Aegon III

Aegon III Targaryen, also known as Aegon the Younger, and later as Aegon the Unlucky, Aegon the Unhappy, the Broken King, and most famously as Aegon the Dragonbane, was the seventh Targaryen king to sit on the Iron Throne. He succeeded his uncle, Aegon II Targaryen, at the conclusion of the Dance of the Dragons, which saw the victorious supporters of his late mother Rhaenyra Targaryen install him on the throne. As a child, his dragon was Stormcloud. Aegon kept the kingdoms united after the divisions of the civil war, with the help of his brother, Prince Viserys, whom he eventually named Hand of the King.

Reign: 131 AD to 157 AD Full name: Aegon Targaryen, the Third of His Name Pseudonym(s): the Young Man, Dragon Venom, Broken King Titles: King of the Andals and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm Birth: 120 AD, at Dragonstone Death: 157 AD, in King's Landing

Royal House: House Targaryen Predecessor: Aegon II Targaryen Heir(s): Daeron Targaryen Successor: Daeron I Targaryen Queen: 1st: Jaehaera Targaryen 2nd: Daenaera Velaryon Children: Daeron I Targaryen Baelor I Targaryen Daena Targaryen Rhaena Targaryen Elaena Targaryen Father: Daemon Targaryen Mother: Rhaenyra Targaryen

Aegon was a handsome boy with dark purple eyes that appeared almost black and silvery hair that was so light it was almost white. He was slender in face and body. At ten years old, Aegon was considered tall for his age. According to a semi-canonical source, Aegon wore a short beard without a mustache. Aegon dressed simply in black (always, according to Maester Yandel, very often, according to Archmaester Gyldayn). Under his velvets and satins, he wore a hair shirt. He possessed black gloves and a gold chain displaying the three-headed dragon of House Targaryen. He wore a simple, unadorned yellow gold diadem. Aegon was a joyless man, severely scarred by his experiences during the Dance of the Dragons. Mushroom accounts state that Aegon rarely smiled and laughed even less, even as a boy. According to the dwarf, Aegon could be gracious and courteous when necessary, but at the same time he had a darkness inside him that never went away. The guilt he felt for abandoning his younger brother Viserys when his ship was attacked during the Dance of the Dragons made him somber. Grand Maester Munkun called Aegon "broken" after he lost his brothers and saw his mother eaten by his uncle's dragon, and described him as "dead inside." Aegon showed little interest in women, did not ride (except for travel), falcon, hunt or joust, nor did he participate in tournaments. He disliked reading, dancing or singing, and had no interest in wine or food, so much so that he often needed to be reminded to eat. Similarly, he had little interest in swordsmanship or the arts of war. During the wolf hour, Aegon could often be found standing near a window, gazing at the stars, but he showed no interest in the study of astronomy.

Aegon rarely showed emotion, but the mere mention of dragons enraged him, and he was unwilling to approach one. Although intelligent, he was a silent person who never initiated a conversation and answered questions as briefly as possible. He was considered solemn, severe, and somber. He spoke little and often retreated into silence, solitude, and taciturn passivity. Aegon had few friends and, during the early years of his reign, rarely slept a full night. He rarely left the Red Keep after his coronation. After his second marriage to Daenaera Velaryon, Aegon's sadness dissipated for a short time. Some joy also returned to Aegon after the return of his brother Viserys. However, he would always remain a melancholic man who found pleasure in almost nothing, who disliked being touched, and who retreated to his chambers for days on end, meditating alone.

