“Aegon. What better name for a king?” Those words are spoken by Rhaegar Targaryen in a vision experienced by Daenerys Targaryen in A Clash of Kings, the second of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire books. It didn’t make it into Game of Thrones, which is a shame as it’s part of a sequence that’s full of hidden meaning and foreshadowing, but it also highlights a simple truth: a hell of a lot of Targaryen kings have been called Aegon.
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The use of the name actually pre-dates the family’s time in Westeros – Aegon the Conqueror’s great-grandfather was called it – but it is with the Conqueror that the trend really begins. He was the first Targaryen king, and so it’s no surprise many others followed in his footsteps. There are around 15 known Aegons in A Song of Ice and Fire lore, some even from different houses, and of those, five have sat on the Iron Throne and ruled the Seven Kingdoms, though there might be at least one more to come.
Warning: Spoilers ahead for Fire & Blood, the book on which House for the Dragon is based, as well as for characters from A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.
Aegon I Targaryen
Reign: 1-37 AC (After Conquest)
Aegon Targaryen, who became known as Aegon the Conqueror, changed everything for Westeros. He and his sister-wives, Visenya and Rhaenys, flew their three dragons – Balerion, Vhagar, and Meraxes – from Dragonstone to Westeros, conquering (almost) all in their path and uniting the realm, which until that point had been broken into distinct kingdoms, under their rule, beginning the Targaryen dynasty. Only Dorne was able to successfully resist the conquest, with its people hiding in the mountains and using guerrilla tactics.
The Conqueror was not only Westeros’ first unified king, but also introduced several other elements that would stand until the time of Game of Thrones. He decided to rule from King’s Landing, a new town that had started growing from where he first landed in Westeros. Then he had the swords of his enemies melted down by Balerion, and re-forged into the Iron Throne. He had the first Small Council. Aegon’s reign was largely a peaceful one, except for another failed attempt at conquering Dorne (which ended in a peace agreement), and he died in 37 AC at the age of 63, succeeded by his eldest son, Aenys.
House of the Dragon has since recontextualized Aegon’s Conquest. Where it was seen as one of power and ambition, the prequel revealed a prophetic dream he had, known as his Song of Ice and Fire. This foretold of a coming darkness that would destroy all living things during a great winter (or in other words, the White Walkers), and only a Targaryen on the Iron Throne could unite the realm to stand against it.
Aegon II Targaryen
Reign: 129-131 AC
As common a name as Aegon might be, it was almost 100 years before a second King Aegon came along, in the form of the son of Viserys Targaryen and Alicent Hightower. Although his half-sister, Rhaenyra, had been named as their father’s heir, the Green faction, including Otto Hightower and Alicent, swooped in to allow Aegon to usurp the throne, as seen at the end of House of the Dragon Season 1.
Aegon II’s rule is a short one, and unlike the Conqueror, not remotely peaceful. He spends his entire reign embroiled in the civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons, with the realm divided between supporters of him (the Greens) and supporters of Rhaenyra (the Blacks). The war sees heavy casualties on both sides and, as we witnessed at the end of House of the Dragon Season 2, a badly injured Aegon is forced to flee King’s Landing. He does, however, end up killing Rhaenyra on Dragonstone, feeding her to his dragon, Sunfyre.
That isn’t enough to win him the war, though. Eventually, with armies closing in on King’s Landing, his closest advisors are forced to take drastic action because the king himself refuses to acknowledge the situation. Aegon II is poisoned by his own men and is succeeded on the Iron Throne by Rhaenyra’s son, Aegon the Younger.
Aegon III Targaryen
Reign: 131-157 AC
The eldest son of Rhaenyra and Daemon Targaryen, Aegon III enjoyed a much longer rule than his predecessor. Aegon had been named heir and betrothed to Aegon II’s daughter, Jaehaera, in order to join the two warring branches of House Targaryen, but was only 10-years-old when he inherited the Iron Throne. So, the realm was ruled by the Hand of the King and other council members until he came of age.
