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The episode centers on the debate over King Viserys Targaryen's heir to the Iron Throne, specifically between his brother Daemon and his first-born daughter Rhaenyra, following the stillbirth of his first-born son.
- Overview
- Synopsis
- Appearances
- Cast
- Quotes
- Behind the scenes
- In the books
"The Heirs of the Dragon" is the first episode of the first season of House of the Dragon. It is the first episode of the series overall. It premiered on August 21, 2022 on HBO and HBO Max. It was written by Ryan Condal and directed by Miguel Sapochnik.
Prologue: 11 years ago, at Harrenhal
In the year 101 AC,[a] the lords of Westeros gather in a Great Council to elect a Prince of Dragonstone to succeed Jaehaerys I Targaryen, following the deaths of the king's sons. Although fourteen claims are brought forward, only two are truly considered; those of Princess Rhaenys Targaryen, Jaehaerys's eldest grandchild, and Prince Viserys Targaryen, his eldest grandson. The Great Council elects Prince Viserys to succeed his grandfather.
In King's Landing
It is now the year 112 AC,[b] nine years into Viserys's reign. High above King's Landing, his only daughter, Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, flies across the city atop her dragon Syrax, landing her outside the gates of the Dragonpit. As the Dragonkeepers escort Syrax away, Rhaenyra is greeted by her sworn shield, Ser Harrold Westerling of the Kingsguard, and her friend, Lady Alicent Hightower. The two girls exchange comments on Syrax's growth before Rhaenyra invites Alicent to take a ride with her on Syrax, though Alicent politely declines. Ser Harrold and several men-at-arms escort Rhaenyra and Alicent in a covered wagon back to the Red Keep. Rhaenyra then pays a visit, with Alicent in attendance, to her heavily pregnant mother, Queen Aemma Arryn. Rhaenyra is dismissive of the idea of being a mother, but Aemma insists that as royal women, birthing royal children is how they serve the realm. Within the Red Keep, Viserys hosts a meeting with his Small Council, with Rhaenyra in attendance as a cupbearer (though her father lightly chides her for being late to the meeting). His Master of Ships, Lord Corlys Velaryon, warns that the Free Cities have formed an alliance named the "Triarchy" and are trying to claim the Stepstones for themselves. Should the alliance eradicate the pirates currently inhabiting the Stepstones, Corlys warns, Westerosi ports could be badly affected, but his concerns are dismissed by Viserys and his Hand of the King, Ser Otto Hightower. The Master of Coin, Lord Lyman Beesbury, also complains to Viserys about the ruinous amounts of gold his younger brother, the absent Prince Daemon Targaryen, has spent in his new role as commander of the City Watch to properly arm and supply his men, but Viserys will hear no complaints against his brother. The discussion then turns to the upcoming "Heir's Tournament" Viserys has planned for the upcoming birth of his next child. Despite Grand Maester Mellos's insistence that there is no way of determining the sex, Viserys is confident the child will be a boy. After the Small Council concludes, Rhaenyra and Ser Harrold head to the throne room, where they find Prince Daemon sitting on the Iron Throne. Ser Harrold is shocked by such disrespect, but Rhaenyra, used to her uncle's flippancy, is more amused. Rhaenyra and Daemon converse in High Valyrian, with Daemon, in his own words, noting the irony of Viserys throwing a tournament for his benefit (since until Viserys actually has a son, Daemon is his heir by law) before gifting his niece a bejeweled necklace of Valyrian steel. Later that evening, as Rhaenyra and Alicent spend time in the Red Keep's godswood, Rhaenyra concludes that she hopes her unborn sibling is a boy for the sake of her father's happiness, ignoring Alicent's remarks that a son would overshadow her in the line of succession. Elsewhere in the Red Keep, Viserys endures the Grand Maester treating a wound supposedly inflicted by the blades of the Iron Throne on his back that has become infected, before going to see his wife Aemma in her bath. Viserys tells her of his confidence their child will be a son, but Aemma insists that boy or girl, it will be their last; after several miscarriages and stillbirths, and one child dead in the cradle (a total of five within ten years), she can't bring herself to mourn another child. As night falls, Daemon declares to the men of the City