Maegor is quite literally Henry the eighth. He had six wives. He broke with the faith. And his behavior started to change after a traumatic injury. George R R Martin did say that he looked at British history for inspiration for game of thrones
Henry the VIII has been made into 2 Targaryens, one being MAEGOR I with his 6 wifes, and the second one being AEGON IV who looks like him and has many many bastards and love affairs.
Except Henry VIII was far from a warrior like Maegor and he also wasn't sterile..which are two of Maegor's biggest traits. If anything, Aegon the Unworthy was more like Henry VIII.
@@JimSty-bh1osHenry the 8th was apparently the very ideal of a renaissance prince in his youth. He excelled at sports and was intelligent as well. He was also supposedly adept at combat as well. Just because the majority of what history focuses on was the disgusting, unstable, wife-killing bastard he became in later life; doesn't mean that's what he always was lol.
Maegor starts his story at the prodigal saviour of House Targaryen. An undefeatable warrior riding the largest dragon his family ever possessed, wielding both ancestral swords, returning from exile to save his House from collapse after his father worked so hard to solidify their power and committing the necessary violence to quell rebellion. But as time went on, he became the very monster people believed him to be.
He was already a monster when he was a child. It was said that as a kid he already showed signs of saddistic behaviour enjoying torturing animals and training with the sword. Rejecting to bond with other dragons other than Balerion.
@@mannythegrandfather2291 true , but that don't change that Maegor first appears as a savior for the Targaryens. You could say that Maegor had Visenya and Aegon I as the leash to his cruelty , and when both died , it had no one to stop him.
He was always the monster they believed him to be, his fight against the faith was basically the only good thing he did, and even then it could be argued that he just worsened the issues with the faith militant.
@@Rifqiethehero Yeah, I do wonder about that as well. Perhaps if he had survived, Maegor might've given him a place on the Kingsguard, or a Lordship, perhaps he might have kept him at his side. Who knows. All we can say about good ole Dick Bean is that he died more honorable than most during Maegor's reign.
In all honesty, Maegor was a truly cruel man, but I can't help but be so intrigued by his story. He took the throne at arguably the most pinnacle time of Westeros's history while the Targaryens were still trying to solidify their claim/dominion (that shit takes decades when things go in your favor instead of the latter) over a massive continent with several different cultures that made it hard to rule. He was definitely bloodthirsty for sure, but sometimes, when you're a king with a massive fuck-off dragon, you're gonna have to use it to keep people in check.
Except he didn't. Not really. Within 6 years, he was facing a massive rebellion, and few people rallied to him by the end. Aenys tried complete non-violence, Maegor tried complete violence. Neither worked. Jaehaerys decided to go the peaceful route while firmly putting his foot down when need be. THAT worked.
@@lokenontherangeUh, yes, you absolutely can rely on it. Martin literally created that entire universe. If he says something happened a certain way, it did. What Margot was in Martin’s mind is the way Maegor is.
@Ares99999 Maegor was a necessary evil to keep westeros divided, but it also helped ready the targaryen heir to come and unite the kingdoms once again through diplomacy rather than fire and blood like Aegon did.
@@phoenixking9457 he was brutal, but not cruel. His torturing and killing of cats is a rumor and holds no value since it's far from confirmed. From what we know he was much like Stannis, not well liked but not evil. He was unbending, strict and brutal but he loved his brother and family until the head trauma and revival (and tyanna gaslighting him)
Maegor appearing above Aegons dragon with his nuke Balerion the dread and unleashing chaos on them both must be horrific for the Aegon side loyalist who witnessed this. Maegor maybe cruel but Maegor had the qualities of a the Valeryian dragonlords which lacks in many other dragonriders in the dynasty.
Very true maegor probably would’ve ruled the Targaryen dynasty really well with the other dragonlords would’ve fit right in and probably made their house grow in power over the others which is terrifying but probably true.
@@McherriMost targaryens were saints in comparison to your average ,run of the mill dragon-lord of valyria .Westoros can truly count themselves as lucky as they never had to endure or face oppression under the valyrian freehold .Heck certain races and cultures would have went extinct for sure .The only ever time that they got a taste of the depravity and cruelty of a Valyrian Dragon-Lord was in Maegor Targaryen .Even then maegor was a flue compared to full might of the valyrian freehold which lasted for thousands upon thousands of years .He might have ruled the dynasty well with other dragonlords but the thing is that he is extremely infertile .There would have been no future of house targaryen under him if he didn't have any children whatsoever .However his particular style of rule wouldn't have been particularly kind or favourable to the noble houses
For all the credit fans give Maegor for crushing a belligerent Faith Militant, in the end it was not his problem to solely solve. It was his nephew's, Aegon the Uncrowned. Despite his inexperience, as demonstrated when Maegor struck him down, he obviously had more resolve than his father Aenys I had shown, since he was actually willing to mount his dragon and fight back. If Maegor truly cared about securing the Targaryen dynasty, he could've helped his nephews consolidate power as a Hand or at least a general.
No one is saying magor was intentionally saving the dynasty were saying it was destiny for him to show up when he did its no coincidence the most peace followed his reign he was what was needed at that time
@@JuniorSmith-truthseekerDo you know why it was so "peaceful" after Maegor? The answer is that it wasn't a peaceful time after Maegor. His successors were almost assassinated multiple times, loyalist factions had to be, and the noble families were a mess. Jaehaerys and Alysanna deserve 100% of the credit for decades of peace because they were good rulers. A great example is Alysanna's laws that protected the rights of orphaned children and abolished the right of Lords to rape their constituents. Maegor killed, kidnapped, and robbed children, and he was a prolific rapist and abuser. Maegor was so awful that everyone worked together against him.
Honestly, the Targaryen Dynasty wouldn’t have survived without Maegor. The Faith would have taken them out. I hope they do a couple HOTD seasons on this whole time period. I’ve heard it’s supposed to be an anthology series, so I’m sure they’ll do Aegon the Conqueror at some point. I have a feeling we’ll be much more sympathetic to Maegor if/when it comes out
Yeah, Aegon's Conquest/reign could easily be 2 seasons and a 3rd season could be done to depict the reigns of Aenys and Maegor up until the rise of Jaehaerys
why do people say this? It's not like Aenys' kids were as noncombative as their father, they almost certainly would've also dealt with the Faith, they still had fucking dragons after all just like Maegor. Really the only difference in outcome would be that they certainly wouldn't be as cruel or brutal as Maegor
@@Dell-ol6hb Exactly everyone acts like dick eats maegor and tries to prop him up as some hero that save the dynasty. He along with his bitter ass mom we’re just opportunist that went for a power grab. Aenys son was definitely going to do something about the faith but that couldn’t be handled before a man who’s clearly trying to steal his throne gets put down.
I think Maegor was the man that was needed not the man that was wanted, he also seemed loyal and sane enough before his Coma, afterwards though things started derailing, much like Dutch Vanderlind from Red dead 2 after he hit his head on the trolley
Idk about all that Dutch was already on a downward spiral before the trolley incident. Seems kinda like bullshit to put all his bad actions on his coma.
@@billychops1280 Dutch was repeatedly making dumb and flawed decisions from the start of the game. Dutch was not ok before that the gang was on a continuous downward spiral with more jobs going wrong. Shit the first part of the game is the gang recovering from his actions.
@@hclw3589 the entire thing was a setup and also Micuh had a lot to do with it going wrong, plus he didn’t make any real decisions till they got to Rhodes, everything before that was just the gang getting money in their own ways, and once when he went to that bar that Jon got fought outside of but that’s really it
Maegor's madness was likely caused by the head trauma that almost killed him. He was very against kinslaying before that. Much less violent, too. My theory is that the blow damaged the impulse control part of his brain, hence why he made such rash decisions during his rule.
@@lokenontherange perhaps a better word would be no one fears Joffrey…atleast as far as ASOIAF politics goes as for the women he tortured well that’s another question.
Maegor always gives me real "Caligula" vibes. He (Caligula) becomes emperor, and really gets off on the right foot he's popular and competent. Then he suffers not a head injury but some kind of brain infection and it almost kills him. He was in a coma for a month but miraculously survived. But when he returns he's changed he's become a vicious, cruel and sadistic lunatic. I wonder how much of Maegor was inspired by Caligula.
A bit of Caligula and Henry VIII. The latter was also supposedly a really charming an competent warrior during his hayday, but then got a head injury from the jousting incident and became cruel and crazy
@@SirBolsón Maegor and Henry VIII both had six wives because they were obsessed with obtaining an heir. Maegor suppressed the Faith whereas Henry VIII suppressed the Catholic Church. Aegon IV and Henry VIII both got fat. Maegor is basically a carbon copy of Henry VIII. Aegon's also inspired by Henry, but not to nearly as great of an extent
@@balqeesbaloch5213 it’s not Visenya’s fault is it though? But I guess one of the sisters’ bloodlines needed to end to prevent future conflict over which one took the throne. I guess like how in the dance of dragons, the bloodline continued through Viserys’ preferred heir and his son’s ended after the dance.
