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The Game of Thrones world before House of the Dragon, who and how was the Iron Throne built?
The new HBO MAX series will premiere next August 21 and will have the Targaryen family, their dragons and their secrets as the main protagonists.
House of the Dragon, the new series set in the Game of Thrones universe, is a story prequel to the HBO series. Several centuries before the fall of the Mad King, Aerys II Targaryen, many other members of his family sat on the Iron Throne. This uncomfortable and dangerous chair was made using the swords of the Targaryen's enemies, but who was it that ordered it to be built?
Fire and Blood, another of the books written by George R.R. Martin, narrates the entire history of the Targaryens in Westeros. In fact, the first season of the series is based on one of these historical periods. However, to find out who placed the Iron Throne in the Red Keep in King's Landing, we must go back to the beginning.
It was Aegon Targaryen, the first of his name, King of the Andals and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm, who built the throne as a symbol of his power. In addition, he became the first ruler of a new dynasty that reigned for 300 years, before being deposed by Robert Baratheon.
Who was Aegon Targaryen and how did he build the Iron Throne?
In the ancient city of Valyria, the Targaryens were only one of several families that owned dragons. They were not even among the most powerful dragon lords. Yet Daenys the Dreamer had a vision in which she saw Valyria fall prey to a curse. Only the Targaryen survived and moved to Dragonstone. Two centuries passed and they hardly cared about Westeros, until Aegon the Conqueror decided to claim the throne.
The Dragonlord landed in Westeros and was crowned two years later in the Starry Sept, although the conquest did not happen overnight. The Seven Kingdoms were not united and there were clear signs of instability, so Aegon had to face rebellions, not to mention the religious situation: the Faith forbade the practices of the Targaryen, who married between brothers, something considered abominable and heretical. This problem was one of the most complex after the death of the king and the reign of his descendants.
Aegon The Conqueror was an experienced dragon rider who rode Balerion, known as The Black Dread. It was precisely this beast that exhaled his igneous breath to shape the swords of the Iron Throne, all of them collected from the enemies slain during Aegon's time of conquest. Although the fire deformed the blades, they still pierced, as Maegor Targaryen, son of the first sovereign, died impaled on the swords of his own throne (it is not known if it was a suicide or an assassination).
The Iron Throne was a symbol of royal power, a constant reminder of the consequences of betraying the dragon. Later, the swords were accompanied by the skulls of dead dragons, which decorated the room of the Red Keep. King's Landing, the capital, served as its resting place for centuries, a city that was built by order of Aegon Targaryen and flourished a few years later as the capital of the Seven Kingdoms.
The first season of House of the Dragon will premiere next August 21 on HBO Max. Co-showrunner Miguel Sapochnik has hinted that the series will become an anthology, so they will be able to explore other eras of the saga in future seasons. Not surprisingly, author George R.R. Martin has acknowledged that they are already thinking about Season 2.