'House of the Dragon' on HBO: Who is Eve Best's character Rhaenys Targaryen?
From the time of 'Game Of Thrones' till the release of 'Game Of Thrones: House Of The Dragon', it seems that the women in the Targaryen family have been the makers or breakers of it. As the audience will soon rewind to the old times prewar, when dragons were everywhere, and Targaryens had the infamous Iron Throne, they will also witness that the Targaryens' daughters always had a difficult fate. In this series, Rhaenys Targaryen will be seen as an integral part. Wondering how? Don't wait it out, read more to find out about the silver-haired beautiful character which Eve Best has played in 'Game Of Thrones: House Of The Dragon'
In a sneak peek we saw Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best) mentioning: "Men would rather torch the entire Westeros rather than seeing a woman on the Iron Throne." Those 5 seconds of screen time in the trailer had such a powerful impact and message of how the women were always oppressed and the toxic masculinity was another reason which led to the civil war in Westeros.
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Who is Rhaenys Targaryen and what is her significance in the show?
Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best) was the granddaughter of Jaehaerys I Targaryen and the one and only child of Jaehaerys I. She was the princess of the Targaryen dynasty which made her the first cousin to Viserys I, and Daemon who were the sons of Jaehaerys I's second son.
She got married to Corlys Velaryon, also known as the Master of Driftmark. He was the admiral of the Targaryen fleets and currently the wealthiest living man in Westeros, having grown rich on trading expeditions he personally made to the far east.
The conflict between the two families started when Rhaenys's father died before her grandfather King Jaehaerys I did, after which Jaehaerys I made the controversial and shocking decision to name his second son as his heir, Rhaenys, even though according to traditional inheritance law based on being the first, and a lord's daughter should succeed ahead of Rhaenys uncle who was the second son of Jaehaerys. However, for this, she is called "The Queen Who Never Was".
Jaehaerys's younger son died a few years later while Jaehaerys was still alive, leaving two rival male heirs to the Iron Throne: Rhaenys's own son Laenor (based on being the firstborn), or Rhaenys's first cousin Viserys I (son of Jaeherys's second son, and thus an unbroken male line). Stressing about a civil war, Jaehaerys solved the issue by holding a Great Council at Harrenhal in which all the lords of Westeros held a vote, and elected Viserys I as the heir to the throne. Jaehaerys died of old age a few years later and Viserys I clambered to the throne.
This created a drift between the Velaryons and the Targaryens. Velaryons got detached from the Targaryens after being humiliated twice and having to pass over their birthrights. However, things changed when Viserys I only living child is a daughter.
Tune into HBO or HBO Max on Sunday, August 21 to watch 'Game Of Thrones: House Of The Dragon'.
