Aegon I’s Death ended the reign of the conqueror on Dragonstone in the thirty-seventh year After the Conquest and immediately made the question of succession tangible. His death was followed by a funeral in the castle yard, the return of his son Aenys, and a striking act of fraternal generosity: the new king raised Maegor from his knees and entrusted him with Blackfyre.

Setting and Circumstances

In 35 AC, Aegon had moved his court back to Dragonstone and ordered the Aegonfort demolished so that a stone castle could rise in its place. The old fort had been an ugly, sprawling confusion of wood, earth, and brick, and the new Red Keep’s cellars and foundations were being dug into the hill at King’s Landing. Aegon placed construction under the oversight of his Hand, Alyn Stokeworth, and Visenya Targaryen; a courtly jest held that he had given Visenya the task so he would not have to endure her presence on Dragonstone. The planned castle had not yet begun to rise when Aegon died, leaving the royal seat at King’s Landing unfinished.

Death and Funeral

Aegon died of a stroke in the Chamber of the Painted Table. His grandsons were with him, and he had been showing them the details of his conquests. The scene places the end of his life amid the record of what he had achieved: the king’s final act was to explain the victories through which he had made the Seven Kingdoms one.

Maegor, who was living on Dragonstone, delivered the eulogy. Aegon was laid on a funeral pyre in the castle yard wearing battle armor, his mailed hands folded over the hilt of Blackfyre. In keeping with the custom of House Targaryen since the days of Old Valyria, his body was burned rather than buried. Vhagar supplied the flames. Blackfyre burned with the king, but Maegor recovered it afterward; its blade had darkened, yet remained otherwise unharmed, since ordinary fire could not damage Valyrian steel.

Succession and Immediate Aftermath

Aegon was survived by his sister Visenya, his sons Aenys and Maegor, and five grandchildren. Aenys, thirty years old, had been at Highgarden on his royal progress when his father died. Quicksilver brought him back to Dragonstone for the funeral. After the rites, he put on Aegon’s iron-and-ruby crown, and Grand Maester Gawen proclaimed him king. The lords gathered to bid Aegon farewell knelt before his successor.

When Maegor’s turn came, Aenys drew his brother back to his feet, kissed his cheek, and told him that he need never kneel to him again: they would rule together. Aenys then gave Maegor their father’s sword, judging him more fit to bear it and asking him to wield it in his service. The gift proved unwise. Visenya had already given Maegor Dark Sister, so he now possessed both ancestral Valyrian steel swords; from then on he wielded Blackfyre, while Dark Sister hung on the wall of his chambers on Dragonstone.

After the funeral, Aenys and his entourage sailed to King’s Landing. The Iron Throne still stood amid rubble and mud, while pits and tunnels marked the hill where the Red Keep’s foundations and cellars were being excavated. Although the new castle had not yet begun to rise, thousands came to cheer Aenys as he claimed his father’s seat. The unfinished landscape made the transition plain: the conqueror was gone, and his successor inherited both the throne and a kingdom whose royal center was still under construction.