Watch, proudly identified by the gold cloaks he has bestowed upon them; that he has turned them from a disorganized rabble into a professional force to be reckoned with. He then leads them in a purge of the criminal elements of King's Landing, who are rounded up en masse to face summary justice; thieves lose a hand, rapers are castrated, murderers executed on the spot. At a Small Council meeting the following morning, at which Daemon is in attendance, Otto complains that the violence used by Daemon and his men was too excessive. Daemon defends his actions by pointing out that with most of Westeros's nobility coming to his brother's tournament, and the general lawlessness of King's Landing, extreme measures were warranted to ensure the safety of all of Viserys's subjects within the city walls. Corlys Velaryon also speaks in support of Daemon's actions, arguing the criminals of King's Landing should fear the City Watch. The discussion turns into a personal argument when Otto snipes that Daemon could put as much effort into his marriage as his work with the gold cloaks, insinuating Daemon should return to his wife's seat, Runestone, in the Vale of Arryn. Daemon scoffs that his wife, Lady Rhea Royce, is likely happier for his absence, derisively referring to her as his "bronze bitch." When Otto defends Lady Rhea's honor, Daemon sarcastically offers to give her to Otto as a replacement for his own late wife. Otto furiously rises to his feet at the insult, but Viserys defuses the argument, chiding Otto for letting Daemon provoke him while admonishing Daemon to police the city without the previous night's brutality. Later that night, Daemon complains to his mistress Mysaria, a brothel proprietor, about the lack of respect for his efforts shown by his brother and the Small Council. Mysaria reassures Daemon that, given his reputation and the power and prestige he possesses, the king can not so easily replace him. The following day, Viserys commences the Heir's Tournament with an announcement that Queen Aemma has gone into labor. Prince Daemon quickly becomes a favorite contender in the lists, further insulting Otto by picking as his first opponent his eldest son Ser Gwayne Hightower; he unhorses Ser Gwayne by striking at his mount's legs and then prods Alicent into granting her his favor for the tourney. Rhaenyra and Alicent are also intrigued by a new contender, Ser Criston Cole, after his unexpected victories against Lord Boremund Baratheon and his son, Ser Borros. As the tourney continues, a maester arrives and summons Viserys and Otto away. To Viserys's horror, Grand Maester Mellos explains that Queen Aemma's child is in breech, and that they must either cut open her womb to free the baby (a procedure that will almost certainly kill her) or risk losing both mother and child. Despite being appalled by the necessity of such a choice, Viserys grudgingly gives his consent, watching as the Grand Maester's acolytes hold down a delirious and screaming Aemma while Mellos cuts into her womb. On the tourney grounds, Ser Criston manages to unhorse Daemon in the joust; furious at his unexpected defeat, Daemon angrily demands his sword to continue the fight in a melee. Ser Criston dismounts to oblige the prince, wielding a flail while Daemon fights with Dark Sister, one of the two ancestral Valyrian steel swords of House Targaryen. A savage duel ensues from which, to the shock of all spectators, Ser Criston emerges victorious. As a beaten and humiliated Daemon angrily storms off, Ser Criston approaches the royal box and asks Rhaenyra for her favor. Rhaenyra tosses down a floral wreath to him and bids him good luck in the rest of the tournament. In the Red Keep, at his wife's bedside, Viserys weeps over Aemma's body, his wife having bled to death from the procedure to save their child. The Grand Maester informs Viserys that the child in question is a boy and hesitantly asks the king if he and the queen had chosen a name. Viserys answers "Baelon" (in honor of his own father), but at that moment, the infant prince begins choking in the Grand Maester's arms. Several days later finds the royal court gathered at Rhaenys' Hill for Queen Aemma and Prince Baelon's funeral. Viserys is near catatonic with grief, while Rhaenyra bitterly ponders to her uncle whether her father finally found happiness in the few short hours her brother lived. Daemon, sympathetic to his brother and niece's losses, urges Rhaenyra to support her father, insisting Viserys will need her more than