Aegon was born in late 120 AC, the son of Prince Daemon Targaryen and Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen. Aegon was named after the first Targaryen king, Aegon the Conqueror. Queen Alicent Hightower, the second wife of his grandfather, King Viserys I Targaryen, was offended by the name Aegon, as she herself had given birth to a son named Aegon years before, and felt that Rhaenyra's choice of the name was an affront to her own son. As two princes during the reign of King Viserys I Targaryen were named Aegon, history refers to Queen Alicent's son as Aegon the Elder, while Rhaenyra's son was called Aegon the Younger. Aegon had three older half-brothers, Princes Jacaerys, Lucerys, and Joffrey Velaryon, from his mother's first marriage to Ser Laenor Velaryon, and two older half-sisters, Princesses Baela and Rhaena Targaryen, from his father's second marriage to Lady Laena. Velaryon. Two years after Aegon's birth, Rhaenyra gave birth to another boy, Viserys. Aegon lived with his mother, father, and siblings at Dragonstone, the ancestral seat of House Targaryen and his mother's seat as Princess of Dragonstone. In 129 AC at Dragonstone, his mother gave birth to Aegon's sister, Visenya, who was stillborn. Aegon shared his room with his younger brother Viserys. They were constant companions during their youth at Dragonstone; they had their lessons together and played together as well. In 129 AC, Aegon had bonded with the dragon Stormcloud, but had not yet ridden it.

The War of Succession began with the death of Aegon's grandfather, King Viserys I Targaryen. Although Aegon's mother was named heir by the king, Prince Aegon, Alicent's son, was crowned King Aegon II in King's Landing. This resulted in the Dance of the Dragons. In 129 AC, under orders from his half-brother Jacaerys, Aegon and young Viserys were sent to Essos while their mother vied for the Iron Throne. During the voyage, the ship Merry Delight was captured by the armada of the Kingdom of the Three Daughters. Aegon escaped by flying away on his dragon Stormcloud for the first time, but Viserys was captured by Sharako Lohar. He staggered to Dragonstone, recounting what had happened to the ship. The experience of flying had terrified him so much that he was pale, trembling, and had lost control of his bladder. He never flew again, and Stormcloud died the next day from injuries sustained during the escape. After learning what had happened, fearing for his brother Viserys's life, Jacaerys flew to meet the enemy fleet on his dragon. The Battle of the Gullet ensued, in which he was killed. When Rhaenyra took King's Landing in 130 AC, she named Aegon her cupbearer. Aegon rarely spoke a word during this time. After the Assault on the Dragonpit, he and his mother were forced to flee the capital. Rhaenyra, near madness at the loss of her dragon Syrax and all her children except Aegon, refused to part with him, making him a "pale shadow" of his mother. When they returned to Dragonstone, they were greeted by the hanging corpses of the castellan and other loyalists to Rhaenyra. Aegon was the first to realize what was happening and cried out, "Mother, let's run away!", but it was too late. His protectors were killed, and they were brought before Aegon II, who had taken the island fortress for himself. Young Aegon watched in horror as Sunfyre, his uncle's dragon, devoured his mother.

The event cemented his hatred and terror of dragons. After Rhaenyra's execution, Ser Alfred Broome advised Aegon II to kill young Aegon, but the king chose to keep him captive in the dungeons of Dragonstone. His mother's death did not end the war, and half a year later Lord Kermit Tully defeated Lord Borros Baratheon's Green army at the Battle of the Kingsroad. Aegon II was assassinated by his own men, and as the closest male relative of his uncle, Aegon became Aegon III in 131 AC.

In mid-131 AC, Aegon ascended the Iron Throne at the age of ten. During the next five years of his minority, the kingdom was ruled by the Hand of the King and a council of regents. Numerous political schemes, conspiracies, and assassinations occurred during the five years of regency amidst the power struggles. During the False Dawn, the river lords marched on King's Landing while the remaining forces of Aegon II swore allegiance to the new king. After Aegon II was cremated, Prince Aegon III proclaimed on Aegon's Hill that peace was within reach, while Lord Corlys Velaryon sent letters promising pardons to Aegon II's former supporters. Along with Lord Corlys, Lord Kermit Tully and his brother, Ser Oscar, and Lord Benjicot Blackwood, Aegon welcomed Lord Cregan Stark to the city. Lord Cregan assumed the reins of government in King's Landing during the period known as "the Hour of the Wolf." Some even claimed that Lord Cregan planned to take Aegon to Winterfell to marry him to one of his daughters (although Cregan had no daughters at the time), while others said that Lord Stark planned to kill Aegon to seize the throne for himself by marrying Princess Jaehaera. Cregan investigated the murder of Aegon II, while Prince Aegon was confined in Maegor's Holdfast. Aegon was then forced to appoint Lord Stark as his Hand of the King, who began executing those responsible for the former king's death. The only high-ranking person spared was Corlys Velaryon, at Aegon's request, who restored his position and honors and gave him a seat on the small council. Although still a minor, not crowned and blessed as king, Lord Cregan Stark agreed with Aegon's decision. The young monarch witnessed several executions.

