Jaehaerys I Targaryen

Jaehaerys I Targaryen, known as the Conciliator, the Wise, or later as the Old King, was Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and the fourth Targaryen king on the Iron Throne, ruling from 48 AC to 103 AC, serving the realm for fifty-five years. His dragon was Vermithor. He was the grandson of Aegon the Conqueror. His long reign was marked by political stability and economic prosperity, much of it due to the reforms he implemented.

Reign: 48 AD to 103 AD Full name: Jaehaerys Targaryen, the First of His Name Pseudonym(s): The Conciliator the Wise One The Old King Titles: King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men Lord of the Seven Kingdoms Protector of the Territory Birth: 34 AD, in King's Landing Death: 103 AD, in King's Landing

Royal House: House Targaryen Predecessor: Maegor I Targaryen Heir(s): 1st: Aemon Targaryen (55 AD - 92 AD) 2nd: Baelon Targaryen (92 AD - 101 AD) 3rd: Viserys Targaryen (101 AD - 103 AD) Successor: Viserys I Targaryen Queen: Alysanne Targaryen Children: Aegon Targaryen Alyssa Targaryen Aemon Targaryen Baelon Targaryen Daella Targaryen Aeryn Targaryen Vaegon Targaryen Maegelle Targaryen Valerion Targaryen Viserra Targaryen Gaemon Targaryen Saera Targaryen Gael Targaryen Father: Aenys I Targaryen Mother: Alyssa Velaryon

According to a semi-canonical source, Jaehaerys had the violet eyes of House Targaryen. At sixteen, he wore his hair loose, over his shoulders. Early in his reign, he grew a sparse beard and mustache. By the time he was 24, Jaehaerys looked "a king to the last hair on his head." He was a tall, handsome man who wore his hair in a thick braid that fell almost to his waist, and his facial hair had grown into a beautiful, full golden beard, speckled with silver. In his later years, his beard turned white and grew to his waist. Even in old age, Jaehaerys remained erect, without stooping. In 84 AC, at fifty years old, Jaehaerys had become thinner, almost skeletal, and his beard and hair had become more gray than golden. He looked wise and dignified even in his later years. Jaehaerys moved with grace. It is said that his smile could warm the heart of any maiden, and his frown could chill a man's blood. He wore as a crown a simple band of yellow gold adorned with seven gemstones of different colors. Jaehaerys was wise beyond his years. He spoke justly, was open, and as chivalrous as he was courageous. According to Grand Maester Benifer, Jaehaerys was "as versed as a maester and as pious as a septon." Although Benifer may have tried to flatter Jaehaerys with such a statement, according to Archmaester Gyldayn there was some truth in it as well. Queen Alyssa, Jaehaerys's mother, is said to have called Jaehaerys "the best of my three sons."

Jaehaerys was decisive in both thought and action, and always sought the most peaceful ends. In times of difficulty, instead of dwelling on the issues, Jaehaerys shrugged and got down to work. He never acted without thinking, and he didn't rely on chance. Jaehaerys also disliked making direct threats, but he had other ways of expressing his disapproval. According to the Sea Lord of Braavos, Jaehaerys was very skilled at making veiled threats. Even at the age of fourteen, Jaehaerys refused to allow his council to rule the kingdom in his name during his regency, and would involve himself in many of the issues the small council faced. He was never ashamed to let his voice be heard. Nor was he a man who wasted time on censures, recriminations, or appeals. Jaehaerys was a talented knight. By the age of fourteen, Jaehaerys was already skilled with lance and longbow. Following a rigorous training regimen during his time at Dragonstone, he became skilled with weapons as well, to the point that Ser Elyas Scales, Jaehaerys's master-at-arms, stated that Jaehaerys would never be skilled enough to join the Kingsguard, but that he had enough skill to defeat his uncle Maegor in combat, if Maegor were still alive. Jaehaerys was known for his love of He traveled extensively and made considerable progress. He and Alysanne were known to stay at the Crossroads Inn during their travels, so much so that it was later renamed Two Crowns.

In his younger years, Jaehaerys was fascinated by the heavy tomes and scrolls of Old Valyria found in the library of Dragonstone. Jaehaerys was always close to his sister-wife Alysanne, even as a child, and always had a strong affection and regard for her. Near the end of his life, after the death of his wife and most of his children, Jaehaerys' strength and intelligence began to fail, often leaving him confined to bed.

