The Crownlands

The crownlands is one of the nine constituent regions of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. It was never a sovereign kingdom, instead being contested by river kings, Storm Kings, and local petty kings until Aegon the Conqueror seized control of the area during his Wars of Conquest and made it his primary foothold on the continent. Since then, the crownlands have been ruled directly by the Iron Throne, first House Targaryen and, after Robert's Rebellion House Baratheon, and then again after 302AC, House Targaryen. Bastards of noble origin raised in the crownlands are given the surname Waters.

## History

### Hundred Kingdoms

In the Age of Heroes, the petty kings of House Darklyn ruled much of the future crownlands, from Duskendale to Crackclaw Point. Although neighboring realms forced them to swear fealty and their lands changed hands many times over the years, the Darklyns remained one of the more influential houses of the region. In the days of the Hundred Kingdoms, the mouth of the Blackwater was claimed by the Darklyns, the Masseys of Stonedance, and the river kings of Houses Mudd, Fisher, Bracken, Blackwood, and Hook.

Two centuries before the Doom of Valyria, Valyrians settled Dragonstone and built a citadel as the westernmost outpost of the [[Valyrian Freehold, becoming another power in the region. In time, the middle of the narrow sea came to be controlled by the dragons of House Targaryen of Dragonstone, as well as the ships of House Velaryonof Driftmark and House Celtigar of Claw Isle.

### The Conquest

It was at the mouth of the Blackwater Rush, the later site of King's Landing, where Aegon Targaryen and his sisters, Visenya and Rhaenys, landed with their initial army. At that time the petty lords of the region had been subjugated by Harren the Black. Rosby and Stokeworth surrendered to Visenya and Rhaenys without fighting, while Aegon and his half-brother Orys Baratheon defeated the Darklyns and Mootons. Massey's Hook and the southern shore of the Blackwater Rush were controlled by the Storm Kings of House Durrandon, but the Bar Emmons and Masseys allied with Aegon the Conqueror against King Argilac the Arrogant.

### Targaryen Era

Since the Conquest, the crownlands houses have historically been a strong source of support for House Targaryen, with Crackclaw Point being particularly fierce supporters. The Conqueror's councillors included several crownlands men, including Crispian Celtigar, Daemon Velaryon, and Tristan Massey. Nobles from the region such as Qarlton Chelsted, a Hayford lord, and several Targaryens have served as Hand of the King, and even smallfolk of the region are near enough to catch the royal eye for such service, such as Rossart and presumably Septons Barth and Murmison. Nobles and smallfolk alike also provide much of the manpower for the City Watch of King's Landing. The Kingsguard has also included many men of the crownlands, such as Duncan the Tall, Donnel of Duskendale, the Cargyll twins, Ser Rickard Thorne, at least six men of Crackclaw Point, and seven Darklyn knights.

At the start of the Dance of the Dragons, the Velaryons, supporters of Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen and the blacks, used their fleet to seal the Gullet and blockade King's Landing. King Aegon II Targaryen's supporters, the greens, retaliated by sacking Duskendale and Rook's Rest. The greens later broke the blockade with the Battle in the Gullet and sacked Driftmark. Rhaenyra was eventually fed to Aegon II's dragon, Sunfyre, at Dragonstone. At the end of the war, the Lads defeated Lord Borros Baratheon in the Battle of the Kingsroad.

The Defiance of Duskendale, a rising by the Darklyns during the reign of King Aerys II Targaryen, was a sign that even the normally loyal crownlands were losing respect for the dragonlords. Later, the outlaws of the Kingswood Brotherhood robbed nobles in the forest before being suppressed by the Kingsguard.