I honestly thought the dance of the dragons would be a succession war between the two. I would've liked to see maybe a second house be founded and rival the Targaryens, like the greens and blacks, but longer and more spread out over time.
the more i learn about maegor the more obvious it is he's heavily inspired by henry viii. also his first two wives closely matching catherine of aragon and anne boleyn.... elinore costayne is catherine parr
Sure he was horrible, but he was legendary. Imagine being the one to build the red keep AND the dragon pit 💀 I didn’t know visenya was so down for that many war crimes LOL
At first I thought Visenya really just planned to betray everyone from the time Maegor was born. But I do believe she initially tried to help Aenys be a stronger king. He ignored her counsel completely and waddled in weakness. She watched Aenys make mistake after mistake. It also didn't help that her own son Maegor had high ambitions and extremely violent tendencies. Unlike Aegon, Visenya's priority has never been peace and unity, but glory for the Targaryen dynasty. Visenya realized that their dynasty, in its infancy, cannot survive without strength. And so she supported her son Maegor through his reign of terror.
Just got to say you produce some high-quality interesting content sir..Just came upon you today and I'm 4 videos in? LoL... You deserve some major praise and credit for the channel..this is some good stuff...
The history books are all written from biased perspectives. Of course they would portray him as nothing but the worst in all aspects. God I love ASOIF lore.
They needed an iron fist yes, but they didn’t need someone who would outright entirely try to crush a religion beloved by their people. Usually doesn’t work out in a rulers favor.
So glad you cleared up the whole show invented gods flip a coin! I will be happy when we get more Targaryen spin-offs so people will know how wrong they were about Daenerys & her father
We need a House of the Dragon series entry on Maegor showing him for the strong, hottie king he really was that reinforced the foundation of the Targaryen dynasty. Without him, the dragons would have been overthrown.
@@michaelsilver253 Hello fellow book reader, I think the dance may be the only way they could have been overthrown. But even then they still reigned for a 100 years after
@@michaelsilver253 A nuke is useless in the hands of somebody unwilling to use it. Aenys wanted to be loved. He did not want to kill his enemies alongside innocent people. Aegon ‘the Uncrowned’ also wanted to be loved. Maegor was willing to stain his hands. He solidified the unstable dynasty of Westeros.
@@realdaggerman105 he solidified nothing his replacement and better in every way jahearhys was stuck cleaning up the mess of his power grabbing asshole uncle. The moment he died all the problems popped right back up again. He was a fist but that’s all he was he had no tact and wisdom for the kingdom to be worth anything in the long run.
I notice how Aenys and Maegor resemble exaggerated versions of their mothers in terms of personality (and look to some extent) than Aegon is. Aenys is rather childlike, curious, peaceful and lacks interest in ruling while Maegor is ambitious, ruthless, aggressive but also really short-sighted
Maegor was a cruel, evil man who was a great asset to the Targaryen dynasty when he put the faith militant in a position they could agree to a peace with Jaehaerys later. His best deed however was that he died at the right time.
I could see Aegon the Conqueror having a heart attack while watching his children and all of his grandchildren mess up everything and scolding them when they are in the afterlife with him 😂
@@CrusaderChris I am new to your channel but I have watched your Aerea, Aegon, Aenys, and Maegor videos. All are awesome. The two things I like most about your videos are that you go into the details of their lives. I have seen other videos that just kinda gloss over their lives but you get into all the small details and that gives you a better understanding of the characters. Secondly I love all the artwork you use, again you don’t see a lot of this in other videos. I am a fan and have subscribed to your channel. I’ll definitely watch the rest of your videos.
The craziest thing about Maegor is how the fandom will abandon all reason and ignore virtually everything George wrote about him, in order to argue he wasn't actually bad and he saved the Targaryens or some similar indefensible nonsense.
He was not a good person but he was a necessary evil at that time otherwise the faith would’ve overpowered the Targaryens without even seeing it coming and their house destroyed before it begun and aegons work down the drain.
I've never seen anyone say he wasnt a "bad person". Ever. He committed plenty of atrocities. He also saved the Targaryens. Had a Targaryen who wasn't willing to be as brutal been in power, they wouldn't have survived the War with the Seven.
As the son of Visenya, Maegor was the rightful and true successor of Aegon the Conqueror by birthright. In Westeros the heirs of the first wife cannot be supplanted by those born from second or third wives. In the ways of the valyrian dragon lords where polygamy was practiced the elder sister came first, and their father Aerion ensured they kept to the old ways. It is said Aegon married first Visenya for duty, and then Rhaenys for love. Sure, Aenys was born first but as soon as Maegor was born he was the true heir of the dragon. Balerion the Dread knew it, and good Dick Bean knew it true.
We dont even know anything about Valyria, all we know is the name of some conquests and a few actions takens by them, and that they practised Slavery and all sorts of fucked up shit, but never its laws. And even Polygamy wasn't *THAT* common. There were only 2 Targaryens that we know of whom practised polygamy, Aegon I and Maegor I. Thats it.
The prince comes before the kings brother every time. Maegor was only next in line when his older brother was childless but as soon as his brother had children then it pushed Maegor further down. I see where you’re coming from how Maegor was the first child from the older sister but both were Aegons legitimate wives and Maegor was not the first born.
@@gimlisonofgloin3341 technically he is the firstborn of visenya and aegon but not aegon and rhaenys this is where the law and succession gets muddle and aegon should’ve realised this is the problem from the beginning of having 2 wives. In the books it was said that rhaenys children was actually bastards and not actually aegons I don’t know if that is true or not. People thought maegor was a bastard but I don’t believe that as maegor shares to much similarities with his actual father before his coma.
please wise person tell me how this would happen? grandma visenya and maegor could, and should, support the rightful king, aegon, tell me how the faith would win against them? they didn't want to fight no faith they just wanted to sit the iron throne
@@yaboi9098That literally not the case at all. Targaryen marry outside the family or the time, and they still make dragon riders. Dany is actually 1/128 pure Targaryen.
I always just figured "the Mad King" was another Hodor; you know, someone warging into his brain and showing him the white walkers- cuz then "burn them all" is just the go-to solution for the walking corpses.
The fandom is actually crazy for saying that Maegor committed a necessary evil when he destroyed the Faith militant. Maybe if the Targaryens took the Faith’s rules about incest (and polygamy) seriously, it would’ve lead to more legitimate Targaryens all over Westeros, not all congregated in the Crownlands. Then maybe all the following diseases and wars wouldn’t have absolutely devastated their family line over and over and over. Besides, except the reigns of Jaeherys and Viserys the Targaryens caused so much death and destruction over their unchecked egos. Sure, they’re a cool house but the Faith had every right to hate them
The faith was at fault here .trying to assert their rules on ppl who don't belong to it Why should a foreign king bend to thr rules of some man made faith he does not even believe in ? The faith knew the consequences of their actions their demands were unnecessary and wrong from the start . Faith of all kind has always has a problem of minding its business
This is probably an unpopular opinion but I wonder if people praising Maegor are admirers of the Machiavellian notions. Sure Maegor did uphold the crown’s authority, but what good did that do for him? Like his weak half-brother before him, he had a shortened reign. Did Maegor die in battle? No. He died on his throne after more than half the realm and the rest of his family turned against him. After the Faith reared their heads again. And after even some of his advisers urged him to surrender and take the black. With rumours of his death ranging from an assassin to suicide. And Maegor’s “authority” as well as House Targaryen’s position with the faith could have easily been undone if King Jaehaerys I didn’t know what he was doing. This was exactly what happened when Aegon the conqueror died. Also Maegor didn’t have to steal the throne and murder his nephews for House Targaryen to be seen as badass. There's no reason why Prince Aegon or Prince Viserys (if anything happened to Aegon) couldn't have become King with Maegor serving as hand. “House Targaryen wouldn’t have survived Maegor”. Nonsense. It’s Jaehaerys who deserves the praise for being the right blend of Aenys and Maegor. The only possible attempt at nuance for Maegor was that the Targaryens ruling after him needed himself and Aenys to make the mistakes or misdeeds that they did so that Jaehaerys and his successors could learn from them.
But still with out him jaehaerys wouldn’t have reign for so long he learnt from both of them he can’t be to kind like his father an he couldn’t be to cruel like his uncle he was the right mix but sadly the others wasn’t born like jaehaerys
I just want to say I'd love to have seen that Faith Militant armor in one of the shows. The spiky helm, the rainbow garb, it just looks so nice. And noooooooooooooooo not Dick Bean! What a brave man. RIP
I think it is just so difficult for a rainbow colored cloak in live action without looking extremely tacky. The only way it could work if the cloak works like a prism (semi-transparent but then looks super colorful once hit with sunlight)
21:00 wow, gotta hand it to Maegor on his combat abilities, being able to kill that many people using just a drop of blood. You'd think he'd use a sword or something.
Visenya committed the Most Gangster Act in the history of ASOIAF when she flew up to the vale and set that prince on her lap. She didn’t have to break a sweat to take a kingdom. Fitting how relentless her son was.
