Man imagine if Jaeherys had seen all his hard work go down in flames three decades later. Dude tried so hard to keep the realm together and his house strong but in the end it was in vain in the long run. Even worse imagine if he had witnessed the fall of his house in Robert's Rebellion.
Robert's Rebellion was a direct result of the Dance because of the Targaryens' weakened position due to the loss of dragons. Viserys was a damn fool for naming Rhaynera his heir. Her children were obviously not legitimate and many lords wouldn't bow to a woman, a woman with bastard children at that. I know it would've broken her heart, but it would've spared so much loss and bloodshed.
@@Kaboomboo the problem was not really naming his daughter his heir the problem was not guiding her and teaching her how to be a leader, second he always let anyone step over him especially the high tower and even more insulting the kings guard at that point it was criston cole
@@darthyamilcollado8886 tbf tho even if Viserys had tried guiding his daughter it probably still wouldn't have worked out considering he himself was someone who needed alot of guiding.
He was nicknamed Baelon the Brave for going up to Balerion the Blackdread and smacking him in the nose. “The first time Baelon visited the Dragonpit, he hit Balerion on the snout, causing Ser Samgood of the Kingsguard to remark that he was either brave or mad. Ever since, Baelon was also known as Baelon the Brave.”
but most of those years were spent in peace which makes for boring tv and it would end up being a soap drama of jahearys and alysanne losing their children
@@blackfyre3149I’d imagine it would be similar to Netflix tv show the Crown where it shows Elizabeth II’s reign and the drama the royal family deal with. You can say it’s relatively boring as her reign was during peace time and after WW2 but it was still interesting as they still had to go through dealing with public eye. Jaehaerys’s reign would still be plain but there are interesting moments like his intention to fix Westeros with Alysanne, his children and dealing with court life as royals and Valyrians, and small instances of war! The only child I’m looking forward to seeing is Saera cause hers was said to be scandalous, way more than the likes of Rhaenyra.
I gotta say that while reading Fire and Blood, the chapters covering Jaehaerys and Allysane probably touched me the most because of how well written and interesting they were. Because it follows them their entire lives it almost like the reader is growing up with them and feels more connection with them as everyone around them eventually die as the years pass
George did a fantastic job setting the mood through their chapters. I cried during the chapter where Jaehaerys and Alysanne’s mother died, and when Daenerys died, but everything else seemed so hopeful at first. Than over time it slowly became more and more depressing and bitter. He really did a great job making us feel the same way as the characters do.
It helps that they were both beautiful, smart, and genuinely in love. They were also undisputably good people. Flawed, yes, they made mistakes, but they were fundamentally moral and righteous and caring. They had the most family-like dynamic with their kids whom they raised to the best of their ability. Viserys I inherits a Golden Age with more Targaryens, more dragons, more money in the treasury, more goodwill towards the monarchy, and more stabiliy than ever before or since. After him? Things get spotty again.
Through Jaehaerys reign, we see Westeros begin to change into the one we know, which is super important. However, his reign was mainly low conflict family drama, which isn't that engaging for this world. I truthfully found Maegors reign the most memorable and interesting of this volume.
Maegor was the one who saved House targaryen. Jahearys was the one who planted the seeds of its downfall. Whe Maesters usually praise a Targaryen something is not right. Jaharys was too lenient toward the faith and Oldtown which is what allowed them to climb to power easily and cause the Dance. Maegor knew who he was dealing with and hated Oldtown the masters and the Septon. He knew.
@@robotube7361 Ok, so who should we cheer for? The people of the seven kingdoms who suffered under the Targareyens - who were causing conflicts and wars directly and indirectly due to infighting (Blacks vs. Greens, Blackfyre vs. Targs, Maegor vs. the faith militant and so on) or should we simply the Targs - ignoring that while their stories and dragons look rosy, in real life, we would have absolutely despised living under the rule of a family which not just practices incest openly, but gives rise to mad rules 50% of the time.
The nights watch really got a great batch of recruits out of his reign. Four kings guard and a ton of high lords and knights is a far cry from what they’d be working with later.
I find the fact that Jaehaerys sentenced all five members of the Kingsguard including the two who swore allegiance to him immediately after his uncle Meagor seized the iron throne to either death or the wall to be pretty F’ed up though, I mean imagine if you’re them you’d be like “We’ve been by your side since the beginning and you’re just going to sentence us to either death or exile, WTF bro?!” lol
@@michaelwilliams369jahaerys' point is the ones whom didn't swear loyalty to him can't be trusted to defend his life because they're maegor loyalists, and the ones who did also can't be trusted because if they can turncloak on maegor, why not him? He was right to simply get rid of them all. I don't doubt that stannis would do the same if he won the throne.
While I enjoy the wars and conflicts of Martin's universe, I would love to see HBO adapt a political drama of Jaehaerys reign. Above all he's probably one of my favorite characters
It would be an absolutely boring show though... there are little to no conflict and everything always ends somewhat happy and peacefully... him and Alyssanne probably are the best characters in the whole history of Westeros but their story would be absolutely boring sadly...
@@s8theninjawarrior916 I think it would simply be portrayed in a different way. Maybe almost something like The Crown in style. Plus there were still some tense moments in Jaehaerys' reign. Like his trial by combat against Beesbury while Saera was forced to watch. Jaehaerys may have been a good king but he was still very much of the blood of the dragon.
@@iiTzoreo1 A big reason that GOT was so successful is that it balanced heavy dialogue scenes with action scenes so well. Now you just want it to be Downtown Abbey.
His daughter is though Viserys daughter has dragon dreams and visions no one listens to hr though lol the irony is the princess that was promised not the prince this is where the translation gets muddled.@@ldariusd21
Saera wasn’t a whore. Jaehaerys was a piece of shit for the way he treated his daughters. Even his wife. Really all the women in his family. He was so insistent on ensuring they produced heirs he didn’t consider their health or well being. He’s a terrible father. Nothing “savage” about it.
@@divolg7981 Saera was like the seventh born child out of like a dozen. It was complete overkill for Jaehaerys to have as many kids with Alysanne as he did. He put his own wife’s health at risk by continuously getting her pregnant even as she was getting older. Alysanne had like four miscarriages but Jaehaerys didn’t care. Furthermore, because Jaehaerys had so many children despite how unnecessary it was to do so considering the succession was already stable with plenty of back ups, it meant he wasn’t able to dedicate enough time to actually raise most of his children. Aside from Aemon and Baelon, all of his children were absolutely starved for attention. The text makes rather clear that Saera was acting out for her parents attention. Saera just wanted her parents to give her the time of day from their busy schedules. It was irresponsible for Jaehaerys to neglect her like he did. Additionally, Saera managed to become an insanely wealthy woman in the free cities. She gamed the whole system over in Lys to rise above being a prostitute in order to buy out a pleasure house in Volantis where she could manage other prostitutes instead of having to be one herself. Thereby achieving a completely independent life for herself such that she was free to live without any constraints about the “duties and responsibilities” society would expect from her. She literally became a pseudo-Volantene noble and boasted about how she didn’t need to press her claim during the great council since she already had a kingdom of her own. All in all, Jaehaerys had little regard for the safety and well being of the women in his life. Which is insane considering how much of a giga chad his queen, Alysanne, was. Jaehaerys had way too many children than necessary for a stable succession and thus predictably enough wasn’t able to raise most of them properly. Yet all the same he expected each of them to fulfill their “duties and responsibilities” despite the fact that the crown was already more than secure with Rhaenys, Aemon, Baelon, and Alyssa. It’s no wonder Saera acted out and gave into her promiscuous tendencies. Not only would doing so have no real effect on the succession since she was like the twelfth in line, but she was also a neglected child. Children who don’t receive enough attention from their parents are prone to such behaviors. It’s unreasonable for Jaehaerys to expect so much from his children when he doesn’t bother giving most of them the time of day. Fundamentally there was a failure of communication and parenting on Jaehaerys’ part which is a shame since Saera’s innate talents with her charisma and manipulative capabilities could’ve easily been harnessed to transform her into a fierce political player that would’ve been a great ally for the crown. Instead, Jaehaeys fumbled super hard and Saera completely abandoned the kingdom and her family who she felt didn’t understand her and only wanted to control every breath she took. Despite Jaehaerys being a bitter old man and calling his own daughter a whore when she ran away terrified of the life he would’ve forced her to live, Jaehaeys was still haunted by her and regretted everything that happened as evident by how he mistook Alicent for Saera on his death bed where he was grateful his daughter had supposedly returned. You’re complete lack of empathy for Saera or the situation as a whole indicates a disturbing lack of self awareness. I hope you never have a daughter
@@daddy_1453 they should do all the Targaryen stories, dunk n egg, the conquest, blackfyre rebellions and then end it with Roberts rebellion the end of the targayen story
Things like Aegon's conquest, Aenys and Maegor reigns might make for good movies, they're probably too short for a TV series but a 3 hour movie or something might be fun
You know I always thought the Gold, Rose, and Ocean roads were just previous roads made by early Lannister and Gardener monarchs in times of relative peace and stability to increase trade. Wonder how many years it took to make these roads across a continent.
