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Kinghyrule

The King of Hyrule as he appears in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.

King of Hyrule is the title of the monarchal ruler of Hyrule in The Legend of Zelda series. He is a member of the royal family of Hyrule, descendent of the goddess Hylia and Princess Zelda's father. Just like there have been multiple Links and multiple Zeldas throughout the series, the King has also been a different character in most of his incarnations. Like Princess Zelda, the King's duty is to guard the Triforce and ensure that it doesn't fall into the hands of evil. In Ocarina of Time the King of Hyrule was the one to unite the warring tribes of Hyrule and end a long and bloody civil war that had raged for many centuries previously. In most games he plays a minor role, or is only mentioned in passing, but in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker he acts as Link's sidekick for a majority of the game under the guise of The King of Red Lions.

Appearances[]

Zelda II: The Adventure of Link[]

Although the King of Hyrule does not appear in the game, he plays a major role in the backstory given in the manual. He led Hyrule into a golden age, but eventually grew old and died. On his deathbed, he entrusted his daughter Zelda with the location of the third Triforce Piece, the Triforce of Courage. Her elder brother, the Prince, inherited the throne, but he was left with only the Triforces of Power and Wisdom. He is then convinced by a magician (heavily implied in the Hyrule Historia to be a form of Ganon) to question Zelda. She refused, which ultimately resulted in the magician cursing her to be put in a never ending coma, an act that ultimately killed him. The Prince felt guilty for his role in Zelda's condition and thus decreed that all princesses born into the Royal Family therein be named Zelda.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past[]

The King of Hyrule's first on-screen appearance. Two Hyrulian Kings are mentioned in A Link to the Past; the one that rules present day Hyrule and his ancestor from centuries ago that fought in the Sealing War.

The ancient king fought alongside his knights and wizards to seal the Triforce away in a parallel dimension known as the Sacred Realm. The wicked thief-king Ganondorf had stolen the Triforce and used its power to become the demon lord Ganon, blackening the skies of Hyrule, causing natural disasters and attracting monsters and wicked men. Using the power of seven powerful mages, known as the "Seven Wise Men" and the "Knights of Hyrule" a band of brave knights, the king fought back against Ganon's forces. The knights, using the power of the Master Sword, a blade capable of repulsing even the divine powers of the Triforce, fought the demonic forces of Ganon sustaining many casualties in order to by time for the wizards to cast the sealing spell using their combined magic. In the follow centuries, Hyrule lived in peace and the events of the Sealing War faded into legend.

In the present, the unnamed king of A Link to the Past highly trusted the wizard-priest Agahnim, who apparently killed him, as his crowned skeleton can be seen in the game's opening.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time[]

The king of Ocarina of Time is mentioned multiple times but never seen on screen. He united the Kingdom of Hyrule a decade prior to the game's events, ending the bloody civil war that raged previously. He apparently fought alongside the Goron chieftain Darunia during this conflict and Darunia possesses great respect for him. Early in the game, Link witnesses a scene where the Gerudo King, Ganondorf, feigns allegiance the king while offering to join the Gerudo tribe with the lands of Hyrule. Zelda states that she had prophetic dreams about Ganondorf bringing ruin to Hyrule but, because she is a child, her father dismissed her warnings. He also ignored Darunia's attempts at petitioning the Goron's plight over Dodongo's Cavern being sealed and being starved (caused by Ganondorf earlier). Eventually, Ganondorf and his forces attacked the castle, with Zelda and Impa escaping in the chaos, though it's left unclear what happened to the king during this time. The manga adaptation, however, strongly implies Ganondorf had murdered the king.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker[]

Main article: King of Red Lions

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap[]

Two kings appear in The Minish Cap. King Daltus is the current ruler and Zelda's father. He was a fine swordsman in his youth, and fought his good friend Smith to a draw in one instance of the Picori Festival.

The other one is King Gustaf, an old king who appears as a ghost in the Royal Valley. He was quite fond of the Wind Tribe.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild[]

Main article: Rhoam Bosphoramus Hyrule

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom[]

Main article: King Rauru

The Legend of Zelda (cartoon)[]

The King of Hyrule is named King Harkanian in the cartoon shown Fridays on The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! In the cartoon, he is shown to be somewhat absent minded.

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