One of the most common memes regarding Dragon House is several characters have the same names over generations. In season 1, we saw two Aegon and two Visery. And there will be more down the line. But it is curious that Rhaenyra Targaryen is one of a kind. There will be no other Targaryen girls named after her. But why? Scroll down to find out.
What was Rhaenyra Targaryen like as Queen of the Seven Kingdoms?
King Viserys I Targaryen declares his daughter, Rhaenyra Targaryen as heir
The Targaryen Civil War known as the Dance of the Dragons was a bloody affair that nearly ended the Targaryen line. It all started when the king Viserys I Targaryen named his daughter Rhaenyra Targaryen as heir to the throne in the absence of a male heir.
But his second marriage to Alicent Hightower produced two sons, Aegon II Targaryen and Aemond Targaryen, and a daughter Helaena Targaryen. As such, everyone thought Aegon II was going to be named heir as he was the first born male son. After all, according to tradition, male heirs inherit the throne.
But Viserys did not remove Rhaenyra Targaryen and name her son, Aegon, heir. But for many, even though Viserys had named his daughter heiress, it was his son who had the greatest claim to the throne. As such, according to GRR Martin’s book Fire and Blood, it was Rhaenyra who was considered the usurper. In fact, even though she reigned for six months, her name is not on the list of Targaryen monarchs for this reason.
The Cruel Maegor
In addition, several sources accuse him of having launched the Dance of the Dragons. And her cruelty at Kings Landing when the war was turning in their favor and she took power displeased many. For example, she raised taxes and executed several. Additionally, she celebrated her son Joffrey’s birthday lavishly and declared him Prince of Dragonstone while Kings Landing was starving. For this reason, she was nicknamed “King Maegor with Teats”.
King Maegor was the third Targaryen King and he was nicknamed the Cruel. This is because he took his father, Aegon the Conqueror’s dragon Balerion, murdered the Grand Maester who questioned his claim to the throne, then murdered his nephew who stood in his way to the throne. .
In the end, Rhaenyra herself lost to Aegon II since her dragon, Sunfyre, burned her alive. And it was only after a year that Aegon II was poisoned to death. Blacks continued to rally around the name of Aegon III (Rhaenyra’s son), who was later enthroned.
Why didn’t the Targaryens name their daughters after the queen?
Rhaenyra Targaryen
Because Rhaenyra was seen as the usurper, had a reputation for being cruel and technically lost to Aegon II, even though it was her son who ultimately sat on the throne. Thus, future Targaryen girls are not named after her. It’s similar to how no Targaryen male child was named after King Maegor. This is probably considered a bad omen.
What do you think? Let us know.