Westeros really was a shit show before the conquest. Nobody wanted to make roads to link the divided kingdoms because doing so would just make it easier for kingdoms to wage war on each other.
@@Archerman-bd1nr Agreed. Plus, Jon, while not quite as brilliant as his ancestor, demonstrates several qualities that Jaeherys would find commendable as a king.
The part before the dance of the dragons were my favorite parts of the book Fire and Blood. Jaehaerys is almost a perfect king. He doesn't make rash decisions, he listens to his council (and his wife, very important) and surrounds himself with men he can trust and are able. He had his flaws. I don't think he was convinced on a woman ruling alone, but naming his second son Baelon as his heir after Aemon died, over Aemon's daughter wasn't a decision he made lightly. It says in the book that he and his council discussed it thoroughly and it wasn't an easy decision. Jaehaerys was all about compromise, but he also stuck with his decisions when he needed to. He couldn't forgive his daughter Saera because she never seemed to show any remorse for her actions (sleeping around was the least of her crimes: she tormented her sister, played cruel pranks on the king's fool and when breaking out of the sept she pushed another woman down the stone steps, killing her). He was determined to repair the kingdom after what his predecessors had done and he did. He was well loved for a reason. I felt so sad that after reading about his careful rule, it slowly went to hell in a handbasket.
Such an interesting story. Though it was Viserys duty to follow up his appointment of Rhaenyra as heir with a law that women can inherit the Iron Throne on the same grounds as men, rather than just making a declaration and hoping the realm obeys it just because you are the King. After all, different kings have different rules, and the words of the King cannot be truly infallible if they contradict the words of a previous king.
There wasn't any specific law prohibit women from getting the throne, it just traditionally went to males. The council didn't make the law either, they voted Viserys to be king and Jahaerys honored the vote.
@@Ashbrash1998The son inherits the father - that was the law. This knowledge is from Stannis, who is a fanatical follower of the law and says that Rheanyra wanted to steal her brother's crown. In addition, Aegon II went down in history as a king. Rheanyra as Meagor with Tits. And her sons Aegon III and Viserys II didn't change it - that is, the law was clear even for Rheanyra's children. Viserys I broke the law of inheritance. But even a king is not above the law. He can change it. but he didn't.
@@isaiah8613Exactly. Just like Viserys said in episode 3 'Not even I am above tradition and duty'. His inaction and willfull blindness led to the destruction of the family due to the infighting. His bias towards half of the family is what really torn them apart
Also Allysans way of succession also contradicts her own statues since if it really does go to the eldest child then Rhaena and her daughters should have been queens while Jaehaerys and allysan stood by
One bad thing he did was created the new gift for the watch, taking valuable land from northern lords that would quickly become abandoned because of lawlessness and wildings raid due to the watch being overstretched
the wife did that, apparently the Northen lords liked to use the right of lord's first night :) that was what drove the queen to do so, she visited a places and found daughters that were sent to whorehouses after their husbands and fathers sent them away because their lord raped her on the wedding night :)
Back then the watch had much more funding and manpower and wasn’t considered only a punishment as in the current GoT time, so they could afford it and it helped by supplying them with food.
To be fair. The decision to do that in itself was never really bad. Its other people who refused to follow throught the actual plan and ideas that ended up ruining it
@@lunaamakura7683 i mean its not like he was the one who didnt want to name her queen. He summoned every lord in westeros to harrenhall to vote for who they want as their ruler and the majority chose viserys. Thats on westeros not jaehaerys lol
It sounds pretty arbitrary how Jaehaerys would go to great lengths to justify Valyrian incest marriage through a new theology for the faith of the seven but female heirs is where he chose to become a reactionary
Well he became king on that bases. If he would promoted a woman to Queen he would be a hypocrite as his brother had 2 daughter with a better claim then a swell as his older sister also hand a better claim if Jaehaerys Allowde Rhaenys who was clearly was the most computed of his Grandchildren. It would make his king illegitimate. Also he knew the Poius lords of Westroirs would go to war for this. As many of them would lose there claim if they dindt if this happen.
Nonsense. He went to great lengths to justify his family's already established traditions. Aegon had two sister-wives. He wasn't breaking ground with incest, he was keeping up with the Targaryean tradition. And first-born male heirs are also the Targaryean tradition. Despite a lot of popular drama shows depiction the issues of a first-born male heirs, in a fuedal system, it was by far the most stable set-up. Which is why virtually every single feudal, and most non-feudal society in history adopted it. It wasn't because parents did not love all their children, rather it was to prevent infighting, as the Charlemagne line learned so bitterly when his sons (who were all given a portion of his estate) fought wars so vicious two new countries exist to this day as a result. The sex is also important. A male heir would be able to: participate in war and have multiple children without fear of death at childbirth. The first was important to gain the respect of the army, the true source of power, and the second to strengthen the line. Although, given that the Targaryeans have female dragonriders, I think only the latter reason justifies their decision for male heirs. Moreover, yes, not all male heirs participated in war during history, however, keep in mind the system of monarchy is one that needs to be static and shaped to the likeness of divinity, the rules of monarchy must be stated in tradition. So if male heirs can participate *more* in war, then the society will adopt male heirs. And no, "women" cannot participate in historical medieval warfare. Some extraordinary women might have had the exceptional competence, gifts and training needed to maybe participate on the same level, but not enough to be able to establish a tradition of it.
To make a woman the heir is to court chaos. The woman could be an incredible ruler but her presence on the throne would only bring about destruction. The truth, men do not want to serve under those who are weaker than us, this means all women are not viable candidates.
@@ObsidianAngiris That is frankly untrue. Common and noble men have happily vowed allegiences and sworn to women in history, when there were no male heirs. Besides, those who refuse to, could be made to, with a sufficiently large army. The truth of the matter is that during the power struggle following a succession struggle, a male was significantly more likely to be able to gain the support of armed forces through personal contact (fighting wars alongside his men) and better able to continue the family line, which gained the support of tha aristocracy which would want a stable family line and avoid a succession. Furthermore, male heirs have always on average been more likely to rebel if overlooked than female heirs. All these factors, combined with monarchy and feudalism being strongly based on tradition, have made firstborn male heirs the go to.
This Video is brilliant and the most detailled retelling i can find of Jaeheryses Rule but it really need a rerecord with your new Microphone. Its really jarring if you came from the playlist and the middle of it has bad audio quality. Keep up the great work.
Not a bad idea. I’d rather do an entire new Jaehaerys video with better audio AND visuals, but this one has pretty decent numbers and my time is better spent on new videos. So maybe I’ll just re-record the new voiceover over the existing video and upload it to the playlist unlisted, so people can watch either version. Thanks for the suggestion!
@@CrusaderChrisIf you re-record the audio, please pronounce "gaolers" (4:54) correctly. It's pronounced "jailers," and it was said that way at least as far back as the 16th century.
I'm glad you pronounce Aenys as "A-knees" and not 'anus.' Based on how all the other Targaryen names are pronounced, I don't really know why anybody ever thought it was 'anus.'
Actually it is speculated that, in the books, Jon's real name will most likely be Jaehaerys. Rhaegar already had a son named Aegon, it would be completely nonsensical for him to name his bastard son with Lyanna Aegon as well.
@@TheGrimHHH It also makes sense to have named him Viserys. He had named his son and daughter Aegon and Rhaenys after the Conquerer and his sister, and was very adamant about needing one more. He probably thought that Aegon's prophesy referred to his children, and wanted to recreate the Conqueror's circumstances as closely as possible. He would've thus wanted a second daughter whom he would name Visenya, after the Conqueror's other sister, so when he got a son instead, it would make sense to name him Viserys, the male version of Visenya.
I love how Targaryens reign was always shaky. Aenys and Meagor are already covered Jeh did not have heirs so he voted and crowned Viserys who caused Dance of dragons and began the end of Targaryen dynasty and Aerys and Rhaegar put the nail to the coffin.
Yeah Jaehaerys was the only time were the Targaryens were 100% in control of the kingdom, no question asked. Also during the fith blackfyre invasion when everyone (including the Iron Born) allied against the nine penny king, only for a moment, the seven crowed were truly united, and they were unstopable.
That totally depends. If it has a lot of drama in terms of political scandals and royal affairs (which many good period pieces with a high number of viewers also have), and should it be similar to a show like the Crown I think it could find its own dedicated viewer base. That being said, normal GoT fans would most likely find it dull and boring.
@@spearshake4771 Yeah, I've heard it would basically be the GoT version of "The Crown" which I just started to get into myself. I'd say it would've been pretty cool to get that before the dance. Have that be a few episodes or just a season long, THEN do the Dance as we know it, afterwards.
It could, cause he had to do a lot in the first place to keep the peace so, we could use it as a learning opportunity of Westeros customs and history lessons.
@@elisahiichan3147rhaena targaryen spent most of jahaerys' reign having lesbian orgies on dragonstone and then crying in harrenhal when her husband killed her girlfriends.