Jaehaerys was the third son, and fourth child, of Prince Aenys Targaryen and his wife, Lady Alyssa Velaryon.[15] He was born on the twentieth day of the ninth moon[10] of 34 AC[11] in King's Landing.[16] He had two older brothers, Aegon and Viserys, an older sister, Rhaena, and two younger sisters, Alysanne and Vaella.[15] His sister Rhaena placed a dragon egg in his crib after his birth, from which Jaehaerys' dragon, Vermithor, would eventually hatch.[11] When his grandfather, King Aegon I Targaryen, died at Dragonstone in 37 AC,[17] his father, Aenys, ascended the Iron Throne.[18] Followers of the Faith of the Seven began an uprising after King Aenys I married Jaehaerys's two older siblings, Rhaena and Aegon, to each other in 41 AC. After the Poor Fellows scaled the walls of the Red Keep in an attempt to assassinate the royal family, Jaehaerys fled with his parents and siblings to Dragonstone.[18] By the end of the year, most of the kingdom had joined the Faith, and King Aenys, unable to decide how to deal with the rebels, fell ill. In 42 AC, he fainted upon learning that Rhaena and Aegon were besieged in Quailhold, and died three days later.[18][19][11]

Jaehaerys was at Dragonstone for his father's cremation. Within hours, the Dowager Queen Alyssa fled to Driftmark, her father's residence, with Jaehaerys and Alysanne.[19][11] Meanwhile, the Dowager Queen Visenya Targaryen flew to Pentos to rescue her son Maegor from his exile. Once back at Dragonstone, Maegor claimed the Iron Throne for himself, ignoring the claim of Jaehaerys's older brother, Aegon. Later that year, after a visit from Visenya and Vhagar, Alyssa brought Jaehaerys, her sister Alysanne, and her brother Viserys to King's Landing, where they witnessed King Maegor's marriage to Tyanna of the Tower. In 44 AC, Jaehaerys, Alysanne, and their mother resided at Dragonstone as hostages of the Dowager Queen Visenya. In the chaos that followed Visenya's death from natural causes that year, Jaehaerys, his sister Alysanne, and his mother Alyssa fled the island. In retaliation, King Maegor had Jaehaerys's brother Viserys, who resided in King's Landing, tortured to death. As Jaehaerys's older brother, Aegon, had been killed by Maegor in battle the previous year, Jaehaerys became the eldest living son of the late King Aenys I. In 47 AC, Maegor forced three widows of proven fertility to marry him in a ceremony. One of these Black Brides was Jaehaerys's older sister, Rhaena. Still without a son, Maegor officially disinherited Jaehaerys and proclaimed Rhaena's daughter Aerea as his heir.[20] However, the kingdom slowly turned against Maegor, and when Jaehaerys presented his claim to the throne, he unified the factions that opposed him.[20] The first great lord to openly proclaim himself for Jaehaerys was his second cousin, Lord Rogar Baratheon of Storm's End.

Other great houses followed suit, including House Lannister, House Tyrell, House Arryn[22] and, although they had originally joined Maegor against Prince Aegon, House Tully.[23] Rhaena, Jaehaerys' sister, fled from Maegor on her dragon after learning of Jaehaerys' claim, stealing his Valyrian steel sword, Blackfyre, in the process. Two of Maegor's Kingsguard knights, Ser Olyver Bracken and Ser Raymund Mallery, joined Jaehaerys as well.

In 48 AC, after Maegor's mysterious death, Jaehaerys arrived at King's Landing in Vermithor, at the head of Lord Rogar Baratheon's army. Most of Maegor's supporters had fled, and Jaehaerys imprisoned the few who remained. As Jaehaerys was only fourteen years old, Jaehaerys's mother, the Dowager Queen Alyssa Velaryon, would serve as queen regent during the first two years of Jaehaerys's reign, and Lord Rogar Baratheon, whom Jaehaerys had appointed Lord Protector of the Realm and Hand of the King, would provide further guidance. Jaehaerys decided to pardon the lords and knights who had served Maegor, restoring their lands and titles to them, although he demanded a son or daughter as a hostage from each, or the payment of a sum in gold to the crown.[8] An exception was made for some: the jailers and confessors who assisted in the torture and death of Prince Viserys were all executed. Of Maegor's Kingsguard, Ser Maladon Moore was executed for his involvement in the murder of Queen Tyanna, while the remaining five (including Ser Olyver Bracken and Ser Raymund Mallery, who had deserted Maegor for Jaehaerys, but whose service was refused by the young king, as he did not want oath-breakers to serve him) were given the choice between execution or wearing the black. All except Ser Harrold Langward chose to wear the black. When Ser Harrold demanded a trial by combat, Jaehaerys wished to face the knight himself. This was rejected by his mother, the Queen Regent. Harrold Langward was killed by the Crown's champion, Ser Gyles Morrigen, who was appointed Lord Commander of Jaehaerys's Kingsguard soon after.

