Game of Thrones' Jaime Lannister Brought the 'Kingslayer' Upon Himself

Summary:

• Jaime Lannister killed Aerys Targaryen to save King’s Landing from being blown up on the king’s orders.
• Despite having a good reason to do it, Jaime never revealed it to the world and received the name “Kingslayer.”
• If only he showed the wildfire caches under the city to the people, Jaime would have avoided such a disgrace.

In Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice and Fire alike, Jaime Lannister has always been a complex character with countless inner conflicts to unpack. His nickname, the Kingslayer, bothered Jaime greatly since he didn’t deserve such a derogatory attitude — but at the same time, it was only thanks to Jaime’s hubris that he even received it.

Jaime Lannister Was Right To Kill The Mad King

In the finale of the Baratheon’s Rebellion, Aerys Targaryen aka the Mad King realized that he’d lost. His brilliantly acute mind came up with no better explanation than to use the wild caches under King’s Landing to blow up the entire city, sacrificing thousands of innocent lives just to spite those who had defeated him.

Serving as Aerys’s Kingsguard, Jaime Lannister was next to the Mad King when he planned his “counterattack,” and he had no time to waste: were the king to issue the order, the people of King’s Landing would have died a horrible death. To prevent the tragedy, Jaime cut his king down, and the war was over without the extra casualties.

Jaime saved countless lives that day, so why did people despise him for it?

Jaime Lannister Was Too Proud To Explain Himself

Even though his actions didn’t look like it, they were heroic — but Jaime’s hubris prevented him from telling his tale. It would have been so easy for Jaime Lannister to prove his innocence even after people already considered him a kingslayer. All he had to do was to show the wildfire caches under King’s Landing to lords and ladies.

Instead, Jaime Lannister kept silent, content with his achievement and unwilling to provide any reasoning for the Mad King’s murder. That earned him the humiliating title of Kingslayer, and for many years, it troubled him greatly… But apparently, still not enough to make him reveal Aerys Targaryen’s terrifying intent that virtually forced Jaime to abandon his Kingsguard vow and strike down the King of Westeros.

While Jaime’s fate is undeserved in this regard, it’s all his doing. He had the moral obligation to the people to kill the Mad King and followed it — but ignored his moral obligation to himself and his family to prevent the people from deeming him a monster.