13:02 👑The King & Queen suffered another loss with the death of their fifth daughter in three years.🪦 🏇🎊Vasara Targaryen snapped her neck, after riding a horse, while partying🥳 🎉 🍹🍸🍷The moral of the story ~ "don't drink & ride."🍾🍺 🚫
If you believe some of the theorizing of Preston Jacobs, Jahaerys and Alysanne may have actually set up a slow-burning apocalyptic crisis by ending the Northern traditions that supplied the Others with a steady supply of sacrificed children to convert into their ranks, in accordance with the peace that ended the Long Night. Though the ending of First Night rites for lords was definitely the humane thing to do for the smallfolk of the North, Jahaerys and Alysanne really should've taken their dragons beyond the Wall to renegotiate with the Others on behalf of the humans of Westeros.
"I am not my uncle..." Jaehaerys doesn't mention his father. Also, Balerion is a War Dragon. Not all dragons are meant for war, if any ever truly were.
Jaehaerys can't be blamed for the succession issue. 1) It was Westerosi tradition. 2) Literally any other King after Jaehaerys could have resolved it if It was that easy. Why didn't Viserys I resolve this?
I agree. I mean, he LITERALLY asked ALL the Lords of Westeros to chose the next heir, and in the end, it was Viserys chosen over Raenys. Notice that later, when Viserys doesn't ask but simply demands the other Lords bow to Rhaenyra, well... the Realm still split between her and Aegon 2. And if I remember correctly, the Greens started the war with more going for them actually... Male Primogeniture was literally chosen by Westeros, and it's not like it was a landslide cause it seemed that Rhaenys low key had a solid shot at the Throne over other Male options so, yeah... Chosing first born sons or the next in the Male Line (depending on who was truly capable to rule) was what was chosen to continue. I'd argue the only mistake he may have made was not simply making it the Law that Eldest Male in line will inherit, cause that would've saved Westeros and House Targaryen a lot of trouble in regards to the Dance of Dragons..
@@alexmunoz3261 I have no idea what you’re talking about. Whose the niece and who’s the uncle? Both Viserys and Rhaenys were cousins. Rhaenys was skipped over for her uncle because Rhaenys is a woman. Male progeniture still applies. But then the uncle died and things got complicated. So Jaeherys let society itself decide. (IMO It shouldn’t have been complicated…if the Second son is the heir, his children are automatically heirs as well. So Viserys should have automatically become next King as he’s a male son of the new crown prince. But I’m assuming Jaeherys knew many lords supported Rhaenys claim which is what actually complicated things. So Council it was).
@@daddy_1453 first rhaenys is the niece and baelon is the uncle, second look for example at lady when or alys karstark, in westerosi succesion they have a stronger claim than any brother to their father, male primogeniture only counts when we´re talking about brothers. Also council is most likely a scam as you automatically pass over rhaenys throwing westerosi succesion at the window and so, making a 6 year old defend his rights against a 20 something grown man among many other inconsistencies
Errr… a lot of problems can be traced back to Jaeherys too. His failure to solidify a system of succession, especially choosing Balon as his heir over his first son’s daughter Rhaenys, was a big factor leading up to the Dance of the Dragons.
Jaehaerys gets too much blame for the succession issues in my opinion. There were at least 4 times where Jaehaerys clearly established that women only inherit the thrones after men. Firstly, Jaehaerys was made King rather than his older sister Rhaena being made Queen. Secondly, he named Aemon Prince of Dragonstone despite having an older daughter, Daenerys. Thirdly, he named Baelon his new heir over Rhaenys. Fourthly, he and almost all the great lords agreed that Viserys would be heir over either Rhaenys or Laenor. The issue over succession and the Dance was almost all Viserys' fault for naming Rhaenyra his heir despite having 3 sons, there was a very clear line of succession which he just ignored.
@@matthewhart9610 I think you're missing the theme in all of this, that Jahaerys was clouded by the inherent misogyny he held from growing up in Westeros. All of his conflicts with Alysanne stem from decisions placing women after men, and the issue is his own succession is due to his repeated refusal to grant women power, that you highlighted without addressing that refusal's infamy and ugliness.
@@matthewhart9610 Times change and societies change too. Once women weren't allowed to vote in our society. Would you argue that this is right, because "it was always that way"? Would you argue slavery shouldn't be abolished because "it was always like this"? Before democracy there were kingdoms! Would you use that as an argument against democracy? It's called "progress"!
@@Levacque I didn't ignore that because it isn't important generally, it just wasn't pertinent to the point I was trying to make, obviously, women are just as capable rulers, and characters like Alysanne and her mother Alyssa Velaryon are good examples of that. There isn't an issue with women ruling, it's the matter of inheritance where it becomes tricky in a medieval world. Let's say Rhaenys was named Jaehaerys' heir, the throne would pass onto her children who are Velaryons, not Targaryens. Now you have 2 dragon-riding families with just as prominent claims to the throne, there's no way that someone like Daemon Targaryen is just going to accept some other house sitting on the throne. There would be an inevitable civil war every time the monarch's eldest child was a daughter.
@@tuplat5107 not really considering targs were pretty much a dictatorship/totalitarian authority. there were always going to be ppl upset w their decisions. Had a woman ruled in the first place there never would have been that sexism issue or contest to succession (at least it wouldnt have been nearly as much of an issue). It even could've been the first born child, regardless of sex
@@faemewmi I mean, he LITERALLY asked ALL the Lords of Westeros to chose the next heir, and in the end, it was Viserys chosen over Raenys. Notice that when Viserys doesn't ask but simply demands the other Lords bow to Rhaenyra, well... the Realm still split between her and Aegon 2. And if I remember correctly, the Greens started the war with more going for them actually... Male Primogeniture was literally chosen by Westeros, and it's not like it was a landslide cause it seemed that Rhaenys low key had a solid shot at the Throne over other Male options so, yeah... Chosing first born sons or the next in the Male Line (depending on who was truly capable to rule) was what was chosen to continue. I'd argue the only mistake he may have made was not simply making it the Law that Eldest Male in line will inherit, cause that would've saved Westeros and House Targaryen a lot of trouble in regards to the Dance of Dragons..
worst part of this is the fates of aegon the uncrowned and his sister wife rhaena. they clearly loved each other, but could not be together and live happily ever after. aegon was killed and rhaena lived on to suffer for a long life - even having to marry her uncle who was the reason for the death of the man he loved at some point.
I would like to think that the reason the lords supported a 16 year old kid because they all thought they can turn him into a puppet unlike his uncontrollable uncle maegor
You brought up a great point at the end saying that the dance might not have happened if Jaehaerys had set some sort of solid law about who could sit the iron throne. It would undoubtedly suck for his female descendants because he unfairly favored his male descendants. But just having a clear law for the time would have stopped the dance all together or given way to a more modern viewpoint sometime in the future...
Jaehaerys 1st Targaryen was his dragon from day 1 after meagor the crule died Jaehaerys took over as the longest-ruling and most fair king. his dragon was fury as Meagor ordered him and his dragon to burn the faith militant. and surrounding villages. How Vermithor got his name.
I think what jahearys showed was why monarchy is ultimately bad in the long run. Sure he made tons of reforms but in just a few generations the dance of the dragons happened
And Hitler shows the inherent problems of Democracy. Sure when times are good you get strong, stable government that acts upon consensus. But when times are bad you get demagogues and populists who destroy everything built over decades.
See what I did? It's easy to attack a political system when it doesn't work. ALL systems have their kinks and weaknesses. No system is nessecerily stronger than the other. All are valid systems of governance. But Monarchies have clearly lasted for far longer than Democratic Republics. Even Constitutional Monarchies have lasted longer than some Republics.
@@daddy_1453 that’s unfair, republics and democracies as we know them are pretty recent innovations. Also constitutional monarchy is literally just a democracy with a useless figurehead
Why tf is there no show about Jae harmonizing the legal system of Westeros Highlight of the second season would be the mediation in the trade dispute between the free cities
The problem was everybody thinking a king had the right to make a precedent that was forever. You can make a certain situation a precedent as king, but when a new king comes along, that king's word is now law,and hence any previous precedent set by the last king that contradicts the current King's word no longer matters. Who ever is king, makes the precedent or changes the previous one made by the last king.
Sincerely believe that HBO could do a Downton Abbey style drama about the reign of Jaeherys & Alyssane. There's not heaps of action, but the drama & intrigue could be done on a budget half that of HOTD. The show runners would have to age up some of the kids for tv, but other than that it could be great. J would become one of the most divisive characters in television, too. Bc he was a great king, but a terrible, terrible father to almost all of his daughters & granddaughters. I'd also love to see Jocelyn Baratheon & young Rhaenys.