ever, before Rhaenyra, with a command of "Dracarys" to Syrax, sets her mother and brother's funeral pyre ablaze. The next day in the Small Council chamber, Otto presses Viserys to set his succession firmly in order. With Prince Baelon's death, Daemon is once again Viserys's heir presumptive, but Otto is adamant that Daemon cannot be allowed to sit on the Iron Throne and compares him to Maegor the Cruel, unaware that Daemon is listening to the entire conversation from the shadows. Viserys angrily dismisses Otto and Mellos's insinuations that Daemon would be willing to murder him to seize the crown, insisting that his brother lacks the patience to be king, and retorts to Otto's complaints that Daemon's command of the City Watch effectively gives the prince his own army by pointing out it was Otto's idea to give Daemon the command, given how vigorously Otto complained when Viserys named his brother Master of Laws and Master of Coin. Otto concedes the point, but argues that Daemon should be kept far from power. Corlys Velaryon asks who else would have a claim, to which Otto suggests Rhaenyra. Lord Lyonel Strong, the Master of Laws, vehemently protests this, arguing that Westeros has never had a queen and doing so would overturn centuries of tradition. Viserys refuses the notion of choosing between his daughter and his brother, so Corlys offers an alternative: his own wife Rhaenys; as the daughter of King Jaehaerys's eldest son Aemon, she has a valid claim to the throne, and a male heir (Laenor) to continue her line. Otto and Lyonel shout him down before a furious Viserys berates his Small Council for behaving like crows squabbling over a corpse while he is still mourning his wife and son, before storming out. Within the Tower of the Hand, Alicent pays her father a visit as Otto dispatches Mellos with a message to be sent by raven to Oldtown. Otto embraces his daughter, asking after Rhaenyra, before suggesting Alicent might offer her condolences to the princess's father as well. Though apprehensive about the request, Alicent complies, visiting Viserys in his chambers wearing her mother's dress and bearing a gift of a rare historical text, and offers her condolences at Queen Aemma's passing, for which Viserys thanks her. Later that evening, at a pleasure house on the Street of Silk, Daemon hosts a drunken orgy for several of his subordinates in the City Watch. Prompted by Myseria, Daemon raises a toast to his late nephew. Otto reports this event to Viserys, insisting that his sources claim Daemon dubbed Baelon "the Heir for a Day." While the context is ambiguous, Viserys takes it for an insult and summons his brother. Viserys confronts Daemon in the throne room, seated upon the Iron Throne, the Targaryen sword Blackfyre in his hand, surrounded by his Kingsguard. Viserys angrily demands to know if Daemon truly mocked his nephew as the "Heir for a Day." When Daemon calls it his own way of showing grief, Viserys erupts at Daemon for celebrating his restored status with his "lickspittles" instead of consoling his brother and niece, and for throwing everything Viserys has given him back in the king's face. Daemon retorts that Viserys has only ever tried sending Daemon away from his side, and complains that even after ten years of rule, he has never offered him the role of Hand of the King. When Viserys scoffs at the notion, Daemon insists he deserves it as Viserys's brother, and that he would do a better job of it than Otto Hightower, who he describes as an overambitious second son out for himself. As Viserys defends his Hand, Daemon asserts that Otto doesn't protect his brother, whereas he would. When Viserys asks from what, Daemon bluntly replies Outraged by the insult, Viserys declares his intention to publicly name his heir. When Daemon insists he is his brother's heir, Viserys retorts "Not anymore" and orders Daemon to return to his wife's seat in the Vale. When Daemon steps forward to protest, the Kingsguard draw their swords and block his path, and Daemon grudgingly withdraws. Later that evening, Viserys summons Rhaenyra to Balerion's shrine within the bowels of the Red Keep. Rhaenyra is confused by the summons, given her father has barely spoken to her since her mother's funeral, and even more so when he asks her what she sees when she looks at the dragons. Staring at Balerion's skull, Rhaenyra admits that she sees their family; the people say that the Targaryens are closer to gods than to men, but it is only because of their control of the