Warning: Contains major SPOILERS for Fire & Blood, the book on which House of the Dragon is based. Death comes to everyone in Westeros, and although Rhaenyra Targaryen's death in Dragon House It won't come for some time, but those who are familiar with the Dance of Dragons know how it comes to an end. Emma D'Arcy could be the protagonist of Dragon Houseis scaled, but, as with Game of Thronesit doesn't mean they are safe. This is a story where anyone can die, and since it's set over a century before its original series, obviously everyone dies at some point in the timeline, but this will be particularly brutal when it comes to Rhaenyra.
Rhaenyra spent much of the Dance of Dragons relatively safe on Dragonstone, though this changes in Dragon House Season 3 as she takes King's Landing. Sitting on the Iron Throne may be what she has wanted for a long time, but it will also eventually lead to her downfall. Based on both Game of Thrones and George R.R. Martin's book, Fire and BloodRhaenyra's death is being gradually planned, if it stays true to the story described by Martin.
Rhaenyra Targaryen is killed by Sunfyre
Aegon's dragon burns and eats the queen
Rhaenyra's death occurs very late in the civil warafter the warring Green and Black factions of the Targaryens suffered heavy losses. Rhaenyra becomes queen and takes control of King's Landing, but her rule eventually turns sour, leading to riots in the city and the commoners storming the Well of Dragons and killing several dragons (and Rhaenyra's son, Joffrey). Eventually, she is forced to flee the capital.
Rhaenyra's journey after this point is painful, and the “gray and haggard” the queen is even forced to sell her crown at one point just to finance safe passage on a ship. Ultimately, she returns to Dragonstone, where she is betrayed by Ser Alfred Broome and discovers that none other than Aegon was in control of the island. Rhaenyra's remaining followers were defeated and Aegon gave his half-sister to feed his dragon, Sunfyre. As Fire and Blood recounts:
“…King Aegon II handed over his half-sister to his dragon. Sunfyre, it is said, at first seemed to have no interest in the offering, until Broome stabbed the queen in the chest with his dagger. The smell of blood awakened the dragon , who smelled His Grace and then bathed her in a burst of flame, so suddenly that Ser Alfred's cloak caught fire as he leapt away and shouted one last curse at his half-brother before his jaws fell. Sunfyre closed around her, tearing off her arm and shoulder.
“Septon Eustace tells us that the golden dragon devoured the queen in six bites, leaving only her left leg below the shin “for the Stranger.” Elinda Massey, the youngest and kindest of Rhaenyra's ladies-in-waiting, reportedly gouged out her own eyes at the sight, while the queen's son, Aegon the Younger, watched in horror, unable to move, as the Delight of the Realm and Queen of Half a Year. , passed from this veil of tears on the twenty-second day of the tenth moon of the 130th year after Aegon's Conquest. he was thirty-three years old.”
When will Rhaenyra die in House Of The Dragon?
Won't be on screen for several years
It is clear that a lot needs to happen before Rhaenyra's death can occur in Dragon House. Even after a full season of war, there are many more battles to be fought, several alliances to change, and characters that must die before the queen herself is killed in an explosion of fire and blood.
Rhaenyra is one of the characters the show is marketed around, so HBO would probably like her to survive until the final season.
With Rhaenyra taking King's Landing in Season 3, it would be too hasty for her death to occur in the same season. Additionally, it depends on how long the show runs, which could be four or five seasons, and how many episodes each airing has. Rhaenyra is one of the characters the show is marketed around, so HBO would probably like her to survive until the final season.
There are some important events that need to be shown after Rhaenyra's death, including the death of Aegon II himself and the actual end of the civil war, but this could be wrapped up in a few episodes. With that, again, depending on how the story is handled, expect Rhaenyra's death to happen halfway to the three-quarters mark of any Dragon House season 4 or season 5.
Rhaenyra's death was spoiled by Game Of Thrones
Add him to the list of Joffrey's crimes
In Game of Thrones season 3, episode 4, “And Now His Watch Has Ended,” Joffrey Baratheon takes Margaery Tyrell on a tour of the Great Sept of Baelor. While there, he loves to tell his future wife what happened to Rhaenyra, saying:
“Rhaenyra Targaryen was murdered by her brotheror rather, your dragon. It ate at her as her son watched. What's left of her is buried in the crypts below.”
It's not hard to understand why Joffrey would revel in such a cruel story, but it means Game of Thrones fans had Rhaenyra's fate revealed to them even before Fire and Blood was published in 2018. Of course, it is possible Dragon House will change Rhaenyra's death in some way, as it didn't shy away from altering the source material, but it would be very difficult to do so given how important it is to the overall story. Given the length of the show's production, though, it should be at least several years before that happens.
Could the show change Rhaenyra's death from the books?
The show can use the audience's knowledge against them
Fans of George RR Martin's books and those who watched Game of Thrones We know very well that an adaptation of the source material doesn't necessarily mean things won't be changed. Dragon House has already proven that he is willing to change things, leading even Martin himself to criticize House of the Dragon'is telling stories. This means there is a possibility that Rhaenyra's death could be changed.
Even though Joffrey repeats the story about Rhaenyra's death that everyone already knows, it could still be a lie.
Given the fact that Joffrey has already explained exactly what happens to Rhaenyra in Game of ThronesIt would make sense for the show to try to defy fan expectations by revealing a secret truth about the story Joffrey told. It was a common theme in Game of Thrones that the well-known legends of Westeros were not always the whole truth, as happened with the relationship between Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark. Even though Joffrey repeats the story about Rhaenyra's death that everyone already knows, it could still be a lie.
This could have already been foreshadowed in Dragon House about how the show handled the death of Rhaenyra's first husband, Laenor Velaryon. Although it appeared he was murdered to allow Daemon Targaryen to become Rhaenyra's husband, Rhaenyra actually helped Laenor fake her death and navigate to a new life. However, as Martin's writings do not suggest that Laenor lived, it may be that Dragon House is willing to make a similar change for Rhaenyra.