Aegon married his cousin, Princess Jaehaera Targaryen, on the seventh day of the seventh moon in 131 AC. The ceremony was held outside the ruins of the Dragonpit on Visenya's Hill. The marriage united both branches of House Targaryen. After the ceremony, the couple traveled in a litter to the Red Keep, where Aegon was officially crowned King Aegon III. One of Aegon's first acts as king was to fill the five vacancies in the Kingsguard. His next task was to appoint a new Hand of the King, Ser Tyland Lannister, the Protector of the Realm, Lord Leowyn Corbray, and the council of regents to govern. Although Aegon III sat on the Iron Throne when required, he spent most of his time absent from the throne room. By the end of 131 AC, the population of King's Landing began to grow unhappy with their young king, while rumors of a new Hand surfaced. The sudden death of Corlys Velaryon in 132 AC raised the question of the king's successor. When King Aegon was asked who his heir would be, he championed his only friend, Gaemon Fairhair, a bastard who had been a claimant to the crown during the revolt in King's Landing in the Dance of the Dragons. This suggestion was ignored by the regents. Although Aegon's half-sisters, Baela and Rhaena, were not considered possible heirs due to their gender, any children they bore, particularly Baela, the elder of the two, would be considered a legitimate heir. When the Winter Fever ravaged Westeros in early 133 AC, Aegon drew positive attention by visiting the sick and nursing homes for those affected, sitting beside them and sometimes holding their hands. He rarely spoke, but he was a great comfort to those in distress nonetheless. He also sat beside his Hand, Ser Tyland Lannister, when he fell ill and died of the disease.

At the end of that same year, the king's marriage to his wife Jaehaera ended when she died of apparent suicide, although rumors of murder circulated throughout King's Landing. Lord Unwin attempted to marry the king to his daughter, Myrielle Peake, but many nobles protested, as the queen had died only recently. Lord Cregan Stark stated that the North would view this union with suspicion, Lord Kermit Tully called the proposal presumptuous, and Grand Maester Munkun agreed, stating that the move would be seen as an attempt by House Peake to seek power for themselves rather than for the good of the realm. Noble ladies wrote to the capital, proposing their relatives as betrothed to Aegon (or themselves). Due to the pressure, Peake then announced a ball in King's Landing where the king himself would be able to choose his own bride. In the weeks leading up to the ball, Lord Peake had his daughter spend considerable time with the king. On the day of the ball, all the candidates were presented to the king while he sat on the Iron Throne. Aegon merely nodded to each one before the Kingsguard dismissed them. Aegon's disinterest grew with each passing hour, which, according to Mushroom, was what Peake desired. When only a few maidens remained, Baela and Rhaena Targaryen arrived along with their relative, Daenaera Velaryon, a six-year-old girl. Subsequently, the last few candidates were hastily presented, and it was so clear that the king wished to end the procession that the last maiden sobbed as she curtsied. Then the king summoned his cupbearer, Gaemon Fairhair, who announced that Aegon would marry Daenaera Velaryon. Although Peake insisted that Aegon should marry an older girl so that he could father children quickly, the other regents did not support his position. Aegon and Daenaera were married at the end of the year.

