The Bleeding

The Bleeding refers to a series of conflicts that occurred between the years 432 A.C. through 435 A.C. The period is so named for the discontinued, ancient practice of bloodletting, wherein an individual would be bled until there was a balance of humors, which would in turn promote good health. It was coined originally by Grand Maester Godwyn. It is theorized that the origins of the Bleeding are many. Wounds had long festered within the realm, and though the fires of war were dampened during the reign of Visaera I Targaryen, the same could not be said for the reign of her son.

The Second Hammer Uprising was the spark that lit those fires and brought them to life. The reformation of the Warsmiths and their call to arms would act as a firebrand. The fires of war, and chaos spread throughout the heart of the Seven Kingdoms, leaving none untouched. What began as a minor rebellion among the smallfolk of the Reach quickly blossomed into a multi-pronged war that set the stage for all that followed.

Only the North remained untouched by the fervor of those conflicts, that found purchase even upon the shores of the Iron Islands, and within the desolate sands of Dorne. The conflicts will forever define the reign of Rhaegar II, and marks one of the more tumultuous periods for House Targaryen since the Second Conquest.