As House of the Dragon introduces new dragon riders Addam of Hull (Clinton Liberty), Hugh Hammer (Kieran Bew), and Ulf the White (Tom Bennett), the series delves into what it takes to bond with a dragon. Rather than limiting dragons to legitimate Targaryen House members, Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) allows bastards to claim a dragon, which three do.
It’s not surprising that there are a lot of so-called dragonseed, even if the Targaryens never officially recognized them. Some people are unable to state their exact parentage.
1. Is Hugh a Targaryen?
Hugh has no doubts about his Targaryen blood, feeling compelled to answer Rhaenyra’s call because of his past. The blacksmith from King’s Landing has enough of the Targaryen look to fit in among the dragon seeds.
Though he doesn’t give a name in his discussion with his wife, Hugh reveals much about his mother by touching on one of the biggest disgraces in the Targaryens’ history.
Though Fire & Blood never confirm who his parents are, Hugh’s brief story suggests he is the grandchild of King Jaehaerys through his wayward daughter, Saera.
2. How Does ‘House of the Dragon’ Address Hugh’s Parentage?
In Season 2, Episode 7, “The Red Sowing,” the Blacks seek dragon riders to take Vermithor and Silverwing. So Rhaenyra informs the people of King’s Landing that anybody with Targaryen blood, whatever of birth, may attempt to link with a dragon.
Hugh wants to go, seeing an opportunity to rise above his status and provide for his family, but his wife, Kat (Ellora Torchia), begs him to stay. Hugh, on the other hand, thinks that his blood makes the risk worthwhile. Hugh finally tells Kat the truth about his origins, stating that his mother was a silver-haired woman who worked in a pleasure house. Her status afforded her some freedom, especially as she brought a high price.
Hugh recalls his mother informing him that he “is no different than her brother’s sons,” which he refers to as King Viserys (Paddy Considine) and Prince Daemon (Matt Smith).
While several possible answers exist, Saera seems to make the most sense. For one thing, Jaehaerys’ love for his wife, Alysanne, suggests that he would not have many bastard children, and he certainly wouldn’t acknowledge them.
The only time Fire & Blood mentions a bastard child of Jaehaerys is during the Great Council of 101 when a hedge knight claims to be his son, and Jaehaerys exposes the deception.
Yet even assuming this was Jaehaerys’ bastard daughter, who knew her father was the king, it would be bold of her to call Baelon her brother. Meanwhile, everything Hugh says fits Saera Targaryen perfectly.
3. Who Is Saera Targaryen in ‘Fire & Blood’?
Saera was King Jaehaerys’ disowned daughter and one of the most difficult obstacles to his power. Saera, the ninth child of Jaehaerys and Alyssane, was a well-known princess, but falling out with her family meant she was not widely addressed at the end of Jaehaerys’ reign.
Fire & Blood spends much time addressing Jaehaerys but baerly delves into Saera’s background. Despite her mischievous and occasionally vicious nature, she was regarded as a headstrong but charming child who immediately realized and relished her ability to influence men, settling on three favorites: Jonah Morton, Roy Connington, and Braxton Beesbury. Only a few years later, she made a stir when it was revealed that she had slept with all three.
When confronted, Saera stated that she wanted to marry all three, comparing herself to Maegor the Cruel, who had six wives. This upset Jaehaerys even more, so he locked her in her chamber and said Saera was no longer his kid. He penalized all three men.
Mooton was compelled to marry Saera’s close friend, who was also implicated in the affair. Connington chose exile, and Beesbury confronted the king in combat, only to be killed. Alysanne tried to calm her husband down, hoping to reconcile the father and daughter, but Saera took matters into her own hands, sneaking out of her room and claiming a dragon to flee. She was captured by a dragonkeeper and chastised by her father.
Jaehaerys sent Saera away to join the Faith as a silent sister. She did not, however, serve her penance and fled to Lys, where she worked in the pleasure houses as a woman of the Faith. She eventually went to Volantis and opened her own business.
Though Alysanne allegedly wrote to her daughter, Saera never responded, and when the queen begged her husband to bring back their only living daughter, he declined.