For a short period after his marriage, Aegon became less melancholic, although his Hand's attitude tried to bring him back to his old ways. In 134 AC, Lord Alyn Velaryon returned to King's Landing after his long voyage, and King Aegon and his court went to the harbor to receive him. There, Lord Velaryon presented Aegon with a "treasure" he had acquired in Lys: the king's younger brother, Viserys, whom many believed had died at the Battle of the Gullet in early 130 AC. The fact that Viserys was alive and had returned to the capital extinguished the guilt Aegon felt for having abandoned the ship they were on and did much to reduce the king's loneliness, with Viserys assuming the position of Aegon's companion, since his other friend, Gaemon Fairhair, had been forgotten, and Queen Daenaera had been neglected. Viserys returned accompanied by his wife, Larra Rogare, and several of her brothers. When Larra gave birth to a son the following year, the line of succession to King Aegon III seemed secure. Viserys, who had kept his own dragon egg during his captivity, likewise gifted his own son with an egg. However, when King Aegon learned that Laena Velaryon's dragon egg had hatched in the form of a wingless wyrm that had injured the baby in the cradle, he ordered all eggs removed from the castle, much to Viserys's anger. Aegon and Viserys did not speak for months, until Gaemon Fairhair, Aegon's friend and food taster, died in an attempt to poison the king and queen. Although King Aegon was comforted by his brother in his grief, Gaemon's death left him inconsolable, and his old sorrow fell upon him once more, leaving him disinterested in the court and his kingdom. As a result of the fall of House Rogare in Lys and the bankruptcy of their bank, the Rogares in Westeros were imprisoned. While one of Larra's brothers fled to Braavos, the other two were imprisoned, as were Aegon's Hand, Lord Thaddeus Rowan, and several others.

When Ser Amaury Peake arrived at Maegor's Holdfast to arrest Larra Rogare, he clashed with Prince Viserys and King Aegon III, who denied Lord Peake and his men entry into the hold, resulting in the so-called Secret Siege, which lasted eighteen days. On the twelfth day, the besiegers brought in Lord Rowan, who had been accused of participating in the attempted poisoning of Aegon. When Prince Viserys proved Rowan's confession false, King Aegon declared that Lord Rowan had been tortured by traitors into making a false confession and demanded that Ser Marston Waters, who had assumed the position of Hand during the siege, "detain the Lord Confessor, if you love your king… otherwise I will know you are as false as he is." According to Archmaester Gyldayn, the fifteen-year-old Aegon seemed "like a king in every way" at that moment. Six days later, when Munkun sent ravens to summon the lords of the realm to the capital, King Aegon ended the siege. Aegon reinstated Lord Thaddeus as Hand of the King, but it soon became clear that the torture he had survived had rendered him unfit to serve as Hand. Subsequently, he was relieved of the position, and the office was temporarily given to Grand Maester Munkun until a new Hand could be appointed. A council of lords meeting in 136 AC selected three new regents, while Lord Torrhen Manderly was chosen as the new Hand.

When Aegon turned 16 in 136 AC, the king went to his small council and dismissed his regents and his Hand, and cancelled plans they were making to send him on a royal tour. Lord Torrhen Manderly was greatly offended by the abrupt manner of his dismissal and, according to Archmaester Gyldayn, this act made Manderly an enemy of Aegon. Aegon was considered a broken king who ruled a broken kingdom. To the end of his days, he was a melancholy man, finding no pleasure in things and locking himself in his room to meditate for days on end. It took Aegon a long time to consummate his marriage, but eventually Queen Daenaera Velaryon gave birth to five of his children: Daeron (born in 143 AC) and Baelor (born in 144 AC), Daena (born in 145 AC), Rhaena (born in 147 AC), and Elaena (born in 150 AC). After his birth, Prince Daeron was named Prince of Dragonstone by King Aegon. As king, Aegon III struggled to bring peace and prosperity to the kingdom, but his coldness prevented him from winning the affection of nobles or commoners. During the last years of his reign, the Hand of the King was his brother, Prince Viserys Targaryen. Together, Aegon and Viserys dealt with several suitors who pretended to be Daeron Targaryen, brother of the late King Aegon II. All these pretenders proved to be imposters. Aegon is usually blamed for the death of the last dragon, having developed a great dislike for dragons after the tragic death of Stormcloud and having witnessed his mother being devoured by Sunfyre. As the last dragon died during his reign, Aegon III became known as the "Dragonsbane". Be that as it may, Aegon was convinced that dragons could be used to intimidate those who tried to oppose him. At the request of his brother Viserys, Aegon brought nine wizards from Essos to try to hatch dragon eggs with magic, but this failed.

Aegon's reign ended with his death from tuberculosis in 157 AD, at the age of 36. Many of his subjects imagined him to be much older, due to his youth ending so abruptly. Aegon is not remembered fondly.

