Throughout House of the Dragon, Game of Thrones, and the many other stories set in the world of Westeros, there have been several long-reigning kings of the Iron Throne. The two aforementioned HBO adaptations are based on the works of George R. R. Martin, specifically the A Song of Ice and Fire book series. These stories take place in Westeros and Essos, with much of the focus being placed on the former, specifically the various kings and queens of the Iron Throne.

While House of the Dragon‘s book changes and the various alterations of Game of Thrones somewhat deviate both stories from Martin’s original works, the history of Westeros is mostly kept intact between the books and TV shows. Even the divisive ending of Game of Thrones received notes from Martin about the succession of the Iron Throne, keeping the line of various kings and queens consistent with what is expected of the final two books in the series. One constant of Westerosi kings is short reigns, but there are a few who have avoided tradition and ruled for long periods.

10

Aegon IV Targaryen – 12 Years

Ruled From 172 – 184 AC

Ruling around 30 years after House of the Dragon‘s Dance of Dragons, Aegon IV Targaryen is looked back upon as one of the worst Targaryen kings. Aegon IV received the moniker “The Unworthy” for his various unseemly acts and the damage he inflicted upon the realm. Aegon IV was known as someone who could not control his desires, his greed, or his lust for power. As such, he often inflicted his will on others regardless of whom they were, adversely impacting the court of King’s Landing as well as the common folk throughout Westeros.

Undoubtedly, one of the biggest mistakes attributed to Aegon IV’s reign was linked to the many bastard children he sired during his tenure on the Iron Throne. Although this is not an uncommon practice for most kings of the Seven Kingdoms, Aegon’s mistake came on his deathbed when he legitimized his children born out of wedlock. This led to wars and rebellion for future kings, as the newly-founded House Blackfyre, consisting of Aegon IV’s now-legitimized children and their heirs, staked their claim to the Iron Throne.

9

Aerys I Targaryen – 12 Years

Ruled From 209 – 221 AC

Another king who sat on the Iron Throne for 12 years was Aerys I Targaryen. Unlike Aegon IV, Aerys’ reign was much less controversial. Aerys was described as a scholar, who often preferred perusing endless books and scrolls to ruling. As a result, a great deal of his reign was attributed to his small council, specifically Brynden Rivers, his Hand of the King.

Despite Aerys’ scholarly nature, his reign was not uneventful. Aerys I Targaryen was left to deal with the aftermath of Aegon IV, despite ruling almost 30 years and two kings later. Aerys was forced to reckon with the Second and Third Blackfyre Rebellions during his time as king. The former ended with minimal bloodshed thanks to Ser Duncan the Tall and his squire, who will appear in the next Game of Thrones spin-off story: The Hedge Knight. After the Third Blackfyre Rebellion, which was more warlike, Aerys died and was succeeded by his youngest brother, Maekar.

8

Robert I Baratheon – 15 Years

Ruled From 283 – 298 AC

The first non-Targaryen king since Aegon the Conqueror was Robert I Baratheon. Robert Baratheon, played by Mark Addy in Game of Thrones’ cast, is the king at the onset of the show, leading to the fateful events of George R. R. Martin’s first book and the first season of the HBO adaptation. As a member of House Baratheon and the king responsible for ending the Targaryen dynasty, Robert’s rise to the Iron Throne is more exciting than simply the line of succession.

Before Game of Thrones, Ned Stark and Robert Baratheon rebelled against the crown. After the abduction of Ned’s sister and Robert’s wife-to-be Lyanna Stark by Rhaegar Targaryen, and the execution of Ned’s father and brother by the mad king Aerys, Houses Stark, Baratheon, and Arryn rebelled against the Targaryens. After a year-long war, Robert and Ned won the war against the waning Targaryen dynasty, seeing the former crowned king. Robert ruled for 15 years before being injured in a hunting accident and succeeded by his eldest son Joffrey.

7

Aerys II Targaryen – 21 Years

Ruled From 262 – 283 AC

The king whom Robert won the Iron Throne from was Aerys II Targaryen. Aerys II’s reign is one of the more infamous in Westeros history, primarily stemming from the king’s moniker as “The Mad King.” Originally succeeding from Jaehaerys II, Aerys II’s reign began promisingly. With the aid of his Hand, Tywin Lannister, Westeros prospered for a while after Aerys was crowned. However, Aerys eventually declined into madness due to multiple miscarriages and stillbirths, uprisings, the deaths of his children, and the deterioration of his relationship with Tywin.

This madness was primarily driven by neverending paranoia, which saw Aerys commit multiple atrocities against many Westerosi Houses in the name of protecting his reign that was rarely, if ever, under threat. Ultimately, Aerys II’s paranoia led to the aforementioned events that kickstarted Robert’s Rebellion. As the war neared its end, Jaime Lannister – dubbed the Kingslayer – killed Aerys II Targaryen after the latter instructed the former to kill his own father and burn King’s Landing to the ground using wildfire.

6

Daeron II Targaryen – 25 Years

Ruled From 184 – 209 AC

The king that was nestled between the reign of Aegon IV and Aerys I was Daeron II Targaryen. Daeron’s early reign was spent fixing a lot of the mistakes Aegon IV had made. Daeron was a good fit for this, as he is often described as a wise, kindhearted man, leading to his moniker of “Daeron the Good.” From removing the corruption of the Small Council and the City Watch to treating Aegon IV’s newly legitimized children with fairness, Aegon IV’s most immediate mistakes were rectified shortly after Daeron came into power.

