Draft:Rhaenyra Targaryen

Rhaenyra Targaryen is a fictional character in the A Song of Ice and Fire series of epic fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin, appearing in the 2013 novella The Princess and the Queen, the 2014 novella The Rogue Prince and the 2018 novel Fire & Blood. In the 2022 television adaptation House of the Dragon, the character is portrayed by Australian actress Milly Alcock as a teenager and by English actor Emma D'Arcy as an adult.

Through a series of circumstances, Rhaenyra is unprecedentedly named heir to the Iron Throne by her father, King Viserys I. Her claim was challenged by her half-brother Aegon II Targaryen and ultimately usurped, leading to a war of succession for control of the Iron Throne known as the Dance of the Dragons.

Fire & Blood
Born 97 years after Aegon’s conquest, Rhaenyra was the only living child of King Viserys I Targaryen and his first wife, Queen Aemma of House Arryn, after the death of her brothers. She was known as the youngest dragonrider, claiming Syrax when she was seven years old, and developed a close relationship with her father. Rhaenyra was also enamoured by her uncle, Daemon Targaryen, known as the Rogue Prince. At one point, Rhaenyra was hailed as the 'Realm's Delight' due to her physical beauty.

Following the death of her mother and brother Baelon during childbirth, Viserys is left with no living sons, therefore naming Rhaenyra as his heir to the Iron Throne and the Seven Kingdoms. She was also named Princess of Dragonstone. She is wed to Lord Corlys Velaryon and Rhaenys Targaryen’s son Laenor Velaryon; however, it is a marriage of convenience to strengthen the ties between the two houses as Laenor is gay and Rhaenyra is romantically interested in Knight Sir Criston Cole. She later has an affair with Knight Sir Harwin Strong with whom she has three bastard sons, Jacaerys, Lucerys, and Joffrey, all of them claimed as legitimate sons of Laenor.

After Laenor’s death, Rhaenyra wed her uncle Daemon and had two sons, Aegon and Viserys, and a stillborn daughter named Visenya. Rhaenyra vowed for her son Lucery’s claim to the seat of Lord of the Tides and Master of Driftmark, as a Velaryon; however was rebuffed by councilmen and Velaryon kinsmen alike on the validity of his claim due to suspicion that he was the bastard son of Harwin Strong. King Viserys has the tongue of the men cut.

The Princess and the Queen
After the death of Viserys I, the Dowager Queen Alicent organizes a coup to overthrow Rhaenyra’s claim to the Iron Throne, deeming her unfit to rule and arguing she should come after her sons in the line of succession due to her sex, and instead have her son Aegon II Targaryen crowned instead. This leads to a war of succession and a Targaryen civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons. Rhaenyra is crowned as queen by her supporters the ‘Blacks’ in Dragonstone, while Aegon II is formally crowned as the ruler of the Seven Kingdoms in King’s Landing.

Soon thereafter, Rhaenyra’s son Lucerys Velaryon with his dragon Arrax, and her half-brother Aemond Targaryen with his much larger dragon Vaghar both fly to Storm’s End to seek allegiance from Lord Borros of House Baratheon. A battle between the two ensues in the skies of Shipbreaker’s Bay, resulting in the death of Lucerys and his dragon. This enrages Rhaenyra and as revenge Daemon has assassins Blood & Cheese hired to kill Aegon II’s eldest son and heir apparent Jaehaerys in a “son for a son” ploy. This leads to both parties halting any chances of resolution and engaging in open warfare with Alicent’s faction known as the ‘Greens’, the colour of House Hightower.

After some early Greens victories during which she loses her oldest son Jacaerys, Rhaenyra successfully assaults the capital in the Fall of King's Landing, expelling Aegon II, but her reign is short lived. Her half-year rule sees her imposing harsh taxes, due to the treasury being secretly emptied by the Greens supporters, as well as her growing paranoia after the death of her husband Daemon, and summary executions of perceived traitors, triggering a violent riot in the capital. Mobs of angry citizens storm the dragonpit, killing most of the Blacks’ dragons alongside her son Joffrey, forcing her to flee. On her way to Dragonstone, Rhaenyra is betrayed and captured by Aegon II, who brutally executes her by having his crippled dragon Sunfyre burn her alive before devouring her in six bites. .