"Maegor the Cruel, son of Aegon and Visenya. Born with all the worst traits of both his parents." - GRRM in one of his posts while describing Maegor. It was then I realised that he was son of the man who ruthlessly burnt thousands of people alive in Harrenhell, Duskendale, Field of Fire and Dorne. And of woman who was ferocious, tough and unforgiving. He had to be like that.
I think Maegor's main downfall, came from his inability to see past War and look towards peace (arguably the traumatic injury too) Being raised in an environment where fighting was all he knew, he even had to fight marry, fight to see his father and more. Fighting was all he knew, and in the end when peace time arrived, he continued it. He wasn't truly raised by his father on how to be a king, so he was just acting on what he knew best violence. He had the fire and blood of a king, but not the mind of one. What truly sparked his downfall was his inability to create a heir caused by Tyanna, and with his cruelty well-known it was no wonder they betrayed him so quickly. Maegor is one of the best well written GOT/ASOIAF characters, he's truly my favorite after this video. Well done.
What a shame that visenyas line ended with her only son. I wish she had more children with aegon but he didnt love her like he loved his other sister. Even tho visenya was the only one who saved his life multiple times and helped conquer the 7 kingdoms without her he could not have done it! She deserved to have her children and line inherit the throne but it suck how she only had one single child and he clearly wasn't the best.
I always found the "Maegor was a Strong, necessary king" argument to be funny. The Bandwagon against calling him "The Cruel" just sounds ridiculous to me. He did more harm than good. As a matter of fact, the only thing he did that perhaps Jaehaerys couldn't have done was dealing with the Faith Militant (which, keep in mind, it was Jaehaerys who ultimately put a stop to it). You could argue that if it was Jaehaerys at this time, maybe the Doctrine of Exceptionalism wouldn't have worked out as well as it did. So, maybe props to Maegor for battering them hard enough so that Jaehaerys had an easier time with regards to incest. Outside of that, commissioning of the Dragonpit construction is the only thing that, overall, Maegor did right with planning, as it had no negative effects at all, and was something that came in handy. Even the Red Keep wasn't his idea, but Aegon's. It was merely finished by Maegor's time, is all. And we have at least half a dozen characters, from what I've been told, who know the secret passage ways rather well in the books that aren't Targaryen so, he killed all those guys for almost nothing, and made it harder for him to hire builders in Westeros to construct the Dragonpit. He almost ended the line of House Targaryen in less than a Century after they became Royals. He slee Aegon and Viserys, he would've likely done the same to Jaehaerys if given the chance, and he also killed a Dragon as well. Meanwhile, (while he couldn't control it, of course) he himself sired no healthy offspring and so left the Realm with a single male Targaryen after his reign, that being Jaehaerys. We could go on, but... yeah folks, wiping out an entire house and their bloodline was also over the top. Yeah, I understand why he was pissed, they had other men sleeping with his wife and they tried to place a bastard as his Heir, (id have been pissed too) but this man went to their House's seat and then other town and killed all with their blood, even if their last name wasn't Harroway and was married or born into another House. Like bro.... Need I go on? Are you guys seriously saying "ya know, Maegor was needed and did a lot to help out". ?? Cause that's laughable
Thank you. People fail to understand that you can't be an effective ruler when you make an enemy out of literally everyone. The best thing he did was to die at the right time to make room for Jaehaerys.
He killed Aegon due to necessity he didn't care when he was hiding in Casterly Rock . You should watch the video " How Maegor saved the Targaryens " Also think about it this way if Maegor didn't come back the faith would've prolly killed Aegon during the siege anyways
You know that the book was "written" by a maester, right? Maesters are probably the most deceitful and scheming bastards in the whole series. Most of the things you read about Maegor, Rhaenyra and basically every character is supposed to be biased as hell. That is why Jaehaerys is portrayed as a perfect king with no fault, while Maegor an enemy of the stupid and oppressing Faith is showed to be a bloodthirsty lunatic. Just watch some of Preston Jacobs' videos about the House of the Dragon. He perfectly summarizes how biased the maesters are.
It might be due to him opposing the dumbass religion that is the faith of the seven. Nothing good came out of this fake religion, and yes it is likely fake since other religion like the old gods or rhollr all display some semblance of power and magic but the seven never do anything at all
King Maegor was indeed insane and cruel and those personalities have been passed down to Prince Daemon and King Aerys the Mad 🤴 👑. He killed with pleasure, no compassion, without mercy 😢 and burned hundreds of families and men with fire. He was never a true King in the making other than strength and brutality. Not to mention, he killed two of his nephews and a couple of his wives like King Henry Tudor did in the History of the Tudors.
He wasn't insane just cruel. Under Visenya's care it seems like his mindset became one where you had to be decisive by any means neccesary. But he took a liking too it so it became more then just a duty
Maegor absolutely did the right thing in breaking the Faith Militant, but he's a prime example of the ends not really justifying the means. He wasn't necessarily self-serving, but nearly everyone was disposable to him. What I do find intriguing is his nearly unwavering loyalty to his family, regardless of personal feelings. (Gives me a bit of Tywin Lannister vibes.) He didn't take violent action until his hand was forced. Definitely Visenya's son though lol
He cared about himself not his family. If he cared about his family he would have made sure his nephew succeeded and helped stabilize the realm, instead maegor steals the throne and kills his nephew. Oh there’s also the other nephew he had that he ordered to be tortured to death. Dude didn’t give two shots about his family he was purely self serving and blinded by his selfish cruel emotions.
@Spartan-hu2go Everything up to Viserys' death was before Visenya died, and he was full under Tyanna's control. Prior to that, he left Aegon alone until Aegon forced his hand. What I meant is that he cares about his house the way Tywin did. The image of his family over the people. It's Tywin's whole "you're my son" thing with Tyrion.
@@Spartan-hu2go i get people blaming him when he kills viserys and house harroway, at that point he went clearly mad. But before then he did nothing wrong, stupid, cruel or mad as a king really. Aegon literally forced his hand. All Maegor did was: 1: Steal the throne from Aegon due the the fact that Aegon was 16, hated by the realm and had no dragon and Maegor thought he had to step up to clear this mess 2: Destroyed the faith for all their treachery, as Aegon The Conqueror would have done 3:Killed his rival nephew when he openly challenged his claim and rode with a host to fight, as any king would have.
As you should. All the people who overlook their murderous, incestuous, and petulant nature because “omg dragons and hot silver haired, purple eyed people are so cooool” have brain rot. I mean, idolizing war criminals happens irl too so I’m not surprised
I don’t like how you say that Daemon is evil. Daemon does do evil things no doubt, but the whole point of his character and why people especially George Martin like him so much is because he’s neutral. He’s not good or evil. To some he can be the greatest of heroes and other the blackest of villains, that is a direct quote from fire and blood. Love this video btw. I think after house of the dragon they should make a series about Maegor’s reign. Maybe we could find out if he really was all that cruel and was a terrible person or just an antihero at the end of the day.
HOTD is supposed to be an anthology series now since the dance was only 2 years and wouldn’t be more than 4 or 5 seasons probably, so they can keep the show in production for 10-12 seasons and keep the costs down by using a new set of characters and actors and Actresses every few seasons. That’s the current plan at least ; it could change but I doubt they pass up an opportunity to keep a GOT universe show on air when it makes sense financially and the production costs don’t keep ballooning season after season like GoT did
what? if he only had one son and he died then what? also the customs were clear, first-born inherit the throne, then his son and etc, maegor and visenya are nothing but usurpers
Guy could literally solve his inheritance crisis if he still wed Visenya and kept Rhaenys as a side piece (like most kings do). The Faith militance would be less aggressive, Maegor could sit in comfort since Rhaenys's children could not challenge him, especially for a weak willed person as Aenys
If anything he just made the conflict with the faith worse and made the people of the seven kingdoms mistrust the targaryens even more than they already did.
I think the story from the end of Aenys’ reign to Maegor to his death and the rise of Jahaerys would make for a really great series for House of the Dragon. It has a person who starts off a badass and becomes a clear villain(Maegor) and some guys/ladies to root for (Aegon the Uncrowned, Jahaerys/Alysanne) and we would get to see Balerion and Visenya with Vhagar/Dark Sister.
@@Spartan-hu2go no it doesn't actually most of the Targaryens parents who went "mad " weren't related incest has nothing to do with it dude made a whole video basically debunking the claim .
But was he the one that was really supposed to solve it? Sure, Aegon the Uncrowned was inexperienced, but he clearly had more resolve than his weakling father Aenys I, considering he was willing to mount his dragon and fight Maegor on Balerion, even if it meant certain death. Why didn't Maegor support his brother's sons and dutifully lend his strength to the rightful kings, rather than usurping and later murdering them??
@@nate742because at this point it had gotten to far out of hand visenya saw this the faith could’ve attacked at any second and they be blindsided and not see it coming unlike visenya and maegor who saw this uprising coming from a mile away the moment Aenys married his son and daughter which went against what aegon wanted or deal he made with the faith they made an exception for aegon and his sisters but that was it. Maegor had plenty of time to kill Aenys so did visenya but they didn’t because they no doubt loved and respected him because he was all that was left of rhaenys if anything it was visenya who brought maegor into it he was in exile doing his own thing. He also had to kill any heirs who could take the throne from him at this time.
