Explanation of Aemon Targaryen’s family tree

There are few things that can challenge fans of George R.R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” series quite like the Targaryen family tree — and for good reason. As depicted in his books and the HBO series “Game of Thrones” and “House of the Dragon,” the Targaryen clan was once vast and powerful. However, their Tendency to incest And a Civil war between Targaryen factions It led to them being almost completely wiped out due to the events of “Game of Thrones”. Although there are enough ferocious, dragon-riding Targaryens in “House of the Dragon” it is a struggle To keep our Aegons runningthere are only two Targaryens left two centuries later when Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) hatches three dragon eggs and brings dragons back for the first time since the Civil War.

There is one Targaryen who not only got to see the fall of the Targaryen line at the hands of Robert Baratheon and his allies, but also the return of the dragons and the rise of the fearsome White Walkers originally foretold in ancient prophecies. Passed down by the Targaryen kings: Aemon Targaryen, later known as Maester Aemon (played by the late Peter Vaughan on “Game of Thrones”). As a member of the Night’s Watch, he was separated from his family and many forgot he was a Targaryen at all. Here’s how he connects with the rest of the clan, from his immediate family to his warring ancestors and his nephew’s grandchildren.

Some of Aemon’s family are set to appear in the Game of Thrones prequel series, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Based on Martin’s “Dunk and Egg” stories. The “egg” in “Dunk and Egg” is young Aegon Targaryen (yes, another one), Aemon’s younger brother who will one day ascend to the Iron Throne. He will be played by Dexter Saul Ansell in the series, which follows the young prince as he travels to Westeros as an escort to hedge knight Ser Duncan the Tall (Peter Claffey). Think of them as really healthy Arya and the Hound And you are on the right track.

We’ll learn a lot about younger brother Aegon, but Aemon also had two older brothers, Daeron “The Drunken” (Henry Ashton) and Aerion “Bright Flame” (Finn Bennet), as well as two younger sisters, Dayla and Rae. . Because he was a smart child and there were too many Targaryen males around him, Aemon’s grandfather Daeron II Targaryen chose to send the boy to the castle to train as a maester. (His brother Egg would encounter him in Old Town during his adventures, where Eamonn would give him a mule, aptly named “Maester.”)

Their father Maekar I (Sam Spruell) eventually becomes king, with their mother Diana Dayne as queen. When Aemon finished his training at the castle and became a Maester, he chose to serve in his brother Daeron’s court at Dragonstone. Aemon descends from a long line of people who lived and served on Dragonstone, including the great and terrible Rhaenyra and Damon Targaryen.

Aemon and his siblings are direct descendants of Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen (played in Emma D’Arcy’s “House of the Dragon”) and her uncle, Damon (Matt Smith). The son of Rhaenyra and Daemon Viserys II, who served as Hand of the King to his brother Aegon III (also called “Aegon the Younger”), eventually became king himself. His eldest son, Aegon IV “the Unworthy”, had so many mistresses and bastards that he had many mistresses and bastards. There have been five Blackfire Rebellions When these bastards tried to claim the throne for themselves, but in the end his (alleged) legitimate son, Daeron II, ended up on the Iron Throne.

Daeron II is Aemon’s grandfather, so Rhaenyra and Daemon are his great-grandfathers. As of Season 2 of “House of the Dragon,” his great-grandfather, Viserys II, is still just a young boy, though we can see more of him as the series progresses, especially when his brother Aegon III becomes king.

Although Aemon takes the vows of the castle and is not supposed to have any children or marry as a Maester, his family does have descendants and he ends up with a niece and two nephews: Daenerys Targaryen, Viserys III Targaryen, and Aegon VII Targaryen, known as Jon Snow.

Although Aemon had no children, his brother Aegon V had three children: Rhaegar, Viserys III (Harry Lloyd), and Daenerys. Viserys died when he obtained the “Golden Crown” from Daenerys’ husband Khal Drogo (Jason Momoa), but Daenerys went on to conquer King’s Landing and reclaim Westeros for herself in “Game of Thrones.” One person in particular stood in her way: her lover, battle partner, and nephew, Jon Snow (Kit Harington).

Jon is Rhaegar’s only surviving child, and is called Aegon VII in the TV series. He is the son of Rhaegar and his mistress, Lyanna Stark, who is raised by her brother Ned (Sean Bean) as his own bastard in order to protect the boy when any remaining Targaryens are hunted down after Robert’s Rebellion. Meanwhile, Daenerys and Viserys were smuggled to Essos as adults for their own protection, leading to Daenerys conquering most of Essos before turning her sights to Westeros. Ultimately, Jon killed Dany to prevent her from unleashing mass death in King’s Landing, before returning to Castle Black and the Wall, where he was sent as a younger man.

Castle Black is also where Aemon was able to speak with his great-nephew, though whether or not Aemon knows Jon’s heritage is up for debate. After all, The Targaryen family tree is confusing Without changing the child’s name to protect him, who knows?

Maester Aemon was the Maestro of Castle Black and one of Lord Commander Jeor Mormont’s (James Cosmo) most trusted advisors. There, he looked after members of the Night’s Watch, who protect the people of Westeros from the wildlings (and other dangers) that live beyond the Wall. Jon Snow initially went there because he felt he had no real future anywhere else as a bastard, and wanted to join his uncle Benjen, the First Guardian of the Night’s Watch. Eventually, Eamon ends up helping Jon Snow when he becomes captain of the Night’s Watch himself, telling him to “Kill the boy, and let the man be born.”

But why was Aemon in Castle Black in the first place? After the death of his father and questions about the succession, Aemon chose to take the Black and serve at the Wall rather than get caught up in any plots for the throne. He had no desire for power and probably knew that Aeg would be a better king. Moreover, he had already taken the vows of the castle and did not want to back out of them.

It will be interesting to see what HBO teams up with ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ And just how much of a role Aemon plays, given that he’s often out of the picture in Oldtown, Dunk and Egg fans are certainly stoked. Aemon is a great character who exists almost entirely in the margins, but is relatable to almost everyone.