House of the Dragon: Who Is The Father Of Rhaenyra’s Children? Is Ser Harwin the Father Of Rhaenyra’s Children?
House of the Dragon time-jumped forward 10 years in history, to a point where King Viserys I still lives, but it’s clear he doesn’t have much time left, his house is fractured, and the conflicts are on the rise. The series introduced us to the adult versions of Alicent Hightower and Rhaenyra Targaryen (Olivia Cooke and Emma Darcy), as well as their children. The queen has 2 sons and a daughter who looks exactly how Targaryens should look, while Rhaenyra just had a third who looks nothing like her supposed father, Laenor Velaryon, or her uncles.
The birth of Rhaenyra’s third child, Joffrey (named after one of Laenor’s lovers), unleashes all sorts of rumors, fueled in large part by Alicent herself, who, after wearing that infamous dress, saw herself at the royal wedding, seems to have become the princess’s greatest enemy, after discovering that she lied to him. Alicent tries to tell Viserys that his grandchildren are bastards and an insult to the family and the crown, but Viserys chooses not to see what is right in front of him.
House of the Dragon: Who Is The Father Of Rhaenyra’s Children?
The history of House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones is full of bastard children who are not always recognized, in the case of Rhaenyra’s 3 children, rumors point to Ser Harwin Strong, who also acts more like a father figure for the children. princes than Laenor Velaryon, who is busy enjoying life in the palace. Ser Harwin Strong is known as Breakbones and is the eldest son of the new Hand of the King, Lyonel Strong, who took over after Otto Hightower is “fired” for suggesting that Rhaenyra and Daemon were together.
As seen in the series, Ser Harwin is always close to Rhaenyra and the children, as well as protecting them from the cruelty of Criston Cole, who unleashes all his fury against the children, which arises after Rhaenyra refuses to escape with him, and this is part of what causes even more problems with Alicent, who is determined to make her son king. Harwin Strong is the future Lord of Herrenhal, although he has a brother named Lord Larys (who seems to be the great villain of this story), and before coming to Rhaenyra he gained a reputation for being a knight and a skilled warrior, so He becomes Commander of the City Watch, as well as protector of the princess.
His closeness to the princess and his resemblance to Jacaerys Velaryon, Lucerys Velaryon, and Joffrey Velaryon is what sparks rumors that he is the children’s father, and this is confirmed by his attitude towards them. Rhaenyra mentions that Laenor has not fulfilled her obligations as her husband, in addition to the fact that she remembers the arrangement that she proposed to him before they married, where she accepted that each one would have the possibility to seek her own interests. Laenor accepts the children as her own, but Harwin is the real father and this is why Lyonel Strong decides to send him back home, where he is killed (burned alive) by the assassins sent by his brother (who are criminals to the who cut out their tongues so they couldn’t speak if they were caught).
Does It Matter That Rhaenyra’s Children Are Bastards?
In the world of House of the Dragon, being a bastard is not the end of the world, many of them are recognized throughout history and come to have important positions and titles, so it does not matter that Harwin is the father of the children of Rhaenyra. They are still Targaryens (and it is completely provable that they are children of the future queen), in addition to having their own dragons (which does not happen with all the children of Alicent and that infuriates her more), and that is enough to fulfill with the prophecy of Aegon The conqueror, and so that they too are heirs to the throne.
