Aerys III Targaryen

King Aerys Targaryen, Third of His Name was the nineteenth member of the Targaryen dynasty to sit upon the throne. A second son, Aerys succeeded his father in the wake of the worst of the Red Death, which had ravaged both Westeros and the Targaryen family for the past three years. The Prince had neither intended nor expected to become King, still mourning the loss of his son Daeron to the plague, and took the throne in a solemn ceremony conducted by the High Septon.

Described as cunning and clever, Aerys III famously proclaimed that “it is the coin that keeps the kingdoms,” and accordingly governed Westeros with a focus for finances unseen outside of the Free Cities. Averse to war, Aerys III instead delegated military matters to his subordinates; chiefly, his Hand of the King. His reign was defined by public quarrels with his son and heir, Prince Vaegon Targaryen, as well as the brief war fought in the North, known as the ‘Woe of Wolves’.

Despite never expecting to sit the Iron Throne and being criticized over the course of his reign, Aerys served ably, now being regarded as a fine king, perhaps even better than his predecessor. He would pass of an illness at the age of sixty in 365 AC and was succeeded by his son and newly-made Hand of the King, who would take the throne as Vaegon I Targaryen.

The Tournament of Seagard
The first test of Aerys’ restraint and diplomacy came in 337, during a tournament held by House Mallister of Seagard. Celebrating the proclaimed ending of the Red Death in its entirety across Westeros, the Mallisters sent invitations to all the noble houses across Westeros, with the specific exception of those from the Iron Islands.

Regardless of not having received an invitation, House Greyjoy and the Iron Islanders set sail for Seagard with the intention of joining the tourney. In response, House Mallister blockaded the harbour of Seagard, refusing to allow entry to the Iron Fleet. After sending word to Lord Greyjoy to return his people to their isles, Lord Mallister received the reply that if the Ironborn were not permitted the opportunity to earn the tourney’s reward fairly, they would take it by force.

Lord Tully petitioned the Iron Throne for assistance in the manner on Lord Mallister’s behalf, but was surprised when King Aerys sided with the Ironborn, ordering Lord Mallister to return his ships to harbour and allow the Ironborn to join the tourney, claiming that the Ironborn were as much apart of the Seven Kingdoms as the Riverlands, and thus deserved a seat in the stands.

Though they accepted the order, both House Mallister and House Tully were insulted by the king’s siding with the Ironborn over them, and often came to support Prince Vaegon in the later conflicts that arose from Aerys’ reign as a result of this slight. After being permitted entry to the tourney, entrants from house Orkwood and Botley claimed victory in both the melee and archery contest.

Outside of the Riverlands, many lords were surprised by how simply Aerys was able to settle the manner, and his restraint where others might have simply called the Ironborn reavers and turned to combat was lauded.

The Woe of Wolves
The remainder of his reign, up until the point of his son's betrothal to Lyarra Stark, was uneventful. After navigating the diplomatic crisis of the Tourney at Seagard, Aerys noted the gap that remained between the North and the south, due to cultural, religious, and societal differences, and hoped to close the gap between the two. As a first step in this process, Aerys arranged for the betrothal of his son and heir, Vaegon, who had recently turned twelve, with Lady Lyarra Stark, a kinswoman to the Warden of the North. Vaegon resented this betrothal as soon as he heard it. Though young, the Prince had already developed a strong opinion. The Prince would meet with Lord Dorren Stark and immediately began insulting the man's age, referring to him as the Gray Wolf, to the chagrin of his kingly father.

Vaegon would eventually subvert his father's intentions, fleeing to Dragonstone as soon as he reached majority, marrying Alys Reyne and proclaiming the end of the betrothal, against both Stark's and Aerys's wills. Aerys would attempt to set aside the marriage, but would find Vaegon impossible to reason with and holding strong at Dragonstone. Aerys would realize, soon after, that he would not be able to get his son to see reason. Before he could attempt to settle this dispute peacefully, Dorren Stark proclaimed himself King in the North and declared war on the Iron Throne.

Aerys turned to his Small Council, who were evenly split between a more peaceful option to parlay with Stark, which Aerys preferred and was led by his close ally, friend, and Hand Robin Penrose, and his son's suggestion of mustering the forces of the realm and refuse to be put on the backfoot like Aerys's own father had been in the War of the False Dragon. Eventually, Aerys would turn to Penrose, who would meet with Stark and negotiate an alliance in exchange for peace, fighting off a wildling threat that had emerged beyond the Wall. Stark and Penrose would defeat the army of the Free Folk, but that sadly led to Penrose's death of a chill, soon after the battle.

Dorren Stark would march south, then, with only a few retainers, and knelt. Stark offered up his crown, his head, and a hostage to Aerys - all of which the King refused, save the crown, instead urging reconciliation between the two, ending the Woe once and for all.

Later Reign
After the Woe, Aerys would turn to financial policy of the Iron Throne, attempting to better the treasury and reduce dependence on Essosi banks, which had grown increasingly hostile in recent years. Aerys' relationship with his son Vaegon would sour further, even as Vaegon grew more and more powerful, being named Hand of the King when the King had no other options. The king would be soured and saddened by the combative relationship he had with his son, failing to reconcile with him, even as he managed to reconcile so many others. It was said that Aerys simply did not have the will to live once diagnosed with a vicious bout of consumption, passing from this world in 365 AC.

Legacy
The rulership of Aerys III was something growing increasingly uncommon down the Targaryen line. Between the two warrior-kings Aegon and Rhaegar and his son Vaegon, a Targaryen king prone more to diplomacy than the clashing of blades was for some a welcome change, for others a cause for concern, and a sign of a weakening bloodline.

This conflicting perspective of Aerys’  rulership would be  what came to define his reign, as those who lived through it come to remember the conflicting personalities and perspectives of Aerys and his son and heir Vaegon above all else. Those who came to support Aerys against his son saw the worth in his diplomatic restraint and his keen eye for economics, while those that supported his son saw strength, and a continuing legacy that had defined the Targaryen dynasty’s greatest kings.

At the greatest extremes during Aerys’ reign, two notable accounts and testimonies came to be the pinnacle of each side’s arguments in this manner. Towards the latter end of Aerys’ reign, a keyholder from the Iron Bank of Braavos came to visit King’s Landing, and notably recorded that the Iron Bank itself could learn many lessons from the King on the Iron Throne.

On the opposite end of this, a maester of the citadel published a study which became widely acclaimed, noting the strength of Valyrian blood in the Targaryen line, and how it had strengthened or weakened in each member of that dynasty. According to this maester, the Valyrian blood in Vaegon’s veins was likely the most ‘potent’ since Aegon the Conqueror's. This study became widely sourced and read, despite the Citadel’s subsequent dismissal of this maester.

Ultimately, by the end of Aerys III’s reign, the Seven Kingdoms were in the best position they had been in economically for centuries, and while he was certainly not remembered in song or by youthful knights for his skill at arms, the wisest across Westeros have often argued that he was a king to rival his grandfather, Rhaegar.