Why was this character made Grand Maester?

Question

In the finale of Game of Thrones, we see that

Samwell Tarly

is appointed Grand Maester, and given the accompanying position on the Small Council.

This person stole tomes from the Citadel, never completed a link in his chain, and is a member of the Night's Watch. Any one of these things could disqualify him from the role, and yet he is appointed nonetheless.

Are Grand Maesters not elected by the Citadel themselves? Is there any precedent for the King (or showrunners) directly appointing a GM, or any precedent for a non-Arch Maester becoming Grand Maester?

While it is unfortunately clear on this point that many of the traditions and laws of Westeros cannot hold a candle to a dramatic series of television, is there any canon explanation for how and why this person would receive this position?

Answer 1

It's simply inexplicable fanservice. There is no possible way that the archmaesters elected a novice as their representative to the crown!

The position of the Grand Maester is the only one that the King can't fulfill. Even Maegor the Cruel had to resort to beheadings to maintain his authority. At best, the King can execute him or confine him.

It's very likely that he holds the position temporarily until a suitable replacement is elected by the archmaesters.

Answer 2

Nobody else wants to do it

Most of the Maesters would probably prefer to stay in the tower, reading their books and working on whatever it is they are working on. Not trying to rebuild a city, whose store of books was likely destroyed, and manage a kingdom. Maesters like Pycelle, who had aspirations to wield political power, are the exception, and possibly the Citadel was running short on members with political aspirations or exploitable regional ties or research interests.

Furthermore, what's all this "three-eyed raven" nonsense? You expect the Maesters, who rather notably hate magic to the point of wanting it gone from the world, to want to serve directly under Bran? To send a proper Grand Maester to him would be like validating his magicky hogwash.

So then heads turn to Sam. He has shown potential—performing a medical technique many others had failed at for example—, but has also caused problems by being disobedient and stealing texts. He also seems to already be on good terms with some of these people. He may have even been specifically requested to serve in the role by Bran and/or Tyrion. So there is actually someone who wants to do it: Sam. And that would conveniently get him out of their hair. Send the problem student to do the undesirable job!

As such his promotion may be one of convenience, as much a stand-in for punishment as it is a reward for achievement.

Answer 3

Canon? Unlikely, seeing as the episode's less than 24 hours old. But I can come up with some plausible conjectures, at least.

The simplest one being "Because the King said so".

The second being: There was a several week time skip immediately before Bran's election. Going by how well-repaired the Small Council room seems to be, it's plausible there was another timeskip before this scene (surrounding scenes, such as with Jon at the Wall, may not have been occurring at the same time). So Sam may have had plenty of time to complete his training, with the help of a pardon from the King for his theft. Recall he had mentioned getting one from Dany earlier. He also might have returned most or all of the books. I don't recall seeing any of them get damaged or destroyed.

And an actual precedent: Cersei appointed Qyburn and considered him a Maester, despite having been expelled from the order. This then ties back into the first idea: because the Queen said so.

Answer 4

I would suggest that Bran the Broken holds far more knowledge than any Maester, so Bran doesn't actually need one. Bran's ability, not to mention his robotic nature, is probably very intimidating for most Maesters, and so there won't be many candidates for the job. The role Sam is given is purely ceremonial, but this suits Sam. Unlike other Maesters, he has a family, and because his duties are few, he can continue his studies toward getting all the rings and becoming a true Grand Maester.

Answer 5

Tarley has some incredible achievements under his belt: he was the first to warn about the White Walkers when every other Maester thought they were fairy tales, and he discovered what kills them. He found a cure for Greyscale in adults when every other Maester was convinced that it was incurable.

He is unbiased in his approach and unaffected by old beliefs and baseless traditions that infect the institutionalized Maesters.

All of those things make him an invaluable adviser to the king, and perhaps he is destined to lead a revolution in the Citadel.

Answer 6

It seems to me that in this case, power and might make right. There's no precedent of a person who can't walk or reproduce becoming King by appointment. Other things to consider:

Though not ordained, Sam was far more capable than most maesters.

Pycelle was utter crap.

And by rights Qyburn was a superior maester even though he got the boot for conducting unethical experiments (which at the end of the day made him a far superior healer and man of sciences/letters.)

At this point, with the Iron Throne turned to slag and half (if not more) of King's Landing gone into genocidal ashes, everything goes.

The wheel was broken, with the wheel being the back of the world. There are no precedents for many of the things that have occurred (Brienne a knight; a mercenary ruling over HighGarden, etc.)

So, it's all up for grabs at this point.