Aegon III was succeeded by his fourteen-year-old son, Daeron. After Daeron and his successor, Baelor, died young without leaving children, Aegon's brother, Viserys II, was crowned king. Viserys was succeeded by his son, Aegon IV. Although his sons died childless, Aegon's line continued in a way. The king's daughter, Daena, had a bastard son with her cousin, Prince Aegon, named Daemon Blackfyre, who would contest the throne of King Daeron II Targaryen, the rightful heir of Aegon IV. Meanwhile, Princess Elaena Targaryen married three times and gave birth to seven children. Her first two children were illegitimate, born to Lord Alyn Velaryon. Subsequently, Elaena married Lord Ossifer Plumm, with whom she had a son, Viserys Plumm – although there are rumors that the child was fathered by King Aegon IV. She then married Ronnel Penrose, with whom she had four children. Her third and final marriage, to Ser Michael Manwoody, produced no children.

Hand of the King - Lord Cregan Stark Hand of the King - Ser Tyland Lannister Hand of the King - Lord Unwin Peake Hand of the King - Lord Thaddeus Rowan Hand of the King - Ser Marston Waters Hand of the King - Grand Maester Munkun Hand of the King - Lord Torrhen Manderly Hand of the King - Prince Viserys Targaryen Grand Master - Munkun

The regency council of Aegon II originally consisted of:

Lady Jeyne Arryn, Lady of the Eyrie (131-134 BC). Lord Royce Caron, Lord of Ancient Noctic (131-132 BC). Ser Torrhen Manderly (131-133 BC). Lord Manfryd Mooton, Lord of Maidenpool (131-134 AC). Grand Maester Munkun (131-136 BC). Lord Corlys Velaryon, Lord of Driftmark and Lord of the Tides (131-132 AC). Lord Roland Westerling, Lord of the Crag (131-133 AC). Subsequent replacements:

Lord Unwin Peake succeeded Lord Corlys (132-134 AC). Lord Thaddeus Rowan succeeded Lord Roland (133-136 AC). Ser Corwyn Corbray, replaced Lord Manfryd (134 AC). Regents chosen by lot at the Great Council of 136 AD:

"Mother, run! —Aegon, to his mother Rhaenyra Targaryen, upon his arrival at the fallen Dragonstone" "Get that wretched creature out of my sight." —Aegon, to his northern guards, upon seeing Rhaena Targaryen's dragon hatchling. "Aegon: The Kingsguard's vows include obedience, I thought. Marston: We swear to obey the king, sir, that's that, and when you're a grown man, my brothers and I will gladly fall upon our swords should you command us to do so. While you remain a child, however, we are bound by oath to obey the Hand of the King, for the Hand speaks with the voice of the king. Aegon: Lord Thaddeus is my Hand. Marston: Lord Thaddeus sold his kingdom to Lys and must answer for it. I will serve as his Hand until his guilt or innocence can be proven. I swear by my sword, in the eyes of gods and men, that no one will harm you while I am at your side. Aegon: You stood by me when the dragon ate my mother. All you did was watch. I will not let you watch while they kill my brother's wife. —Aegon and Marston Waters, during the secret siege" "Aegon: Lord Manderly, please tell me how old I am, if you would be so kind. Torrhen: You are ten years and six today, Your Grace. A grown man. It is time for you to take the governance of the Seven Kingdoms into your own hands. Aegon: I will. You are sitting in my chair. —Aegon, to Torrhen Manderly, ending the regency" "There will be no progress. I will not spend a year on horseback, sleeping in strange beds and exchanging empty courtesies with drunken lords, half of whom would gladly see me dead if it earned them a groat. If any man needs words with me, he will find me on the Iron Throne. —Aegon, to Torrhen Manderly"

"I intend to give peace, food, and justice to the commoners. If that is not enough to win their favor, let Mushroom make progress. Or perhaps we can send a dancing bear. Someone once told me that commoners love nothing more than dancing bears. You can interrupt this feast tonight as well. Send the lords home to their own fortresses and feed the hungry. Full bellies and dancing bears will be my policy. —Aegon, to Torrhen Manderly"