A Timeline Of The Major Game Of Thrones Events Throughout Westerosi History

No TV show relies on complex world building more than Game Of Thrones. The HBO fantasy epic has created two entire continents, seven wildly different kingdoms, a magic, mysterious great white north, and an endlessly complex history built on top of all that. While some series find explaining a single character's backstory far too difficult a task, Thrones is established on thousands of years of fictional history as detailed in George R.R. Martin's original books.

Although characters are constantly talking about Westeros' deep and storied past, they very rarely explain much of it. We constantly hear about Aegon Targaryen's original conquest of the continent, but does anybody really ever explain when that happened? Viewers have seen how the malevolent White Walkers were created, but could anyone explain when that took place compared to, say, Aegon's conquest? Is the difference hundreds or thousands of years? Seven hells, how long have humans even been in Westeros?

To help make Westerosi history crystal clear, we created the definitive timeline of the continent's most major events, going all the way back 12,000 years. Yes, 12,000 years. Scroll through the gallery to find out when these invasions, wars, pacts, and murders took place in relation to the very beginning of Game Of Thrones. Buckle in, it's going to be a wild (dragon) ride.