7. Viserys I
The fifth king of Westeros, Viserys I inherited a prosperous kingdom from his predecessor and grandfather Jaehaerys I. Westeros was in its prime and the Targaryen dynasty was at the height of its power, with dozens of dragons at its disposal.
Viserys had good intentions as king, and loved his wife Aemma Arryn very much. Together, they had a daughter named Rhaenyra; she became his cup bearer at the age of 8, learning statecraft at her father’s feet. But Viserys needed a son to further his line and kept trying with Aemma, who eventually died in childbirth as was horrifically portrayed in the first episode of House of the Dragon.
Viserys’ brother Daemon was too much of a wildcard to rule, so Viserys went against precedent and named his daughter Rhaenyra his heir. Although Rhaenyra was well liked and capable, ocnflict arose when Viserys got remarried to Alicent Hightower, who gave him three sons.
Alicent and Rhaenyra grew contemptuous of each other, leading to the formation of two factions at court: the greens and the blacks. Viserys was unable to keep his family from fighting, and after his death these factions would battle each other in civil war.
Viserys’ actual reign was quite peaceful and prosperous, but he deserves some blame for setting up the disruption to come.
6. Maekar I
When King Aerys I died without an heir, his younger brother Maekar ascended the Iron Throne. Maekar was a cunning warrior, but also a harsh man who was quick to judge. He was also haunted by the guilt of killing his older brother and heir to the throne, Baelor Breakspear. His main accomplishments were helping put down the Blackfyre rebellions and forging a new crown of black-pointed spears.
Over a 12-year reign, the biggest problem Maekar had was choosing a successor. One of his sons was a drunk, another a cunning but cruel knight, a third a bookish scholar and his fourth son grew up among peasants. After Maekar was crushed to death by a rock in battle, Bloodraven called a great council to decide who would become the next king.
When a Blackfyre named Aenys put himself in the running, Bloodraven invited him as an honored guest in King’s Landing. He foolishly accepted and was beheaded by Bloodraven’s men almost immediately upon arrival. The council chose the third son Aemon, but he was a man of the Citadel training to become a maester, and he refused. Eventually, Maekar’s youngest son Aegon was chosen, which ended up being a great pick: