An illustrated “House of the Dragon” family tree.Credit: Ian Moore / Mashable
House of the DragonSeason 3 is here, and you know what that means: It’s time to take a climb into the very tangled branches of the Targaryen family tree.
Over the first two seasons of House of the Dragon, some of these branches have been pruned. (RIP to the many Targs who’ve perished in this bloody show.) However, Season 2 also added its fair share of new offshoots, further complicating the knotted web between Houses Targaryen, Velaryon, and Hightower. Season 3 has complicated it even further, with new deaths and the face reveal of one Daeron Targaryen. If you’re looking for a refresher on that web as you watch Season 3, we’ve got you covered.
Below, you’ll find the Targaryen family tree as it stands as of House of the DragonSeason 3, episode 7, as well as a rundown of the characters and how they connect.
Which Targaryens have died since Season 2?
There were two key deaths in the Targaryen family in Season 2: one on the Greens’ side and one on the Blacks’.
Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen’s(Emma D’Arcy) camp lost Princess Rhaenys (Eve Best), also known as the Queen Who Never Was. Meanwhile, King Aegon II Targaryen(Tom Glynn-Carney) and Queen Helaena (Phia Saban) lost their young son Jaehaerys when gold cloak Blood (Sam C. Wilson) and rat catcher Cheese (Mark Stobbart) assassinated him on Prince Daemon’s (Matt Smith) orders.
There are still plenty of Targaryens left standing, though. Here’s who to watch out for in Season 3.
The Targaryen family tree: Rhaenyra, Daemon, and their children
Matt Smith, Phoebe Campbell, Emma D’Arcy, Harry Collett, and Bethany Antonia in “House of the Dragon.”Credit: Composite: Mashable / Images: HBO
Rhaenyra heads up the Team Black branch of the Targaryen family tree, with her husband/uncle Daemon by her side. (It was touch and go for a minute in Season 2, but after a life-changing study abroad trip to Harrenhal, complete with witches and visions, Daemon is finally ready to accept Rhaenyra as his queen.)
Their two young sons, Aegon and Viserys, are on their way to Pentos for protection after a brief pit stop in the Vale. However, Rhaenyra and Daemon’s children from their prior marriages are still in Westeros and locked in on Rhaenyra’s fight for the throne.
Rhaenyra’s son Jacaerys (Harry Collett) and Daemon’s daughter Baela (Bethany Antonia) are both dragonriders. Daemon’s other daughter, Rhaena (Phoebe Campbell), doesn’t have a dragon, which is why she was sent off as Aegon and Viserys’ guardian. However, when they went to Pentos, she remained behind in the Vale, hoping to tame its wild dragon Sheepstealer. As of Season 3, she’s successfully claimed Sheepstealer, but at a cost: He went rogue during the Battle of the Gullet, and his interference helped lead to Jace’s tragic death. Rhaenyra wanted Sheepstealer’s rider’s head, and only Daemon and Lady Jeyne Arryn (Amanda Collin) knew the truth of her identity, until Baela and Addam of Hull / Addam Velaryon(Clinton Liberty) tracked Sheepstealer down to the Vale. After a brutal dragon fight, Sheepstealer’s fate hangs in the balance, and Rhaena has been dragged back to King’s Landing.
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The Targaryen family tree: Alicent Hightower and her children
Tom Glynn-Carney, Oli.”Credit: Composite: Mashable / Images: HBO
Dowager Queen Alicent Hightower(Oli remains the matriarch of Team Green, although she’s growing increasingly regretful about her role in the war for succession. (So regretful, in fact, that she’s offered to surrender the Iron Throne to Rhaenyra and take steps to ensure her rule.) She had four children with the late King Viserys (Paddy Considine)
The eldest, Aegon, was crowned King of Westeros over Rhaenyra, before she took back the Iron Throne in Season 3, episode 2. His younger brother Aemond(Ewan Mitchell) attempted to kill him in a dragon dogfight at the Battle of Rook’s Rest, and once Aegon recovered from his worst injuries, he fled King’s Landing with the help of Larys Strong (Matthew Needham). Aemond became Prince Regent, and Alicent has been trying her best to get herself, her daughter Helaena, and granddaughter Jaehaera out of harm’s way — they’ve been captured and imprisoned in King’s Landing. Aemond, separated from his dragon Vhagar, is currently determined to set up his new seat of power in Harrenhal with Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin).
