View source for Prince That Was Promised

{{Canonicity|Canon}}
[[File:StannisNorthRemember.jpg|300px|thumb|Melisandre initially believed Stannis Baratheon to be the prophesied Lord's Chosen, the Warrior of Light.]]
{{Quote|From my blood will come the Prince That Was Promised, and his will be the Song of Ice and Fire.|Aegon the Conqueror's prophecy|King of the Narrow Sea (episode)}}
The '''Prince That Was Promised''',{{Ref|HOTD104}} also referred to as the '''prince who was promised'''{{Ref|GOT603}} and the '''one who was promised''',{{Ref|GOT605}} as well as the '''Son of Fire''',{{Ref|GOT205}} the '''Warrior of Light''',{{Ref|GOT205}} and the '''Lord's Chosen''',{{Ref|GOT605}} is a prophesied savior in the religion of the [[Lord of Light]]. According to the prophecy, this figure would be born amidst salt and smoke,{{Ref|GOT204}} wake [[dragon]]s from stone,{{Ref|H&L307}} and pull a sword named [[Lightbringer]] from flames, which they would use to combat an impending darkness.{{Ref|GOT201}} The prophecy was originally written in [[High Valyrian]], and this led to a misunderstanding in translation, as the Valyrian word for to "prince" is gender-neutral. The accurate name for this prophesied savior is the "prince or princess who was promised", indicating that it could be a man or a woman.{{Ref|GOT702}}

Various figures have been proclaimed or have proclaimed themselves to be the Prince That Was Promised through the ages. The early rulers of the [[House Targaryen|Targaryen]] dynasty believed that the prince would eventually be born of their line due to a prophetic dream of [[Aegon I Targaryen|Aegon the Conqueror]]. In the years immediately preceding the [[Great War]], various individuals were suggested by different followers of the Lord of Light to be the Prince. These, all descendants of Aegon the Conqueror, included [[Rhaenyra Targaryen]], [[Stannis Baratheon|Stannis]], [[Jon Snow]], and [[Daenerys Targaryen|Daenerys]].

==Candidates==
===First and second centuries after Aegon's Conquest===
King [[Aegon I Targaryen]]'s conquest of Westeros was motivated by a prophetic dream in which he foresaw the return of the [[White Walkers]] and the [[Great War]]. Aegon interpreted the dream as indicating that a [[House Targaryen/House of the Dragon|Targaryen]] must unite and rule the [[Seven Kingdoms]] of [[Westeros]],{{Ref|HOTD101}} believing that the Prince That Was Promised would be born of his lineage. Aegon inscribed this prophecy on a [[Valyrian steel dagger]] that was later passed from king to king.{{Ref|HOTD104}}

In his dying moments, King [[Viserys I Targaryen]] proclaimed his belief that his daughter Rhaenyra was the Prince That Was Promised. His wife, Queen [[Alicent Hightower]], misinterpreted his words as indicating he wished for their son [[Aegon II Targaryen|Aegon]] to succeed him as king.{{Ref|HOTD108}}

===Third century after Aegon's Conquest===
According to [[Melisandre]], a [[red priest]]ess of the Lord of Light, Stannis is the prophesied Prince. However, after Stannis is killed in battle{{Ref|GOT510}} and Jon Snow, the [[Lord Commander of the Night's Watch]], is raised from the dead, Melisandre claims Stannis was not the Prince, but "someone must be," suggesting she may now believe it is Jon.{{Ref|GOT603}} She later confirms this belief to [[Davos Seaworth|Davos]].

Another [[Red priestess (High Sparrow)|red priestess]], established in [[Volantis]], preaches to a group of slaves and freedmen that Daenerys is their prophesied savior.{{Ref|GOT503}} [[Kinvara]], the High Priestess of the [[Red Temple]] of Volantis, is also certain that Daenerys is the one who was promised, citing her freeing of slaves and birthing of dragons from stone as evidence. She agrees to send her best priests and preachers throughout [[Essos]], spreading the good word about the queen.{{Ref|GOT605}} After Melisandre is banished from the North, she learns of Daenerys and her dragons. She comes to Dragonstone to make Daenerys aware of her destiny, and to tell her of Jon's importance as well in the coming war.{{Ref|GOT702}}

Although it is ultimately [[Arya Stark|Arya]] who puts an end to the White Walkers through killing the [[Night King]], both Jon and Daenerys were of critical importance in the Great War; Jon for his leadership and efforts to unite the living against the dead, and Daenerys for her additional forces and her dragons.{{Ref|GOT803}} Unbeknownst to anyone involved, the dagger used by Arya to kill the Night King was the same dagger on which Aegon I had inscribed his prophecy.{{Ref|HOTD104}}