While the kingdom observed Jaehaerys' willingness to grant pardons, the remaining followers of Maegor dismissed their armies and travelled to King's Landing to swear allegiance to the new king. Following the sudden death of Septon Moon, the Poor Fellows besieging Oldtown fled, and Jaehaerys was free to go to Oldtown, where he was blessed and crowned by the High Septon with his late father's crown in the Sept of Stone. Although requested by Lady Lucinda Tully and Ser Joffrey Doggett, Jaehaerys refused to reinstate the Swords and Stars of the Faith, insisting that the Crown would protect the Faith henceforth. Jaehaerys removed the bounties that King Maegor I had placed on the heads of the Warrior's Sons and Poor Fellows,[8] and pardoned all those who laid down their swords.[24][6] In return, the Faith agreed to set aside its traditional right to conduct trials, accepting the justice of the throne from that moment on.[6][25] Jaehaerys swore that the crown would always protect and defend the Faith.[26] Furthermore, Jaehaerys offered a white cloak to Ser Joffrey Doggett, a former son of the warrior, and the knight accepted. Thus, Jaehaerys reconciled the Iron Throne and the Faith.

In 49 AC, Jaehaerys' mother, Queen Regent Alyssa Velaryon, and Lord Rogar Baratheon, Jaehaerys' Hand, were married in an event known as the Golden Wedding.[7] Although Jaehaerys liked and respected Rogar, he felt slighted because Rogar had not asked Jaehaerys' permission for the marriage. Jaehaerys disapproved of the marriage,[7][10] confessing to Septon Barth (sometime after the latter's arrival in King's Landing the following year) that he did not need a second father and that he felt his intelligence, judgment, and temperament were superior to Rogar's.[10] According to Barth's accounts, Jaehaerys believed that Rogar's motivation for the marriage was a desire for power, not affection for Alyssa, and felt that Rogar was overreacting. But, as he had not objected to his sister Rhaena's marriage on Fair Isle earlier that year, Jaehaerys felt he could not object to his mother's choice either. Jaehaerys granted audiences to any lord or knight who wished a private word with him, agreeing to speak with them at his manor. Those who accepted the offer were all impressed with Jaehaerys. Furthermore, during the wedding celebration, the five remaining vacancies in Jaehaerys's Kingsguard were filled by the victors of a test of arms that became known as the War for the White Cloaks.

Jaehaerys was the longest-reigning Targaryen monarch, having ruled for fifty-five years. Because of this, he is referred to as the "Old King". His reign is remembered as the most prosperous period in the history of the Targaryen monarchy. His rule brought peace, stability, and justice to the Seven Kingdoms. According to the archmaesters, the population of Westeros north of Dorne doubled during Jaehaerys's reign, with the population of King's Landing becoming four times larger.[3] Jaehaerys even managed to forge peace between House Bracken and House Blackwood in the Riverlands, which would last fifty years, but would not last much longer than his reign.[23][29] Jaehaerys is considered the best of the Targaryen kings by many historians and laymen. There is a pedestal of the Old King in the Citadel in Oldtown with the words "He united the land and made of seven kingdoms one" inscribed on it. Jaehaerys' grandson and successor, Viserys I Targaryen, wore Jaehaerys' crown. When Viserys died in 129 AC, his eldest son, Aegon, ascended the throne instead of Viserys' proclaimed heir, Rhaenyra, which began the war known as the Dance of the Dragons. Ser Steffon Darklyn of the Kingsguard and his retainers deserted to Rhaenyra's Black faction at Dragonstone. With them, they brought the Jaehaerys I crown that Viserys had worn. Prince Daemon Targaryen, Rhaenyra's husband and uncle, wore this crown during Rhaenyra's coronation.