Alicent’s youngest son Daeron (Benjamin Evan Ainsworth) makes his official House of the Dragondebut in Season 3, episode 4, although he’s been hiding in plain sight since the Season 3 premiere. He’s a ward of House Hightower and squire to Lord Ormund Hightower (James Norton), who’s engineering his own plot — involving a fake Daeron — to place him on the throne.
The Hightower family tree: Otto, Gwayne, and Ormund
James Norton, OliCredit: Composite: Mashable / Images: HBO
In addition to Alicent, the rest of House Hightower continues to be a major player in House of the Dragon. Her father, Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans), former hand of the King, was the first Green loyalist to be executed under Rhaenyra’s reign. Elsewhere, Alicent’s brother Gwayne (Freddie Fox) has been traipsing around the Seven Kingdoms with Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel), a nightmare we wouldn’t wish on even our worst enemies.
House of the DragonSeason 3 also introduces a new member of the Hightower family: Lord Ormund, head of House Hightower. His late father Hobert (Steffan Rhodri) was Otto’s oldest brother, making Ormund Alicent and Gwayne’s cousin.
The Velaryon family tree: Corlys and his sons Alyn and Addam
Steve Toussaint, Abubakar Salim, and Clinton Liberty in “House of the Dragon.”Credit: Composite: Mashable / Images: HBO
Rhaenyra’s Hand is Corlys Velaryon(Steve Toussaint), also known as the Sea Snake due to his naval prowess. Over the course of House of the Dragon, he’s lost his wife Rhaenys, as well as their children Laena (Nanna Blondell) and Laenor (John Macmillan).
However, Season 2 revealed that Laena and Laenor weren’t Corlys’ only descendants. He also has two bastard sons, Alyn of Hull (Abubakar Salim) and Addam of Hull (Clinton Liberty). Their mother Marilda, unseen in the show, was a shipwright. House of the Dragonprimarily refers to Marilda in the past tense, implying she is dead, hence why she’s greyed out in our family tree. However, by this point in Fire and Blood, she is still alive. Corlys, however, is currently a prisoner of Ormund Hightower in Tumbleton.
While Corlys didn’t truly acknowledge Alyn and Addam prior to Season 2, the pair are now a much more prominent part of his life — and the show. Alyn is a notable sailor in Corlys’ fleet, and Addam became a dragonrider. Thanks to his Valyrian blood, he now rides Seasmoke, Laenor’s old dragon.
The dragonseeds: Addam, Ulf the White, and Hugh Hammer
Kieran Bew, Tom Bennett, and Clinton Liberty in “House of the Dragon.”Credit: Composite: Mashable / Images: HBO
Addam isn’t the only new dragonrider to join Rhaenyra’s ranks in Season 2. Smallfolk Ulf the White (Tom Bennett) and Hugh Hammer (Kieran Bew) also claimed dragons. Ulf rides Silverwing, the dragon of Rhaenyra’s grandmother Alysanne, while Hugh rides Vermithor, the dragon of Rhaenyra’s grandfather Jaehaerys. The pair, like Addam, are bastards of Valyrian blood, earning them the nickname of “dragonseeds.” While they haven’t been legitimized as Targaryens, they will certainly have a large role to play in the battles to come.
<a href="https://zdcs.link/QKqr3G?pageview_type=Standard&template=article&module=content_body&element=offer&item=text-link&element_label=House%20of%20the%20Dragon%20Season%203%20premieres%20June%2021%20at%209%20p.m.%20ET%20on%20HBO%20and%20HBO%20Max%2C%20with%20a%20new%20episode%20every%20Sunday.&object_type=article&object_uuid=03G2TfiA7WdldCN7pRHZENG&short_url=QKqr3G&u=https%3A%2F%2Fmashable.com%2Farticle-route-prefix%2Fentertainment%2Fhouse-of-the-dragon-season-3-family-tree-targaryen-hightower-velaryon” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank”>House of the DragonSeason 3 premieres June 21 at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max, with a new episode every Sunday.
Belen Edwards is an Entertainment Reporter at Mashable. She covers movies and TV with a focus on fantasy and science fiction, adaptations, animation, and more nerdy goodness. She is a member of the Critics Choice Association and the Television Critics Association, as well as a Tomatometer-approved critic.
