The Dawn Age
About 12,500 years before Robert Baratheon took the Iron Throne, the Children of the Forest were the first known inhabitants of Westeros. Little is known of them, but lore describes them as small, druidic and magical creatures. They worshiped the gods of nature and are believed to have carved faces in the weirwood trees found across the continent. Meanwhile, a group of settlers crossed a land bridge from the eastern continent of Essos into Westeros. Known as the First Men, these new arrivals' taming of the wilderness put them at odds with the Children of the Forest and began a war that lasted hundreds of years. After years of fighting, the Children of the Forest and the First Men eventually reached an agreement known as The Pact. After forging the alliance on the Isle of Faces, the First Men adopted the gods of their former enemies and lived in harmony with the Children for many years.
The Age of Heroes
Each land of the Seven Kingdoms was defined by great legends of the past, which were told from generation to generation, story and song. One of the most privitol events of the age was known as the Long Light. After one winter lasted an extremely long time and cold settled across Westeros, creatures known as the White Walkers descended from the northern reaches of the continent. They attacked with ferocity, forcing the Children and the First Men into the South, where the two peoples finally rallied and drove their enemies back north, into the Lands of Always Winter. As a future protection against the White Walkers, Brandon Stark – known as Bran the Builder – built a massive ice wall across the northern boundary of Westeros. The Night's Watch was founded to man the massive structure's many strongholds. Brandon also erected Winterfell, and began to rule as King in the North as men elsewhere on the continent proclaimed themselves kings. Soon, the people of the Stormlands, the Iron Islands, the Rock, the River and the Hills, the Mountain and the Vale, the Reach and the land of Dorne all lived under their own kings.
The Andal Invasion
About 6,000 years later, a new group of invaders crossed the Narrow Sea from Essos. Known as the Andals, these settlers carried steel weapons and brought a new religion: the Faith of the Seven. Once again, war came to Westeros as the Andals eliminated the Children of the Forest, who were derided as evil, and severely battered the First Men. The remaining First Men fled North, where their worship of the "Old Gods" is still followed.
The Rise and Fall of Valyria
In the next millennium on Essos, people in a land named Valyria discovered dragons in a volcano and managed to train the beasts. Backed by the dragons' immense power, the Valyrians amassed a great empire, which quickly became the most sophisticated civilization in the world. Over thousands of years, the Valyrians' expansion reached to Westeros and the Free Cities of Essos. One Valyrian family known as the Targaryens established their home on Dragonstone, an island in the Narrow Sea. Not long after, a catastrophic event known as the Doom struck Valyeria, destroying the empire along with most of the world's dragons. The Targaryens, the only surviving Valyrians and in control of the last three dragons in the world, launched a conquest of Westeros from their fortress at Dragonstone.
War of Conquest
The Targaryens, descendents of the only survivors of the Doom of Valyria, were based in Dragonstone, a former Valyrian outpost. Having felt forsaken by their own gods, the first Targaryens converted to the dominant religion of the area, the Faith of the Seven. Aegon the Conqueror left Dragonstone with his wives Rhaenys and Visenya, who were also his sisters. (Inbreeding was regularly practiced in the family, sometimes with tragic results.) The trio landed on Westeros with a small army and Aegon's secret weapon -- the last three remaining dragons in the world. Aegon handily defeated six of the seven kingdoms of Westeros.
War of the Usurper
The city of King's Landing was established at the place where Aegon first began his conquest and became the familys seat of power. After more than 250 years of Targaryen rule, King Aerys II was dubbed the "Mad King" for his bouts of insanity and increasingly violent and unpredictable behavior. After the king brutally executed Lord Rickard Stark and his son Brandon, many houses in the realm rose up against him, under the leadership of Robert Baratheon of Storm's End. Robert and his friend Ned Stark defeated the army of Prince Rhaegar Targaryen -- who had ridden off with Ned's sister Lyanna -- and King Aerys himself was killed when his ally House Lannister betrayed him in his home of King's Landing. Only two Targaryens survived the war, children named Viserys and Daenerys, who were spirited away to the continent of Essos, where they grew up in exile. Robert ruled from the Iron Throne until his untimely death.
Greyjoy Rebellion
Eight years after King Robert Baratheon wrested the Iron Throne from the Targaryens, Balon Greyjoy of the Iron Islands initiated his own rebellion and declared his independence from the Seven Kingdoms. In a failed assault that claimed the life of Balon's heir Rodrik, the Ironmen attacked Seagard. The Ironborn were dealt another blow when the Crown's forces, including Ned Stark, Barristan Selmy, Jorah Mormont and the King himself, launched a siege against Pyke. Balon's second son was killed during this attack, and after his family stronghold was devastated, the Lord of the Iron Islands bent the knee to Robert. As punishment and to ensure there would be no other uprisings, Lord Greyjoy was forced to surrender his only surviving son, Theon, for Ned Stark to raise as his ward at Winterfell.
The Game of Thrones
The Seven Kingdoms of Westeros are currently enduring the War of Five Kings. While the remaining kings are fighting to secure their crowns, the civil war is destroying the common people. In the North, a large host of wildlings are marching toward the Wall with only the small force of the Night's Watch in its path. Meanwhile in the distant east, Daenerys Targaryen is gathering an army to retake the Iron Throne. Unfourtunately many are completely unaware of the upcoming disaster: Winter is Coming...and the dead along with it.
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