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Just as the specter of her father’s madness loomed over Daenerys I Targaryen in Game of Thrones, there are several references to Maegor I Targaryen (infamously known as Maegor the Cruel) in relation to the “impulsive” and “unforgiving” character of Daemon Targaryen in House of the Dragon.
It is believed that Maegor’s supposed bastards will also appear in the show’s second season. This raises the question: why was the third Targaryen king remembered as the proverbial tyrant in Game of Thrones?
Game of Thrones: How Did The Mad King Get His Name?
Aerys II Targaryen's actions catalyzed Robert's Rebellion, and here is why Game of Thrones lore remembers him as the Mad King.
Who Was Maegor I Targaryen?
Born in 12 AC, Maegor was the son of King Aegon I Targaryen and his sister-wife Visenya. He was the younger half-brother of Aenys I, who was born to Aegon’s other sister-wife, Rhaenys. Aenys was always regarded as the heir apparent although he was quite frail, whereas Maegor was a skilled swordsman from a young age. Visenya gifted him the Valyrian steel sword, Dark Sister, and Aegon knighted him at the age of sixteen (the youngest at that time). When Aegon died in 37 AC, Aenys ascended the throne. He presented his brother with Aegon’s Valyrian steel blade, Blackfyre, admitting to everyone present that he was not the warrior Maegor had proved to be. The latter also bonded with Aegon’s dragon, Balerion the Black Dread.
Shortly after, a series of rebellions took place, one of which Maegor himself crushed. To reward his success, Aenys named him the Hand of the King (as the previous one died while fighting the rebels at Harrenhal). He held this position for two years, until he decided to marry again. He declared that his wife of thirteen years, Ceryse Hightower (the High Septon’s niece), was barren, so he intended to take another wife, Alys Harroway. This marriage drew the ire of the Faith — to the extent that he was sent to exile in Pentos.
The Faith Militant soon launched a rebellion against Aenys, after he announced the marriage of his son and daughter. Overcome by stress, he eventually died in 42 AC. Visenya immediately brought Maegor back to Westeros, where he claimed the throne. He beheaded Grand Maester Gawen when he protested that the crown should pass to Prince Aegon, Aenys’ eldest son, instead.
He retook King’s Landing after winning a trial of seven against the Warrior’s Sons. Severely injured, he was comatose for thirty days until Tyanna of the Tower, a courtesan from Pentos, helped him recover. When he woke, he mounted Balerion and burned down the Sept of Remembrance. Many battles continued to be fought between the two parties throughout his reign, and he never hesitated to resort to brutality. As Maester Yandel wrote:
What demon possessed him none could say. Even today, some give thanks that his tyranny was a short one, for who knows how many noble houses might have vanished forever simply to state his desire.
Why Was He Known as Maegor the Cruel?
Maegor the Cruel received his name in 43 AC, when Aegon led a revolt against him. His army of fifteen thousand men clashed with Maegor’s forces in what was known as the Battle Beneath the Gods Eye. Aegon rode on his father’s dragon, Quicksilver, during the battle, but both were ultimately killed by Maegor and Balerion. The king became known as a kinslayer throughout the realm for killing one of his own.
However, his cruel and violent tendencies existed long before this battle. As a child, he once stabbed a palfrey for kicking him, and then slashed the face of the stable boy who had come to rescue the animal. In 44 AC, when Visenya died, Aenys’ remaining family — his wife (Alyssa) and two youngest children (Jaehaerys and Alysanne) — used the resulting chaos to escape from Dragonstone. In response, Maegor had the eldest son, Viserys, arrested. He died after nine days of torture, and his mutilated body was left in the courtyard in an unsuccessful attempt to lure Alyssa out of hiding. In 45 AC, when the construction of the Red Keep was completed (including a massive square fortress known as Maegor’s Holdfast), Maegor held a feast for all the workers. Later, he had them executed to ensure that no one except him knew about the castle’s secret tunnels.
He married Tyanna in 42 AC (after slaying Grand Maester Myros for objecting against it), but was still childless by 47 AC. He had one deformed stillborn son with Alys in 44 AC, whom Tyanna claimed to be the result of a secret affair. As a result, he executed everyone involved in the birth (including Grand Maester Desmond) along with every member of House Harroway he could find. Ceryse also died of a sudden illness in 45 AC, but it was rumored that she had somehow offended Maegor, who ordered for her tongue to be cut. She was said to have struggled against the knife held against her, which inadvertently brought about her death.
Refusing to believe he was infertile, Maegor forcibly married three women of proven fertility in a single ceremony: Elinor Costayne, Jeyne Westerling and his niece, Princess Rhaena. All of them came to be known as the Black Brides, as they had been widowed through his actions. In 47 AC, Jeyne gave birth to “a legless and armless creature possessed of both male and female genitals”. Similarly, Elinor had a stillborn son in 48 AC. Maegor forced Tyanna to confess that she poisoned all his pregnant wives so that they would give birth to these monstrosities. He killed her himself, and fed her heart to his dogs.
There are many other examples of his vicious and disproportionate retribution, which eventually caused the people of the Seven Kingdoms to turn against him. As is stated in The World of Ice & Fire:
He is better remembered as Maegor the Cruel, and it was a well-earned sobriquet, for no crueler king ever sat the Iron Throne . His reign began with blood and ended in blood as well.
What Happened to Maegor?
By 48 AC, no one in the realm could tolerate Maegor’s reign of terror, so they supported Jaehaerys’ claim to the throne. Jaehaerys had three dragons, one of which belonged to Rhaena (who managed to escape from Maegor one night). Most of Maegor’s previous allies deserted him, leaving him with an army of barely four thousand soldiers. He still refused to surrender, and continued his war council. In the end, he remained alone in the throne room, and was found dead the next morning by Elinor. His body was still seated on the Iron Throne, with his wrists slashed and one of the throne’s swords impaled through the back of his neck.
Although it was never confirmed how he died, it was widely believed that he was murdered by the throne itself as he was never fit to be king. Others thought that he committed suicide, while a few suspected that he had been poisoned:
Aegon’s own son, Maegor the Cruel, was killed by the very Iron Throne his father had forged. If you believe the tales. If you don’t, then perhaps “The Cruel” is not a wise name for a king to earn.
He was succeeded by Jaehaerys, who became the longest reigning king on the Iron Throne.
Game of Thrones
Game of Thrones, based on the Song of Ice and Fire book series by George R.R. Martin, tells the sprawling story of warring families in Westeros. This includes the Starks, the Lannisters, the Baratheons, and the Targaryens. Along with human conflicts, Westeros is also threatened by the re-emergence of dragons, and an undead enemy from beyond the Wall.
Game of Thrones: What Happened to All the Dragons?
Considered as the fearful relics of bygone empires, dragons once populated the lands of Westeros and beyond — before disappearing altogether.
