House Of The Dragon Can't Remain Accurate To The Books Until It Undoes S2's Biggest Plot Point

House of the Dragon has carried out its finest to inform the story of the Dance of the Dragons, the notorious Targaryen civil struggle that just about decimated their home and led to the tragic extinction of the dragons. The Dance is one of the most necessary options of Westeros’ historical past, being the turning level in the Targaryen Dynasty that might start their gradual downfall till they had been deposed by the time of sport of Thrones. The struggle itself was waged between the two sides. The Blacks supported the eldest little one of the earlier king, Rhaenyra. The Greens believed in the Westerosi custom of a son coming earlier than a daughter, and thus supported her youthful brother, Aegon.

At the danger of spoilers, the struggle won’t finish effectively for anybody. The Targaryens had been nearly rendered extinct in the aftermath, with Aegon finally outliving his sister and doing his finest to piece the realm again collectively afterward. Yet, one of the largest issues of this struggle is how Rhaenyra is remembered by the time of trendy Westeros. In the current, she is barely referred to as a princess and a traitor. Yet, in the occasions of the present, it’s clear she is positioned as a queen, and one who’s worthy of the mantle. Once Rhaenyra ultimately meets her demise, the present can have to element how Aegon removes the public notion that Rhaenyra was ever a viable claimant to the throne.

Rhaenyra Targaryen’s Claim to the Iron Throne

Image through HBO

Looking at Rhaenyra’s declare, she had all the hallmarks of a topped princess. She was the eldest little one of her father, King Viserys and his first spouse, Queen Aemma. She was additionally the solely little one of Viserys and Aemma to survive previous childhood. Aegon, and all his siblings, by means of Alicent Hightower, had been youthful than Rhaenyra by over a decade.

Adding to this, Rhaenyra has a number of of her personal kids, guaranteeing that ought to she entry the throne, her lineage would stay on. Her largest declare to the throne was her father’s help. After years of attempting and failing to have a male inheritor, Viserys ultimately realized that the reply he was trying to find had been in entrance of him all alongside.

Rhaenyra had attended his small council conferences for a while. She was a dragon rider; the youngest dragon rider in recognized historical past to boot. Most necessary of all: she wasn’t like her uncle, Daemon Targaryen. Without a male descendant, custom dictated that Viserys’ crown would cross to his closest male family member, his unpredictable and harmful brother, Daemon.

After the Rogue Prince made such an insupportable association, Viserys selected Rhaenyra, believing she could be a queen worthy of the identify, somebody who would assume of the realm’s curiosity as an alternative of her personal ambitions. Thus, Viserys had all of his lords swear an oath of loyalty to Rhaenyra to honor her choice as the subsequent monarch of Westeros, though it could be an enormous break from custom, and successfully make Rhaenyra Westeros’ first ruling queen.

This brings up the largest impediment to Rhaenyra’s place: custom. Westeros’ primogeniture legal guidelines favor male heirs over feminine. It has been that means for 1000’s of years. As a lot as Viserys and Rhaenyra wished to consider that oaths of loyalty would sway individuals, the second he had male kids with Alicent Hightower after remarrying sophisticated the narrative.

Suddenly, individuals wished to swear loyalty to a child boy who had no expertise ruling, and as he grew, confirmed no inclination for it, not to mention a character price following. Yet, individuals would nonetheless have chosen Aegon over Rhaenyra primarily based on gender alone, regardless of how efficient he would have been at ruling.

Of course, there’s additionally private corruption and ambition to think about with Rhaenyra’s opponents. Regardless, each logical cause to consider Rhaenyra is a queen is there, however blind devotion to custom or greed are her largest obstacles to the Iron Throne, and finally what led to her family’s downfall.

Rhaenyra’s Fall and Later Vilification

Larys talks to Aegon in House of the Dragon

At the danger of spoilers, Rhaenyra’s time as Westeros’ would-be performing queen didn’t finish effectively. The struggle bankrupted the realm, forcing Rhaenyra to enact harsh taxes simply to stabilize the nation.

This ultimately led to her residents rioting and killing most of the dragons. Rhaenyra was pressured to flee to Dragonstone, the place she was ambushed by Aegon and his males, who had taken over the fort in her absence. Rhaenyra was fed to her dragon, Sunfyreand her final remaining little one was taken hostage. Rhaenyra’s finish was an inglorious one, however she continues to be remembered to this present day.

Interestingly sufficient, although Aegon had each cause to dismiss Rhaenyra, he didn’t make any main effort to take away her from historical past or additional vilify her. This is probably going as a result of Aegon had to reunite the realm in the aftermath and there have been nonetheless loads of individuals who liked and supported Rhaenyra. He could not overtly slander her with out risking their help.

So, Rhaenyra was not erased from historical past, however Aegon made it some extent that any histories mentioning her would solely use the title of “princess” when referring to her. As the saying goes, historical past is written by the victors, and Aegon wished future generations to bear in mind him as the king who fought for his throne. Rhaenyra would solely be a pretender who betrayed her personal brother in a egocentric seize for energy.

It did not assist issues that in her final days, Rhaenyra’s selections as queen led the individuals of King’s Landing coming to despise her. Where as soon as she was referred to as “the Realm’s Delight,” by the time she left the metropolis, she was mockingly referred to as “Maegor with teas,” a reference to one of the cruelest Targaryen kings to have ever lived, Maegor I.

For these watching the present, they know that Rhaenyra isn’t any base villain, however seeing her in motion by means of the eyes of a viewer and being a civilian on the floor impacted from afar by the actions of a girl they’ve by no means met in individual are two very various things and lead to skewed perceptions.

The Modern Interpretation of Rhaenyra Targaryen

Speaking of perceptions, this brings up how Rhaenyra is known by others over a century later. From the highest lord to the lowest commoner, most individuals have reached the consensus that Rhaenyra was a traitor. They reference her a few times in the books, mentioning how she betrayed Aegon to seize the throne for herself.

Many appear to have a damaging opinion of Rhaenyra, regardless of what recorded historical past says about her choice as Viserys’ inheritor. In reality, the one time there was a constructive reference to her was by Princess Arianne Martell of Dorne. Granted, she was solely utilizing Rhaenyra as a foundation to help her concept to place Myrcella on the Iron Throne as an alternative of Tommen by making use of Dornish regulation slightly than Westerosi.

Overall, public opinion of Rhaenyra has turned her right into a traitor, not a queen combating for the throne she was chosen for and labored to be worthy of. Which leads to the subsequent downside House of the Dragon will face when it’s time for Rhaenyra to face her finish: How they may go about undoing all that she has achieved.

The present’s progress has depicted Rhaenyra as she finds new methods to battle again to declare her birthright. From elevating armies to discovering new dragon riders. It’s turned her into one thing of a hero. She is not excellent, however she’s attempting, and followers admire that. For her to be killed by Aegon, although, means all the wonderful issues she has carried out will likely be forgotten.

Rhaenyra’s son, Aegon III, didn’t restore Rhaenyra’s title when he was named king, possible to stop discord in his court docket. The closing episodes of the present will undoubtedly be about the erasure of Rhaenyra’s works. Only the unhealthy will likely be remembered about her, portray her as a jealous, power-hungry sister as an alternative of the dutiful daughter she truly was.

By the present’s finish, followers will possible have to take care of the bittersweet realization that though it is going to be her descendants who sit upon the Iron Throne from that time ahead, historical past will solely bear in mind her as a princess, not a queen. Indeed, when one thinks about it, she actually was the mom of the entire Targaryen family from that time onward.