A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms: The Blackfyre Rebellion, Explained

This post contains spoilers for "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" and its source material.

"A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" has reached a crucial turning point. Dunk's (Peter Claffey) decision to participate in the Ashford tourney was driven by survival, but he's forced to take part in the Trial of the Seven with no option to back out. After Dunk learns that Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell) is actually Aegon V Targaryen (and therefore related to some major "Game of Thrones" characters), he feels betrayed and questions his intentions. But Egg's identity is the least of his concerns, as Dunk faces trial after getting into an altercation with Egg's arrogant older brother, Aerion Targaryen (Finn Bennett).

Episode 5 opens with the Trial of the Seven, but it weaves this visceral joust with flashback sequences that reveal more about Dunk's childhood in Flea Bottom. We meet his childhood friend Rafe (Chloe Lea), and the two reference the first Blackfyre rebellion more than once, name-dropping Daemon I Blackfyre. As the episode doesn't have time to provide us with more sociopolitical context, its significance might be lost on those not acquainted with George R.R. Martin's "Dunk & Egg" novellas.

While "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" is a significant departure from the "Game of Thrones" franchise, it is rooted in the same Westerosi history that has seen violent successions to the throne. As such, we need to look at a particular conflict among the Targaryens, which started with Baelor I locking his three sisters (Daena, Rhaena, and Elaena) within the Red Keep in an attempt to control them. What happens next is a snowball effect that sets the stage for the first Blackfyre rebellion, so let's dive into it. 

Picking right where we left off, Daena secretly gave birth to a bastard child with her cousin, Aegon (son of Viserys II), and named him Daemon Waters (this will become important later). Baelor, displeased with Daena's autonomy, held a 40-day fast that caused his death in 171 AC. While Daena's uncle, Viserys II, was king for a year, his death led to his son, Aegon, ascending the throne in 172 AC. Now dubbed Aegon IV, the new king married his sister Naerys and had a son named Daeron with her in 153 AC. 

Conflict arose on all fronts: Aegon despised his sister-wife for some reason, while his trueborn Daeron didn't approve of his corrupt manner of ruling. Things got so noxious that Aegon threatened Daeron's legitimacy as his heir, leading to the formation of two factions — one in favor of the impulsive king and the other that supported Daeron's measured approach.

You might be wondering what happened to Daemon, Aegon's bastard child with Daena? Well, Daemon was knighted by his father in 182 AC after the kid won a squire's tourney and was gifted a stunning Valyrian steel sword named Blackfyre. As this was publicly bestowed, it essentially legitimized Daemon's claim to the throne, since the sword was a generational symbol of status and monarchy. Some sources claim that Blackfyre belonged to Aegon the Conqueror himself, adding fuel to the fire. 

Things got really weird after Aegon legitimized all of his bastard children on his deathbed right before Daeron — now Daeron II — ascended the throne. 

Daeron's scholarly approach to ruling didn't sit well with everyone, as rumors about his legitimacy (despite being Aegon's trueborn) plagued his reputation. Meanwhile, Baelor Breakspear (played by Bertie Carvel in the show), Daeron's eldest son, shaped up to be a valiant warrior, but his Dornish ancestry (from his mother's side) triggered distrust in the royal court. 

Daemon — now known as Daemon I Blackfyre — emerged as a great warrior as well, and his resemblance to Aegon (who sported instantly recognizable silver-gold hair,in contrast to Baelor's jet black hair) helped him garner popular support. Everything that happened over the years sowed the seeds for the first Blackfyre Rebellion, with Daemon finally declaring his claim to the throne. This led to an all-out civil war that divided the Seven Kingdoms.

Daemon inverted the colors of the Targaryen banner, calling himself the black dragon, while Daeron II came to be known as the red dragon. Daemon had a surprising number of supporters, although some houses were diplomatic or keen to use the situation to their advantage. Messy battles were fought between the rebels and loyalists, affecting the Vale, the westerlands, the riverlands, and the Reach. The Battle of the Redgrass Field took place in 196 AC as the final conflict after Daemon managed to approach King's Landing. Long story short, Baelor arrived with Dornish spearmen and stormlanders alongside his brother Maekar (Sam Spruell), who crushed the rebel forces. Daemon died during this event.

Daemon supporters were promptly punished after, but the first Blackfyre Rebellion changed Westerosi history by exposing the fragility of the throne. Another Blackfyre rebellion will brew in Dunk and Egg's distant future, but it's worth noting that the first one was over before Dunk's childhood flashback scenes in the episode.