House Targaryen is a noble family of Valyrian descent, and is the only family of dragonlords who survived the Doom of Valyria. They left Valyria twelve years before the Doom occurred and resided for more than a century on the island of Dragonstone, until Aegon the Conqueror and his sister-wives began their conquest in 2 BC. House Targaryen has ruled as the kings on the Iron Throne and as the Great House of the crownlands for nearly two hundred years.
House Targaryen took possession of the castle Dragonstone upon leaving Valyria. Following the Conquest, they built the Aegonfort in the capital city of King's Landing . The Aegonfort was later torn down and replaced by the Red Keep, which remained their main seat for the duration of their dynasty, and which housed the Iron Throne. Dragonstone almost always given to the heir to the throne. The Targaryens eventually built the border fortress Summerhall in 193AC, which has been given to King Daeron I Targaryen's son, Maekar.
The Targaryen sigil is a three-headed dragon breathing flames, red on black. The Targaryen's words are "Fire and Blood".
History[]
House Targaryen was one of the forty ancient noble houses known as dragonlords who ruled the Valyrian Freehold, a great empire spanning most of the eastern continent. The Targaryens were one of the few families to survive the doom of Valyria thanks to relocating their dragons and family to the island of Dragonstone.
A hundred years after the Doom, Aegon Targeyen set forth from Dragonstone with his sister-wives Rhaenys and Visenya, their dragons, and a small force, landing at the mouth of the Blackwater Rush and beginning the Wars of Conquest. During his campaigns, Aegon was anointed king by the High Septon in Oldtown, leading to the unification of the Seven Kingdoms under Targaryen rule from the Iron Throne, beginning a dynasty that continues to this day. The area where the Targaryens began their conquest became the site of their new capital, King's Landing. Dragonstone was used as the seat of the heir to the throne.
Though Aegon and his sisters conquered the realm from the Wall to the Red Mountains, all attempts to conquer Dorne were defeated, culminating in the death of both Rhaenys Targaryen and her dragon. For centuries the Martells and their Rhoynish people remained independent from Targaryen rule - until Daeron Tagaryen's conquest in 157AC. The continent was at last united, though only for a time, the Dornish Revolt of 161 undoing all of Daeron's labours.==Recent Events== In 186AC House Targaryen was divided, and with it, the realm. Aegon Targaryen , the Black Dragon, called upon his friends and allies to assert his claim on the Iron Throne against his cousin, King Daeron I Targaryen. The Blackwater Rebellion saw fighting engulf every region in the Seven Kingdoms, though ultimately King Daeron emerged the victor. Aegon and his sons were defeated slain, his middle child, Aelor, banished to the Night's Watch . King Daeron remained the king on the Iron Throne - and would rule for another fourteen years.
The Dragonhunt proved another major event for House Targaryen, as it saw the death of Prince Aenys Targaryen, the son and heir of Daeron I. The dragon named Cannibal had long haunted the hidden depths of the Dragonmont, defying all attempts to slay or tame him. In 197AC the beast was at last ousted, driven south toward the Red Mountains. In a final battle with the creature, Prince Aenys was slain.
Current Events[]
The recent death of King Daeron has seen his grandson and heir, Jaehaerys Targaryen, succeed him as Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and King on the Iron Throne.