Rhaegar Targaryen
| House / Order | House Targaryen |
|---|---|
| Race / Culture | |
| Status | Deceased |
| Origin | King's Landing; Dragonstone |
| Born | 259 AC |
| Died | 283 AC, at the Trident |
| Weapon | Rubies of his armor lost in the river; a fine warrior and harpist |
| Fate | Slain in single combat by Robert Baratheon |
| Portrayed by |
Rhaegar Targaryen was the eldest son and heir of King Aerys II Targaryen and Queen Rhaella, Prince of Dragonstone and Crown Prince of the Seven Kingdoms. Widely regarded as the finest knight and most beloved prince of his generation, melancholy and bookish in his youth before turning to arms, Rhaegar is remembered above all for the act that helped ignite Robert's Rebellion: his disappearance with Lyanna Stark, betrothed of Robert Baratheon.
His death at the hands of Robert at the Trident effectively ended the Targaryen dynasty's hold on the Iron Throne, and the truth of his relationship with Lyanna remains one of the central mysteries woven through A Song of Ice and Fire.
Background
Rhaegar was born in 259 AC, in the same year and shadow as the tragedy of Summerhall, where his great-grandfather King Aegon V died. As a boy he was studious and inward, devoted to books and to the harp, until one day he announced that he had read something that determined him to become a warrior. He trained himself into one of the most formidable knights in the realm, yet he never lost his contemplative, sorrowful nature. He played the high harp with silver strings so beautifully that women were said to weep.
He married Princess Elia of Dorne, of House Martell, and they had two children, Rhaenys and the infant Aegon.
The tourney at Harrenhal
At the great tournament at Harrenhal in 281 AC, Rhaegar unhorsed every challenger, including the celebrated Ser Barristan Selmy, to win the day. In a moment that would echo through later years, he rode past his own wife and laid the crown of winter roses, the prize for the queen of love and beauty, in the lap of Lyanna Stark of Winterfell. The silence that followed was long remembered.
Disappearance and war
Some time afterward, Rhaegar and Lyanna vanished together. The Starks and Baratheons named it an abduction; others have wondered whether Lyanna went willingly. Lyanna's brother Brandon Stark rode to King's Landing demanding her return and was seized by the Mad King, who then murdered Brandon and their father Rickard Stark. These killings, and Aerys's demand for the heads of Eddard Stark and Robert Baratheon, set the realm aflame.
Rhaegar returned at last to lead the royal host. He met Robert Baratheon in single combat at the ford of the Trident. There Robert's warhammer caved in Rhaegar's breastplate, scattering the rubies from his armor into the river, and the prince died in the water speaking, some say, the name of Lyanna.
Legacy
After the battle, Eddard Stark found Lyanna dying in a bed of blood at the Tower of Joy in Dorne, and she made him promise her something with her final breath, a promise Ned never spoke aloud. The fate of Rhaegar's children was grim: Elia and her young son Aegon and daughter Rhaenys were slaughtered during the Sack of King's Landing by men of House Lannister, the children's killing carried out by Gregor Clegane.
Rhaegar's memory is invoked with reverence by many who knew him, including Jon Connington, Barristan Selmy, and his sister Daenerys Targaryen, who longs to understand the brother she never knew.
Character
Rhaegar is remembered as noble, gifted, and tragic, a prince who seemed destined for greatness and instead became the spark of his house's ruin. His true motives, his beliefs about prophecy and "the prince that was promised," and the nature of his bond with Lyanna are left deliberately enigmatic, fueling enduring speculation among readers.
In the television series
In HBO's Game of Thrones, Rhaegar appears only in flashback, portrayed by Wilf Scolding. The show confirms that he wed Lyanna Stark and that their child was Jon Snow.
Appearances
- A Game of Thrones (mentioned)
- A Storm of Swords (mentioned)