Dragonstone

Dragonstone is the castle that stands upon the eponymous island located in Blackwater Bay. It is the ancestral seat of House Targaryen and the former stronghold of House Baratheon of Dragonstone, a cadet branch of House Baratheon of Storm's End. It is within the Crownlands, the capital region of the Seven Kingdoms.
At the time the series begins, it is held for King Robert Baratheon by his younger brother, Lord Stannis Baratheon. The castle contains the Chamber of the Painted Table and it was built using advanced Valyrian stonemasonry techniques, long since lost. Resulting in its exhibition of many exotic features unique in all of Westeros, including massive dragon-shaped gargoyles. The entire castle is dominated by dragon motifs and reliefs. Unlike the richly-decorated and extravagant Red Keep in King's Landing, Dragonstone is sparsely decorated and has a rough, austere appearance; its function is as a military base, not as a palace.
The castle itself is very robust, due to its advanced Valyrian design, combined with its isolated location making it an ideal redoubt and refuge, for both the House Targaryen and Stannis Baratheon. The castle's features and it's geographical position makes it advantageous for its owners in wartime for defence as it is extremely difficult to breach and can be held by a relatively small garrison against a vastly larger force.
== History ==
Prior to the Sack of King's Landing and Following the Battle of the Trident, Queen Rhaella Targaryen and Prince Viserys Targaryen were sent to Dragonstone for their protection. Queen Rhaella perished during a stormy night giving birth to Daenerys Targaryen.
After King's Landing fell and Robert Baratheon took the Iron Throne, Stannis Baratheon was sent to deal with what remained of the royal family and their retainers. However, Prince Viserys and Princess Daenerys were smuggled across the Narrow Sea to the Free Cities by a loyal knight. Enraged, Robert stripped Stannis of Storm's End and gave it to their younger brother, Renly, and gave Dragonstone to Stannis, to rein in the Targaryen loyalists there. Stannis would take this as an insult and blame this event on Robert's extreme hatred of the Targaryens. In later years, Robert tried to humor Stannis that he was actually honoring him with the Lordship of Dragonstone because under the Targaryens it was the traditional seat of the heir to the throne, but Stannis scoffed at such pleasantries.
Category:Locations
Category:Crownlands
Category:Targaryens
Category:Baratheons