==In the books==
In the ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'' novels, the Prince That Was Promised is implied to be the reincarnation of a hero known as [[Azor Ahai]], a legendary warrior who supposedly lived thousands of years ago. Stories about the [[Long Night]] - or a similar cataclysmic event - are told throughout [[Essos]], one version of which says that a great darkness descended upon the land. Wielding a flaming sword called [[Lightbringer]], Azor Ahai rose up and defeated this darkness. There is some debate among fans as to the interchangeability of "Azor Ahai" and "The Prince That Was Promised." It is implied that Azor Ahai is the name given to the legendary figure, while the Prince That Was Promised is more properly his reincarnation. [[Melisandre]] has mentioned the Prince that was Promised and Azor Ahai interchangeably, but tends to use the name Azor Ahai far more often. In any case, the books do not make an explicit connection between the ''stories'' of Azor Ahai and the ''prophecies'' of the Prince That Was Promised.

Moreover, it is never clearly revealed where the prophecy about the Prince originated, or what culture/religion made the original prediction. Legends of Azor Ahai are widespread across the further east of Essos, though he is known by different names, depending on the region. According to Melisandre, who hails from the city of [[Asshai]], the prophecy about the Prince was known there five thousand years ago, but even this was millennia after Azor Ahai supposedly lived.

The phrase "The Prince That Was Promised" is first mentioned in the second novel ''A Clash of Kings'': at the [[House of the Undying]], [[Daenerys Targaryen|Daenerys]] sees a man and a woman - presumed to be her brother [[Rhaegar Targaryen|Rhaegar]] and his wife [[Elia Martell]] - speaking about [[Aegon Targaryen (son of Elia Martell)|a newborn baby]] that the woman is nursing. The man says that the baby shall be called "Aegon", and that he is "the prince that was promised".{{Bookref|ACOK|48}} 

Dragons often figure in various versions of this prophecy, and one interpretation indicates that the prince would be born from the line of [[House Targaryen]]. Stannis does match this description, because his grandmother was a Targaryen, but he was not born at a place of "smoke and salt" (which can be Dragonstone, a volcanic island) - he was born in [[Storm's End]]. In Daenerys's vision, the man also mentions that "the dragon has three heads", a line repeated throughout the series. This appears to reference the three-headed dragon of House Targaryen's sigil, but has also been interpreted as meaning that the "Prince" is actually three individuals working together.

In the fifth novel ''A Dance with Dragons'', [[Barristan Selmy]] tells Daenerys that a [[woods witch]], who was a friend of [[Jenny of Oldstones]], told King Jaehaerys II Targaryen the prince that was promised would be born of the line of [[Aerys II Targaryen|his]] [[Rhaella Targaryen|children]], and that prophecy made him wed his children to each other.

Although Daenerys's gender should raise doubts as to the red priestess's identification of her as the Prince That Was Promised, [[Order of Maesters|Maester]] [[Aemon]] points out that in [[High Valyrian]] (the language most versions of the prophecy were written in), the word corresponding to "Prince" is gender neutral.{{Bookref|AFFC|35}} Aemon quickly realizes this after Melisandre begins proselytizing upon her arrival at the [[Wall]]. Although he didn't realize it during his years of correspondence with Rhaegar, Melisandre's identification of Stannis as the Prince makes him reconsider the evidence, if only to shut her up. In the series, [[Kinvara]] seems to have come to this same conclusion, while it is [[Missandei]] who points out the translation issue on-screen. 

In the books, none of the prophesies detailing the Prince That Was Promised match the life of Arya, who kills the Night King, and thus all [[White Walkers]], in the show. However, she fits somewhat with Rhaegar's insistence that "the dragon must have three heads," although as a Stark, the sigil of her house is a direwolf, not a dragon.

In ''[[Fire & Blood]]'', there is no mention of the Prince That Was Promised or the Song of Ice and Fire.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{AWOIAF|The prince that was promised}}

<!--Navboxes-->
{{Legendary figures}}

<!--Categories-->
[[Category:Dreams and prophecies]]
[[Category:Legendary figures]]
[[Category:Lord of Light]]

<!--Languages-->
[[de:Prinz, der verheißen wurde]]
[[pt-br:O Príncipe Que Foi Prometido]]
[[ru:Обещанный принц]]