House of the Dragon Confirms a Major Fan Theory Is True

On Sunday, HBO aired the sixth episode of its . Titled “The Princess and the Queen,” the episode jumped ahead in Westeros history by a decade, starting with the birth of Rhaenyra Targaryen’s third child. Following the previous episode’s eventful wedding, Rhaenyra is married to Laenor Velaryon. However, there is some question about whether Laenor is the father of Rhaneyra’s children. While King Viserys seems unable or unwilling to doubt his daughter’s virtue, plenty of others, including those who read George R.R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood, believe that Rhaenyra’s sons may be illegitimate.

“The Princess and the Queen” put the debate to rest. The episode answered a long-standing question about the princes.

Who is the father of Rhaenyra Targaryen’s children?

Officially, the history of House Targaryen acknowledges Laenor Valeryon as the father of Rhanerya’s three sons, Jacaerys, Lucerys, and Joffrey. However, fans have always doubted this claim.

Fire & Blood is fairly obvious in suggesting that the children are bastards. The clearest contender for being the children’s true father is Ser Harwin Strong. The most recent episode of House of the Dragon confirms this is true.

Who is Harwin Strong?

Ser Harwin Strong was the captain of the City Guard at King’s Landing. As the son of the King’s Hand, Lyonel Strong, Harwin was also the heir to Harrenhal and Larys Strong’s brother. Harwin had the nickname “Breakbones” because many believed him to be the strongest knight in the Seven Kingdoms.

Rumors that Harwin is the true father of the princes stem from reports in Fire & Blood that he was at Rhaenyra’s bedside during childbirth, alongside Laenor. The children all also share Harwin’s dark brown hair color, as opposed to Velaryon or Targaryen’s blonde.

Was there ever any doubt about the identity of the father of Rhaenrya’s children?

There was some doubt, yes. Notably, no one in King’s Landing could prove definitely that Rhaenyra’s children were illegitimate, or if they could they did not come forward. Despite Martin hinting strongly in his writing, he stopped short of saying the children were bastards outright, leading some fans to entertain the idea that they are legitimate, despite Laenor’s sexual preferences.

Those theorists clung to two things. First, Fire & Blood doesn’t describe Harwin’s appearance, nor does it provide the kind of genealogical history that Ned Stark discovers in Game of Thrones, leading him to the revelation that Cersei Lannister’s children are bastards born of incest. That was enough wiggle room for some.

Wait, how did no one in King’s Landing notice Rhaenrya’s children are bastards?

The other point of contention has been that some readers couldn’t believe that Rhaenrya would be that bold or if she had been, that she’d be able to get away with it. Surely someone in the court would notice that the children bear no resemblance to their father, and an uncanny resemblance to the princess’s “sworn sword,” Harwin Strong.

House of the Dragon solves this missing part of the equation. Yes, people notice. However, the king remained ignorant, perhaps willfully so, of his daughter’s indiscretions. In “The Princess and the Queen,” Viserys notes that Joffrey has some of Laenor’s features, eliciting looks of confusion from everyone else in the room. But then, who is going to challenge the king on his delusions regarding his beloved daughter?

Why does the identity of Rhaenyra’s children’s father matter?

House of the Dragon‘s main conflicts all come from matters of succession regarding the Iron Throne. Succession is entirely reliant on trueborn lineage.

Alicent worries that Rhaenyra will one day see her children as challenges to her right to rule, and the princess having heirs strengthens her case as she can provide the realm with clear successors after her death. However, bastards have no right to inherit. If the queen could prove that the children are illegitimate, that would nullify their claim to the throne and weaken Rhaneyra’s position as it lessened her esteem in the eyes of the lords of Westeros. 

House of the Dragon airs new episodes Sundays on HBO.