dragons. Viserys warns Rhaenyra that the dragons are a dangerous power, a power that caused the Doom of Valyria and might well destroy their family if they are not careful. He states that a Targaryen must always understand that truth if they aspire to be king or queen. As his words sink in for Rhaenyra, Viserys apologizes for spending years chasing a son when he already had a worthy heir in his daughter. He insists that she has the makings of a great queen. To cement his trust in her, Viserys tells Rhaenyra a truth known only to their family: Aegon the Conqueror was not solely motivated by ambition to conquer Westeros. Like Daenys Targaryen foresaw the Doom of Valyria, Aegon had a vision that foretold the end of the world of Men. Aegon had a vision that the end would be preceded by a terrible winter descending from the North, and that what lurked within that storm would destroy the world of the living, unless the kingdoms of men united against it with a Targaryen to lead them. Since Aegon's time, a Targaryen king has passed knowledge of Aegon's vision, which he dubbed "The Song of Ice and Fire" to their heir, to ensure Westeros was ready when the evil Aegon foresaw finally descended upon mankind. Before a gathering of the realm's nobility, including the lords of Velaryon, Hightower, Stark, and Baratheon, Viserys bears witness as the nobles declare oaths of fealty to him and to Rhaenyra as his named heir. At the Dragonpit, Daemon, absent from the ceremony, presents Myseria to his own dragon Caraxes, before they both take flight on Caraxes's back.
Firsts
•King Jaehaerys I Targaryen •King Viserys I Targaryen •Queen Aemma Arryn •The High Septon •Ser Ryam Redwyne •Lord Corlys Velaryon •Princess Rhaenys Targaryen •Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen •Syrax •Ser Harrold Westerling •Alicent Hightower •Lord Lyman Beesbury •Grand Maester Mellos •Ser Otto Hightower •Lord Lyonel Strong •Maester Mickon •Prince Daemon Targaryen •Captain Randyll Barret •Mysaria •Laena Velaryon •Laenor Velaryon •Ser Criston Cole •Lord Boremund Baratheon •Ser Borros Baratheon •Ser Gwayne Hightower •Prince Baelon Targaryen •Lord Hobert Hightower •Caraxes •Lord Rickon Stark
Deaths
•Queen Aemma Arryn •Prince Baelon Targaryen
Starring
•Paddy Considine as King Viserys I Targaryen •Matt Smith as Prince Daemon Targaryen •Emma D'Arcy as Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (voice only) •and Rhys Ifans as Ser Otto Hightower •Steve Toussaint as Lord Corlys Velaryon •Eve Best as Princess Rhaenys Targaryen •Sonoya Mizuno as Mysaria •Fabien Frankel as Ser Criston Cole •Milly Alcock as Young Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen •Emily Carey as Alicent Hightower •Graham McTavish as Ser Harrold Westerling
Co-starring
•Sian Brooke as Queen Aemma Arryn •David Horovitch as Grand Maester Mellos •Bill Paterson as Lord Lyman Beesbury •Gavin Spokes as Lord Lyonel Strong •Michael Carter as King Jaehaerys I Targaryen •Steffan Rhodri as Lord Hobert Hightower •Elliott Tittensor as Ser Erryk Cargyll •Garry Cooper as Ser Ryam Redwyne •Julian Lewis Jones as Lord Boremund Baratheon •David Hounslow as Lord Rickon Stark •Frankie Wilson as Captain Randyll Barret •Mikhail Sen as Maester Mickon •Rhys Parry Jones as the Master of Revels •Luke Tittensor as Ser Arryk Cargyll •Gary Raymond as the High Septon •Andrew Bicknell as a Dragonkeeper Elder •David Cann as a Dragonkeeper •Mirjam Germann as a Dragonkeeper •Matthew Carver as Laenor Velaryon •Nova Foueillis-Mosé as Laena Velaryon •John Arnedo as a gargantuan brute
Uncredited
•Dan Euston as a House Lefford knight •Erol Ismail as a House Stark knight •Sarah Marks as a tournament spectator •Will Willoughby as Ser Gwayne Hightower
Rhaenyra Targaryen: (opening narration) As the first century of the Targaryen dynasty came to a close, the health of the Old King, Jaehaerys, was failing. In those days, House Targaryen stood at the height of its strength, with ten adult dragons under its yoke. No power in the world could stand against it. King Jaehaerys reigned over nearly sixty years of peace and prosperity, but tragedy had claimed both his sons, leaving his succession in doubt. So, in the year 101, the Old King called a Great Council to choose an heir. Over a thousand lords made the journey to Harrenhal. Fourteen succession claims were heard, but only two were truly considered. Princess Rhaenys Targaryen, the king's eldest descendant, and her younger cousin, Prince Viserys Targaryen, the king's eldest male descendant.
