Triarchy

The Kingdom of the Three Daughters, also known as the Triarchy, is a confederation of three Free Cities, Lys, Tyrosh and most recently Myr. They are ruled by the King of the Triarchy. Lys is governed by the Prince Protector, a title customary to House Targaryen, while Tyrosh and Myr are ruled by Archmagisters answering to the former.

Origin
In 96 AC, Tyrosh, Lys, and Myr ended their strife and drove Volantis from the Disputed Lands, defeating the Volantenes in the Battle of the Borderland and forging the "eternal alliance" of the Triarchy. The Myrish prince-admiral Craghas Drahar then led an invasion of the Stepstones, clearing out the pirate dens of the islands and making safe the trade lanes of the narrow sea.

The Seven Kingdoms initially approved of the Triarchy's actions, but Craghas and his co-admirals became greedy with their tolls. The Lyseni enslaved women, girls, and comely boys to bring back to their pillow houses, including Lady Johanna Swann, niece to the Lord of Stonehelm.

War for the Stepstones
In 106 AC, Westerosi forces led by Lord Corlys Velaryon and Prince Daemon Targaryen began the war for the Stepstones, Daemon hoping to make himself a kingdom. Despite inferior numbers, they inflicted a string of defeats on the Triarchy for two years before Daemon slew Craghas Drahar in single combat. By 109 AC, Daemon's armies controlled all but two of the Stepstones, and the Corlys the Sea Snake's fleets had naval supremacy. Corlys crowned Daemon the King of the Stepstones and the Narrow Sea.

In 110 AC, the Triarchy dispatched a counterattack led by Racallio Ryndoon, supported by newly-acquired Dornish allies, who were wary of the new Targaryen-backed sellsword kingdom controlling thenarrow sea. Fighting continued in 111 AC, when Daemon withdrew to court at King's Landing for several months, and raged beyond 115 AC, when Daemon returned to the Vale of Arryn after the death of his first wife, Lady Rhea Royce. Five other men followed him as Kings of the Narrow Sea before the sellsword kingdom ended.

Pentos, bordering Myr to the north and wary of the rising power to their south, often welcomed Daemon as an ally. Volantis similarly welcomed Daemon warmly when he visited, though it was in less of a position to fight back against its rivals to the west. The Three Daughters were not, however, so powerful that their influence spread to the northeast, where Norvos and Qohor remained little concerned about them.

Arrival of the Dragon
Taking on a miraculous journey, Tessarion had managed to cross the Narrow Sea and reach Lys despite her injuries. The men of the Free City had found Daeron half-dead by this point, and although his body had been battered, he was quite recognisable. The magisters were overjoyed - the Triarchy had already begun to dissolve, after their navy's extirpation in the Gullet. A dragon would be the advantage they needed to effectively combat the other Daughters. Every effort was made to wrench the Prince away from the clutches of death, and eventually, they succeeded. Healing Tessarion, however, was a much lengthier process. The beast proved docile enough (perhaps due to her health), and the First Magister, Lysandro Rogare, harnessed all of his available powers to see to her restoration.

It took an entire year for the creature to safely fly again, so extensive were the wounds dealt at Tumbleton. By such time, the Dance had nearly come to an end. It seemed that the Rogare was fully committed to the idea of using Daeron for the benefits of Lys. This Targaryen was not as authoritative as his brothers, more amenable to follow Lysandro's suggestions than to devise plans of his own. Thus, the Prince was convinced to assist the Free City in bringing the other Daughters under their heel, for he was unsure if he could launch an invasion of Westeros all by himself. Lysandro wasn't content with mere words alone, so he betrothed the boy to his daughter, Larra Rogare, whom he'd marry after 'all the troubles had subsided'. In return, the newly reforged Triarchy would fight under his banners in the coming war for the Iron Throne.

First Daughters' War
The Daughters' War was inevitable, with or without the dragon, but Tessarion's involvement contributed greatly to the temporary alliance of Tyrosh and Myr, such a fright they'd taken from the power of the beast. Although, initially, Lys waged warfare solely against the latter, the Free City of Tyrosh forgot about its squabbles and rushed to the aid of Myr. Daeron ironically chose the path of caution rather than dare anything, and the Essosi were spared the full wrath of the monster, as the Dragonrider was somewhat reserved in his aggression, afraid of Tessarion suffering a fatal blow.

During the years 131-133 AC, Lys, with its newfound weapon, battled Tyrosh and Myr across the Narrow Sea, at the Stepstones, and the Disputed Lands. The ever changing sites of the engagements did not drastically change their ultimate scenery - charred corpses, putrid and strewn about. It was only with the intervention of Braavos and Pentos that Rogare's greed was put to a halt, for even he feared facing these many powerful entities. Still, Lys came out of the war stronger than it had been, laden with the spoils of war, a considerable chunk of the Disputed Lands, and a fearsome reputation.

Upon his return, Daeron the Daring was welcomed back into the city as a hero, and named Prince Protector by Lysandro Rogare, who also proceeded to conduct the wedding between the Targaryen and his daughter, Larra. The Free City would enjoy heightened prosperity for years to come, while the Crown in the Seven Kingdoms strained to weather the problems of post-war limbo.

Second Daughter's War
After twelve years of continuous peace, Lys had developed into a menacing powerhouse armed with the deadliest creature in the Known World, and a bank that rivaled the power of even the one in Braavos. With Rogare's renewed prodding, Daeron was urged to take to the saddle of Tessarion and march the Free City's might against Tyrosh.

