The Iron Throne was the throne upon which the King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men sits, located in the Great Hall of the Red Keep in the city of King's Landing. Besides the monarchs themselves, only their Hand could sit on the Iron Throne. The Iron Throne was also a metonym referring to the monarchy that rules the Seven Kingdoms and the authority of the monarchy (e.g. "rebellion against the Iron Throne").

In the aftermath of the Battle of King's Landing of 305 AC, the Iron Throne was destroyed and the formerly hereditary monarchy was transformed into an elective one, with the Lords and Ladies of Westeros electing each new ruler, the first and incumbent elected monarch being King Brandon I. The monarch also henceforth only ruled six of the Seven Kingdoms, the North having been granted independence.