But Jaehaerys missed Saera. According to Fire & Blood, the king changed after Saera fled and never returned to the man he once was. When he was old and dying, he confused the young Alicent Hightower for Saera when she arrived to read to him.
4. Does Hugh’s Story Fit with Saera’s Book Story?
Hugh is not related to Saera in Fire & Blood, which makes his parentage unexplained; nonetheless, Hugh being Saera’s son makes sense. Saera’s story is hearsay outside of Westeros, yet she did have children. At the Great Council of 101, three men claiming to be Saera’s sons argued for the Iron Throne (one of whom was thought to resemble a young Jaehaerys). However, they were not taken seriously because Jaehaerys had genuine grandchildren.
The main problem with the House of the Dragon’s claim that Saera is Hugh’s mother is that she never returned to Westeros in Fire & Blood, which could have never been written into the chronicles. She is claimed to have remained at Volantis, boasting about establishing her kingdom there.
Even if that’s the truth, Hugh could have fled to Westeros to escape his mother’s reputation, which he confesses he is embarrassed by.
In some respects, it is logical that Hugh is Saera’s child. While Jaehaerys had numerous children, Saera is the only one known to have had bastard offspring, though her brothers may have. Hugh, as Saera’s kid, has the same Targaryen blood as Jace (Harry Collett), Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney), and Aemond (Ewan Mitchell), which explains why he may claim a dragon when so many of the dragon seeds are slaughtered.
Nonetheless, the illegitimate child from a disowned family branch has dragon blood, which Vermithor recognizes. It also adds irony to Hugh claiming Jaehaerys’ dragon, given Saera’s turbulent connection with her father.
It defies Jaehaerys’ attempt to disown Saera, proving that she was always his daughter, whether he liked it or not. A kinder interpretation could be that it highlights Jaehaery’s regret at the end of his life, giving Saera’s bloodline a chance to return to her family.
Though House of the Dragon may never go deeper into Hugh’s history with his mother, they intend for him to be the child of Saera, giving him a more direct relationship with Jaehaerys than even Rhaenyra.
5. How does Ulf White have Targaryen blood in House of the Dragon?
Ulf White is supposedly the son of Baelon Targaryen.
In the third episode of House of the Dragon season 2, we see Ulf White as he enjoys a night out with pals at the local tavern. He is upfront about his purported Targaryen heritage, claiming that his father is Baelon Targaryen.
That would make him the bastard half-brother of Viserys and Daemon Targaryen (hey, we know them!), with Jaehaerys and Alysanne Targaryen as his grandparents. They are cousins if he and Hugh are telling the truth about their parentage.
So, should we believe Ulf when he swears he is the bastard of Baelon? Yes, we should.
In Episode 7, he claims a dragon after unexpectedly discovering Silverwing in a large cave on Dragonstone. He has no confidence in his ability to claim her and is shocked that he has not been slain. Ulf has a deeper relationship with this dragon than he realizes; Queen Alysanne, Ulf’s claimed grandmother, rode Silverwing before him. Silverwing has been without a rider since Alysanne died.
6. About House Of The Dragon
House of the Dragon is the prequel series to HBO’s blockbuster Game of Thrones based on George R. R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood.
Set three hundred years before the events of Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon will show Westeros under the Targaryen family’s rule before the dragons went extinct. It will follow the Dance of the Dragons, the Targaryen civil war between siblings Aegon II and Rhaenyra, who fought for the throne after the death of their father, Viserys I.
Directed by Ryan Condall and Miguel Sapochnik, the show stars Paddy Considine as Viserys I Targaryen, Emma D’Arcy as Rhaenyra Targaryen, Olivia Cooke as Alicent Hightower, Matt Smith as Daemon Targaryen, Tom Glynn-Craney as Aegon II Targaryen, Rhys Ifans as Otto Hightower, Steve Toussaint as Corlys Velaryon, Eve Best as Rhaenys Velaryon, Sonoya Mizuno as Mysaria, Fabien Frankel as Criston Cole, and Graham McTavish.
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