@@hclw3589tell that to mediaval kings in the past that kill there Full Brothers or niece or nephew for thrones YOURS SO NAIVE YOU DO NOT KNOW THE UGLY THING ABOUT POLITICS HECK IT STILL HAPPEN TODAY IN MY OWN COUNTRY A POLITICIAN KILL HIS NEPHEW BECAUSE HE WILL OPPOSE HIM IN THE SAME POSITION IN THE UPCOMING ELECTION.
Let's be clear. Maegor did nothing wrong. Understand that the Faith, the Masters, Old Town and his own family was out to get him. Especially after he cleaned up the mess of his weak older brother.
Maegor was the truest dragon the Targaryen’s ever had, he was unrelenting and fierce, while others may have been diplomatic or understanding he was only callous and vicious, he did everything he liked regardless of anyone’s opinion and backed all his actions with force, he ruled for a relatively short time, but without him jahearys wouldn’t have been able to have his peaceful reign that lasted so long, it was the fear of having another maegor that made the people accept him and fall in line with his rule.
No wonder his reign lasted less than a decade and all of his lords utterly hated him. When you’re a monarch and you act like a spoiled child who’s always right no matter what your lords think, then prepare to not rule for very long even if you have dragons.
Every time I see someone ask for Henry Cavill as Aegon, in a series about conquest, I think how much better it is to have him as Maegor, even more faithful to his description in the books and a serious substitute for him as an actor.
Just finished watching House of Dragon and wanted to know Targaryen history in Westeros starting with Aegon, then found myself wondering about Aery on why he was considered weak, then Meagor on why he was titled The Cruel. Seems to me both Aegon's sons imbodied his personality but in the worst way possible: Aerys was too kind and compassionate, to the point where he was weak. Maegor was too fierce and ruthless to the point where his actions were cruel and evil. Either they resembled their father or their mothers, but since Aegon was a bit of both, using him as an example still stands. He knew when to be kind, cautious and humble, and he knew when to bring fire and blood. I wish they would make a series of Aegon till Jarherys. Seems like a standard TV show idea a thats next after Game of Thrones, you'd actually think the typical producers would go for it. Except this time it would actually be a good idea. Game of Thrones always made me wonder how it all started since Aegon was talked about a few times, and the fact that he started conquering based on a dream he had regarding Jon Snow make more of an obvious choice
Maegor would have been hailed as one of the greatest heroes of the Targaryen Dynasty if only he claimed to be regent instead of King. A harsh, cruel, and petty man. But no pressure for being king means no pressure from producing an heir. He should have been a content uncle whose cruelty is the stick to his brother's children's carrot. A man more terrifying than most actual dragons. I mean, any lord would shit themself if Jahaerys I nicely asked if they want to comply to his demands or if they would like to talk to his uncle instead.
Maegor is quite literally Henry the eighth. He had six wives. He broke with the faith. And his behavior started to change after a traumatic injury. George R R Martin did say that he looked at British history for inspiration for game of thrones
Henry the VIII has been made into 2 Targaryens, one being MAEGOR I with his 6 wifes, and the second one being AEGON IV who looks like him and has many many bastards and love affairs.
@@Alejojojo6don’t forget king Robert Baratheon as well
Except Henry VIII was far from a warrior like Maegor and he also wasn't sterile..which are two of Maegor's biggest traits. If anything, Aegon the Unworthy was more like Henry VIII.
@@JimSty-bh1osHenry the 8th was apparently the very ideal of a renaissance prince in his youth. He excelled at sports and was intelligent as well. He was also supposedly adept at combat as well. Just because the majority of what history focuses on was the disgusting, unstable, wife-killing bastard he became in later life; doesn't mean that's what he always was lol.
Yup I mean the war of the 5 kings was a damn near copy paste of the war of the roses
Maegor woke up and let every intrusive thought win
Fr💀💀
OCD people when they let everything they think about come out:
@AURIONAERIONDAERONBELAERYSMAEG 🫡🫡🫡🫡
Why is all his intrusive thoughts 🤔 included killing someone?
Maegor starts his story at the prodigal saviour of House Targaryen. An undefeatable warrior riding the largest dragon his family ever possessed, wielding both ancestral swords, returning from exile to save his House from collapse after his father worked so hard to solidify their power and committing the necessary violence to quell rebellion. But as time went on, he became the very monster people believed him to be.
That's makes Maegor so entertaining: He is a dark parody of the exiled prince character arc.
He was already a monster when he was a child. It was said that as a kid he already showed signs of saddistic behaviour enjoying torturing animals and training with the sword. Rejecting to bond with other dragons other than Balerion.
Um, not really. Maegor was always shown to be cruel even from the time he was a child.
@@mannythegrandfather2291 true , but that don't change that Maegor first appears as a savior for the Targaryens.
You could say that Maegor had Visenya and Aegon I as the leash to his cruelty , and when both died , it had no one to stop him.
He was always the monster they believed him to be, his fight against the faith was basically the only good thing he did, and even then it could be argued that he just worsened the issues with the faith militant.
Props to Dick Bean, what a loyal follower!
I wish he would survive, it's interesting to see what kind of reward Maegor give him for his loyalty
@@Rifqiethehero Yeah, I do wonder about that as well. Perhaps if he had survived, Maegor might've given him a place on the Kingsguard, or a Lordship, perhaps he might have kept him at his side. Who knows. All we can say about good ole Dick Bean is that he died more honorable than most during Maegor's reign.
I'll name my future son Dick Bean
Sean Bean’s charcter died too. the only great Bean is Mr. Bean.
I am assuming Dick Bean had a kid who had a kid etc. and that is Bron
In all honesty, Maegor was a truly cruel man, but I can't help but be so intrigued by his story. He took the throne at arguably the most pinnacle time of Westeros's history while the Targaryens were still trying to solidify their claim/dominion (that shit takes decades when things go in your favor instead of the latter) over a massive continent with several different cultures that made it hard to rule. He was definitely bloodthirsty for sure, but sometimes, when you're a king with a massive fuck-off dragon, you're gonna have to use it to keep people in check.
Anyone who has seen House of the Dragon should know what a weak Targaryen king leads to.
Except he didn't. Not really. Within 6 years, he was facing a massive rebellion, and few people rallied to him by the end. Aenys tried complete non-violence, Maegor tried complete violence. Neither worked. Jaehaerys decided to go the peaceful route while firmly putting his foot down when need be. THAT worked.
@@Ares99999 It's worth noting that you're reading a book. GRR picks what works. They're not really something you can rely on outside of them.
@@lokenontherangeUh, yes, you absolutely can rely on it. Martin literally created that entire universe. If he says something happened a certain way, it did. What Margot was in Martin’s mind is the way Maegor is.
@Ares99999 Maegor was a necessary evil to keep westeros divided, but it also helped ready the targaryen heir to come and unite the kingdoms once again through diplomacy rather than fire and blood like Aegon did.
Brain injuries have been known to trigger lower impulse control. Always think about that when this guy comes up.
He was already brutal since childhood...don't blame it on brain injury
@@phoenixking9457 I’m not blaming it for his brutality, just that it may contribute to his poor decision making later.
@@phoenixking9457 he was brutal, but not cruel. His torturing and killing of cats is a rumor and holds no value since it's far from confirmed. From what we know he was much like Stannis, not well liked but not evil. He was unbending, strict and brutal but he loved his brother and family until the head trauma and revival (and tyanna gaslighting him)
Maegor appearing above Aegons dragon with his nuke Balerion the dread and unleashing chaos on them both must be horrific for the Aegon side loyalist who witnessed this. Maegor maybe cruel but Maegor had the qualities of a the Valeryian dragonlords which lacks in many other dragonriders in the dynasty.
you mean being a piece of shit? is that quality? not even the conqueror did what maegor did lmao
Very true maegor probably would’ve ruled the Targaryen dynasty really well with the other dragonlords would’ve fit right in and probably made their house grow in power over the others which is terrifying but probably true.
@@McherriMost targaryens were saints in comparison to your average ,run of the mill dragon-lord of valyria .Westoros can truly count themselves as lucky as they never had to endure or face oppression under the valyrian freehold .Heck certain races and cultures would have went extinct for sure .The only ever time that they got a taste of the depravity and cruelty of a Valyrian Dragon-Lord was in Maegor Targaryen .Even then maegor was a flue compared to full might of the valyrian freehold which lasted for thousands upon thousands of years .He might have ruled the dynasty well with other dragonlords but the thing is that he is extremely infertile .There would have been no future of house targaryen under him if he didn't have any children whatsoever .However his particular style of rule wouldn't have been particularly kind or favourable to the noble houses
@@SherlockHolmesb-kp4ru Who did Maegor truly love in the books?
@WaaaghMarine Yes ofcourse I didn’t think through. I hope so much we get that Targaryen period asap in a move or a series.