Yeah Jaehaerys basically put it into the law at the great council that, a make targaryen takes precedence over a female, so an uncle takes over his nieces claim, like Baelon did with rhaenys, the fact that Viserys the 1st overruled this law t make Rhaenyra heir contradicted the laws that put Viserys in the throne in the first place which is why a war started, Aegons supporters followed the laws of Jaehaerys and the followers of Rhaenyra followed the oaths they swore to viserys, but the legitimate law is that of Jaehaerys, so at least in house targaryen a make till takes precedence
@@closetglobe.IRGUN.NW0 your absolutely right to think that and I do as well, but it’s that law that caused the civil war and because it caused so much horror afterwards the lords of the seven kingdoms just based their laws after the council of 101 and that’s why they still reference it to this day in the story
It's like how Ned Stark had more respect for ser Barristan, who stayed loyal to the mad king, then to Jaime, who betrayed the mad king for Robert. A lot of people in westeros think a kingsguard should ALWAYS be loyal to the king no matter what, and for a kingsguard to betray his vows is never good because it sets a precedent
@@lynxerax7011 The logic is simple, The Kings Guard are suppose to be the highest in skill with the speed and loyalty and honor. No matter what a kings Guard should be loyal to he’s king no matter what, breaking such vows wouldn’t stop other kings Guard to do the same even if the king is bad or not. Selective loyalties to be broken depending on what the individual deems right or wrong. Perception can be one of the most dangerous thing in a kingdom. Because it will push a warrior to fight for what he believes is correct, this means burning down loyalty if he needs too Which is why a lot believed in Westeros the Kings Guard should be zealot class loyal to theirs king. In other words loyal to the crown and not the person, but the meaning and symbol of the crown
We saw how a shadowbinder took the lives of a couple of people later on in the Targaryen reign... and so I have to wonder if Maegor the Cruel died in a similar fashion - the victim of some sort of black magic. I'm constantly wondering if Maegor was conceived in black magic ... and whether he was somehow poisoned to cause infertility. It just doesn't make any sense that he had no viable children in all that time and so I wonder what sort of sorcery was at play.
Putting myself in Jaehaerys’ shoes I can kinda see why he seemed indecisive on the matter. He unlike ALOT of kings we see actually tried to rule WITH his wife but like all proud men probably never wanted to admit publicly that they were in fact equals.That and with the women in his life he probably had a chip on his shoulder about the competent of women.
@@CrusaderChris No, Not at all, there was another elder brother called Viserys! he was taken as a squire by Maegor, who then happened to torture him for 9 days to find out where Alyssa, Jaehaerys and Alyssane had fled to! Viserys died the 9th day.
@@CrusaderChris I apologize for my dumb joke (Baehaen and Jaehaerys), it was probably not worthy of your excellent video! Targ names can be pretty silly to me sometimes :)
When the Royal Family forgets this is a job not a privilege. To rule their certain expectations if they fail to be met the will people will find another monarch. King Jaehaerys Targaryen understood this many of his children did not.
If Jaehaerys would have just eliminated the practice of the male heirs getting first priority over the females could have saved both his house and the realm decades worth of drama.
Maegor the cruel was a more interesting character than people gave him. It was said that he killed himself because he would be defeated as the houses comes for kings landing. However I dont think that would have happen, even with 3 dragons. Maegor is extremely skilled and have Barrareon. He could probably massacre all 3 smaller dragon and the entire army. Maegor wanted to revenge his brothers death by killing the destroying the fate. He wanted to rule with an iron fist like his father and he did. He killed thousand if not million of all those who rise against him yet still more would rebel and without his mother's support, He probably had enough of fighting and killing as he see the error of his way.
isn´t dorne the 7th kingdom? in that case it should be "king of the six kingdoms"... but then again you and the show say it as "king of the seven kingdoms"
At the time of the conquest (and most of Westerosi history) the Riverlands were not a separate king. They were conquered by the Iron King Harden Hoare.
@@alexanderzack3720the riverlands is not considered a kingdom. It's a region, like the crownlands. The seven kingdoms always considered dorne as part of it, even when it wasn't under control. It's like how China considers Taiwan part of China.
How did you get such HD images of some of the official artwork? Like Amok's Jaehaerys and Alysanne on the thumbnail, or some of the Fire and Blood images.
I usually spend a long time trying to find the original source of art. Usually it’s HD. If not, I download it as PNG and have to run it through an AI upscaling program.
Jaehaerys was so BASED. He would've put an end to this Rhaenrya Girlboss Slay Kween nonsense and made Aegon II king. Viserys spat on the traditions of this great king. Imagine the level of hypocrisy where you take advantage of male primogeniture to become king and then deny your son Aegon the same right.
Jaehaerys was a good king and Alysanne was a brilliant queen, they’re probably horrified at the destruction Viserys caused. He should never have let Rhaenyra remain heir after she had illegitimate children.
I feel like jaehaerys is a bit of a dangerous name to have. Imagine if vermithor wasn't paying attention, and someone called jaehaerys's name. Congratulations, you've just burnt down the nearby lumber mill. I'm just saying naming your kid some shit that sounds like dracarys when spoken, around a bunch of dragons seems like a bad idea.
Man imagine if Jaeherys had seen all his hard work go down in flames three decades later. Dude tried so hard to keep the realm together and his house strong but in the end it was in vain in the long run. Even worse imagine if he had witnessed the fall of his house in Robert's Rebellion.
Robert's Rebellion was a direct result of the Dance because of the Targaryens' weakened position due to the loss of dragons. Viserys was a damn fool for naming Rhaynera his heir. Her children were obviously not legitimate and many lords wouldn't bow to a woman, a woman with bastard children at that. I know it would've broken her heart, but it would've spared so much loss and bloodshed.
@@Kaboomboo Viserys was a good man but a terrible King
@@Kaboomboo the problem was not really naming his daughter his heir the problem was not guiding her and teaching her how to be a leader, second he always let anyone step over him especially the high tower and even more insulting the kings guard at that point it was criston cole
@@darthyamilcollado8886 tbf tho even if Viserys had tried guiding his daughter it probably still wouldn't have worked out considering he himself was someone who needed alot of guiding.
@@Zero-qn8mk You my friend are also correct in that
He was nicknamed Baelon the Brave for going up to Balerion the Blackdread and smacking him in the nose. “The first time Baelon visited the Dragonpit, he hit Balerion on the snout, causing Ser Samgood of the Kingsguard to remark that he was either brave or mad. Ever since, Baelon was also known as Baelon the Brave.”
I mean to be fair at his size Balerion barely felt it
Funnily enough Viserys I mounted Balerion but it died due to old age.
@@kryztyn127He got one more ride out of Balerion but was barely able to fly.
@@kryztyn127 Balerion died of cringe
😂
The story of Jaehaerys and Alysanne is arguably the best one GRRM ever wrote. It is unfortunate that House of the Dragon skips it.
Unfortunately, peacetime makes for poor storytelling.
@@kagekun1198 it makes for good storytelling as we see in fire and blood.
Perhaps it doesn't make for a good TV show though..
@@kagekun1198 peacetime makes poor "visual" storytelling.
There would be too many spoilers
@@ianschmitt4991 pandering, catering, etc. Its unfortunate, but how they see it.
This is who we need a TV show about. He ruled for like 60 years. They could do like 10 seasons on him and his reign.
but most of those years were spent in peace which makes for boring tv and it would end up being a soap drama of jahearys and alysanne losing their children
@@blackfyre3149I’d imagine it would be similar to Netflix tv show the Crown where it shows Elizabeth II’s reign and the drama the royal family deal with. You can say it’s relatively boring as her reign was during peace time and after WW2 but it was still interesting as they still had to go through dealing with public eye.
Jaehaerys’s reign would still be plain but there are interesting moments like his intention to fix Westeros with Alysanne, his children and dealing with court life as royals and Valyrians, and small instances of war!
The only child I’m looking forward to seeing is Saera cause hers was said to be scandalous, way more than the likes of Rhaenyra.
@@blackfyre3149Targaryen soap drama with dragons? Sign me up pls
@@cars81434 They could even recast the characters after every season or two to show the characters aging in real time.
With good editing and great costumes I would love it @@blackfyre3149
I gotta say that while reading Fire and Blood, the chapters covering Jaehaerys and Allysane probably touched me the most because of how well written and interesting they were. Because it follows them their entire lives it almost like the reader is growing up with them and feels more connection with them as everyone around them eventually die as the years pass
they’re my favorite Targaryen ruling couple
George did a fantastic job setting the mood through their chapters. I cried during the chapter where Jaehaerys and Alysanne’s mother died, and when Daenerys died, but everything else seemed so hopeful at first. Than over time it slowly became more and more depressing and bitter. He really did a great job making us feel the same way as the characters do.
It helps that they were both beautiful, smart, and genuinely in love. They were also undisputably good people. Flawed, yes, they made mistakes, but they were fundamentally moral and righteous and caring. They had the most family-like dynamic with their kids whom they raised to the best of their ability.
Viserys I inherits a Golden Age with more Targaryens, more dragons, more money in the treasury, more goodwill towards the monarchy, and more stabiliy than ever before or since. After him? Things get spotty again.
@@Borderose
True.
Jaeherys is the example of a Monarchy rule done well, a partner well chosen, and a duty well fulfilled.
My heart sank when Alyssane passed
He was by far the best king the 7 kingdoms ever had that's including his grandfather Aegon the conquer
Weirdly, the one whom he compared a lot is viserys the 2nd who became king for a year
@@nicmagtaan1132 King for a year, but Hand and de facto ruler for decades before that
Through Jaehaerys reign, we see Westeros begin to change into the one we know, which is super important. However, his reign was mainly low conflict family drama, which isn't that engaging for this world. I truthfully found Maegors reign the most memorable and interesting of this volume.
