House Cole

Criston Cole was not born into a great house — he was the son of a steward serving at Blackhaven. His rise to Lord Commander of the Kingsguard under King Viserys I Targaryen placed him at the center of the dispute over the royal succession. It was Cole who pushed the claim of Aegon II Targaryen over other contenders, a move that lit the civil war remembered as the Dance of the Dragons. From this came his nickname, the Kingmaker.

With Aegon II crowned, the king grew tired of his grandfather Otto Hightower, until then his Hand, and judged that Cole would serve the role better. Shortly after taking up the office, Criston was struck down by three arrows while leading a company of Green soldiers through the Riverlands, in the fighting known as the Butcher's Ball.

According to semi-canon sources, House Cole no longer exists by the story's present day.

Among the Golden Company mercenaries sailing for Westeros are two men bearing the Cole name: Will and Dick. Both swear loyalty to Prince Aegon Targaryen before the crossing, alongside the rest of the company. Their kinship to the house cannot be confirmed — in a mercenary company, anyone may take a noble name without truly belonging to it.