"His reign ended after 6 years and 66 days" George R. R. Martin knew what he was doing there
Ohh wow I see it😮😮😮
So edgy
@@nont18411 Indeed
@@nont18411not edgy, but a nod to just how cruel and evil Maegor was
@@nont18411 how is that edgy
For all the credit fans give Maegor for crushing a belligerent Faith Militant, in the end it was not his problem to solely solve. It was his nephew's, Aegon the Uncrowned. Despite his inexperience, as demonstrated when Maegor struck him down, he obviously had more resolve than his father Aenys I had shown, since he was actually willing to mount his dragon and fight back. If Maegor truly cared about securing the Targaryen dynasty, he could've helped his nephews consolidate power as a Hand or at least a general.
THANK YOU FOR SAYING THAT
No one is saying magor was intentionally saving the dynasty were saying it was destiny for him to show up when he did its no coincidence the most peace followed his reign he was what was needed at that time
@@JuniorSmith-truthseeker he was not he was just a dickhead
He committed suicide by Maegor, it was not what Maegor wanted.
@@JuniorSmith-truthseekerDo you know why it was so "peaceful" after Maegor? The answer is that it wasn't a peaceful time after Maegor. His successors were almost assassinated multiple times, loyalist factions had to be, and the noble families were a mess. Jaehaerys and Alysanna deserve 100% of the credit for decades of peace because they were good rulers. A great example is Alysanna's laws that protected the rights of orphaned children and abolished the right of Lords to rape their constituents. Maegor killed, kidnapped, and robbed children, and he was a prolific rapist and abuser. Maegor was so awful that everyone worked together against him.
Honestly, the Targaryen Dynasty wouldn’t have survived without Maegor. The Faith would have taken them out. I hope they do a couple HOTD seasons on this whole time period. I’ve heard it’s supposed to be an anthology series, so I’m sure they’ll do Aegon the Conqueror at some point. I have a feeling we’ll be much more sympathetic to Maegor if/when it comes out
Yeah, Aegon's Conquest/reign could easily be 2 seasons and a 3rd season could be done to depict the reigns of Aenys and Maegor up until the rise of Jaehaerys
why do people say this? It's not like Aenys' kids were as noncombative as their father, they almost certainly would've also dealt with the Faith, they still had fucking dragons after all just like Maegor. Really the only difference in outcome would be that they certainly wouldn't be as cruel or brutal as Maegor
@@Dell-ol6hb Exactly everyone acts like dick eats maegor and tries to prop him up as some hero that save the dynasty.
He along with his bitter ass mom we’re just opportunist that went for a power grab.
Aenys son was definitely going to do something about the faith but that couldn’t be handled before a man who’s clearly trying to steal his throne gets put down.
Bro, he almost destroyed it by killing Aegon and Viserys
Idk. I don’t think they would have been as brutal about it as Maegor, and I think that’s what needed to be done to destroy the threat of the Faith
I think Maegor was the man that was needed not the man that was wanted, he also seemed loyal and sane enough before his Coma, afterwards though things started derailing, much like Dutch Vanderlind from Red dead 2 after he hit his head on the trolley
Idk about all that Dutch was already on a downward spiral before the trolley incident.
Seems kinda like bullshit to put all his bad actions on his coma.
@@hclw3589 all his bad actions started after his coma, if u think that’s bullshit then buddy you ain’t reading straight
@@hclw3589 and no Dutch was ok before that, nothing truly radical from him happed before the trolley
@@billychops1280 Dutch was repeatedly making dumb and flawed decisions from the start of the game.
Dutch was not ok before that the gang was on a continuous downward spiral with more jobs going wrong.
Shit the first part of the game is the gang recovering from his actions.
@@hclw3589 the entire thing was a setup and also Micuh had a lot to do with it going wrong, plus he didn’t make any real decisions till they got to Rhodes, everything before that was just the gang getting money in their own ways, and once when he went to that bar that Jon got fought outside of but that’s really it
Maegor's madness was likely caused by the head trauma that almost killed him. He was very against kinslaying before that. Much less violent, too. My theory is that the blow damaged the impulse control part of his brain, hence why he made such rash decisions during his rule.
He killed people for oposing hin before that
But not his family tho.@@axolotl1777
@@axolotl1777 yeah and what prince of the dragon hasn’t that’s very different then killing your own blood
@@screamingseal4805 He instantly killed a dude for contemplating his fuck coup.
Maegor’s rule is pretty much a glimpse at what Joffrey’s would’ve been had he not died at his wedding
Joffrey was an incompetent coward though.
@@maxomat4319 Not in the books. Even then, Maegor is more like what you'd get if Roose Bolton was king. Joffrey isn't smart enough.
@@lokenontherangeand no one respects him.
@@Prophetofthe8thLegion I think that's also a kind of a problem Maegor had. Don't remember if George clarifies that.
@@lokenontherange perhaps a better word would be no one fears Joffrey…atleast as far as ASOIAF politics goes as for the women he tortured well that’s another question.
Maegor always gives me real "Caligula" vibes. He (Caligula) becomes emperor, and really gets off on the right foot he's popular and competent. Then he suffers not a head injury but some kind of brain infection and it almost kills him. He was in a coma for a month but miraculously survived. But when he returns he's changed he's become a vicious, cruel and sadistic lunatic. I wonder how much of Maegor was inspired by Caligula.
A bit of Caligula and Henry VIII. The latter was also supposedly a really charming an competent warrior during his hayday, but then got a head injury from the jousting incident and became cruel and crazy
great observation i can see it
@@quakethedoombringerThat's more like Aegon IV.
@@SirBolsón Maegor and Henry VIII both had six wives because they were obsessed with obtaining an heir. Maegor suppressed the Faith whereas Henry VIII suppressed the Catholic Church. Aegon IV and Henry VIII both got fat. Maegor is basically a carbon copy of Henry VIII. Aegon's also inspired by Henry, but not to nearly as great of an extent
@benlewis5312 Great points! Maegor I is essentially what Henry VIII thought he was.
Would love to see this series continue through the line of kings
I wish Visenyas bloodline didnt end with Maegor
You and me both. It would've been cool to see how his kids turned out and what kind of father he'd make.
@@balqeesbaloch5213 What do u mean fair? Why cant both bloodlines coexist? You put it like: The one or the other which does not need to be.
@@balqeesbaloch5213 it’s not Visenya’s fault is it though? But I guess one of the sisters’ bloodlines needed to end to prevent future conflict over which one took the throne. I guess like how in the dance of dragons, the bloodline continued through Viserys’ preferred heir and his son’s ended after the dance.
Same, she was a bad bitch😮💨🔥🐉
I honestly thought the dance of the dragons would be a succession war between the two. I would've liked to see maybe a second house be founded and rival the Targaryens, like the greens and blacks, but longer and more spread out over time.
The High Septon from Old Town: “Lol you suck Maegor”
Visenya: “The Riverlands must burn for this.”
Honestly they didn't do anything and then suddenly they're on fire
the more i learn about maegor the more obvious it is he's heavily inspired by henry viii. also his first two wives closely matching catherine of aragon and anne boleyn.... elinore costayne is catherine parr
More like William Rufus, the Targaryens follow the English history to the letter
Henry the 8th
The fat one?
No, Aegon IV is more akin to Henry VIII. If I recall George talking about Aegon IV.
Aegon IV is the Henry VIII parallel. Maegor feels more like Richard of York or William Rufus.
King Maegor needs his own show
Pleaseeee!
The lore of game of thrones is enough to give us two shows a year instead of the 1 season every two years we get now
@@MattyCamachio fax💯
I see Jacob Elordi playing him
@@jenniferumana4239should get your eyes checked bro
Sure he was horrible, but he was legendary. Imagine being the one to build the red keep AND the dragon pit 💀 I didn’t know visenya was so down for that many war crimes LOL
not a crime if you win 😎
@bobbybsburner9729 Yes it is.
She did burn down like half of Dorne though.
@@KaiHung-wv3ulSo did aegon after rhaenys was killed
@@SherlockHolmesb-kp4ru yeah
At first I thought Visenya really just planned to betray everyone from the time Maegor was born. But I do believe she initially tried to help Aenys be a stronger king. He ignored her counsel completely and waddled in weakness. She watched Aenys make mistake after mistake. It also didn't help that her own son Maegor had high ambitions and extremely violent tendencies.
Unlike Aegon, Visenya's priority has never been peace and unity, but glory for the Targaryen dynasty. Visenya realized that their dynasty, in its infancy, cannot survive without strength. And so she supported her son Maegor through his reign of terror.
Just wanted to say you do such a good job with the edits and voice over that I just binged like five vids and subbed.
House Harroway: *Exists*
Maegor: You fucked up
They fucked up first
Maegor: Oops my bad
They actually did fuck up.
Perfect xD
Just got to say you produce some high-quality interesting content sir..Just came upon you today and I'm 4 videos in? LoL... You deserve some major praise and credit for the channel..this is some good stuff...