High Septon: (in flashback) It is declared by all lords paramount and lords vassal of the Seven Kingdoms that Prince Viserys Targaryen be made Prince of Dragonstone.
Rhaenyra: (narrating) Rhaenys, a woman, would not inherit the Iron Throne. The lords instead chose Viserys, my father. Jaehaerys called the Great Council to prevent a war being fought over his succession, for he knew the cold truth. The only thing that could tear down the House of the Dragon was itself.
Harrold Westerling: Welcome back, princess. I trust your ride was pleasant.
Rhaenyra Targaryen: You need not look so relieved, ser.
Harrold: I am relieved. Every time that golden beast brings you back unspoiled, it saves my head from a spike.
General
•The camerawork and cinematography in House of the Dragon are notably distinct from its predecessor Game of Thrones, even though this episode was directed by Miguel Sapochnik himself, a veteran director from the prior series. As he explained in an interview with Den of Geek, a key difference is that this story simply doesn't cover as many vastly different physical locations across different continents - so they no longer use color filters to distinguish them. On Game of Thrones, blue color filters were used at the Wall to give an impression that it's colder and at a higher altitude with less light, while King's Landing scenes used an orange color filter to give the impression it is a warmer climate, etc. Given that so much of House of the Dragon: Season 1 is set at King's Landing (and nearby Dragonstone and Driftmark), showrunners Sapochnik and Ryan Condal decided to drop the use of color filters, to let the natural colors "pop" on-screen, highlighting that this is the Targaryen golden age and full of bright, opulent heraldry. •The title of the episode derives from the chapter of Fire & Blood it is adapted from, "Heirs of the Dragon — A Question of Succession." •Viserys is referred to by the full title, "King of the Andals and the Rhoynar and the First Men". Game of Thrones usually omitted mention of "and the Rhoynar" because Dorne wasn't introduced until Season 4 and the writers were unsure if they would ever appear. •Viserys refers to bells tolling in the "Grand Sept" - but not the "Great Sept". The Great Sept of Baelor won't be built for another half-century. The Great Sept replaced an earlier one atop Visenya's Hill. •Another way the skyline of King's Landing is different is that the Dragonpit atop Rhaenys's Hill is not yet in ruins, but a mega-structure on the scale of the Red Keep, used as a massive stable for the dragons. •Other than the cold open prologue at Harrenhal, this episode is set entirely in King's Landing. •When Daemon is introduced sitting on the Iron Throne, Harrold Westerling is shocked and Rhaenyra says he can't be heir if he's executed for treason. Only the king is allowed to sit on the Iron Throne - or if he is indisposed, the Hand of the King - and for anyone else including the designated heir to sit on it is officially treason (and Daemon isn't even the official heir at the time, only the presumed heir). Daemon's flippancy towards this rule immediately displays in his first scene how much of a rogue he is. •The scene near the end of the end of the episode where Daemon remarks on the "heir for a day" in a brothel is the first of several "unreliable narrator" moments in Fire & Blood, due to the framing device that it is an in-universe history book with conflicting sources. Some sources say that Daemon's remark was repeated by the whore who was on his lap, while other "more plausible" ones say one