Maegor was the one who saved House targaryen. Jahearys was the one who planted the seeds of its downfall. Whe Maesters usually praise a Targaryen something is not right. Jaharys was too lenient toward the faith and Oldtown which is what allowed them to climb to power easily and cause the Dance. Maegor knew who he was dealing with and hated Oldtown the masters and the Septon. He knew.
@@robotube7361 Ok, so who should we cheer for? The people of the seven kingdoms who suffered under the Targareyens - who were causing conflicts and wars directly and indirectly due to infighting (Blacks vs. Greens, Blackfyre vs. Targs, Maegor vs. the faith militant and so on) or should we simply the Targs - ignoring that while their stories and dragons look rosy, in real life, we would have absolutely despised living under the rule of a family which not just practices incest openly, but gives rise to mad rules 50% of the time.
The nights watch really got a great batch of recruits out of his reign. Four kings guard and a ton of high lords and knights is a far cry from what they’d be working with later.
Yea but those kings gaurd almost immediately broke their vows and tried to claim castles on the wall as their own. And the north was pissed.
after some of the blackfyre rebellions they got a load of knights ad stuff too i think
I find the fact that Jaehaerys sentenced all five members of the Kingsguard including the two who swore allegiance to him immediately after his uncle Meagor seized the iron throne to either death or the wall to be pretty F’ed up though, I mean imagine if you’re them you’d be like “We’ve been by your side since the beginning and you’re just going to sentence us to either death or exile, WTF bro?!” lol
They also got a metric shit ton of religious crusading veterans.
@@michaelwilliams369jahaerys' point is the ones whom didn't swear loyalty to him can't be trusted to defend his life because they're maegor loyalists, and the ones who did also can't be trusted because if they can turncloak on maegor, why not him? He was right to simply get rid of them all. I don't doubt that stannis would do the same if he won the throne.
After listening to this, I relearn my empathy for GRRM.
He may take his time but for good reason.
While I enjoy the wars and conflicts of Martin's universe, I would love to see HBO adapt a political drama of Jaehaerys reign. Above all he's probably one of my favorite characters
It would be an absolutely boring show though... there are little to no conflict and everything always ends somewhat happy and peacefully... him and Alyssanne probably are the best characters in the whole history of Westeros but their story would be absolutely boring sadly...
@@s8theninjawarrior916 I think it would simply be portrayed in a different way. Maybe almost something like The Crown in style. Plus there were still some tense moments in Jaehaerys' reign. Like his trial by combat against Beesbury while Saera was forced to watch. Jaehaerys may have been a good king but he was still very much of the blood of the dragon.
People would whine constantly about the lack of huge battles
@@iiTzoreo1 A big reason that GOT was so successful is that it balanced heavy dialogue scenes with action scenes so well. Now you just want it to be Downtown Abbey.
I think from Aegons conquest to jaeherys's death would do for a better spoon off
S I G M A E R Y S C H A D G A R Y E N
We now know because of House of the Dragon about Aegon's Prophecy. This could have impacted who Jaehaerys made as his heir to the throne.
We don't know what dreams or prophecies Aegon had in the books tho. Viserys and Halaena aren't dreamers in the books
It could be the reason he favored a grandson over a granddaughter. Considering the "prince who was promised" .
His daughter is though Viserys daughter has dragon dreams and visions no one listens to hr though lol the irony is the princess that was promised not the prince this is where the translation gets muddled.@@ldariusd21
"She always was" what a savage lol
Lmao for real 🤣
He was like "hey, she chose this life so, guess she was always a hoe at heart" 😅
That’s his daughter bro, she has blood of the dragon.
Also he was hallucinating of Saera on his deathbed so not that savage
Saera wasn’t a whore. Jaehaerys was a piece of shit for the way he treated his daughters. Even his wife. Really all the women in his family. He was so insistent on ensuring they produced heirs he didn’t consider their health or well being. He’s a terrible father. Nothing “savage” about it.
@@divolg7981 Saera was like the seventh born child out of like a dozen. It was complete overkill for Jaehaerys to have as many kids with Alysanne as he did. He put his own wife’s health at risk by continuously getting her pregnant even as she was getting older. Alysanne had like four miscarriages but Jaehaerys didn’t care.
Furthermore, because Jaehaerys had so many children despite how unnecessary it was to do so considering the succession was already stable with plenty of back ups, it meant he wasn’t able to dedicate enough time to actually raise most of his children. Aside from Aemon and Baelon, all of his children were absolutely starved for attention. The text makes rather clear that Saera was acting out for her parents attention. Saera just wanted her parents to give her the time of day from their busy schedules. It was irresponsible for Jaehaerys to neglect her like he did.
Additionally, Saera managed to become an insanely wealthy woman in the free cities. She gamed the whole system over in Lys to rise above being a prostitute in order to buy out a pleasure house in Volantis where she could manage other prostitutes instead of having to be one herself. Thereby achieving a completely independent life for herself such that she was free to live without any constraints about the “duties and responsibilities” society would expect from her. She literally became a pseudo-Volantene noble and boasted about how she didn’t need to press her claim during the great council since she already had a kingdom of her own.
All in all, Jaehaerys had little regard for the safety and well being of the women in his life. Which is insane considering how much of a giga chad his queen, Alysanne, was. Jaehaerys had way too many children than necessary for a stable succession and thus predictably enough wasn’t able to raise most of them properly. Yet all the same he expected each of them to fulfill their “duties and responsibilities” despite the fact that the crown was already more than secure with Rhaenys, Aemon, Baelon, and Alyssa.
It’s no wonder Saera acted out and gave into her promiscuous tendencies. Not only would doing so have no real effect on the succession since she was like the twelfth in line, but she was also a neglected child. Children who don’t receive enough attention from their parents are prone to such behaviors. It’s unreasonable for Jaehaerys to expect so much from his children when he doesn’t bother giving most of them the time of day. Fundamentally there was a failure of communication and parenting on Jaehaerys’ part which is a shame since Saera’s innate talents with her charisma and manipulative capabilities could’ve easily been harnessed to transform her into a fierce political player that would’ve been a great ally for the crown. Instead, Jaehaeys fumbled super hard and Saera completely abandoned the kingdom and her family who she felt didn’t understand her and only wanted to control every breath she took.
Despite Jaehaerys being a bitter old man and calling his own daughter a whore when she ran away terrified of the life he would’ve forced her to live, Jaehaeys was still haunted by her and regretted everything that happened as evident by how he mistook Alicent for Saera on his death bed where he was grateful his daughter had supposedly returned.
You’re complete lack of empathy for Saera or the situation as a whole indicates a disturbing lack of self awareness. I hope you never have a daughter
I want to see a HBO series on Maegor the cruel... his reign may have been short but he was one mean SOB.
Now that we've seen the Targaryens at their prime in HOTD, I'd like to see Roberts Rebellion be a series. That is the Fall of the Targaryens.
I agree 👍
@@daddy_1453 they should do all the Targaryen stories, dunk n egg, the conquest, blackfyre rebellions and then end it with Roberts rebellion the end of the targayen story
Things like Aegon's conquest, Aenys and Maegor reigns might make for good movies, they're probably too short for a TV series but a 3 hour movie or something might be fun
You know I always thought the Gold, Rose, and Ocean roads were just previous roads made by early Lannister and Gardener monarchs in times of relative peace and stability to increase trade. Wonder how many years it took to make these roads across a continent.
Westeros really was a shit show before the conquest. Nobody wanted to make roads to link the divided kingdoms because doing so would just make it easier for kingdoms to wage war on each other.
Queen Alyssane is an amazing character
And Jon Snow real name in the books should be Jaehaerys
Yes as rhaegar already had a son ned aegon
@@Archerman-bd1nr Agreed. Plus, Jon, while not quite as brilliant as his ancestor, demonstrates several qualities that Jaeherys would find commendable as a king.
His name should’ve been Aemond the III
@@LordCommander-ui2fw no he doesn't. Jon is the first LC to get killed by his own men lol
@@Archerman-bd1nr ong finally somebody said it!!
12:46 of course Jaehaerys the smartest and longest ruling king would be Based
The part before the dance of the dragons were my favorite parts of the book Fire and Blood. Jaehaerys is almost a perfect king. He doesn't make rash decisions, he listens to his council (and his wife, very important) and surrounds himself with men he can trust and are able. He had his flaws. I don't think he was convinced on a woman ruling alone, but naming his second son Baelon as his heir after Aemon died, over Aemon's daughter wasn't a decision he made lightly. It says in the book that he and his council discussed it thoroughly and it wasn't an easy decision. Jaehaerys was all about compromise, but he also stuck with his decisions when he needed to. He couldn't forgive his daughter Saera because she never seemed to show any remorse for her actions (sleeping around was the least of her crimes: she tormented her sister, played cruel pranks on the king's fool and when breaking out of the sept she pushed another woman down the stone steps, killing her). He was determined to repair the kingdom after what his predecessors had done and he did. He was well loved for a reason.