Aegon’s reign was, unfortunately, a rather miserable one. The early years were marred by infighting and political machinations from his various Hands and lords who sought power for themselves; once he was old enough to rule himself, while he successfully kept the house and realm united, he was typically withdrawn, unhappy, and rarely left the Red Keep. Most notably, it was during the reign of Aegon III that the last dragon died, earning him the moniker “Aegon the Dragonbane.”
Aegon IV Targaryen
Reign: 172–184 AC
After Aegon III, the Iron Throne passed to his firstborn son, Daeron, and then his second, Baelor. Neither of those had sons of their own, and so eventually the crown went to Aegon’s younger brother, Viserys II. After he died, his own son replaced him as king, becoming the fourth Targaryen ruler named Aegon, and quite possibly the worst of the entire bunch.
Aegon IV was greedy, selfish, and corrupt, and his reign reflected all of that. He had countless mistresses, did pretty much whatever he wanted, and oversaw a decade of misrule and terrible decisions that only served himself. The biggest of these was legitimizing all of his so-called Great Bastards on his deathbed, as well as giving one of these, Daemon Waters, the Valyrian steel sword Blackfyre (which had once belonged to the Conqueror, and was seen as legitimizing Daemon as a potential ruler).
Aegon IV was followed onto the Iron Throne by his trueborn heir, Daeron II, but eventually Daemon would make his own claim for the Iron Throne. Known as the Blackfyre Rebellion – with Daemon having taken the sword’s name for himself – it was another bloody, vicious conflict that lasted for around one year. Ultimately, Daeron II’s side was victorious, and he remains king at the beginning of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Season 1.
Aegon V Targaryen
Reign: 233-259 AC
Egg is secretly Aegon Targaryen, with his shaven head masking his true identity. Even after A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms‘ reveal, though, there’s a long way to go before he becomes king – and a lot that needs to happen. After all, Egg is the fourth son of a fourth son, meaning the closest he should be getting is standing near it as a member of the Kingsguard at best. And yet, end up on the throne he does.
By the time King Daeron II dies, Baelor and both of his sons have also died, and so the throne goes to his second son, Aerys. He also goes through several heirs during his reign, losing children of his own and another brother, meaning Maekar ends up on the throne. And when Maekar dies, his two eldest sons, Daeron and Aerion, are both deceased as well, and the third, Aemon, is a Maester. A Great Council convenes and names Egg as king.
His reign isn’t entirely an easy one, as he has to fend off several rebellions and uprisings. He is popular with the smallfolk, introducing several policies that benefit them (partially because of his own affection for them from his time travelling Westeros as Dunk’s squire), but this only displeases the noble lords, who feel their own power is diminished. Later, Egg comes to believe that he must bring dragons back into the world in order to solidify his own power, with some disastrous consequences to come. By his side during all of this, of course, is Ser Duncan the Tall, who becomes a member of the Kingsguard and eventually Lord Commander.
Aegon VI Targaryen?
Yes, there is another… maybe. A Dance with Dragons, Martin’s fifth A Song of Ice and Fire book, introduces us to the character of Young Griff, who claims to be Aegon Targaryen, firstborn child of Rhaegar Targaryen and Elia Martell, and rightful ruler of the Seven Kingdoms. The problem with that is Aegon was supposed to have been killed as an infant at the end of Robert’s Rebellion, but the story goes that he was swiched out with another baby, and smuggled away to Essos, where he was raised to be the perfect Targaryen prince.
Heading into The Winds of Winter, there are plenty of theories about Young Griff/Aegon and whether he really is who he claims or not, but either way he may still take the Iron Throne. He has arrived in Westeros with the Golden Company, the finest sellsword company known to man, supporting him, and he plans to make a bid for the crown. This means that when Daenerys finally arrives in Westeros herself, she might, to her shock, find another Targaryen has already beaten her to it. Game of Thrones cut Aegon Targaryen entirely, in part to keep things streamlined and also likely to avoid confusion with Jon Snow, whom they also revealed is actually called… yep, Aegon Targaryen.
New episodes of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms release Sundays at 10 pm ET on HBO and HBO Max. Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon are both available to stream on HBO Max.
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