What does it take to rule a realm economically crippled by war as an idealist? Rhaenyra finds out in Episode 3 of House of the Dragon, Season 3.
The episode entitled “Rhaenyra Triumphant” starts with Ormund Hightower (James Norton) submitting to Daemon (Matt Smith) in the Riverlands and swearing loyalty to Rhaenyra after finding out that she has taken over King’s Landing. He also surrenders his ward, Daeron Targaryen (Charlie Gordon), the youngest of Viserys and Alicent’s children, and another claimant to the Iron Throne.
At King’s Landing, Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) tries to ask Daeron what he knows of the Greens’ plot to usurp the throne, but he stays quiet. She also comments that he’s a bit younger than she expected him to be. These are important details for later.
In a tense exchange with Rhaenyra, Alicent (Olivia Cooke) reveals that the Master of Coin had hidden the court’s gold. Unfortunately, Rhaenyra had executed him with other court members loyal to the Greens. Without the money, Rhaenyra couldn’t hold her coronation and related festivities to legitimize her ascension and pay for the upkeep of their castle, Red Keep. In a meeting with her court, Rhaenyra finds out that the surviving members of the Triarchy have kidnapped Westerosi women and children for ransom. Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno) also reminds her that there are people to feed in King’s Landing, and that if they go hungry, they could revolt.
Upon the advice of Alicent, Rhaenyra orders that Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) be declared dead, even though he’s only missing. But when she asks a septon (Simon Chandler) or priest to anoint her queen, he refuses, saying that he has not seen Aegon’s body and that the Silent Sisters have not tended to him yet.
Rhaenyra meets with the smallfolk in her throne room, but she feels uneasy because she’s… on her period? Here, show writer Sara Hess decides that Rhaenyra should act unreasonably because it’s that time of the month. When a wool-maker tells her that they’ve been losing sheep to dragons, the queen only says, “Might not the fleece be harvested before the animal is consumed?”
The night before that, Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint) asks that Rhaenyra legitimize his bastards, the Dragonseed Addam (Clinton Liberty) and Alyn (Abubakar Salim), the sailor who killed Lohar in the first episode. Rhaenyra hesitates, but she has Addam and the two other Dragonseeds, Ulf (Tom Bennett) and Hugh (Kieran Bew), knighted.
Hugh asks about being provided a living as a knight, to which Rhaenyra answers, “I have no small council at present, nor a Queensguard to serve me. I am awash in dilemmas and deficiencies. Let me find my footing and I will attend to your requests.” And sometimes, that’s all you need to tell people when you’re having a really shitty week.
Can Rhaenyra Remain a Queen of Her People?
Alicent meets with Rhaenyra again, only to ask that her father’s remains (executed by Rhaenyra herself in the last episode) be taken back to Oldtown to rest with her mother. Rhaenyra grants her request, and asks how she managed to run the Seven Kingdoms when she was queen. “You may not rule and remain yourself,” Alicent says.
Rhaenyra argues that Viserys had “remained himself” when he was king. But Alicent replies, “Your father lived in a world of his own construction. You and I have never set foot there.”
The queen holds a banquet with minor lords and merchants of the realm, but they’re served rats and mystery sludge. “This is what the common folk of my city ate, this and worse, while you and those like you hid provisions away in your storehouses,” Rhaenyra explains, before revealing that the Gold Cloaks have raided said storehouses, so that they could redistribute the hoarded provisions to the rest of the city. The lords and ladies are enraged.
After the banquet, she meets Ser Torrhen Manderly (Dan Fogler), who reminds her that it was her naval blockade at the Gullet that halted trade in the first place. She dismisses him and sends Daemon to the Vale, telling him to come back with gold or pledges of gold. Daemon suggests that they use their dragons to conquer the rest of the world, but Rhaenyra says it’s dangerous to dream of unlimited power. Before he leaves, he tells her that she still has to kill Daeron.
Where is Daeron Targaryen?
In the morning, Rhaenyra faces her people and promises to rule with strength and mercy, before handing out the food her soldiers had raided from the lords’ houses the previous night. When she returns to the Red Keep, Corlys confronts her about knighting Addam as “Addam of Hull” instead of “Addam Velaryon,” realizing that Rhaenyra is ashamed that her sons Jace, Luke, and Joffrey are all illegitimate.
Speaking of sons, Rhaenyra goes to Alicent and tells her that Daeron is in the Red Keep, and that she plans to banish him to the Wall to become a part of the Night’s Watch instead of beheading him. She takes Alicent to the boy, but they don’t recognize each other.
The boy reveals that Ormund had forced him to play decoy to the real Daeron, or his mother would be hanged. So, who’s the real Daeron, and where is he? Fans suspect that Daeron is the red-headed boy accompanying Ormund in the Riverlands.
“What game does he play?” Rhaenyra asks, just before a dragonkeeper comes and tells her that the Hightowers have taken over the market town of Tumbleton and hold its people and a young dragon hostage. The dragonkeeper dissuades her from riding to Tumbleton to burn Ormund’s soldiers, saying that she might also burn her own people.
House of the Dragon Season 3 is streaming on HBO Max.
Frequently Asked Questions
In “Rhaenyra Triumphant,” Rhaenyra secures King’s Landing but discovers the treasury is empty. She also discovers that the Daeron Targaryen that Ormund Hightower surrendered to her is a decoy.
A septon refuses to anoint Rhaenyra because Aegon has only been declared dead, not confirmed dead, and the Silent Sisters have not yet tended to a body. Without that confirmation, the anointment cannot proceed.
The boy held at King’s Landing is revealed to be a decoy forced into the role of Daeron Targaryen by Ormund Hightower. The real Daeron’s location is left unconfirmed, though fans suspect he is the red-headed boy traveling with Ormund in the Riverlands.
Corlys asks Rhaenyra to legitimize Addam of Hull and Alyn, his sons born outside marriage, so they can inherit Velaryon status. Rhaenyra hesitates and knights them without the Velaryon name, a choice Corlys later ties to her own discomfort over her illegitimate sons.
House of the Dragon Season 3 is available for streaming exclusively on HBO Max, with new episodes released weekly following the show’s established broadcast schedule, Monday, 9 a.m. in the Philippines.
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