I felt so sad that after reading about his careful rule, it slowly went to hell in a handbasket.
Such an interesting story. Though it was Viserys duty to follow up his appointment of Rhaenyra as heir with a law that women can inherit the Iron Throne on the same grounds as men, rather than just making a declaration and hoping the realm obeys it just because you are the King. After all, different kings have different rules, and the words of the King cannot be truly infallible if they contradict the words of a previous king.
There wasn't any specific law prohibit women from getting the throne, it just traditionally went to males. The council didn't make the law either, they voted Viserys to be king and Jahaerys honored the vote.
@@Ashbrash1998The son inherits the father - that was the law. This knowledge is from Stannis, who is a fanatical follower of the law and says that Rheanyra wanted to steal her brother's crown.
In addition, Aegon II went down in history as a king. Rheanyra as Meagor with Tits. And her sons Aegon III and Viserys II didn't change it - that is, the law was clear even for Rheanyra's children.
Viserys I broke the law of inheritance. But even a king is not above the law. He can change it. but he didn't.
It's the law of male primogeniture. @@Ashbrash1998
@@isaiah8613Exactly. Just like Viserys said in episode 3 'Not even I am above tradition and duty'. His inaction and willfull blindness led to the destruction of the family due to the infighting. His bias towards half of the family is what really torn them apart
Also Allysans way of succession also contradicts her own statues since if it really does go to the eldest child then Rhaena and her daughters should have been queens while Jaehaerys and allysan stood by
One bad thing he did was created the new gift for the watch, taking valuable land from northern lords that would quickly become abandoned because of lawlessness and wildings raid due to the watch being overstretched
the wife did that, apparently the Northen lords liked to use the right of lord's first night :) that was what drove the queen to do so, she visited a places and found daughters that were sent to whorehouses after their husbands and fathers sent them away because their lord raped her on the wedding night :)
Back then the watch had much more funding and manpower and wasn’t considered only a punishment as in the current GoT time, so they could afford it and it helped by supplying them with food.
To be fair. The decision to do that in itself was never really bad. Its other people who refused to follow throught the actual plan and ideas that ended up ruining it
That and not naming rheanys queen. Like I get why he didn’t but he should’ve because then the Hightowers would’ve dug such a pit in the family.
@@lunaamakura7683 i mean its not like he was the one who didnt want to name her queen. He summoned every lord in westeros to harrenhall to vote for who they want as their ruler and the majority chose viserys. Thats on westeros not jaehaerys lol
It sounds pretty arbitrary how Jaehaerys would go to great lengths to justify Valyrian incest marriage through a new theology for the faith of the seven but female heirs is where he chose to become a reactionary
Well he became king on that bases. If he would promoted a woman to Queen he would be a hypocrite as his brother had 2 daughter with a better claim then a swell as his older sister also hand a better claim if Jaehaerys Allowde Rhaenys who was clearly was the most computed of his Grandchildren. It would make his king illegitimate. Also he knew the Poius lords of Westroirs would go to war for this. As many of them would lose there claim if they dindt if this happen.
Nonsense. He went to great lengths to justify his family's already established traditions. Aegon had two sister-wives. He wasn't breaking ground with incest, he was keeping up with the Targaryean tradition. And first-born male heirs are also the Targaryean tradition.
Despite a lot of popular drama shows depiction the issues of a first-born male heirs, in a fuedal system, it was by far the most stable set-up. Which is why virtually every single feudal, and most non-feudal society in history adopted it. It wasn't because parents did not love all their children, rather it was to prevent infighting, as the Charlemagne line learned so bitterly when his sons (who were all given a portion of his estate) fought wars so vicious two new countries exist to this day as a result. The sex is also important. A male heir would be able to: participate in war and have multiple children without fear of death at childbirth. The first was important to gain the respect of the army, the true source of power, and the second to strengthen the line. Although, given that the Targaryeans have female dragonriders, I think only the latter reason justifies their decision for male heirs. Moreover, yes, not all male heirs participated in war during history, however, keep in mind the system of monarchy is one that needs to be static and shaped to the likeness of divinity, the rules of monarchy must be stated in tradition. So if male heirs can participate *more* in war, then the society will adopt male heirs. And no, "women" cannot participate in historical medieval warfare. Some extraordinary women might have had the exceptional competence, gifts and training needed to maybe participate on the same level, but not enough to be able to establish a tradition of it.
@@lichwood4429
lmao
To make a woman the heir is to court chaos.
The woman could be an incredible ruler but her presence on the throne would only bring about destruction. The truth, men do not want to serve under those who are weaker than us, this means all women are not viable candidates.
@@ObsidianAngiris That is frankly untrue. Common and noble men have happily vowed allegiences and sworn to women in history, when there were no male heirs. Besides, those who refuse to, could be made to, with a sufficiently large army. The truth of the matter is that during the power struggle following a succession struggle, a male was significantly more likely to be able to gain the support of armed forces through personal contact (fighting wars alongside his men) and better able to continue the family line, which gained the support of tha aristocracy which would want a stable family line and avoid a succession. Furthermore, male heirs have always on average been more likely to rebel if overlooked than female heirs. All these factors, combined with monarchy and feudalism being strongly based on tradition, have made firstborn male heirs the go to.
This Video is brilliant and the most detailled retelling i can find of Jaeheryses Rule but it really need a rerecord with your new Microphone. Its really jarring if you came from the playlist and the middle of it has bad audio quality.
Keep up the great work.
Not a bad idea. I’d rather do an entire new Jaehaerys video with better audio AND visuals, but this one has pretty decent numbers and my time is better spent on new videos. So maybe I’ll just re-record the new voiceover over the existing video and upload it to the playlist unlisted, so people can watch either version. Thanks for the suggestion!
@@CrusaderChrisIf you re-record the audio, please pronounce "gaolers" (4:54) correctly. It's pronounced "jailers," and it was said that way at least as far back as the 16th century.
Jaeharys is, without a shadow of a doubt, my favorite Targaryen. He stands heads and shoulders above every other King
I'm glad you pronounce Aenys as "A-knees" and not 'anus.' Based on how all the other Targaryen names are pronounced, I don't really know why anybody ever thought it was 'anus.'
You’re right. It’s clearly A-knees.
Lmao, yeah that's dumb. Definitely pronounced "A-Knees" for sure. Anus is ridiculous
Because it fun to pronounce it 'anus'.
Westeros before aegon seems like a hell hole all together
Love the content bro keep up the good work u just got a subscriber
What if Jon's real name is Jaehaerys . Would make sense imo
Imagine if his siblings had stayed alive and his sister had to introduce them like: "So, this is my Brother Aegon and my other brother, Aegon.
Actually it is speculated that, in the books, Jon's real name will most likely be Jaehaerys. Rhaegar already had a son named Aegon, it would be completely nonsensical for him to name his bastard son with Lyanna Aegon as well.
@@TheGrimHHH It also makes sense to have named him Viserys. He had named his son and daughter Aegon and Rhaenys after the Conquerer and his sister, and was very adamant about needing one more. He probably thought that Aegon's prophesy referred to his children, and wanted to recreate the Conqueror's circumstances as closely as possible. He would've thus wanted a second daughter whom he would name Visenya, after the Conqueror's other sister, so when he got a son instead, it would make sense to name him Viserys, the male version of Visenya.
@@TheDream6842 No way would anyone in their right mind name their kid Maegor.
Jaehaerys was the most theorized name for Jon. Nobody thought it was Aegon since that was his half-brother's name already. F D&D.
Even Silverwing was aware of the Others a whole 200 years before they actually began mobilizing South.
Amazing video and perfect pronunciation and narration
Thank you for this
I love how Targaryens reign was always shaky.
Aenys and Meagor are already covered
Jeh did not have heirs so he voted and crowned Viserys who caused Dance of dragons and began the end of Targaryen dynasty and Aerys and Rhaegar put the nail to the coffin.
Yeah Jaehaerys was the only time were the Targaryens were 100% in control of the kingdom, no question asked.
Also during the fith blackfyre invasion when everyone (including the Iron Born) allied against the nine penny king, only for a moment, the seven crowed were truly united, and they were unstopable.
Jaehaerys wouldn't make for a good TV show because his reign was too stable.
That totally depends. If it has a lot of drama in terms of political scandals and royal affairs (which many good period pieces with a high number of viewers also have), and should it be similar to a show like the Crown I think it could find its own dedicated viewer base. That being said, normal GoT fans would most likely find it dull and boring.
@@spearshake4771
Yeah, I've heard it would basically be the GoT version of "The Crown" which I just started to get into myself. I'd say it would've been pretty cool to get that before the dance. Have that be a few episodes or just a season long, THEN do the Dance as we know it, afterwards.
It could, cause he had to do a lot in the first place to keep the peace so, we could use it as a learning opportunity of Westeros customs and history lessons.
Uhm if they make the main character rhaena Targaryen, Jae's oldest sister. Tv show would be hella great
@@elisahiichan3147rhaena targaryen spent most of jahaerys' reign having lesbian orgies on dragonstone and then crying in harrenhal when her husband killed her girlfriends.
