[House Targaryen — Houses]
Fair-haired, tall and handsome, the modern Lannisters are the blood of Andal adventurers who carved out a mighty kingdom in the western hills and valleys. Through the female line, they boast of descent from Lann the Clever , the legendary trickster of the Age of Heroes who swindled Casterly Rock from House Casterly . They used to rule the Westerlands as the Kings of the Rock before swearing allegiance to House Targaryen . They have since served the Targaryens and now King Robert Baratheon as the Lords Paramount of the Westerlands and Wardens of the West. The gold of Casterly Rock and the Golden Tooth has made them the wealthiest of the Great Houses.
House Targaryen of Dragonstone is an exiled Great House of Westeros and the former royal house of the Seven Kingdoms . House Targaryen conquered and unified the realm before it was deposed during Robert's Rebellion , where House Baratheon replaced it as the new royal house. The two surviving Targaryens, Viserys and Daenerys , fled into exile to the Free Cities of Essos across the Narrow Sea .
House Lannister replaced House Baratheon as the royal house in the aftermath of the War of the Five Kings , but they were defeated in the Last War . After Daenerys burnt King's Landing , she was assassinated by her nephew Jon Snow to prevent further destruction. Jon is the last known Targaryen, but his identity as the son of Rhaegar Targaryen is kept a secret, and he was exiled to the Night's Watch for the assassination of Daenerys, effectively ending House Targaryen. However, the bloodline of House Targaryen still exists in various houses, such as House Baratheon, House Velaryon , and House Martell .
House Targaryen was one of the forty dragonlord families of the Valyrian Freehold , an empire that rose in Essos and dominated much of the known world . Due to their mastery of dragons , and thus sorcery, they had no real opposition to contend with. Using dragonfire and magic, they built their grand capital city of Valyria , which was unmatched in quality in the east.
In the Targaryen era there were periods of peace and prosperity during the reign of benevolent kings like Jaehaerys the Conciliator , but also periods of terror and distress when evil tyrants like Maegor the Cruel ruled. The civil population of Westeros suffered a lot especially during the bloody conflicts between opposing branches of House Targaryen, like the Dance of the Dragons and the Blackfyre Rebellions .
Generations of compound inbreeding have preserved in the Targaryen bloodline the classic Valyrian features of silver-white (platinum blonde) hair, and very fair, pale skin. Allegedly, this also preserved in their bloodline the ability to successfully bond with and ride dragons. They also seem to be somewhat more tolerant of extreme heat and high temperatures than other people, though they are by no means invulnerable to fire – or at least, not all of them. Unfortunately, some believe that this practice of inbreeding has also caused the trait of insanity to plague House Targaryen; though some members are known to be perfectly normal psychologically-speaking, other Targaryens throughout history have displayed bizarre, erratic and sometimes violent behavior, succumbing to the so-called ' Targaryen madness '.
Daenerys and her retainers flee Qarth by ship, heading for Astapor to purchase an army. Daenerys is nearly assassinated, but is rescued by Ser Barristan Selmy , who has tracked her down to pledge fealty to House Targaryen once again. Daenerys double-crosses the Good Masters , seizing their elite Unsullied and burning the slave-owning elite. Daenerys thus becomes the first Targaryen in generations to march at the head of her own conquering army. Daenerys heads to Yunkai , where she manages to win over the Second Sons and liberate that city from the Wise Masters .
House Targaryen ruled Westeros for 283 years, during which time they survived substantial civil wars (including the Dance of Dragons and no fewer than five Blackfyre Rebellions), plague (the Great Spring Sickness), and an attempted foreign invasion (in the War of the Ninepenny Kings). They were brought down when the Mad King's insanity became too dangerous to be ignored.
House Baratheon has ruled over the tempest-wracked southeastern shores of Westeros, the area known as the Stormlands, ever since. It has produced a number of great and notable warriors, such as Ser Lyonel Baratheon, the Laughing Storm, and married into the royal House Targaryen several generations ago.