House of the Dragon features some of the greatest dragonriders in the history of Westeros. From Daemon to Aemond, fans have gotten to see several unique dragons, each with their own distinct personalities. Yet there is one dragon that fans have been begging to see in live action for a long time: Balerion the Black Dread. Unfortunately, the greatest of the Targaryen dragons passed away long before the show actually started. Vhagar is now the last living creature to have witnessed Aegon’s Conquest, but Balerion still outstrips her in size and ferocity.
Even though Balerion is not a part of the show, his presence can still be felt throughout the realm. This is best expressed in his last living rider: Viserys Targaryen. That’s right, the former King of Westeros was Balerion’s last rider before the beast passed away. This not only explains why Viserys is never seen riding a dragon himself, but perhaps even hinted at what his future rule would look like. Balerion may be gone from the world, but his last rider was still affected by their time together up until the moment of his passing.
The Final Years of Balerion the Black Dread
The physiology of dragons is something that the Game of Thrones franchise has explored extensively. Dragons, if they have a sufficient food supply, are not chained too often, and don’t risk their lives, can actually continue growing up until their last few years. However, this comes at the cost of their ability to fly for longer periods of time. Such was the case of Balerion, perhaps one of the few dragons in Westerosi history to actually die of old age. Balerion grew sluggish in his final years and became harder and harder to rouse from his rest.
One example of such came when a potential new rider appeared in the form of Princess Alyssa Targaryen — the mother of Viserys and Daemon. Though she was initially set upon claiming Balerion as her mount, the Dragonkeepers persuaded her to claim a younger, faster dragon. Thus, Alyssa became the first rider of Meleys, the Red Queen. It should be noted that Alyssa was perhaps one of the boldest Targaryens of her time. Had she set out to claim Balerion, there is little doubt she would have succeeded in her self-appointed mission. However, she recognized the wisdom in the Dragonkeepers’ words, noting how tired Balerion had become in his old age.
Ironically, it was her oldest son that completed her initial quest. The then Prince Viserys claimed Balerion as his mount, though getting the dragon to wake up was a difficult task all on its own. Regardless, Balerion accepted Viserys as his rider. The duo flew around King’s Landing twice before returning to the Dragonpit. Later, Viserys would tell his father, Prince Baelon the Brave, that he had intended to ride Balerion all the way to Dragonstone, but feared that the old dragon did not have the strength to make the journey. This is the last recorded instance of Balerion flying anywhere. In fact, it is likely that Viserys’ first time flying a dragon was also his last time to do so. Balerion would later pass away in 94 AC, less than a year after Viserys had claimed him. The dragon was over two-hundred years old at the time of his passing.
Why Did Viserys Want to Claim Balerion?
Now, it should be noted that aside from being the mightiest dragon the Targaryens had at the time, Balerion was also symbolically important. He was Aegon the Conqueror’s dragon, the biggest of them all. Even his scale color, black, was exceptionally rare among dragons. Whoever claimed Balerion was considered a true Targaryen and some people even believed that if Balerion accepted a new rider, that person was fit to be king. This was something Viserys was likely hoping to take advantage of when he made the decision to claim Balerion, despite there being numerous other dragons he could have selected.
Less than a year before he claimed Balerion, his father had been named the heir to King Jaehaerys Targaryen. This was a sudden change after the tragic death of Baelon’s older brother, Prince Aemon. Jaehaerys’ decision to pass over Aemon’s daughter, Princess Rhaenys, reaffirmed the Westerosi custom of male heirs being more important than female heirs. As a result, Baelon was to be the next King of Westeros, and Viserys would follow after him in the line of succession. There was no small amount of dispute over this. Many still championed Rhaenys’ right to be queen, not least of which was King Jaehaerys’ wife, Queen Alysanne. In fact, his decision to name Baelon the heir caused a second major quarrel in their marriage.
Viserys may not have been the most strong-willed king during his reign, but he was no fool and certainly no pushover. He rightly must have suspected that there would be many who would challenge his and his father’s claim to the Iron Throne. Claiming Balerion would have been a major symbolic victory for Viserys’ family, establishing that they were worthy claimants as heirs and potentially giving them a powerful weapon to use if it did come to conflict. In this Viserys only half succeeded. He proved he was worthy enough to ride Balerion, but also realized just how little time the great dragon had left in this world. It is even likely that Balerion’s passing still deeply affected Viserys and his rule a decade later.
How Did Balerion Affect Viserys’ Reign as King?
Balerion accepting Viserys as his rider likely made him more appealing to the lords of Westeros as the heir to the Iron Throne. A fact that was no doubtedly useful during the Great Council of 101 AC when an emergency meeting had to be held to decide which of Jaehaerys’ remaining heirs would take the throne following the sudden death of Prince Baelon. As many will note, Viserys won out in the end, but there were a lot of factors supporting him. Aside from being the heir of the late Baelon, who was Jaehaerys’ chosen heir, he was also a man, and then there was the time spent as Balerion’s rider. In fact, it is likely that Viserys never claimed another dragon to hold onto that symbolic power.
Viserys Targaryen was Balerion’s last rider; similarly, the dragon was also Viserys’ last mount. Not claiming a new dragon also showed respect for the passing of the great beast, showing admiration of the past and all those who came before him. Viserys might very well have been trying to marshal goodwill from the older lords who remembered the time of King Jaehaerys. However, there were also consequences by not claiming a new dragon. Though House Targaryen was at its strongest during Viserys’ reign, not selecting a new dragon left him dependent on other members of his family for martial support in the air. As a result, several family members could act against his wishes and in ways that would ultimately harm their house. The most notable of these was Prince Daemon, who repeatedly disregarded Viserys’ wishes and used Caraxes as he pleased.
From a meta standpoint, there may also be some hidden symbolism and warnings in Balerion’s last flight. Viserys intended to go to Dragonstone, but could only circle around King’s Landing, meaning the flight, much like his later reign, would be much shorter than originally intended. Not too long after that, Balerion died, likely representing the coming Dance of the Dragons, which would trigger the extinction of the last dragons in the world. No one could have foreseen all this of course, but considering how George R.R. Martin writes, it is likely that Balerion’s last flight and passing were an omen of things to come.