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Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
[Game of Thrones] Why did the Great Houses of Westeros decide to stay under the Iron Throne instead of declaring independence after Robert's Rebellion?
gpt
While the Great Houses of Westeros had gotten used to being one kingdom (having been one for three centuries), it came down to one thing: military might. The Targaryens were broken by the alliance of four of the seven great houses: Baratheon, Stark, Tully, and Arryn. Together, they already represented a strong enough force to crush any of the other Houses, and when Tywin Lannister (leading the single strongest house) joined them, they were absolutely unbeatable. And the alliances among these Houses were very strong: Stark and Arryn had an unshakable loyalty to Robert, Tully was bound in marriage to both of them (and sandwiched between them as well), and Lord Tywin was not about to rebel against the man who would put his own grandson on the throne.

That being said: while the Martells did not declare independence, Robert largely ignored them, and they returned the favor. Prince Doran had a very powerful, and very valid, grievance against Robert, along with a land that had A) strong natural defenses, B) a history of destroying invaders, and C) a strong independent streak. Thanks, no doubt, to the council of the ever-prudent Jon Arryn, Robert never tried to give them a command they might not wish to obey, and thus never gave them a reason to revolt.