Why didn't Robert try to hunt down Viserys and Daenerys?

[Mario Seddy]

Why didn't Robert try to hunt down Viserys and Daenerys or at least try to put a bounty on their heads? He knew they were a threat to the Baratheon dynasty, He knew of their ware abouts, so why didn't he try to get rid of them earlier?

[Lord Lannister]

Because there was that tankard of ale to drink and that peasant woman to bang first.

[Curled Finger]

Curiously, Robert didn't seem to light up on the Targs until he learned that Dany was pregnant.   He seemed to be fine with the killing of dragon babies.   Jerk for now.   Let's see if he was right to go after Dany at all after she gets to Westeros.   

[Takiedevushkikakzvezdy]

1 hour ago, Lord Lannister said:

Because there was that tankard of ale to drink and that peasant woman to bang first.

But the court kept track of their movements and whereabouts, no? Why not go all the way?

[Lord Lannister]

1 hour ago, Takiedevushkikakzvezdy said:

But the court kept track of their movements and whereabouts, no? Why not go all the way?

Well according to Viserys and later Dany, they were hounded by King Robert's assassins. Though Viserys wasn't exactly the most reliable source of information and had an exaggerated sense of his own importance. It could be argued that Illiryo protected them too well once he found them. Or it could be argued that Jon Arryn limited some of King Robert's excesses. I still think the most likely reasoning is King Robert's half assed and indifferent approach to ruling. He only got up off his butt to demand something be done about it when they aligned themselves with the Dothraki and presented a possible threat.

[Arthur Peres]

1 hour ago, Lord Lannister said:

Well according to Viserys and later Dany, they were hounded by King Robert's assassins. Though Viserys wasn't exactly the most reliable source of information and had an exaggerated sense of his own importance. It could be argued that Illiryo protected them too well once he found them. Or it could be argued that Jon Arryn limited some of King Robert's excesses. I still think the most likely reasoning is King Robert's half assed and indifferent approach to ruling. He only got up off his butt to demand something be done about it when they aligned themselves with the Dothraki and presented a possible threat.

We know that Robert didn't send any assassin since he was complaining with Ned about it, that he was a fool for listening to Jon Arryn and not ending the Targeryiasn when he could.

[Foot_Of_The_King]

On 1/15/2020 at 5:10 PM, Arthur Peres said:

We know that Robert didn't send any assassin since he was complaining with Ned about it, that he was a fool for listening to Jon Arryn and not ending the Targeryiasn when he could.

Yep. All your questions are answered in these few interactions. 

[frenin]

On 1/15/2020 at 10:37 PM, Lord Lannister said:

Well according to Viserys and later Dany, they were hounded by King Robert's assassins. Though Viserys wasn't exactly the most reliable source of information and had an exaggerated sense of his own importance. It could be argued that Illiryo protected them too well once he found them. Or it could be argued that Jon Arryn limited some of King Robert's excesses. I still think the most likely reasoning is King Robert's half assed and indifferent approach to ruling. He only got up off his butt to demand something be done about it when they aligned themselves with the Dothraki and presented a possible threat.

Dany herself calls Viserys words bs and Renly and Robert make clear that they weren't after them because old Jon's advice. Dany only starts fearing of Robert's wrath after Robert sent a killer for her, once he found out about her pregnancy.

 

[...] They had wandered since then, from Braavos to Myr, from Myr to Tyrosh, and on to Qohor and Volantis and Lys, never staying long in any one place. Her brother would not allow it. The Usurper's hired knives were close behind them, he insisted, though Dany had never seen one.

[Walda]

Robert had always known his throne was not safe while Viserys and Daenerys were still alive.  Eddard noted that killing dragonspawn was an old obsession of his. Robert mentioned that Jon Arryn had reasoned like Eddard.

Killing children doesn't lend a monarch popularity, which Robert both needed and craved. Tywin ended up retreating from the throne, back to Casterley Rock, making do with the fact that his grandchildren would rule, and his children and his gold would control the King.

They all knew that Robert, who had not sacked King's Landing or killed any children, who had some Targaryen blood and was a popular hero, would take the throne, and not the former Hand and ruthless crony that Aerys had insanely trusted.

I don't think Robert was slack about this threat, or oblivious to it. While he wasn't great with money, he was alert to military threats.

He put down the Greyjoy rebellion and rebuilt the Royal fleet, and gave the realm more peace in his reign than they had often enjoyed before. His love of tourney and melee has the serious purpose of keeping his commanders and soldiers in communication with him and fighting fit. 

The thing that changed a Targaryen restoration from an emergent future threat to a clear and present one, was the news that Viserys now had 40,000 Dothraki at his back, thanks to Daenerys marrying Khal Drogo. Robert consults with Eddard on the matter as soon as he receives Jorah's letter.

As Eddard noted, killing dragonspawn was an obsession with Robert, and had been since before he sat the throne. Eddard gave him all the rational reasons that Jon Arryn had doubtless been putting forward for the last 15 years, but Robert persists in his determination to get them assassinated even when it causes Eddard to resign his office rather than agree to this murder of children. 