I appreciate that, thank you
He saved the Targaryen’s dynasty yes he was cruel but he was the ruler the Targaryen needed at the time
The history books are all written from biased perspectives. Of course they would portray him as nothing but the worst in all aspects. God I love ASOIF lore.
Nah
No he wasnt lol, nothing about letting your wife torture a 15 year old for 7 days is necessary lmfao
They needed an iron fist yes, but they didn’t need someone who would outright entirely try to crush a religion beloved by their people. Usually doesn’t work out in a rulers favor.
Are you kidding?! No one needed this person. Try moving to North Korea if this sounds appealing
So glad you cleared up the whole show invented gods flip a coin! I will be happy when we get more Targaryen spin-offs so people will know how wrong they were about Daenerys & her father
We need a House of the Dragon series entry on Maegor showing him for the strong, hottie king he really was that reinforced the foundation of the Targaryen dynasty. Without him, the dragons would have been overthrown.
Interesting claim! I find it really hard to see the Targs getting fully overthrown and wiped out while they still have the flying nuke dinosaurs
@@michaelsilver253 Hello fellow book reader, I think the dance may be the only way they could have been overthrown. But even then they still reigned for a 100 years after
@@michaelsilver253 A nuke is useless in the hands of somebody unwilling to use it.
Aenys wanted to be loved. He did not want to kill his enemies alongside innocent people.
Aegon ‘the Uncrowned’ also wanted to be loved.
Maegor was willing to stain his hands. He solidified the unstable dynasty of Westeros.
@@realdaggerman105 damn! Good point
@@realdaggerman105 he solidified nothing his replacement and better in every way jahearhys was stuck cleaning up the mess of his power grabbing asshole uncle.
The moment he died all the problems popped right back up again. He was a fist but that’s all he was he had no tact and wisdom for the kingdom to be worth anything in the long run.
I notice how Aenys and Maegor resemble exaggerated versions of their mothers in terms of personality (and look to some extent) than Aegon is. Aenys is rather childlike, curious, peaceful and lacks interest in ruling while Maegor is ambitious, ruthless, aggressive but also really short-sighted
Maegor was a cruel, evil man who was a great asset to the Targaryen dynasty when he put the faith militant in a position they could agree to a peace with Jaehaerys later.
His best deed however was that he died at the right time.
A show about Maegor that includes all his shenanigans unfiltered would be a hit.
Your editing is so great!
I appreciate that, thank you.
Finally catching you guys live 😊
Good video , always wondered about this king. Some hints here and there about his cruelty , but this video laid it all out. Goodjob
Just found your channel and damn! All I can say is that you have crazy good editing skills and your writing is great brother🤘🏽🫡
I appreciate that, thank you
@@CrusaderChris no problem! I’m enjoying all the videos you have and look forward to the ones in the future.
Aenys was too lenient and Maegor too unyielding.
I could see Aegon the Conqueror having a heart attack while watching his children and all of his grandchildren mess up everything and scolding them when they are in the afterlife with him 😂
he would definitely love dany the most 😂
I love the idea that the Iron Throne itself killed him. It's poetic and also metal.
Great video would love to see you go through all the Targaryen kings lives!!!
Thank you. So far I’ve done Aegon (before the conquest only), Aenys, Maegor, and Jaehaerys. Mayhaps I’ll do a Viserys video next.
@@CrusaderChris I am new to your channel but I have watched your Aerea, Aegon, Aenys, and Maegor videos. All are awesome. The two things I like most about your videos are that you go into the details of their lives. I have seen other videos that just kinda gloss over their lives but you get into all the small details and that gives you a better understanding of the characters. Secondly I love all the artwork you use, again you don’t see a lot of this in other videos. I am a fan and have subscribed to your channel. I’ll definitely watch the rest of your videos.
The craziest thing about Maegor is how the fandom will abandon all reason and ignore virtually everything George wrote about him, in order to argue he wasn't actually bad and he saved the Targaryens or some similar indefensible nonsense.
@@AugmentedEdits666like you🎉
Lmao he is definetely NOT a good person, however he WAS a necessary evil. Without him House Targaryen wouldn't have made it past 50 AC
He was not a good person but he was a necessary evil at that time otherwise the faith would’ve overpowered the Targaryens without even seeing it coming and their house destroyed before it begun and aegons work down the drain.
I've never seen anyone say he wasnt a "bad person". Ever.
He committed plenty of atrocities.
He also saved the Targaryens.
Had a Targaryen who wasn't willing to be as brutal been in power, they wouldn't have survived the War with the Seven.
@@rishisaaptacha but he was only able to do so bc of how much weaker Maegoer made them.
You can tell martin used those henry VIII vibes for maegor. Pretty cool if you think about it.
Great voice bro
I appreciate the support 🙏🙏
As the son of Visenya, Maegor was the rightful and true successor of Aegon the Conqueror by birthright. In Westeros the heirs of the first wife cannot be supplanted by those born from second or third wives. In the ways of the valyrian dragon lords where polygamy was practiced the elder sister came first, and their father Aerion ensured they kept to the old ways. It is said Aegon married first Visenya for duty, and then Rhaenys for love. Sure, Aenys was born first but as soon as Maegor was born he was the true heir of the dragon. Balerion the Dread knew it, and good Dick Bean knew it true.
We dont even know anything about Valyria, all we know is the name of some conquests and a few actions takens by them, and that they practised Slavery and all sorts of fucked up shit, but never its laws.
And even Polygamy wasn't *THAT* common. There were only 2 Targaryens that we know of whom practised polygamy, Aegon I and Maegor I. Thats it.
The prince comes before the kings brother every time. Maegor was only next in line when his older brother was childless but as soon as his brother had children then it pushed Maegor further down.
I see where you’re coming from how Maegor was the first child from the older sister but both were Aegons legitimate wives and Maegor was not the first born.
@@gimlisonofgloin3341 technically he is the firstborn of visenya and aegon but not aegon and rhaenys this is where the law and succession gets muddle and aegon should’ve realised this is the problem from the beginning of having 2 wives. In the books it was said that rhaenys children was actually bastards and not actually aegons I don’t know if that is true or not. People thought maegor was a bastard but I don’t believe that as maegor shares to much similarities with his actual father before his coma.
@@Mcherrilolll genetics cries in corner
Westerosi dont even allow second wifes, Aegon was still following Valyrian tradition at the time
I don't think maegor was mad I think he actually died and tyanna brought him back which then made him even worse
When Joffrey Doggett came into Planetos, he wasn't born with that mustache, the mustache was born with a baby attached to it.
there is not Targayern Dynasty without Maegor! the faith would get rid of House Targayern in a heart beat after Aenys died
please wise person tell me how this would happen? grandma visenya and maegor could, and should, support the rightful king, aegon, tell me how the faith would win against them? they didn't want to fight no faith they just wanted to sit the iron throne
@anonymous-bb2dw the faith was working against the targaryean custom, which would put their bloodline in danger.
@@yaboi9098That literally not the case at all. Targaryen marry outside the family or the time, and they still make dragon riders. Dany is actually 1/128 pure Targaryen.
Great in-depth content keep it up
I always just figured "the Mad King" was another Hodor; you know, someone warging into his brain and showing him the white walkers- cuz then "burn them all" is just the go-to solution for the walking corpses.
The fandom is actually crazy for saying that Maegor committed a necessary evil when he destroyed the Faith militant. Maybe if the Targaryens took the Faith’s rules about incest (and polygamy) seriously, it would’ve lead to more legitimate Targaryens all over Westeros, not all congregated in the Crownlands. Then maybe all the following diseases and wars wouldn’t have absolutely devastated their family line over and over and over. Besides, except the reigns of Jaeherys and Viserys the Targaryens caused so much death and destruction over their unchecked egos. Sure, they’re a cool house but the Faith had every right to hate them
And the Targs had every right to destroy them
Perhaps if he took a more peaceful route like Jahaerys did then his followers wouldn't have abandoned him
The faith was at fault here .trying to assert their rules on ppl who don't belong to it
Why should a foreign king bend to thr rules of some man made faith he does not even believe in ? The faith knew the consequences of their actions their demands were unnecessary and wrong from the start . Faith of all kind has always has a problem of minding its business
@@arianagrandaremix8858i take it your parents are siblings?
This is probably an unpopular opinion but I wonder if people praising Maegor are admirers of the Machiavellian notions. Sure Maegor did uphold the crown’s authority, but what good did that do for him? Like his weak half-brother before him, he had a shortened reign.
Did Maegor die in battle? No. He died on his throne after more than half the realm and the rest of his family turned against him. After the Faith reared their heads again. And after even some of his advisers urged him to surrender and take the black. With rumours of his death ranging from an assassin to suicide. And Maegor’s “authority” as well as House Targaryen’s position with the faith could have easily been undone if King Jaehaerys I didn’t know what he was doing. This was exactly what happened when Aegon the conqueror died.
Also Maegor didn’t have to steal the throne and murder his nephews for House Targaryen to be seen as badass. There's no reason why Prince Aegon or Prince Viserys (if anything happened to Aegon) couldn't have become King with Maegor serving as hand.
