Rhaenyra Targaryen’s Children In The Show & Books Explained

The epic HBO fantasy series “House of the Dragon” has exceeded fan expectations in many ways, giving those who were burned by “Game of Thrones” another chance to love and grieve the incredible characters of franchise creator George R. R. Martin’s worlds. Taking place approximately 200 years before the events of “Game of Thrones,” “House of the Dragon” contains all of the great aspects of its television predecessor, just done much better, and that includes all kinds of complicated family drama. In fact, “House of the Dragon” pretty much triples down on the family drama (and incest) because it’s centered on the “Dance of the Dragons,” a war between two factions of the dragon-riding Targaryen family. On one side is Team Green, headed up by Queen Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) and her son Aegon II Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney), whom she crowned as king after the death of his father Viserys I (Paddy Considine) and a bit of a misunderstanding. On the other side is Team Black, headed up by Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy), who was actually named heir to the throne by her father Viserys, and she’s miffed that her younger half-brother got put there instead. 

Because it’s a fantasy world loosely based on our own Middle Ages, people tend to have quite a few children, and Rhaenyra is no exception. She has six children in both the sourcebook “Fire & Blood” and “House of the Dragon,” and while some of them don’t survive to adulthood, the ones who do end up being influential on all of Westerosi history. 

Rhaenyra, as the daughter of Viserys I with his first wife, Aemma Arryn, was forced into an arranged marriage with her second cousin Laenor Velaryon (John Macmillan). However, she had a secret affair with Ser Harwin Strong (Ryan Corr), and it’s pretty likely that all three of her children from the time she was married to Laenor are actually his. (Not only do the kids look a tremendous amount like Ser Harwin, but he’s very attached to them as well.) The pair had three sons: Jacaerys “Jace” Velaryon (played by Leo Hart as a child and Harry Collett as a young adult), Lucerys “Luke” Velaryon (played by Harvey Sadler as a child and Elliot Grihault as a young adult), and Joffrey Velaryon (Oscar Eskinazi). Unfortunately, Ser Harwin dies in a fire at the extremely cursed castle of Harrenhal, which prevents Rhaenyra from having any more children by him, and Laenor fakes his death and leaves for Essos with Rhaenyra’s blessing, although it’s likely that he isn’t alive as of the end of season 2. 

Jace is an earnest, good-hearted soul who really believes in his mother’s claim to the throne (which would place him second in line). He rides the dragon Vermax and does his best to serve as a member of his mother’s small council and envoy, including petitioning for an alliance with House Frey. His younger brother Luke has a bit more Targaryen fire in him, and during a nasty fight as children with his uncle-cousins Aegon II and Aemond Targaryen, he sliced Aemond with a knife and caused him to lose his eye, which would have devastating consequences down the line. His dragon is Arrax, and he is the heir to Driftmark. Youngest son Joffrey is bonded to the dragon Tyraxes and we know very little about him otherwise, as he’s still quite young in the series. 

While the battle of the “House of the Dragon” kids ending with Luke giving Aemond a classic villain look with one eye is certainly kind of humorous and well-deserved, it also, unfortunately, inspired a deep hatred in Prince Aemond, who is not to be trifled with. Played by Leo Ashton as a child and Ewan Mitchell as a young adult, Aemond is impressively cruel and manipulative, and generally better at playing the game of thrones than his older brother Aegon. After demanding that Luke cut out one of his own eyes in order to make it right, Aemond and Luke get into an argument. Luke flees on his dragon Arrax, and Aemond pursues him in a rage. 

Riding on his absolute behemoth of a dragon, Vhagar, Aemond catches up with his younger nephew-cousin and things get ugly. Both dragons disobey their riders, leading to Arrax attacking Vhagar in an attempt to protect Luke and Vhagar chomping down on both dragon and rider, killing them both. Aemond was angry but likely did not mean to kill Luke, knowing just how intense the fallout would be for such an act, and it makes the incident all the more tragic and Aemond a more complex character than his book version, who flat-out murdered Luke intentionally. 

In addition to her sons by Ser Harwin Strong, Rhaenyra also had two younger sons by her uncle-husband Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith). The two have a deeply complicated relationship that’s one of the best in the franchise, but so far on the series, their progeny are just young children. Rhaenyra and Daemon were able to introduce the boys to their grandfather/uncle King Viserys I before he died, naming them Aegon and Viserys, in honor of previous Targaryens. Funnily enough, despite the fact that as Rhaenyra’s youngest son, he would be a long way from the throne in terms of lineage, Viserys jokes that his namesake has a name “fit for a king” and this turns out to be accidentally prophetic.  

In season 2, Rhaenyra sent Joffrey, Aegon, and Viserys to the Eyrie for safety, and they then boarded a ship for Essos, where they would hopefully be safe from the war between Green and Black. The child actors for young Viserys and Aegon have been changed several times and sometimes it’s difficult to find confirmed information, though Aegon was played by twin actors Jake and Cory Heard in season 1. 

On “House of the Dragon,” the birthing bed is a battlefield all of its own, and it leads to some of the show’s most tragic moments. Though Rhaenyra does not die in childbirth like her mother or Daemon’s first wife, Laena, she does suffer a terrible end to her final pregnancy. After learning the news that Aegon II has taken her throne from her and has been crowned king, she is so distressed that she has a miscarriage. Her only daughter, Visenya, was stillborn with birth defects that made her appear dragon-like, including scales and a stubby tail, according to the book “The World of Ice & Fire.” On the HBO series, she wasn’t shown in detail but the special effects company that created the silicone doll used for the scene have shared images, and poor Visenya had a misshapen head, no nose, and a crown of scales. 

The loss of Visenya is the final straw for Rhaenyra, pushing her from hating Alicent and her children to genuinely wanting them to pay for everything they’ve done. It’s the final catalyst for the war itself, which will have devastating consequences for all of Rhaenyra’s children.

As of the end of season 2, Jace, Joffrey, Aegon, and Viserys are all safe and mostly sound, but we already know how things are going to turn out for them (more or less) because of both “The World of Ice & Fire” and “Fire & Blood,” and it’s not great. The Velaryon and Targaryen kids are all pretty darn doomed in one way or another. Jace and his dragon would both be killed by Team Green forces at the Battle of the Gullet, while Joffrey would die in a dragon riding accident while trying to prove himself to his mother. 

Unlike their Velaryon half-brothers, both Daemon and Rhaenyra’s sons would live to not only see adulthood but also sit on the Iron Throne. Following the deaths of both his mother and her rival, Aegon II, Aegon III was crowned as Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, the King of the Andals and the Rhoynar and the First Men. Unfortunately, he was also deeply disturbed by all of the death and bloodshed he witnessed, including his mother’s own death on dragonback, and he became known as “Aegon the Broken” and “Aegon the Dragonbane,” as he hated dragons fiercely. Aegon died from consumption in his 30s and his eldest son, Daeron, succeeded him.

Viserys would serve as Hand of the King for Aegon, Daeron, and Daeron’s younger brother Baelor, before eventually becoming king himself after Baelor died (either from fasting or from being poisoned by Viserys; “Fire & Blood” is unclear on this. Viserys II would only reign as king for a year before being succeeded by his eldest son, Aegon IV, who may have poisoned Viserys. That bloodline would eventually lead to Daenerys Targaryen, Aemon Targaryen, and Jon Snow, setting up a whole new game of intrigue, incest, and yes, thrones.