of the Gold Cloaks, eager for a promotion, repeated it. The TV episode avoids directly showing how Otto found out about it, though it presents that Daemon was actually morose after the death of his brother's wife and son, not entertaining a whore on his lap. It then cuts away before showing what he said, or more importantly, how he said it: flippant and celebrating, or depressed and bitterly sarcastic. •The scene of Rhaenyra and Alicent in the castle godswood prominently discusses a book about Nymeria, warrior-princess of the Rhoynar and founder of unified Dorne. Perhaps not coincidentally, at the time this was made HBO was actively considering a pitch for an additional prequel spinoff about the story of Nymeria, by writer Amanda Segel. By the time this episode aired, the Nymeria project advanced from the pitch phase and HBO ordered a full pilot episode script to be written, under the working title Ten Thousand Ships. Filming hasn't been greenlit yet, however, as HBO is waiting to see how well House of the Dragon performs. •The scene near the end of the episode in which Viserys summons Rhaenyra to meet in front of Balerion's skull was the first scene that Milly Alcock filmed. •Costume designer Jany Temime gave several details about the extravagant "Investiture" outfit that Rhaenyra wears in the final scene of the episode. Temime described the overall design as "inspired by Byzantine elements", and explained that it looks so different from the other designs at court because it is not a contemporary design: the idea is that this is a ceremonial robe that "has been passed down for four or five generations", worn by each new Prince of Dragonstone when they were formally invested as heir to the throne. Thus the robe apparently goes back to the time of Aegon the Conqueror himself, used for his son and all subsequent kings for the next four generations (Aegon to his grandson Jaehaerys, and from Jaehaerys to his grandson Viserys). The heirloom investiture robe therefore offers a glimpse of earlier art styles from the Conquest generation, which are hinted to be more Byzantine-inspired. It took a team of three people ten weeks to embroider the entire outfit. The "accessories", however, particularly the large earrings, were inspired by Moroccan wedding dresses. •During the early development of the series, George R.R. Martin suggested a first episode titled "The Heir and the Spare," centering on the relationship between Aemon and Baelon Targaryen, and leading up to their deaths. By Martin's account, he was the only one enthused by this idea.
Filming locations
The home base for production has shifted from Titantic Studios in Belfast (on Game of Thrones) to the massive WB Leavesden Studios complex outside of London, England. Exterior filming locations for this season included parts of England, Spain, and Portugal. In this episode: •The first scene of Rhaenyra landing at the Dragonpit actually wasn't filmed in the Leavesden Studios backlot, but was instead filmed in a quarry located in the Peak District of northern England. •Many of the King's Landing street scenes were filmed in Cáceres, Spain, which was previously used for King's Landing locations starting in Game of Thrones: Season 7. •The funeral pyre scene for Rhaenyra's mother Queen Aemma, at a seaside cliff outside the city, was filmed in Devon, England. According to Ryan Condal, it was one of the most difficult exterior locations they filmed at in Season 1 due to its extreme remoteness, and they weren't allowed to use any real fire for the funeral pyre because it was a protected site.