“House Targaryen wouldn’t have survived Maegor”. Nonsense. It’s Jaehaerys who deserves the praise for being the right blend of Aenys and Maegor. The only possible attempt at nuance for Maegor was that the Targaryens ruling after him needed himself and Aenys to make the mistakes or misdeeds that they did so that Jaehaerys and his successors could learn from them.
But still with out him jaehaerys wouldn’t have reign for so long he learnt from both of them he can’t be to kind like his father an he couldn’t be to cruel like his uncle he was the right mix but sadly the others wasn’t born like jaehaerys
I just want to say I'd love to have seen that Faith Militant armor in one of the shows. The spiky helm, the rainbow garb, it just looks so nice. And noooooooooooooooo not Dick Bean! What a brave man. RIP
I think it is just so difficult for a rainbow colored cloak in live action without looking extremely tacky. The only way it could work if the cloak works like a prism (semi-transparent but then looks super colorful once hit with sunlight)
Giving the devil his due Maegor did lead to the construction of two great feats of architecture; the Red Keep and the Dragonpit
Big fan of your channel!
He brought Justice Peace and Stability to his empire
His empire?
His allegiance is to the republic, to democracy!
@@haiyo7245 Don't make him kill you
okay now this is just going too far
In his opinion, it was the Faith Militant that was evil
great, video. Keep up the good work.
21:00 wow, gotta hand it to Maegor on his combat abilities, being able to kill that many people using just a drop of blood.
You'd think he'd use a sword or something.
Visenya committed the Most Gangster Act in the history of ASOIAF when she flew up to the vale and set that prince on her lap. She didn’t have to break a sweat to take a kingdom. Fitting how relentless her son was.
"Maegor the Cruel, son of Aegon and Visenya. Born with all the worst traits of both his parents." - GRRM in one of his posts while describing Maegor.
It was then I realised that he was son of the man who ruthlessly burnt thousands of people alive in Harrenhell, Duskendale, Field of Fire and Dorne. And of woman who was ferocious, tough and unforgiving. He had to be like that.
I wonder how much better Maegor's rule would've been had Tyanna never been in the picture.
Amazing! Will you continue on the reign of the next Targaryen kings?
Thank you for doing this amazing video
I think Maegor's main downfall, came from his inability to see past War and look towards peace (arguably the traumatic injury too) Being raised in an environment where fighting was all he knew, he even had to fight marry, fight to see his father and more. Fighting was all he knew, and in the end when peace time arrived, he continued it. He wasn't truly raised by his father on how to be a king, so he was just acting on what he knew best violence. He had the fire and blood of a king, but not the mind of one. What truly sparked his downfall was his inability to create a heir caused by Tyanna, and with his cruelty well-known it was no wonder they betrayed him so quickly.
Maegor is one of the best well written GOT/ASOIAF characters, he's truly my favorite after this video. Well done.
Except Aegon didn't raise him Viserys did
*Visenya
So sad main reason I can sympathize with him if only he had a son things could of been different
Great stuff, now for a deep dive into ser benis of the brown shield.
Love the conclusion at the end!
RIP Dick Bean. You will be missed
What a shame that visenyas line ended with her only son. I wish she had more children with aegon but he didnt love her like he loved his other sister. Even tho visenya was the only one who saved his life multiple times and helped conquer the 7 kingdoms without her he could not have done it! She deserved to have her children and line inherit the throne but it suck how she only had one single child and he clearly wasn't the best.
cry about it I like to watch 😂😂😂
Visenya did more for aegon and the seven kingdoms rhaenys did, but he liked the softer personality girl I guess 🤷🏻♀️
@@arunakoyanbron8927 visenya usurped the throne for her son which caused years of death and suffering for everyone how did she do more than rhaenys 🥴
@arunakoyanbron8927 he didn't love fu*king her you mean which is not an offnece as she's his sister right?
@@anonymous-bb2dwand plus I beileve she killed Aenys aswell.
I always found the "Maegor was a Strong, necessary king" argument to be funny. The Bandwagon against calling him "The Cruel" just sounds ridiculous to me.
He did more harm than good. As a matter of fact, the only thing he did that perhaps Jaehaerys couldn't have done was dealing with the Faith Militant (which, keep in mind, it was Jaehaerys who ultimately put a stop to it). You could argue that if it was Jaehaerys at this time, maybe the Doctrine of Exceptionalism wouldn't have worked out as well as it did. So, maybe props to Maegor for battering them hard enough so that Jaehaerys had an easier time with regards to incest.
Outside of that, commissioning of the Dragonpit construction is the only thing that, overall, Maegor did right with planning, as it had no negative effects at all, and was something that came in handy. Even the Red Keep wasn't his idea, but Aegon's. It was merely finished by Maegor's time, is all. And we have at least half a dozen characters, from what I've been told, who know the secret passage ways rather well in the books that aren't Targaryen so, he killed all those guys for almost nothing, and made it harder for him to hire builders in Westeros to construct the Dragonpit.
He almost ended the line of House Targaryen in less than a Century after they became Royals. He slee Aegon and Viserys, he would've likely done the same to Jaehaerys if given the chance, and he also killed a Dragon as well. Meanwhile, (while he couldn't control it, of course) he himself sired no healthy offspring and so left the Realm with a single male Targaryen after his reign, that being Jaehaerys.
We could go on, but... yeah folks, wiping out an entire house and their bloodline was also over the top. Yeah, I understand why he was pissed, they had other men sleeping with his wife and they tried to place a bastard as his Heir, (id have been pissed too) but this man went to their House's seat and then other town and killed all with their blood, even if their last name wasn't Harroway and was married or born into another House. Like bro....
Need I go on? Are you guys seriously saying "ya know, Maegor was needed and did a lot to help out". ?? Cause that's laughable
Thank you. People fail to understand that you can't be an effective ruler when you make an enemy out of literally everyone. The best thing he did was to die at the right time to make room for Jaehaerys.
He killed Aegon due to necessity he didn't care when he was hiding in Casterly Rock . You should watch the video " How Maegor saved the Targaryens "
Also think about it this way if Maegor didn't come back the faith would've prolly killed Aegon during the siege anyways
You know that the book was "written" by a maester, right? Maesters are probably the most deceitful and scheming bastards in the whole series. Most of the things you read about Maegor, Rhaenyra and basically every character is supposed to be biased as hell. That is why Jaehaerys is portrayed as a perfect king with no fault, while Maegor an enemy of the stupid and oppressing Faith is showed to be a bloodthirsty lunatic. Just watch some of Preston Jacobs' videos about the House of the Dragon. He perfectly summarizes how biased the maesters are.
@@RileySH Ikr.... I have been constantly telling him about the Maester's Bias, but his Simple brain doesn't seem to understand this Lol😂😂...
It might be due to him opposing the dumbass religion that is the faith of the seven. Nothing good came out of this fake religion, and yes it is likely fake since other religion like the old gods or rhollr all display some semblance of power and magic but the seven never do anything at all
Disclaimer: This video was sponsored by the Sept and the measters of old town
Good stuff, Chris!!!!!!!!!
His cool though riding a black dragon balereon, he was the best rider of balereon for me, he use balerion full potential.♠️🔥🔥🔥
King Maegor was indeed insane and cruel and those personalities have been passed down to Prince Daemon and King Aerys the Mad 🤴 👑. He killed with pleasure, no compassion, without mercy 😢 and burned hundreds of families and men with fire. He was never a true King in the making other than strength and brutality.
Not to mention, he killed two of his nephews and a couple of his wives like King Henry Tudor did in the History of the Tudors.
He wasn't insane just cruel. Under Visenya's care it seems like his mindset became one where you had to be decisive by any means neccesary. But he took a liking too it so it became more then just a duty
Maegor absolutely did the right thing in breaking the Faith Militant, but he's a prime example of the ends not really justifying the means. He wasn't necessarily self-serving, but nearly everyone was disposable to him. What I do find intriguing is his nearly unwavering loyalty to his family, regardless of personal feelings. (Gives me a bit of Tywin Lannister vibes.) He didn't take violent action until his hand was forced.
Definitely Visenya's son though lol
He cared about himself not his family. If he cared about his family he would have made sure his nephew succeeded and helped stabilize the realm, instead maegor steals the throne and kills his nephew. Oh there’s also the other nephew he had that he ordered to be tortured to death. Dude didn’t give two shots about his family he was purely self serving and blinded by his selfish cruel emotions.
@Spartan-hu2go Everything up to Viserys' death was before Visenya died, and he was full under Tyanna's control. Prior to that, he left Aegon alone until Aegon forced his hand. What I meant is that he cares about his house the way Tywin did. The image of his family over the people. It's Tywin's whole "you're my son" thing with Tyrion.