Tyrosh and Myr were once again united, though more quickly than the last time. Despite this, Braavos was unable to intervene in this particular conflict, torn apart by infighting and factionalism. While the Sealord had his own troubles to deal with, the dragon and her rider burned a bloody swathe through the seas and the fields. Pentos sent minimal support, but they feared too much involvement. The Prince Protector's resources were ultimately unmatched - in just a year, he secured for himself Tyrosh in the Second Daughters' War.

Daeron sought to bring stability to his subjugated prize rather than press his conquest, and so he called off the continuation of warfare. Tyrosh had to be convinced of the merits of its new position, and any seeds of rebellion destroyed. That is what the Prince Protector was engrossed by for much of his later life.

Jacaerys Velaryon continued his rule over Westeros, managing to extinguish the flames of tension from the Dance a considerable amount, and with shocking proficiency. However, his almost unhealthy dedication towards the governance of the Realm led to neglect for other parts of his life: in particular, his firstborn and heir, Monterys Velaryon, suffered greatly from the negligence of his father, entrusted, instead, to the many tutors of King's Landing.

Daeron the Daring, now called Daeron the Magnificent as well, finally passed from this world. Having been dealt grievous blows from the Dance, it seemed the wounds finally exacted their toll, diminishing what could have been an otherwise longer lifespan. Having swayed the Free Cities under him fully to the idea of Targaryen supremacy, the Westerosi exile left the mortal plane with the stability of his demesne secured. Aegon Targaryen succeeded him after his death, who promptly set on to assault Dorne three years after his ascension.

Andalization and New Exceptionalism
Aegon had much and more to think about during the peace after his invasion of Dorne. He had come to several important realisations. First of them being a reformation of his military forces. As could be seen, sellswords did not prove reliable combatants in the war. Half the time they routed, the other half they didn't do so because they feared the dragon's wrath. This would not do. The Westerosi had their puissant knights clad in steel, who fought to the bitter end for their honour and the Gods. Meanwhile, his own men were swayed only by gold or fear. The second realisation was Braavos. So long as the Titan stood tall, the Prince Protector would never breathe easy. They had shown time and again that they would intervene against the interests of House Targaryen. Action would need to be taken, and for that, they would have to prepare. They would have to repair their broken fleet, restrengthen their armies. The next few decades were spent with Aegon gaining the attention of Westerosi exiles and disgruntled knights, restoring his navy, and restructuring his military. Many such exiles from the West helped form the bulk of Aegon's now Andal court. With the proficiency and experience of these knights, he instilled new purpose and ideas in his demesne.

Several Westerosi cultures began to develop and thrive, among them, surprisingly, the chivalric concept of tourneys. The first recorded instance began from 181 AC, when Lys held its first tournament according to Andal customs, encompassing the traditional melee, joust, and archery. Since then, such events became more frequent. Another important development was the Andalisation of his military. The use of mercenaries slowly diminished (though not completely eradicated), as Aegon began to employ House Guard, and train soldiers dedicated not to gold, but to his cause. Near the end of his reign, knights, indistinguishable from their Westerosi counterparts, mounted and all, were a common sight in his armies.

This was not all: the Free Cities under Aegon's rule still relied on slavery as the driving force behind their economy. To justify their use, the Godswrath decided to create a new religious tradition that blended the Faith of the Seven and local religious beliefs. Aegon brought many Septons to Lys and they formed a new syncretic dogma, a second form of Exceptionalism Doctrine that was called the Syncretic Doctrine.

One of the prime parts of the doctrine was to give a religious legitimacy to the institution of slavery to his new Andal court. Expounding on the theory that Targaryens were made differently by the gods, the New Exceptionalism as it was called, stated that House Targaryen was permitted to hold slaves due to their exalted nature above other people's. Much like all were ultimately the slaves of the Seven in life, the specially created Valyrians were permitted to hold slaves as well.

Secondly, the Syncretic Doctrine allowed the adopting of many other deities into the faith as lesser spirits and Gods, created by the Seven that are One. Some goddesses like the Weeping Lady of Lys and Pantera were worshipped almost alongside the Seven in status. Various exiled nobles took up these different cults as their own to patronize. House Targaryen itself even introduced the old valyrian god Balerion as a patron, created by the aspect of the Warrior and Father, now serving as the cult of the rulers of the Triarchy, though many other scions took up other lesser patrons.

This New Exceptionalism, or Triarchist  Faith of the Seven, was met with heavy criticism by Westeros as a disgusting heresy that worshipped other, false gods. But for Aegon it was necessary. The New Exceptionalism allowed him to realistically institute Andal tradition and culture at court while maintaining and aggrandising the local cults in Essos that a majority of his people worshipped.

Recent History
In 199 AC, Aegon launched his final campaign, the Godswrath's Fury. He easily dealt with the forces of Myr and brought it to heel, adding another title to his existing one: the King of the Triarchy. Then, he shifted his focus to Braavos. The last battle proved disastrous for the latter: although the mighty Braavosi armada managed to severely wound Tessarion with intense scorpionfire, the enraged dragon wreaked unimaginable havoc and carnage on the foolishly celebrating vessels. The majority of the Sealord's navy was demolished, in the most destructive battle for Braavos by far. The Free City was once more thrown into disarray and infighting, in no capacity to threaten the Triarchy for a long time. Aegon and his dying dragon barely made it home, and when the King himself set foot into his palace, his voice was thickened by the blood stirring in his mouth. The Godswrath had been riddled with crossbow bolts - they'd shot him during one of Tessarion's berserk, charging descents. While the King of the West left words of wisdom to his heir on his deathbed, Aegon expired in a flurry of slurred and vile curses, collapsing in his own hall from his wounds.