Rhaegar Targaryen

Rhaegar Targaryen appears in the chronicle at the end of the Targaryen kings’ line: the crown prince and heir of Aerys II, he was slain by Robert Baratheon at the Trident. The account gives no sustained portrait of his life or actions; instead, his brief appearance fixes his death as part of the dynasty’s decisive collapse.

Identity and Dynastic Position

The chronicle names Rhaegar as Aerys II’s heir and crown prince. That title places him at the center of the succession, but the account provides no further biographical detail about his upbringing, character, or role before the final conflict. His significance here is chiefly dynastic: he is the designated successor whose death accompanies the fall of the reigning king.

Death at the Trident

Rhaegar was slain by Robert Baratheon at the Trident. The account gives the outcome without describing the encounter, its circumstances, or Rhaegar’s actions in battle. It places his death alongside the dethronement and killing of Aerys II, connecting the end of the crown prince with the overthrow of the king he was to succeed.

The End of the Dragon Kings

The chronicle presents these losses as the end of the line of dragon kings. Rhaegar’s position as heir makes his death more than a personal endpoint: with the reigning king also deposed and killed, the passage marks the termination of the dynasty’s rule. It does not claim that the Targaryen family itself ended, but identifies the crown prince’s death as part of the final break in its kingship.

Narrative Role and Limits of the Account

Unlike the extended accounts of earlier succession disputes, Rhaegar’s place in this history is compressed into a single concluding statement. The narrative names his title, his killer, and the site of his death, then uses those facts to close the line of dragon kings. The brevity leaves his life outside the chronicle’s focus; what it preserves is the stark dynastic consequence of his death.