@@Spartan-hu2go i get people blaming him when he kills viserys and house harroway, at that point he went clearly mad. But before then he did nothing wrong, stupid, cruel or mad as a king really. Aegon literally forced his hand. All Maegor did was:
1: Steal the throne from Aegon due the the fact that Aegon was 16, hated by the realm and had no dragon and Maegor thought he had to step up to clear this mess
2: Destroyed the faith for all their treachery, as Aegon The Conqueror would have done
3:Killed his rival nephew when he openly challenged his claim and rode with a host to fight, as any king would have.
I'd say Maegor wanted to portray himself as a monster to stop any possible rebellions, but the more evil he did the worse he got.
Am I the only one that dislikes the Targeryan dynasty?
Yup, most likely😂😂😂. They may be Crazy and Insane, but they are also Very Interesting, really cool and Insanely powerful and mysterious...
As you should. All the people who overlook their murderous, incestuous, and petulant nature because “omg dragons and hot silver haired, purple eyed people are so cooool” have brain rot. I mean, idolizing war criminals happens irl too so I’m not surprised
ive been waiting for this !! wait Ser Dickon Flowers you bastard HAHAHA
It's hilarious that one of the pious houses of the reach was named Falwell. Martin has a sense of humor.
Maegor really fascinates me more than any other Targaryen king. Aenys to Jaehaerys being crowned would be a good show.
I don’t like how you say that Daemon is evil. Daemon does do evil things no doubt, but the whole point of his character and why people especially George Martin like him so much is because he’s neutral. He’s not good or evil. To some he can be the greatest of heroes and other the blackest of villains, that is a direct quote from fire and blood. Love this video btw. I think after house of the dragon they should make a series about Maegor’s reign. Maybe we could find out if he really was all that cruel and was a terrible person or just an antihero at the end of the day.
Daemon was a family man who had one dark deed, Blood and Cheese.
@@Jacaerys4life agreed
@@Jacaerys4life just because you love your family does not mean you can’t be a piece of shit.
And blood and cheese was piece of shit action.
HOTD is supposed to be an anthology series now since the dance was only 2 years and wouldn’t be more than 4 or 5 seasons probably, so they can keep the show in production for 10-12 seasons and keep the costs down by using a new set of characters and actors and Actresses every few seasons. That’s the current plan at least ; it could change but I doubt they pass up an opportunity to keep a GOT universe show on air when it makes sense financially and the production costs don’t keep ballooning season after season like GoT did
I havent seen Daemon commit one genuine good action which benefitted people. Everything he has done is evil.
I blame Aegon the conqueror honestly. It was sheer stupidity to get both of your wives pregnant when power is passed down the way it is
what? if he only had one son and he died then what? also the customs were clear, first-born inherit the throne, then his son and etc, maegor and visenya are nothing but usurpers
You could say that Aegon the Conqueror should have never even created the Iron Throne in the first place 🤣
Guy could literally solve his inheritance crisis if he still wed Visenya and kept Rhaenys as a side piece (like most kings do). The Faith militance would be less aggressive, Maegor could sit in comfort since Rhaenys's children could not challenge him, especially for a weak willed person as Aenys
I love how Jaeharys is the perfect combination of both. Fundamentally strong, like Maegor yet compassionate like Aenys
Slander, Maegor saved House Targaryen from the Faith.
If anything he just made the conflict with the faith worse and made the people of the seven kingdoms mistrust the targaryens even more than they already did.
I think the story from the end of Aenys’ reign to Maegor to his death and the rise of Jahaerys would make for a really great series for House of the Dragon. It has a person who starts off a badass and becomes a clear villain(Maegor) and some guys/ladies to root for (Aegon the Uncrowned, Jahaerys/Alysanne) and we would get to see Balerion and Visenya with Vhagar/Dark Sister.
I'm glad you debunked the " mad targaryen" nonsense.
Right I’m sure generations of marrying brother to sister has nothing to do with several of the targaryens turning out to be madmen.
@@Spartan-hu2go no it doesn't actually most of the Targaryens parents who went "mad " weren't related incest has nothing to do with it dude made a whole video basically debunking the claim .
Maegor was a needed warrior king for the reign of the dragons to survive in such a hostile environment for his family to live.
But was he the one that was really supposed to solve it? Sure, Aegon the Uncrowned was inexperienced, but he clearly had more resolve than his weakling father Aenys I, considering he was willing to mount his dragon and fight Maegor on Balerion, even if it meant certain death. Why didn't Maegor support his brother's sons and dutifully lend his strength to the rightful kings, rather than usurping and later murdering them??
@@nate742because at this point it had gotten to far out of hand visenya saw this the faith could’ve attacked at any second and they be blindsided and not see it coming unlike visenya and maegor who saw this uprising coming from a mile away the moment Aenys married his son and daughter which went against what aegon wanted or deal he made with the faith they made an exception for aegon and his sisters but that was it. Maegor had plenty of time to kill Aenys so did visenya but they didn’t because they no doubt loved and respected him because he was all that was left of rhaenys if anything it was visenya who brought maegor into it he was in exile doing his own thing. He also had to kill any heirs who could take the throne from him at this time.
@@Mcherripeople who love and respect some don’t murder their nieces and nephews .
@@hclw3589tell that to mediaval kings in the past that kill there Full Brothers or niece or nephew for thrones YOURS SO NAIVE YOU DO NOT KNOW THE UGLY THING ABOUT POLITICS HECK IT STILL HAPPEN TODAY IN MY OWN COUNTRY A POLITICIAN KILL HIS NEPHEW BECAUSE HE WILL OPPOSE HIM IN THE SAME POSITION IN THE UPCOMING ELECTION.
Let's be clear. Maegor did nothing wrong. Understand that the Faith, the Masters, Old Town and his own family was out to get him. Especially after he cleaned up the mess of his weak older brother.
Seems like you’ve got it all figured out 🫡
@@CrusaderChrisMaegor did nothing wrong
If people thought Daemon is unhinged wait till they see Maegor. Literal embodiment of a Valyrian.
Maegor was the truest dragon the Targaryen’s ever had, he was unrelenting and fierce, while others may have been diplomatic or understanding he was only callous and vicious, he did everything he liked regardless of anyone’s opinion and backed all his actions with force, he ruled for a relatively short time, but without him jahearys wouldn’t have been able to have his peaceful reign that lasted so long, it was the fear of having another maegor that made the people accept him and fall in line with his rule.
yeah let's tell ourselves that.
Don't confuse firece and evil
No wonder his reign lasted less than a decade and all of his lords utterly hated him. When you’re a monarch and you act like a spoiled child who’s always right no matter what your lords think, then prepare to not rule for very long even if you have dragons.
@@Spartan-hu2gomaegor was the best he was the reason there was more Targaryens with out his evil they would of been wipe out so maegor is the goat
@@Grandtemplar305 maegor wiped out more Targaryens then anyone else during his reign, not a good argument.
Maegor was a necessary evil for the Targaryens to survive, Targ's wish they had someone that could btfo the faith like he did.
Maeger is the kind of guy that makes you happy to have Joefry as King
The Mad King - “That Maeger guy was pretty insane”
What s wrong with poeple justifying an usurper and a criminal ??
Because people love meat riding the murderous Targaryens lol
Could someone please make an animated really long series about this real quick.
Every time I see someone ask for Henry Cavill as Aegon, in a series about conquest, I think how much better it is to have him as Maegor, even more faithful to his description in the books and a serious substitute for him as an actor.
I think Maegor the Cruel is a little overstated because without him, the Targaryen line would have fallen.
Yes
Can we talk about this Dick Bean guy and what a chad he was?
Wish we had more backstory for him. With a name people probably made fun of him for he was a loyal fierce warrior to the end
This would make a really really good show
Who has a better story than Dick Bean?
😂😂😂😂
Maegor:
Hero who lived long enough to be a Villain
Just finished watching House of Dragon and wanted to know Targaryen history in Westeros starting with Aegon, then found myself wondering about Aery on why he was considered weak, then Meagor on why he was titled The Cruel.
Seems to me both Aegon's sons imbodied his personality but in the worst way possible: Aerys was too kind and compassionate, to the point where he was weak. Maegor was too fierce and ruthless to the point where his actions were cruel and evil.
Either they resembled their father or their mothers, but since Aegon was a bit of both, using him as an example still stands. He knew when to be kind, cautious and humble, and he knew when to bring fire and blood.
I wish they would make a series of Aegon till Jarherys. Seems like a standard TV show idea a thats next after Game of Thrones, you'd actually think the typical producers would go for it. Except this time it would actually be a good idea.
Game of Thrones always made me wonder how it all started since Aegon was talked about a few times, and the fact that he started conquering based on a dream he had regarding Jon Snow make more of an obvious choice
Maegor would have been hailed as one of the greatest heroes of the Targaryen Dynasty if only he claimed to be regent instead of King. A harsh, cruel, and petty man. But no pressure for being king means no pressure from producing an heir. He should have been a content uncle whose cruelty is the stick to his brother's children's carrot. A man more terrifying than most actual dragons. I mean, any lord would shit themself if Jahaerys I nicely asked if they want to comply to his demands or if they would like to talk to his uncle instead.
Dick Bean the bravest character in got history
Dick Bean is a real G. I’m sure Maegor appreciated him.