Targaryen dragons and their riders
A dragon outlives its rider, so the same beast passes down the family. Vhagar carried Visenya at the Conquest and Aemond at the Gods Eye, one hundred and thirty years apart.
Why the riders matter more than the dragons
Dragonriding follows Valyrian blood, not the Targaryen surname. That is why, when the family ran short of riders during the Dance, they went looking for bastards. Four smallfolk with Targaryen ancestry claimed dragons in a single season, and two of them promptly changed sides.
- Named dragons
- 29
- Killed in the Dance
- 16
- Survived it
- 4
Conquest
Balerion
Aegon I, Maegor I, Aerea Targaryen, Viserys I
The Black Dread. The only dragon in Westeros that had seen Valyria before the Doom. His fire forged the Iron Throne.
Died of old age in the Dragonpit, 94 AC, past two hundred years old.
The largest ever ridden
Vhagar
Visenya Targaryen, Baelon the Brave, Laena Velaryon, Aemond Targaryen
One hundred and eighty one years old at her death, and by then almost the size Balerion had been.
Died at the Battle Above the Gods Eye, 130 AC, sinking into the lake with Caraxes.
Largest living dragon of the Dance
Meraxes
Rhaenys Targaryen
Silver scales and golden eyes. Her fall crushed the tower she came down on.
Shot through the eye by a scorpion bolt over the Hellholt, 10 AC.
Slightly smaller than Balerion
Faith Militant
Quicksilver
Aenys I, Aegon the Uncrowned
Pale as pearl, with golden flame. She never grew large.
Killed by Balerion at the Battle Beneath the Gods Eye, 43 AC.
Dance of the Dragons
Dreamfyre
Rhaena Targaryen, Helaena Targaryen
Pale blue with silver markings. She laid two clutches of eggs.
Killed during the Storming of the Dragonpit, 130 AC, after snapping her chains and bringing the dome down.
Vermithor
Jaehaerys I, Hugh Hammer
The Bronze Fury. Riderless for decades after Jaehaerys died, until a bastard blacksmith claimed him.
Killed at the Second Battle of Tumbleton, 130 AC.
Third largest of the Dance
Silverwing
Alysanne Targaryen, Ulf White
One of only four dragons to live through the war.
Survived the Dance. Went wild after Ulf’s death and was last seen near Red Lake.
Caraxes
Aemon Targaryen, Daemon Targaryen
The Blood Wyrm. Long necked, lean and red, and the most experienced war dragon of his age.
Died at the Battle Above the Gods Eye, 130 AC, after mortally wounding Vhagar.
Meleys
Alyssa Targaryen, Rhaenys Targaryen
The Red Queen, and reputedly the fastest dragon in the realm. She crippled Sunfyre as she died.
Killed at the Battle at Rook’s Rest, 129 AC, by Vhagar and Sunfyre together.
Syrax
Rhaenyra Targaryen
Yellow, kept chained and well fed, and grown fat from never having to hunt.
Killed during the Storming of the Dragonpit, 130 AC.
Sunfyre
Aegon II
Called the most beautiful dragon ever seen. He devoured Rhaenyra in front of her son.
Died of his wounds on Dragonstone, 131 AC.
Tessarion
Daeron Targaryen
The Blue Queen. Cobalt scales with copper wings.
Mortally wounded at the Second Battle of Tumbleton, 130 AC.
Seasmoke
Laenor Velaryon, Addam Velaryon
Riderless for nine years after Laenor died, then claimed by a dragonseed of Hull.
Killed by Vermithor at the Second Battle of Tumbleton, 130 AC.
Arrax
Lucerys Velaryon
The death that turned a succession dispute into a war.
Killed by Vhagar over Shipbreaker Bay, 129 AC.
Vermax
Jacaerys Velaryon
Died at the Battle of the Gullet, 130 AC.
Tyraxes
Joffrey Velaryon
Killed in his own lair during the Storming of the Dragonpit, 130 AC.
Moondancer
Baela Targaryen
Pale green with pearl horns, and no bigger than a warhorse. She brought Sunfyre down anyway.
Died fighting Sunfyre over Dragonstone, 130 AC.
The smallest ridden dragon of the war
Stormcloud
Aegon III
Aegon III never flew again, and the last dragons died under his rule.
Died of arrow and scorpion wounds after carrying Aegon from Dragonstone to Driftmark, 130 AC.
