One of the most prominent families on Game of Thrones is House Targaryen. They have a long and powerful dynasty in Westeros, but also a terrible one. Targaryen family history is filled with stories of murder, conquering, and of course, dragons. From the first conquest of Westeros to the Battle of King’s Landing, many people have died at the hands of Targaryens.
The list of the most brutal things this family has done is a long one. To keep things simple, we’re going to focus on the show’s timeline and anything mentioned on screen. Here are the most terrible things the Targaryens have done on Game of Thrones, listed in the order they happened.
10 AEMON TARGARYEN (MAESTER AEMON): GIVES UP RIGHTS TO THE THRONE
You may recall that Maester Aemon is technically the last Targaryen alive in Westeros. He once mentions to Sam that he was in love with a woman before he became a Maester. So, if he had taken the throne when it was offered to him, he likely would have married her. If he had become king and had children with her, his nephew the Mad King probably wouldn’t have ended up on the throne. Then Robert’s Rebellion wouldn’t have happened, and hundreds of thousands of people wouldn’t have died unjustly. You get the picture.
9 QUEEN RHAELLA: REMAINS IN A LOVELESS AND VIOLENT MARRIAGE
We don’t actually see her on the show, but Queen Rhaella is mentioned a few times. She is the Mad King’s wife and Daenerys’ mother. The story goes that the Mad King was always in love with Joanna Lannister, but married his sister Rhaella out of Targaryen duty. The two were miserable but produced children. Rhaella’s decision to honor duty is a big factor in the wayall of the preceding events unfold. If the Mad King had ended up with Joanna, things would have been very different and so much destruction might not have occurred.
8 AERYS II TARGARYEN (THE MAD KING): LOSES SANITY AND BECOMES A TYRANT
The only time we really see The Mad King,is through flashbacks. But we certainly know a lot about him and his terrible ways. When Aerys began to lose his sanity, thanks to a long history of Targaryen inbreeding, he becomes paranoid and this results in unspeakable brutality. Aerys was particularly paranoid about Tywin Lannister, his Hand. Even though Tywin had once been a good friend, Aerys thought that Tywin wanted to steal his power.
So Aerys promoted Jaime Lannister to the Kingsguard out of spite, which meant that Jamie couldn’t inherit property. That left the entire Lannister kingdom to Tyrion as the only male heir, which enraged Tywin. We all know how Tywin feels about Tyrion. Aerys also married Rhaegar to Elia Martell instead of Cersei Lannister, when the plan was to marry Cersei and fuse the Lannister-Targaryen houses. Then, Aerys proceeded to execute and kill tons of people until Robert’s Rebellion shut him down. His tyranny basically caused the entire end of his lineage and put the Lannisters on the throne, which wasn’t good for anyone.
7 RHAEGAR TARGARYEN: CAUSES ROBERT’S REBELLION
Just like his father, we only learn Rhaegar’s story through flashbacks and stories told throughout the show. The story goes that Rhaegar was married to Elia Martell, but was secretly in love with Lyanna Stark. At the time, Lyanna Stark was betrothed to Robert Baratheon. During the Great Tourney at Harrenhal, Rhaegar won. After his victory, he publicly placed his wreath in Lyanna’s lap – not his wife’s. This action was also delivered at the same time as Aerys II’s announcement that Jaime was going to enter his Kingsguard. Needless to say, Tywin was ticked and quit his post to return home (and plan a rebellion.)
After this, Rhaegar ran off with Lyanna to secretly marry her. However, the rebels interpreted this as him kidnapping her. The two hid in exile as the rebellion began. Rhaegar returned to lead his father’s army, but he and Lyanna both died, and the Targaryen rule ended.
6 VISERYS III TARGARYEN: SACRIFICES HIS SISTER SO HE CAN TAKE THE IRON THRONE
In Season 1, Viserys and his sister Daenerys, are living in exile. Viserys has arranged for Daenerys to marry Khal Drogo in exchange for the manpower to take the Iron Throne. Daenerys does not want to marry Drogo and begs and pleads her brother not to go through with it. At one point, he tells her that he’d let all of the Dothraki rape her if it means he gets the throne. Eventually, he threatens his sister’s baby. That gets him covered in a “crown” of melted gold, which kills him. Daenerys and Drogo do end up falling in love, but Viserys’ actions are purely selfish and greedy.
5 AEGON TARGARYEN (JON SNOW): BENDING THE KNEE TO DAENERYS
This may be a controversial opinion. However, Jon’s decision to bend the knee is basically what caused the unraveling of the events that lead to the destruction of King’s Landing. Jon bends the knee because it’s the best decision for survival against the White Walkers. But his choice divides his family and causes tension between House Stark’s allies. Many people lose respect for him. It doesn’t help that Jon’s also in love with Daenerys, which makes it seem like he’s blinded by his heart. Then he goes with her to the Battle of King’s Landing and loses everything.
4 VISERION TARGARYEN (THE GOLD DRAGON): NOT GOING DIRECTLY FOR THE NIGHT KING
Arguably the most even-tempered of Daenerys’ dragon children, Viserion makes one fatal error that gives the Night King a massive edge. Viserion and the other dragons should have gone directly for the Night King before they scorched everyone else. Not doing so allows the Night King to get a clear shot with his ice spear, killing Viserion in the sky. What’s even worse is that after Viserion dies, the Night King turns him into an ice dragon. In doing this, Viserion loses his free will and becomes the Night King’s ultimate secret weapon.
3 RHAEGAL TARGARYEN (THE GREEN DRAGON): NOT FLYING AWAY AFTER THE FIRST ARROW
Daenerys’ beloved dragon child Rhaegal doesn’t really do a lot of terrible things per se — aside from the whole being a terrifying dragon thing. But one terrible decision causes his death. In Season 8, Euron shoots Rhaegal with an arrow from the Scorpion. Instead of fleeing, he just keeps flying. Then he gets hit with more arrows and plunges lifelessly into the water. If he had just turned away when the first arrow hit, he’d likely still be alive.
2 DAENERYS TARGARYEN: BURNING DOWN KING’S LANDING
The last season of Game of Thrones saw us witnessing Daenerys go down a dark path. She’s overcome by power and madness, and everything that’s happened to her manifests into pent-up rage. There is no need for her to burn down King’s Landing. They had already won the war and Cersei’s army was surrendering. The bells were ringing. Dany could have just stopped and claimed her victory then and there. Doing what she did goes against everything she stood for in the beginning, as she basically destroys an entire city of unarmed and innocent civilians. It also results in her death.
1 DROGON TARGARYEN (THE BLACK DRAGON): SCORCHING KING’S LANDING
Of all of Daenerys’ dragon children, Drogon is by far the most vicious. He is also the one she usually rides. So naturally, it’s Drogon that burns down King’s Landing with Daenerys on his back. Some fan theories out there that argue Drogon chose to scorch King’s Landing himself, while others argue Daenerys made the command. Either way, Drogon plays an important role in destroying the town — providing the fire. This act ultimately gets his mother killed. Drogon is currently the only living dagon in the world of Westeros, likely never to be seen again.