The new Red Keep set
•Because so many scenes are set in the Red Keep, all of the interior sets were combined into one large interconnected set: at various points the camerawork highlights this by following characters in uninterrupted cuts as they walk between rooms. •The new Red Keep set is 62 meters long, 39 meters wide, and 13.5 meters height at its tallest point. This includes multiple levels and functional staircases. The interiors have a combined area of 35,000 square feet. The entire combined set took four months to build. •The entire Red Keep is filled with erotic Valyrian tapestries, which according to the showrunners it meant to highlight that the series begins in an age of decadence and opulence, when the Targaryens are at their height and do not fear judgement by anyone (including the leadership of the Faith of the Seven). •The Iron Throne itself has been significantly expanded. As showrunner Ryan Condal explained, the Iron Throne in the books is 40 feet tall and requires a small stair to reach the seat - due to limits of budget and space the Iron Throne developed for the first season of Game of Thrones was a large chair made of melted swords (George R.R. Martin liked the design and considers it iconic, but always noted it wasn't what it's like in his books). Condal tried to meet this halfway: making it closer to Martin's vision while still honoring the original design. The result was that the "Iron Throne" is now a pile of melted swords that expands out and down the raised steps at the end of the hall, with the original Iron Throne from Game of Thrones at the center. Condal said the implication is that as the Targaryen dynasty declined over the centuries these extra parts were eventually removed, making it look like it did in the original TV series. •The decoration of the Iron Throne room in general is different from Game of Thrones, though the original series already established that different rulers sometimes redecorate it: when Joffrey took over after Robert Baratheon died, he replaced the metal vine decorations on the columns with spikes and roaring fires. In this era, the columns of the throne room are decorated with large statues of prior Targaryen kings: there are specifically four columns with statues, of the first four kings that came before Viserys I, and the remaining columns stretching back through the hall have empty space for future generations of kings. Each column is also decorated with relief sculptures wrapping around them, like Trajan's Column, depicting historical scenes. •A new room is used for Small Council meetings: it is much wider and with larger windows. Miguel Sapochnik explained he ordered this so there is more room to position the camera anywhere they want, instead of being limited to a few angles, and to let more light in for the shots. •In Game of Thrones, the preserved skull of Balerion the dragon was packed away to a dungeon level and forgotten, after the fall of the Targaryen dynasty. In House of the Dragon, the Targaryens are at the height of their power and venerate their dragons, so the producers came up with the idea that Balerion's skull would be preserved in its own dedicated shrine (after all the dragons died, later Targaryen kings through Daenerys's father would display their skulls lined up in the throne room). The prop of Balerion's skull in this series is not simply a re-use of the prop seen in Game of Thrones - apart from its different shape, this time it is notably black and not white, as the books explain dragonbone is disproportionately strong due to its high iron content. The new Balerion prop skull is nine meters long, and took seven weeks to make. •Rhaenyra and Alicent have scenes in the Red Keep's godswood, which has a Weirwood heart tree. The castle did have a godswood in the books, Game of Thrones simply didn't have the extra budget to show it on-screen in the early seasons. Notably, the heart tree in the books is actually an oak, not a weirwood: apparently because King's Landing is a relatively new city, there simply wasn't a pre-existing weirwood there. In contrast, other castles have godswoods built around a pre-existing heart tree left by the Children of the Forest.
This episode is adapted from the chapter "Heirs of the Dragon — A Question of Succession" from Fire & Blood. The story of that chapter was first published as the novelette The Rogue Prince, or, A King's Brother on June 17, 2014.
Aug 21, 2022 · The lords of the Seven Kingdoms gather at Harrenhal in the year 101 AC to elect a new heir to the Old King, Jaehaerys I Targaryen, who has outlived his two sons.
- Aegon I Targaryen. The founder of the Targaryen dynasty, Aegon the Conqueror flew from Valyria to Westeros and unified the Seven Kingdoms before the events of both Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon.
- Visenya Targaryen. The older of Aegon's two sisterwives, Visenya was known to be stern and passionate. She wields Dark Sister (the sword later passed down to Daemon Targaryen) and rides Vhagar (who is later ridden by Aemond Targaryen.)
- Rhaenys Targaryen. The youngest of the three siblings, Rhaenys was gentler than her older sister and brother. She's said to prefer dancing and music and flew more on the back of her dragon Meraxes than either of the other two.
- Jaehaerys Targaryen. King Jaehaerys I (Michael Carter) is the grandson of King Aegon I by way of his son Aenys and Alyssa Velaryon. He had nine children, all of whom died before the end of his reign.
House of the Dragon: Created by Ryan J. Condal, George R.R. Martin. With Matt Smith, Fabien Frankel, Steve Toussaint, Emma D'Arcy. An internal succession war within House Targaryen at the height of its power, 172 years before the birth of Daenerys Targaryen.
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Jul 16, 2024 · Viserys I was chosen as the heir to the Iron Throne by the Great Council, succeeding his grandfather, Jaehaerys I.
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Aug 21, 2022 · VISERYS: Rhaenyra Targaryen Princess of Dragonstone and heir to the Iron Throne. All of those assembled bow their heads. Rhaenyra turns around to look out at the crowd and directly faces the...
