House of the Dragon Episode 1 introduced us to all the major Targaryen characters in the show. The question, ‘Who will be King Viserys I’s heir?’ is the premise of the show. Right from the show’s beginning, we see multiple characters from the house. All their names seem to be connected deeply with the narrative.
Considering how the different names sound similar, one might get confused while following the show. So, here’s a complete explanation of the Targaryen bloodline and family tree.
The Targaryen Bloodline began with King Aegon Targaryen, who conquered the seven kingdoms. King Jaehaerys is his son, and Prince Baelon is his grandson. King Viserys and Prince Daemon are Baelon’s sons, and Queen Rhaenyra is Viserys’ daughter.
The episode began with King Jaehaerys choosing an heir for the throne. He has two contenders—Viserys and Rhaenys. Rhaenys is Viserys’ cousin and daughter of Prince Aemon, who is Baelon’s brother.
After Viserys becomes the king, we see the show skip ahead ten years. Here he and his wife have Princess Rhaenyra. While she is the rightful heir to the throne, she is a woman, and nobody has ever seen a woman become the ruler.
While Viserys has, over the years, tried to conceive and give the kingdom a boy, he hasn’t been successful. His wife, Aemma Arryn, also reveals how she had to endure multiple miscarriages, deliver stillborns, and even have a child die in the cradle. In Episode 1, she is heavily pregnant and tells Viserys that after this one, she doesn’t want to try anymore. Viserys is not worried because he’s very confident that the child is going to be a boy, an heir who can rightfully claim the Iron Throne after him.
When the delivery is happening, it turns out that the baby is breech and so she cannot push it out. The Maester informs Viserys that he has a choice—let them both die or cut her open to retrieve the child but lose Aemma in the process. Viserys takes the hard call, and the Maesters slice open Aemma’s womb to take the baby out.
As it turns out, she was carrying a baby boy, but sadly she never saw this, as she dies due to heavy blood loss. Viserys names his newborn heir Baelon. However, in a cruel twist, the baby boy also dies just a few hours later.
Another important character is Prince Daemon. He is Viserys’ brother and presumably the heir to the throne. At a mead-fuelled night on the town, he declares the recently deceased newborn “the heir for a day.”
The inconsolable Viserys, who is mourning his dead wife and son, hears of this and is rightfully enraged. This proves to be the breaking point for him and he tells Daemon in front of the council that he will never be the heir.
When Daemon confronts Viserys, the latter doesn’t appreciate the tone and the things he said, despite being true. So he unofficially exiles him to Valyria to be with his wife. Rhaenyra is then made the heir to the throne.
Overall, these are the main characters you need to know among the Targaryens. When it comes to Daenerys Targaryen’s relationship with Rhaenyra, the two are nine generations apart, and Rhaenyra is Daenerys’ distant aunt.
Now that you know all the major characters of the Targaryen house, it’ll be much easier for you to follow the show and the narrative. Here’s a pro tip—if you look at the complete family tree of the Targaryens, you’ll notice that numerous names are repeated across generations.
For instance, Baelon was Viserys’ father’s and son’s name. You’ll also see the name Viserys, Daenerys, and a few others appear multiple times. However, now that you know what generation is currently being depicted in the show, you can keep track of the character and their names easily.
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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