The war continues after Rhaenyra's death, with her Blacks supporters rallying behind her fourth son, Aegon the Younger, despite the latter being imprisoned as a hostage by Aegon II. As the last known living male member of House Targaryen, Aegon the Younger is named by Aegon II as his heir, but is constantly threatened with execution by his uncle. However, after the Greens' last army is annihilated at the Battle of the Kingsroad, the stubbornly defiant Aegon II is assassinated by his own men, who then surrender unconditionally to the Blacks. Aegon the Younger is freed and crowned as King Aegon III, ending the conflict. It is a pyrrhic victory as House Targaryen has lost virtually all of their dragons. The surviving dragons either go feral and/or die out during the reign of Aegon III.

House Targaryen, continuing through Rhaenyra's direct family line, reigns for the next 200 years, until it is overthrown by Robert Baratheon, leading to the events in Game of Thrones.

Real life inspiration
George R. R. Martin has confirmed that Rhaenyra’s story’s inspiration comes from Empress Matilda of England. Like her fictional counterpart, Matilda was sworn in as the heir to the throne of England by Henry I; however, the country wasn’t ready to accept a female monarch and lead to a war of succession between Matilda’s supporters and those of her cousin Stephen of Blois. The Dance of the Dragons and its real life basis, The Anarchy, are both civil wars fought between two factions claiming their legitimate right to the throne, with both campaigns starting and ending in similar manners. .

Casting and development
Emma D'Arcy was cast as Rhaenyra in December 2020, while Milly Alcock was cast in July 2021. Both actresses had to learn High Valyrian for their roles, with D’Arcy reportedly enjoying the experience.

Rhaenyra Targaryen's backstory is mostly preserved from page to screen; however, in the adaptation, she is close friends with Alicent Hightower, daughter of Hand of the King, Otto Hightower.

Avid fans noted that details of Rhaenyra’s vicious demise was revealed to viewers early on in the Game of Thrones series in the Season 3 episode And Now His Watch Is Ended, where Joffrey Baratheon reveals to Margaery Tyrell while viewing the graves of past Targaryens that Rhaenyra was burnt alive by her half-brother Aegon II while her son watched.

Season 1
Following the deaths of her mother and brother during childbirth, as well as her uncle Prince Daemon Targaryen's comments about the late 'heir for a day', Rhaenyra is named heir to the Iron Throne by her father, King Viserys I. As the first woman to be named heir, Rhaenyra is forced to fight off challenges to her succession. One of these challenges comes from her father's most senior advisor, Otto Hightower, who wants his grandson, and Rhaenyra’s half-brother, Prince Aegon to be King. After Rhaenyra spends a night with Daemon on the Street of Silk, Otto reports the event to the King. Viserys agrees to fire Otto on the condition that Rhaenyra marries Ser Laenor Velaryon, a Targaryen ally. This drives a wedge between her and her close friend, Queen Alicent Hightower.

As Laenor is homosexual, Rhaenyra has three bastard sons with the Lord Commander of the City Watch, Ser Harwin Strong. They are named Jacaerys, Lucerys, and Joffrey. Rumours of her sons' illegitimacy swirl in the Red Keep, forcing her to leave the capital for Dragonstone. Afterwards, she and Daemon conspire to fake Laenor's death so that they can marry and Laenor can escape Westeros with his lover. Six years later, Rhaenyra and Daemon have had two children, Aegon and Viserys, and Rhaenyra is pregnant with a third. When King Viserys I passes away, the Green Council usurp the Iron Throne and install Aegon II as King. Though initially seeking a peaceful resolution to the conflict, the deaths of Lucerys by his uncle Aemond leads to a war of succession, as Rhaenyra is named the rightful Queen by her faction - the Blacks.

House of the Dragon reception
Milly Alcock and Emma D'Arcy have both received universal acclaim for their performances, receiving a nomination for Critics' Choice Television Award and a Golden Globe Award, respectively. Collider wrote that Rhaenyra's childbirth scene in episode six 'serves as a fast demonstration of D'Arcy's talent. From birth until the walk, the entire sequence was a single take, however, D'Arcy never wavered or broke character while still convincingly portraying Rhaenyra's misery and proving to be a tough opponent in the game.'