House of the Dragon is moving at a much faster pace than its predecessor, Game of Thrones. While we’ve met several characters and learned a bit about them, we still don’t entirely know about the different houses and what they are doing in the show.
If you’re a fan of Game of Thrones, you might also wonder what the major houses from the previous show are doing in the current one. So, here’s a complete guide to all the major houses from the GOT universe and where they are during House of the Dragon.
1House Targaryen
House Targaryen is ruling the Seven Kingdoms in the show. Currently, King Viserys I is the ruler. Soon, we’ll see Aegon II, Rhaenyra and a few other significant names ascend to the throne. The Mad King Aerys will be the last Targaryen ruler in this era.
Considering that the show’s name is House of the Dragon, the Targaryen House is the center of the premise. At this point in the show, we see Viserys I’s health degrade, and he’ll soon die. This would mark the beginning of the Targaryen Civil War called Dance of the Dragons, where Rhaenyra and Aegon II will go into a war to determine who will sit on the Iron Throne.
2House Hightower
House Hightower is eyeing the Iron Throne, and Queen Alicent wants her son, Aegon II, to become the King. In Episode 5, she began gathering allies at Rhaenyra and Laenor’s wedding, and has already found one in House Oldtown.
In the previous episode, Viserys mentioned how Otto Hightower went from being a nobody to becoming the Hand of the King to King Jaehaerys. Right from the show’s beginning, it was clear that Otto wanted a connection to royal blood.
So, he nudged Alicent towards King Viserys, and the two ended up getting married. Later, she gave the King a son, and they named him Aegon II. Until Episode 5, Alicent wasn’t interested in the Iron Throne because Rhaenyra was announced as the heir. More importantly, Alicent and Rhaenyra were best friends at one point.
However, after Otto is removed from his position, he explains how Alicent and her children will be at the mercy of Rhaenyra. Furthermore, he explains how Aegon II is the heir that the realm will support.
This transforms her demeanor, and she indicates that by wearing a green dress at Rhaenyra and Ser Laenor’s wedding. She thus put out the message that she doesn’t accept her former best friend as her future Queen and is silently declaring war against her ascension.
3House Valeryon
House Valeryon, like Hightower, wants to be connected to the royal bloodline. Lord Corlys first proposes a marriage between Viserys and his daughter Laena, but Viserys declines it. Later, Viserys gets the Sea Snake’s son Laenor married to Rhaenyra.
Lord Corlys has always had a wavering stance toward Viserys and Daemon. However, it is clear that man wants to be more than just a Lord. In fact, he joined Daemon because Viserys rejected his proposal, and his support for the King started deteriorating.
It was only years later, when Viserys reached out to him with a proposal, that he was satisfied. Although he wanted the throne to belong to the House of Valeryon, he settled for being part of the royalty by getting his son, Laenor, married to Rhaenyra.
Currently, these are the most important houses in House of the Dragon. While the book Fire & Blood does talk more about other houses, the show doesn’t give them much significance.
But what about the Starks, Lannisters, Baratheons, Greyjoys, and others? Well, here’s what they are doing in this period.
4House Stark
House Stark is currently in Winterfell, staying away from the entire conflict. However, once the Civil War begins, Rhaenyra would form a pact with Cregan Stark, and after her death, he’ll march to King’s Landing to help the Targaryens.
Cregan Stark plays an important role in Rhaenyra’s son, Aegon III, becoming the King of the Seven Kingdoms. He is also named Hand of the King but resigns from the position and returns home after Aegon III is crowned.
One of the major reasons we don’t see Starks much during the Civil War is their non-interference policy. Thus, their pact with the Targaryens is significant and is called the pact of Ice and Fire.
So far, in House of the Dragon, we only saw Lord Rickon Stark in the episode where Princess Rhaenyra is announced as the heiress. Here, Rickon pledged his allegiance to the future Queen. In the first episode, Starks had also supported Rhaenys over Viserys, but the latter won.
5House Lannister
House Lannister is currently at Casterly Rock, enjoying its riches. Jason Lannister tried to court Princess Rhaenyra, but she refused. His twin brother Tyland will soon support Aegon II in the Civil War and will become the Master of Coin for him.
The Lannister have sparsely appeared in the show. But their presence is more than the other houses I’ll soon be discussing. Ser Tyland is also important because after King Viserys I’s death, he’s the one who gathers a small council to discuss the ascension of Aegon II.
6House Baratheon
House Baratheon, like the Starks, stays away during a large part of the Civil War. However, they lend their support to Alicent and Aegon II and march to King’s Landing only after Rhaenyra’s death.
During the Civil War, House Baratheon is led by Borros Baratheon. It is interesting to note that although Borros and Rhaenyra are cousins, he stands with Aegon and the Hightowers. Besides, he doesn’t have much of a role to play in this era.
7House Greyjoy
House Greyjoy is currently at the Iron Islands and is headed by Dalton Greyjoy. He is a direct ancestor of Theon Greyjoy, whom we see in Game of Thrones. Although the Green Counsel reaches out to him at Pyke, he supports Rhaenyra’s Black Allegiance.
House Greyjoy hasn’t appeared in the show so far. They may or may not appear, considering how fast the show is moving. But they might likely be mentioned in passing.
8House Arryn
House Arryn is connected with the Targaryen family because of Viserys and Aemma Arryn’s marriage. During the Civil War, Jeyne Arryn, the maiden of Vale, and her heir Joffrey Arryn will be important as they support Rhaenyra.
We might see Jeyne marching from Eyrie to the King’s Landing on a few occasions. However, a dragon egg would hatch in the Eyrie after the Civil War, and House Arryn would become important.
9House Tully
House Tully will initially remain neutral in the Civil War but later join Rhaenyra after Daemon’s bannermen go to Riverrun. Grover Tully currently leads House Tully. Elmo Tully and Kermit Tully will follow him as the Lords of Riverrun.
When the Civil War begins, Grover Tully is really old, making his grandson take matters into his own hands. When the Black Allegiance’s bannermen approach Riverrun, Elmo decides to support them.
So, Elmo leads an army to King’s Landing but passes away en route due to bad water. After him, his eldest son, Ser Kermit Tully, becomes Lord of the Riverrun and leads the army to the Battle of Kingsroad.
10House Tyrell
House Tyrell does not partake in the Civil War. The house has its own problems, considering the Lord is still an infant and his mother is Queen Regent.
The Green Counsel did expect the Tyrells to support them in the Civil War, but the Queen Regent refused to join the war. So, it is likely that we will not see them in House of the Dragon.
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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