Undoubtedly, one of Daeron’s biggest successes as king was the peaceful integration of Dorne into the Seven Kingdoms. Due to his marriage with Myriah Martell, Daeron united all the lands of Westeros south of the Wall. Eventually, Daeron’s fairness was betrayed by Daemon Blackfyre, leading to the First Blackfyre Rebellion. After victory in 196 AC, Daeron ruled for another 13 years, in which Westeros saw peace, before dying in the Great Spring Sickness to be succeeded by Aerys I, his second son.

5

Viserys I Targaryen – 26 Years

Ruled From 103 – 129 AC

House of the Dragon‘s cast in season 1 was arguably spearheaded by Paddy Considine, who portrayed Viserys I Targaryen. Viserys I was king at the onset of House of the Dragon, succeeding his grandfather, Jaehaerys I. Due to the actions of the latter, Viserys I’s reign was predominantly peaceful. Jaehaerys’ strength as king saw Viserys inherit the Seven Kingdoms at the best time, with Viserys simply continuing this peace with the aid of his Small Council.

While Viserys’ reign itself was peaceful, the inevitable Targaryen Civil War known as the Dance of Dragons was forever attributed to his tenure. While the Dance did not start until after Viserys’ death, the seeds of the war to come were planted under Viserys’ rule. Viserys’ inability to sire a male heir until after he named his daughter, Rhaenyra Targaryen, as his successor led to two sides of the Targaryen family believing they held claim to the Iron Throne. Viserys’ death before clarifying a successor led to the Dance of Dragons, marring an otherwise peaceful reign.

4

Aegon III Targaryen – 26 Years

Ruled From 131 – 157 AC

Aegon III Targaryen was the king who succeeded the deadly Dance of Dragons. After the death of many Targaryen family members and their dragons, Aegon III was chosen as king due to his royal ancestors, such as Rhaenyra, Viserys I, and Jaehaerys I. Aegon III was young when chosen as king, leading a large portion of his early reign to be led by several different Hands of the King. Upon coming of age, Aegon strived for peace, but his attempts were marred by his heavy depression.

Due to what he experienced during the Dance of Dragons, Aegon was a broken man who seldom felt joy or had any interest in anything. Most days, Aegon III locked himself away in his room. This led to Aegon III becoming known as “Aegon the Unlucky,” “Aegon the Unhappy,” and “The Broken King.” Aegon also disliked dragons due to the Targaryen Civil War, and the last of the mythical beasts died out under his reign. Thereafter, Aegon III became known as “The Dragonbane.”

3

Aegon V Targaryen – 26 Years

Ruled From 233 – 259 AC

Aegon V Targaryen was an interesting case study, so much so that he was named “Aegon the Unlikely” upon becoming king. Aegon was only granted the Iron Throne after a Great Council bypassed several candidates. Only after his brother, Aemon Targaryen, passed on the opportunity was Aegon V crowned king. Aegon V was a peaceful, benevolent king, and attempted to implement several laws, rights, and protections to the small folk of Westeros. This was proven during a six-year winter at the beginning of his reign, in which he sent shipments of aid to the starving Northmen.

In the latter part of his reign, Aegon V dealt with the Fourth Blackfyre Rebellion. Eventually, Aegon decided that dragons would be needed to coerce the other lords of the Seven Kingdoms to accept his decrees that benefitted the small folk. Unfortunately, Aegon died in a fire at Summerhall as he tried to hatch dragon eggs, being succeeded by Jaehaerys II and then the Mad King Aerys, who nullified the work Aegon V had put in to benefit the small folk of Westeros.

2

Aegon the Conqueror – 37 Years

Ruled From 1 – 37 AC

The first king of Westeros was Aegon I Targaryen, better known as Aegon the Conqueror. Before the Conqueror, the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros were in a perpetual state of war due to housing their own individual lords and kings. Aegon Targaryen, along with his sister-wives Rhaenys and Visenya, took their dragons and began the conquest of Westeros. The trio believed that Westeros should not be seven individual kingdoms, but the Seven Kingdoms, united under one crown, beginning Game of Thrones‘ famous Aegon’s Conquest.

Using their dragons and military might, Aegon, Visenya, and Rhaenys eventually brought every kingdom in Westeros beneath their rule, until Aegon was crowned King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, and Protector of the Realm. The rule Aegon birthed became the norm in Westeros, as did many other common features of House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones. From the Small Council and Hand of the King to the Iron Throne and King’s Landing, Aegon’s conquest and subsequent reign formed the political landscape of Westeros that is prevalent in Martin’s stories.

1

Jaehaerys I Targaryen – 55 Years

Ruled From 48 – 103 AC

The longest-reigning Targaryen king by a long margin was Jaehaerys I. Jaehearys was the third Targaryen king of Westeros, and is revered as the best to have ever lived. This primarily stemmed from the peace, stability, and prosperity Jaehaerys brought to the Seven Kingdoms after the reign of his predecessor, Maegor the Cruel. From increased prosperity, justice, and cohesion among the Seven Kingdoms to the ending of feuds such as the Third and Fourth Dornish Wars and the long-running rivalry between Houses Bracken and Blackwood, Jaehaerys ushered in an unprecedented time of peace.

This eventually earned Jaehaerys the moniker of “The Conciliator.” Thanks to Jaehaerys’ skill as a king, Viserys I’s reign as his successor was primarily peaceful too. Unlike most Westerosi kings who fall prey to indulges, greed, power, or war, Jaehaerys instead became the longest-serving king in the history of the Seven Kingdoms after Aegon’s Conquest. From then on, no king in either Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon, or Martin’s many other stories has outshone Jaehaerys’ reign as the Old King.