Aegon I + Visenya - Maegor - Jaeherys, these 4 made the Targaeryen dynasty the later generations enjoyed.
great video! :)
Damn now I want to see a Prequel series of these events.
Jaehaerys' journey to being King is epic.
13:02
👑The King & Queen suffered another loss with the death of their fifth daughter in three years.🪦
🏇🎊Vasara Targaryen snapped her neck, after riding a horse, while partying🥳 🎉
🍹🍸🍷The moral of the story ~ "don't drink & ride."🍾🍺 🚫
I honestly would wanna see a Maegor series not a good man,but definitely would be interesting seeing the rise of Jaeharys.
Jaehaerys
If you believe some of the theorizing of Preston Jacobs, Jahaerys and Alysanne may have actually set up a slow-burning apocalyptic crisis by ending the Northern traditions that supplied the Others with a steady supply of sacrificed children to convert into their ranks, in accordance with the peace that ended the Long Night. Though the ending of First Night rites for lords was definitely the humane thing to do for the smallfolk of the North, Jahaerys and Alysanne really should've taken their dragons beyond the Wall to renegotiate with the Others on behalf of the humans of Westeros.
"I am not my uncle..." Jaehaerys doesn't mention his father. Also, Balerion is a War Dragon. Not all dragons are meant for war, if any ever truly were.
Jaehaerys can't be blamed for the succession issue. 1) It was Westerosi tradition.
2) Literally any other King after Jaehaerys could have resolved it if It was that easy. Why didn't Viserys I resolve this?
I agree.
I mean, he LITERALLY asked ALL the Lords of Westeros to chose the next heir, and in the end, it was Viserys chosen over Raenys.
Notice that later, when Viserys doesn't ask but simply demands the other Lords bow to Rhaenyra, well... the Realm still split between her and Aegon 2. And if I remember correctly, the Greens started the war with more going for them actually...
Male Primogeniture was literally chosen by Westeros, and it's not like it was a landslide cause it seemed that Rhaenys low key had a solid shot at the Throne over other Male options so, yeah...
Chosing first born sons or the next in the Male Line (depending on who was truly capable to rule) was what was chosen to continue. I'd argue the only mistake he may have made was not simply making it the Law that Eldest Male in line will inherit, cause that would've saved Westeros and House Targaryen a lot of trouble in regards to the Dance of Dragons..
In westerosi succesion a niece comes before an uncle so idk what you´re talking abut
@@alexmunoz3261 I have no idea what you’re talking about. Whose the niece and who’s the uncle?
Both Viserys and Rhaenys were cousins. Rhaenys was skipped over for her uncle because Rhaenys is a woman. Male progeniture still applies. But then the uncle died and things got complicated. So Jaeherys let society itself decide. (IMO It shouldn’t have been complicated…if the Second son is the heir, his children are automatically heirs as well. So Viserys should have automatically become next King as he’s a male son of the new crown prince. But I’m assuming Jaeherys knew many lords supported Rhaenys claim which is what actually complicated things. So Council it was).
@@daddy_1453 first rhaenys is the niece and baelon is the uncle, second look for example at lady when or alys karstark, in westerosi succesion they have a stronger claim than any brother to their father, male primogeniture only counts when we´re talking about brothers. Also council is most likely a scam as you automatically pass over rhaenys throwing westerosi succesion at the window and so, making a 6 year old defend his rights against a 20 something grown man among many other inconsistencies
@@daddy_1453 Daena the defiant got passed over on account of her gender
Dany flew north in the tv series, i really an curious to see how her dragons react to the wall in the books.
Subscribed.Good video and content
Errr… a lot of problems can be traced back to Jaeherys too. His failure to solidify a system of succession, especially choosing Balon as his heir over his first son’s daughter Rhaenys, was a big factor leading up to the Dance of the Dragons.
I mentioned this :) as well as his inaction in creating a law to let kings choose their heir, which would’ve prevented the war.
Jaehaerys gets too much blame for the succession issues in my opinion. There were at least 4 times where Jaehaerys clearly established that women only inherit the thrones after men. Firstly, Jaehaerys was made King rather than his older sister Rhaena being made Queen. Secondly, he named Aemon Prince of Dragonstone despite having an older daughter, Daenerys. Thirdly, he named Baelon his new heir over Rhaenys. Fourthly, he and almost all the great lords agreed that Viserys would be heir over either Rhaenys or Laenor. The issue over succession and the Dance was almost all Viserys' fault for naming Rhaenyra his heir despite having 3 sons, there was a very clear line of succession which he just ignored.
@@matthewhart9610 I think you're missing the theme in all of this, that Jahaerys was clouded by the inherent misogyny he held from growing up in Westeros. All of his conflicts with Alysanne stem from decisions placing women after men, and the issue is his own succession is due to his repeated refusal to grant women power, that you highlighted without addressing that refusal's infamy and ugliness.
@@matthewhart9610 Times change and societies change too.
Once women weren't allowed to vote in our society. Would you argue that this is right, because "it was always that way"? Would you argue slavery shouldn't be abolished because "it was always like this"? Before democracy there were kingdoms! Would you use that as an argument against democracy?
It's called "progress"!
@@Levacque I didn't ignore that because it isn't important generally, it just wasn't pertinent to the point I was trying to make, obviously, women are just as capable rulers, and characters like Alysanne and her mother Alyssa Velaryon are good examples of that.
There isn't an issue with women ruling, it's the matter of inheritance where it becomes tricky in a medieval world. Let's say Rhaenys was named Jaehaerys' heir, the throne would pass onto her children who are Velaryons, not Targaryens. Now you have 2 dragon-riding families with just as prominent claims to the throne, there's no way that someone like Daemon Targaryen is just going to accept some other house sitting on the throne. There would be an inevitable civil war every time the monarch's eldest child was a daughter.
Bravo sir, bravo!
He may have been a good king to the seven kingdoms, but not to his childrens change, my mind.
Too bad Jaehaerys didn't Betroth Viserys and Rhaenys to each other. Could avoided the Dance all together.
He really could've just said "let the ruler choose their heir" instead of basing it on first born sons or next male in line 💀
No that's a fucked up system that will lead to civil war. Rule of succesion needs to be clear and it cannot be changed
@@tuplat5107 not really considering targs were pretty much a dictatorship/totalitarian authority. there were always going to be ppl upset w their decisions. Had a woman ruled in the first place there never would have been that sexism issue or contest to succession (at least it wouldnt have been nearly as much of an issue). It even could've been the first born child, regardless of sex
@@faemewmi
Yea but there's a huge problem if the king dies before he names an heir.... thats why tradition exist
@@TheWorldIsSuck if he doesn't have a child then it's a problem so have a kid or it's the next child of the previous king
@@faemewmi
I mean, he LITERALLY asked ALL the Lords of Westeros to chose the next heir, and in the end, it was Viserys chosen over Raenys.
Notice that when Viserys doesn't ask but simply demands the other Lords bow to Rhaenyra, well... the Realm still split between her and Aegon 2. And if I remember correctly, the Greens started the war with more going for them actually...
Male Primogeniture was literally chosen by Westeros, and it's not like it was a landslide cause it seemed that Rhaenys low key had a solid shot at the Throne over other Male options so, yeah...
Chosing first born sons or the next in the Male Line (depending on who was truly capable to rule) was what was chosen to continue. I'd argue the only mistake he may have made was not simply making it the Law that Eldest Male in line will inherit, cause that would've saved Westeros and House Targaryen a lot of trouble in regards to the Dance of Dragons..
worst part of this is the fates of aegon the uncrowned and his sister wife rhaena. they clearly loved each other, but could not be together and live happily ever after. aegon was killed and rhaena lived on to suffer for a long life - even having to marry her uncle who was the reason for the death of the man he loved at some point.
The audio is not as crisp
i am trying to listen but have to keep going back and re-listen because you either talk too fast or too quiet
There's a reason this guy is considered the the best of the Targaryen Kings.
I would like to think that the reason the lords supported a 16 year old kid because they all thought they can turn him into a puppet unlike his uncontrollable uncle maegor
To me jahaerys seems a lot like a medieval fantasy version of tony soprano. He even had marital problems towards the end.
You brought up a great point at the end saying that the dance might not have happened if Jaehaerys had set some sort of solid law about who could sit the iron throne. It would undoubtedly suck for his female descendants because he unfairly favored his male descendants. But just having a clear law for the time would have stopped the dance all together or given way to a more modern viewpoint sometime in the future...
Jaehaerys 1st Targaryen was his dragon from day 1 after meagor the crule died Jaehaerys took over as the longest-ruling and most fair king. his dragon was fury as Meagor ordered him and his dragon to burn the faith militant. and surrounding villages. How Vermithor got his name.
I think what jahearys showed was why monarchy is ultimately bad in the long run. Sure he made tons of reforms but in just a few generations the dance of the dragons happened
And Hitler shows the inherent problems of Democracy. Sure when times are good you get strong, stable government that acts upon consensus. But when times are bad you get demagogues and populists who destroy everything built over decades.
See what I did? It's easy to attack a political system when it doesn't work. ALL systems have their kinks and weaknesses. No system is nessecerily stronger than the other. All are valid systems of governance.