Robert seems to me to be very clear-sighted about this threat. He knew the Beggar King and his sister were not an immediate threat themselves, but would become one as soon as they got an army.

He was pretty much alone in his assessment of the threat, and is the only monarch who was not preoccupied with closer and more immediate threats. It mystifies me that Mace Tyrell, Randyll Tarly, and Maester Pycelle can blithely dismiss Dany with three dragons, an army of unsullied, and three sacked cities, can assume she will stay in the east. But then again, they are dismissive of Aegon, Jon Connington, the Golden company and their elephants after they have invaded Westeros.They took Euron's short-lived Ironborn attack of the Shield Isles far more seriously.

Robert was maybe not so good with money (although his realm prospered under him) and maybe wearied of Justice (though he sat the throne until his bum was numb, and the one effort we see, at Castle Darry, was remarkably even-handed on his part.) Still, he was alert militarily and is the only monarch in Westeros that didn't do nothing about Daenerys.

[Lyanna<3Rhaegar]

I think likely because at the time they were just 2 children & not within his immediate reach & Jon Arryn seems to have talked him out of it. 

12 minutes ago, Walda said:

It mystifies me that Mace Tyrell, Randyll Tarly, and Maester Pycelle can blithely dismiss Dany with three dragons, an army of unsullied, and three sacked cities, can assume she will stay in the east. But then again, they are dismissive of Aegon, Jon Connington, the Golden company and their elephants after they have invaded Westeros.They took Euron's short-lived Ironborn attack of the Shield Isles far more seriously.

I think probably they didn't believe the dragons existed & even if they did, newly hatched they are not a huge threat. Although it would seem smarter to deal with them while they are small & not wait until they are big enough to cause damage. 

13 minutes ago, Walda said:

Robert was maybe not so good with money (although his realm prospered under him) and maybe wearied of Justice (though he sat the throne until his bum was numb, and the one effort we see, at Castle Darry, was remarkably even-handed on his part.) Still, he was alert militarily and is the only monarch in Westeros that didn't do nothing about Daenerys.

I think most of this paragraph is false. The realm was beggared & poor, the treasuries that Aerys left full, Robert had emptied completely & owed a crap ton of money out to the Lannisters, the Iron Bank & a few others. 

He is notorious for NOT sitting the throne, let alone until his bum is numb - he didn't care much about all of that. Evidenced by the "one" effort we did see. He is the King & we see him sit & make judgement one time. How many council meetings do we see him attend? Not many. One or maybe two? The effort at Castle Darry was not remarkably even handed but screamed of wanting to be done with the whole thing, regardless of the consequences, & allowed his wife to demand the wolf killed on his sons behalf. Either way you look at that it's wrong. If you believe someone/thing had to pay for maiming Joffreys arm - Robert was so ready to be done with the entire thing that he was closing court without enacting his "justice" even for his own son. If you are of the opinion (as I am) that the person/thing that actually committed the crime should be the one paying the price then he is wrong for allowing Cersei to tell him to have a wolf killed that wasn't even present during the incident. Let alone the fact that Joff is lying & Robert likely knows this. He orders Lady's death to keep Cersei quiet because he wants to be done with the whole deal & go back to drinking & whoring & hunting. He was a jolly fellow at times but he was not a great King. 

[Alyn Oakenfist]

Well, think about it, who would he have sent? Varys. Even if Varys wasn't given the task, he could find out about it and send early warnings. Whatever Varys's endgame is, it's pretty clear he wanted Viserys and Dany alive. So as the Master of Whisperers he could have easily stopped any assassination attempts. As for the botched poisoning attempt, it felt a bit to half-assed to be a real one. My guess is that Varys sent the poor merchant and then sent Jorah the letter telling what was about to happen and that he should stop it. He did it both to appease Robert who otherwise might have gotten suspicious and to provoke Drogo into attacking Westeros,

[FictionIsntReal]

5 hours ago, Lyanna<3Rhaegar said:

If you believe someone/thing had to pay for maiming Joffreys arm - Robert was so ready to be done with the entire thing that he was closing court without enacting his "justice" even for his own son. If you are of the opinion (as I am) that the person/thing that actually committed the crime should be the one paying the price then he is wrong for allowing Cersei to tell him to have a wolf killed that wasn't even present during the incident. Let alone the fact that Joff is lying & Robert likely knows this. He orders Lady's death to keep Cersei quiet because he wants to be done with the whole deal & go back to drinking & whoring & hunting. He was a jolly fellow at times but he was not a great King. 

I don't think Robert cared about Joffrey's arm. He said "no lasting harm" was done and that hopefully Joffrey would learn a lesson from his scars. He had Lady executed because he didn't think children should have direwolves, especially if she was going to be in King's Landing and betrothed to his son.

[Lyanna<3Rhaegar]

41 minutes ago, FictionIsntReal said:

I don't think Robert cared about Joffrey's arm. He said "no lasting harm" was done and that hopefully Joffrey would learn a lesson from his scars. He had Lady executed because he didn't think children should have direwolves, especially if she was going to be in King's Landing and betrothed to his son.

I agree he didn't care about Joffreys arm but I don't think he cared much about the direwolves going to KL either. He was content enough to leave it be until Cersei spoke up.