. Renly participates in the Hand's Tourney, losing to the Hound. After Robert's death, Renly tries to enlist Ned Stark in capturing the Baratheon children to contain Cersei but when Ned refuses him, Renly flees to Highgarden with Loras Tyrell. In A Clash of Kings, we learn Renly has crowned himself king and has married Margaery Tyrell. Renly makes Loras the Lord Commander of his Rainbow Guard and marches slowly to King's Landing, feasting and hosting tournaments along the way. Stannis Baratheon sieges Storm's End, forcing Renly to travel in haste to his seat of power. Stannis and Renly have a parley but fail to make adequate terms. Renly is slain by a shadow in his tent just before battle with Stannis, and dies in the arms of Brienne of Tarth at the age of 21.
Fandom
Pairings
Renly's canon relationship with Loras is his only popular ship, which outpaces all others by orders of magnitude.
| Person | Ship | Canon |
|---|---|---|
| Loras Tyrell | Renly Baratheon/Loras Tyrell | Love of his life |
| Margaery Tyrell | Renly Baratheon/Margaery Tyrell | Wife (beard) |
| Robb Stark | Renly Baratheon/Robb Stark | |
| Both Loras and Margaery | Renly Baratheon/Loras Tyrell/Margaery Tyrell |
Statistics
- Renly placed 44th in a countdown of the top 50 characters in a Tower of The Hand poll
Common Tropes in Fanworks
- Modern AU: modern setting, where he knows or meets other characters form the series
- High School AU or College AU
- Pastfic: exploring Renly's childhood and teenagehood at Storm's End and King's Landing or the early stages of his relationship with Loras
- Canon Divergence AU: varies, Renly doesn't declare himself King, Renly and Stannis make an alliance, Renly is captured or sent to the Wall
- Renly Lives: Renly is not killed by Stannis
- Supporting Character: Renly is often a featured secondary character in stories focusing on his brothers or Brienne of Tarth
Fanworks
Fan Art
- Renly Baratheon by Ammotu
- Game of Thrones' cards | King Renly Baratheon by SimonaBonafiniDA
- Renly Baratheon by masteryue
- Renly Baratheon by LucianoVecchio
- The King of Summers End by JasonEngle
- Renly Baratheon by mustamirri
- King of Peaches by toranekostudios
- The King in Highgarden by Shtut
- The King In Highgarden by Shtut
- Flowers and Rainbows by elontirien
- Renly Baratheon by chillyravenart
- Renly Baratheon by Duhi
- The Baratheons by 19934
Fanfiction
- Wind and Memory by The_Plaid_Slytherin
- A Helpful FAQ by Siamesa
- We Are Strangers and Rebels by ivanolix
- Brother, It's Cold Outside by Netgirl_y2k
- A Clash of Kings: Knees Falling by Perfidious Albion (features King!Renly)
- The Newest Member by afewreelthoughts
- Strengths and Weaknesses by SecondStarOnTheLeft
- Bloom by honey_wheeler
- A Father's Sons by Roflskate
- let the summer storm clear the sky when you cry by ennta
- then came the rush of the flood by maximoffs
Meta
- look at me, I'm a king: or, who the fuck is renly baratheon?, Archived version by blooodravens
- Renly and the Siege(s) of Storm's End, Archived versionby zaldriver-sovesi
- 8 arguments against Renly Baratheon that fall flat, Archived version by afewreelthoughts
- Renly Baratheon, Double-Edged Sword, Archived version by afewreelthoughts
- The King of Summer, The Purpose of His Death by BaelBard
- The Significance of Renly's Peach by deleted user
Cosplay
- Renly Baratheon by unknown
Podcast
- Renly - The Copper King podcast by radiowesteros
Archives and Links
- Renly Baratheon tag at Archive of Our Own
- Renly at FanFiction.net
- Tumblr Tags: Renly Baratheon, GOT Renly Baratheon