But Monarchies have clearly lasted for far longer than Democratic Republics. Even Constitutional Monarchies have lasted longer than some Republics.
@@daddy_1453 that’s unfair, republics and democracies as we know them are pretty recent innovations. Also constitutional monarchy is literally just a democracy with a useless figurehead
Not even a mention of Viserys, poor guy really got shafted even though he should've been King (assuming male inheritance tops female).
New sub here great content!
I love Fire & Blood it's just so well written when it comes to lore
Why tf is there no show about Jae harmonizing the legal system of Westeros
Highlight of the second season would be the mediation in the trade dispute between the free cities
I really want to see Robert’s Rebellion made into a mini series.
The problem was everybody thinking a king had the right to make a precedent that was forever. You can make a certain situation a precedent as king, but when a new king comes along, that king's word is now law,and hence any previous precedent set by the last king that contradicts the current King's word no longer matters. Who ever is king, makes the precedent or changes the previous one made by the last king.
So jaehaerys was the alfred the great of the targaryen dynasty
Sincerely believe that HBO could do a Downton Abbey style drama about the reign of Jaeherys & Alyssane. There's not heaps of action, but the drama & intrigue could be done on a budget half that of HOTD. The show runners would have to age up some of the kids for tv, but other than that it could be great.
J would become one of the most divisive characters in television, too. Bc he was a great king, but a terrible, terrible father to almost all of his daughters & granddaughters.
I'd also love to see Jocelyn Baratheon & young Rhaenys.
Yeah Jaehaerys basically put it into the law at the great council that, a make targaryen takes precedence over a female, so an uncle takes over his nieces claim, like Baelon did with rhaenys, the fact that Viserys the 1st overruled this law t make Rhaenyra heir contradicted the laws that put Viserys in the throne in the first place which is why a war started, Aegons supporters followed the laws of Jaehaerys and the followers of Rhaenyra followed the oaths they swore to viserys, but the legitimate law is that of Jaehaerys, so at least in house targaryen a make till takes precedence
I disagree because viserys is king and so his law becomes legitimate
@@closetglobe.IRGUN.NW0 your absolutely right to think that and I do as well, but it’s that law that caused the civil war and because it caused so much horror afterwards the lords of the seven kingdoms just based their laws after the council of 101 and that’s why they still reference it to this day in the story
This is exactly where I'm at in the book, Fire & Blood
Bruh sent 2 loyal kingsguard to the wall 💀
It's like how Ned Stark had more respect for ser Barristan, who stayed loyal to the mad king, then to Jaime, who betrayed the mad king for Robert. A lot of people in westeros think a kingsguard should ALWAYS be loyal to the king no matter what, and for a kingsguard to betray his vows is never good because it sets a precedent
@@lynxerax7011 The logic is simple, The Kings Guard are suppose to be the highest in skill with the speed and loyalty and honor.
No matter what a kings Guard should be loyal to he’s king no matter what, breaking such vows wouldn’t stop other kings Guard to do the same even if the king is bad or not.
Selective loyalties to be broken depending on what the individual deems right or wrong. Perception can be one of the most dangerous thing in a kingdom. Because it will push a warrior to fight for what he believes is correct, this means burning down loyalty if he needs too
Which is why a lot believed in Westeros the Kings Guard should be zealot class loyal to theirs king. In other words loyal to the crown and not the person, but the meaning and symbol of the crown
He sent 3 lol, the ones who stayed with maegor should have been given a lesser sentence
So basically this man was the best king
I liked Maegor
He had king Kong sized balls
Based
We saw how a shadowbinder took the lives of a couple of people later on in the Targaryen reign... and so I have to wonder if Maegor the Cruel died in a similar fashion - the victim of some sort of black magic. I'm constantly wondering if Maegor was conceived in black magic ... and whether he was somehow poisoned to cause infertility. It just doesn't make any sense that he had no viable children in all that time and so I wonder what sort of sorcery was at play.
14:40 👏👏👏
Putting myself in Jaehaerys’ shoes I can kinda see why he seemed indecisive on the matter. He unlike ALOT of kings we see actually tried to rule WITH his wife but like all proud men probably never wanted to admit publicly that they were in fact equals.That and with the women in his life he probably had a chip on his shoulder about the competent of women.
Doesn’t Jaehaerys have a brother named Baehaen?
Jaehaers’s only brother was Aegon the Uncrowned, who Maegor killed. Jaehaerys did have a son named Baelon, the father of Viserys and Daemon.
@@CrusaderChris No, Not at all, there was another elder brother called Viserys! he was taken as a squire by Maegor, who then happened to torture him for 9 days to find out where Alyssa, Jaehaerys and Alyssane had fled to! Viserys died the 9th day.
@@CrusaderChris I apologize for my dumb joke (Baehaen and Jaehaerys), it was probably not worthy of your excellent video!
Targ names can be pretty silly to me sometimes :)
@@CrusaderChrisjahaerys had another brother called viserys. He was tortured and killed by maegor.
When the Royal Family forgets this is a job not a privilege. To rule their certain expectations if they fail to be met the will people will find another monarch. King Jaehaerys Targaryen understood this many of his children did not.
When people blame Viserys I, I like to point out that’s it’s not all his fault. Some of it was the the actions and choices of Jaeherys I
If Jaehaerys would have just eliminated the practice of the male heirs getting first priority over the females could have saved both his house and the realm decades worth of drama.
MY KINGGG
Great King 👑
He’s my fav!
Maegor the cruel was a more interesting character than people gave him. It was said that he killed himself because he would be defeated as the houses comes for kings landing. However I dont think that would have happen, even with 3 dragons. Maegor is extremely skilled and have Barrareon. He could probably massacre all 3 smaller dragon and the entire army. Maegor wanted to revenge his brothers death by killing the destroying the fate. He wanted to rule with an iron fist like his father and he did. He killed thousand if not million of all those who rise against him yet still more would rebel and without his mother's support, He probably had enough of fighting and killing as he see the error of his way.
A million is an exaggeration
@@RandomVidsforthought how big is the population of westeros ?
@@fish5671 Maybe the population is about 40 million at the time of 298 AC
@@RandomVidsforthought does the ac stand for after aegon conquest ?
@@fish5671 After Conquest because it'd be AAC instead of AC
Simply the most based targaryen. Not just Jaeherys, but alysanne too. Nothing but a power duo.
The big J was really clever using that Exceptionalism Doctrine.
We were robbed of a good Aemon and Baelon ruling pair.
isn´t dorne the 7th kingdom? in that case it should be "king of the six kingdoms"... but then again you and the show say it as "king of the seven kingdoms"
At the time of the conquest (and most of Westerosi history) the Riverlands were not a separate king. They were conquered by the Iron King Harden Hoare.
@@CrusaderChris so dorne is technically the 8th kingdom?
@@alexanderzack3720the riverlands is not considered a kingdom. It's a region, like the crownlands.
The seven kingdoms always considered dorne as part of it, even when it wasn't under control. It's like how China considers Taiwan part of China.
But why punish the two kingsguard who joined him :(
He wanted no oathbreakers among him
They should have made the spin off on him and his story
How did you get such HD images of some of the official artwork? Like Amok's Jaehaerys and Alysanne on the thumbnail, or some of the Fire and Blood images.
I usually spend a long time trying to find the original source of art. Usually it’s HD. If not, I download it as PNG and have to run it through an AI upscaling program.
@@CrusaderChris Upscaling the ones that already have enough detail to give the AI something to work with sounds like a good idea, thanks.
"My lords! I will have roads!"
Jaehaerys was so BASED. He would've put an end to this Rhaenrya Girlboss Slay Kween nonsense and made Aegon II king. Viserys spat on the traditions of this great king. Imagine the level of hypocrisy where you take advantage of male primogeniture to become king and then deny your son Aegon the same right.
Jaehaerys was a good king and Alysanne was a brilliant queen, they’re probably horrified at the destruction Viserys caused. He should never have let Rhaenyra remain heir after she had illegitimate children.
So who told jaehaerys about C.aegon's dream and the prophecy that was passed down from king to heir.
It's a plot hole in house of the dragon.
There’s a few ways Jaehaerys could’ve found out. I talked about it in my recent Aegon’s Prophecy video 👍
I feel like jaehaerys is a bit of a dangerous name to have. Imagine if vermithor wasn't paying attention, and someone called jaehaerys's name. Congratulations, you've just burnt down the nearby lumber mill. I'm just saying naming your kid some shit that sounds like dracarys when spoken, around a bunch of dragons seems like a bad idea.
He was a good king, but Alysanne was a better ruler for the people and also a better parent for they daugthers.
Bro really found a loop hole for the religious group to accept incest , he's the goat 😂😂
Jaehaerys is the definition of "Good king but terrible father"
He is still my favorite Targaryen other than Daemon
The fact that house of the Dragon didn’t start with the Funeral of The Conqueror is baffling….
Praise Garth Greenhand
jaehaerys and ironically maegor were the 2 best kings.
He would be nothing without Good Queen Alysanne.
And then his grandchildren and great grand children tore it down.