Morghul
Jaehaera Targaryen
Bonded but never ridden. A chained hatchling.
Killed by Hobb the Hewer during the Storming of the Dragonpit, 130 AC.
Shrykos
Maelor Targaryen
Bonded but never ridden.
Killed during the Storming of the Dragonpit, 130 AC.
Grey Ghost
Never claimed
Wild, pale and shy. He lived in a sea cave on Dragonstone and ate fish.
Killed and half eaten by Sunfyre, 130 AC. The Cannibal was blamed at first.
Sheepstealer
Nettles
Wild and mud brown. A girl tamed him by bringing him a freshly killed sheep every morning.
Survived the Dance and fled with his rider into the Mountains of the Moon.
The Cannibal
Never claimed
Coal black with green eyes. He ate dead dragons, hatchlings and eggs, and may be older than the Targaryen presence on Dragonstone.
Vanished after the Dance. Never accounted for.
After the Dance
Morning
Rhaena Targaryen
Pale pink with black horns, hatched as the war ended.
One of the last four dragons in the world. Died before 153 AC.
The last dragon
Never ridden
A stunted green female with withered wings. She laid five eggs and none of them hatched.
Died young in the Dragonpit under Aegon III, ending dragons for a hundred and forty five years.
Game of Thrones
Drogon
Daenerys Targaryen
Black with red markings, named for Khal Drogo. First ridden at Daznak’s Pit in 300 AC.
Alive.
Largest of the three
Rhaegal
Daenerys Targaryen, Jon Snow
Green and bronze, named for Rhaegar Targaryen.
Alive in the books. Killed by scorpion bolts off Dragonstone in the show.
Viserion
Never ridden by a Targaryen
Cream and gold, named for Viserys Targaryen.
Alive in the books. Killed beyond the Wall and raised as a wight in the show.
Legend
Urrax
Never claimed
A Westerosi dragon from before the Targaryens, and possibly only a story.
Slain by Serwyn of the Mirror Shield in the Age of Heroes.
The four that lived
Sixteen dragons died in two years of civil war. These four came out the other side, and none of them ever carried a Targaryen again.
- Silverwing Survived the Dance. Went wild after Ulf’s death and was last seen near Red Lake.
- Sheepstealer Survived the Dance and fled with his rider into the Mountains of the Moon.
- The Cannibal Vanished after the Dance. Never accounted for.
- Morning One of the last four dragons in the world. Died before 153 AC.
The last dragon died in 153 AC under Aegon III, a stunted green female whose five eggs never hatched. There were no dragons in the world again until Daenerys walked into a funeral pyre in 298 AC.
Questions about Targaryen dragons
Which Targaryen rode which dragon?
Aegon I rode Balerion, Visenya rode Vhagar and Rhaenys rode Meraxes. In the Dance, Rhaenyra rode Syrax, Daemon rode Caraxes, Aemond rode Vhagar and Aegon II rode Sunfyre. Daenerys rode Drogon.
Who rode Vhagar?
Four riders across one hundred and thirty years: Visenya Targaryen at the Conquest, then Prince Baelon the Brave, then Laena Velaryon, and finally Aemond Targaryen during the Dance of the Dragons.
Who rode Balerion the Black Dread?
Aegon the Conqueror, then Maegor the Cruel, then Princess Aerea who stole him and flew to Valyria, and finally a young Viserys I in 93 AC. Balerion died of old age the following year.
How many dragons survived the Dance of the Dragons?
Four. Silverwing went wild near Red Lake, Sheepstealer fled into the Mountains of the Moon with Nettles, the Cannibal simply vanished, and Morning hatched as the war ended.
Why can only Targaryens ride dragons?
It is Valyrian blood rather than the Targaryen name. During the Dance, smallfolk with Targaryen bastard ancestry, called dragonseeds, claimed riderless dragons. Hugh Hammer took Vermithor, Ulf White took Silverwing, Addam of Hull took Seasmoke and Nettles tamed Sheepstealer.
What was the biggest Targaryen dragon?
Balerion the Black Dread, the largest dragon ever ridden. By the time of the Dance, Vhagar had grown close to his size and was the largest living dragon in the world.
What happened to Daenerys’s dragons?
In the books all three are alive. In the show, Viserion is killed beyond the Wall and raised as a wight, Rhaegal is shot down by Euron Greyjoy, and Drogon carries Daenerys’s body east.