What Is the Meaning Behind Aegon’s Dream? (& How It Connects to Game of Thrones)

When House of the Dragon was announced, we already knew about the fact that the series was a spin-off prequel to Game of Thrones, as it is set right around two centuries before the events of the main series and follows the story behind what led to the Targaryen civil war called the Dance of Dragons. But there was an even bigger connection other than the fact that the series follows the Targaryens. Such a connection was mentioned in what Viserys I mentioned as Aegon’s dream. So, what is the meaning of Aegon’s dream, and how does it connect with Game of Thrones?

Aegon’s dream was all about the long winter that was going to come from the north, as this long winter would bring forth absolute darkness to the rest of the world because of what dwells within this darkness. It is obvious that the dream was referring to the Night King and the White Walkers.

Westerosi history always told the story of how Aegon the Conqueror conquered the continent because he wanted the rich land for himself. But the thing that was explained in House of the Dragon was the fact that Aegon was preparing for the Long Night and the danger that came with what the winter from the north brought. In that regard, let’s look at this connection in greater detail.

What Is The Meaning Of Aegon’s Dream?

The pilot episode of House of the Dragon allowed us to see the inner workings behind House Targaryen and the different family members of this once-great royal household. Of course, the series starts off with King Viserys I getting named as the new king of Westeros decades before the events of the series transpired. Then, during the main body of the pilot episode, we saw how Viserys struggled with his succession because he could never bear a son with his wife.

In the end, Viserys’s queen did indeed bear a son, but both mother and child died soon after. This led to a problem regarding the succession line to his throne, as it was clear that Viserys was soon going to die due to a mysterious illness that he was suffering. In that regard, he needed to name an heir soon so that there wouldn’t be any problems regarding who would succeed in his place as king.

Under normal circumstances, succession laws would have stated that Prince Daemon Targaryen, the king’s brother, would be the next heir to the throne because Westeros was always ruled by a king. But Viserys was free to choose whoever he wanted to succeed him as the next ruler of the kingdom, and that was when he decided to name his daughter, Princess Rhaenyra, as his heir. This came after he realized that Daemon’s cruelty was not fit for the throne and after the prince insulted his dead infant son’s memory.

The fact that King Viserys I named Rhaenyra his heir was quite surprising to the princess herself because she never actually wanted to be queen, even though she wanted her father’s approval. Viserys apologized to her by telling her that he had been wasting his entire life wishing for a son when he could have just named and groomed her as his heir.

But, after that, Viserys told Rhaenyra a secret that only Targaryen kings have ever known. He told his daughter that history often told about how Aegon conquered Westeros because he wanted to be the ruler of a rich land that was ripe for the taking. But that wasn’t the true reason why Aegon decided to take Westeros.

Viserys said something about Daenys the Dreamer foreseeing the Doom of Valyria. It was this dream that made the Targaryens move all the way from Valyria to Dragonstone, which was an island just off the eastern coast of Westeros. It was 12 years after the Targaryens moved to Dragonstone that Valyria was destroyed, as House Targaryen became the only family of Valyrian dragonriders that survived.

As such, the Targaryens were convinced that their dreams had meaning. Of course, Aegon, the descendant of Daenys, also had his own dreams. Viserys I said that Aegon dreamt of a long winter coming from the north and that this winter was going to spread its winds to the rest of the world while carrying something dark and terrible with it.

Aegon wanted to take Westeros not because he simply wanted to become the king of the continent but also because he believed that he and the Targaryens were in the best position to unite the continent against this long winter and whatever it was carried along with it. That is why it was always important that a Targaryen was seated on the Iron Throne as the dragons and the power that came with being able to ride a dragon were the only things that could unite Westeros against the long winter that would soon come.

Of course, the dream that Aegon had referred to the Night King and the White Walkers that came with this long winter. Aegon knew that he and the Targaryen’s dragons were in the best position to lead Westeros against this long winter before it spread not only all over Westeros but throughout the entire world. As such, he conquered Westeros for this purpose, as this knowledge was passed on from one Targaryen king to another.

How Does Aegon’s Dream Connect With Game Of Thrones?

At this point, you could already see the connection between Aegon’s dream and the events of Game of Thrones. If you’ve seen Game of Thrones, you would know that this threat that Aegon dreamt of 300 years ago did indeed come true as the long winter came and swept across the land to give way to the Night King’s White Walkers and the army of the dead.

In that regard, Aegon had already foreseen the coming of the Night King 300 years before the Long Night came. That is why he conquered Westeros in preparation for this event, as this knowledge had to pass on from one Targaryen king to another so that they could also prepare for this event. This also explains why the Targaryens before the Mad King, Aerys II, always made sure to keep the Night’s Watch manned with capable fighters and leaders.

Nevertheless, because the Targaryens ended up fighting among themselves during the Dance of the Dragons and the Blackfyre Rebellion, this knowledge may have gotten lost somewhere down the line. As such, the Targaryen Kings eventually forgot the reason why Westeros was conquered in the first place. 

It was quite possible that the Mad King also carried this knowledge with him but was too mad to even think about how important it was for him to protect the kingdom from what was about to come from the north. In hindsight, when he said “burn them all” during the siege of King’s Landing, he was probably referring to the White Walkers.

Whatever the case may be, it was clear that the knowledge of this dream was never passed on to the Baratheon and Lannister monarchs, as they never cared about the danger that was about to come from the north. In fact, the Lannisters only found out about it when Jon Snow and Queen Daenerys brought a wight all the way from the north to convince them.

In hindsight, had the Targaryens never quarreled among themselves and made sure that their rule over Westeros was never challenged, things might have been different. The Seven Kingdoms would have been better prepared for the coming of the Long Night and the Night King. Still, the fact that Targaryens in the form of Jon Snow and Daenerys were there to lead the Westerosis against the Night King’s army eventually gave justice to Aegon the Conqueror’s dream of making sure that a Targaryen was always there to unite Westeros against the dangers of the north.

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