Why Did Viserys Refuse To Marry Princess Rhaenyra and Aegon II Targaryen?

House of the Dragon episode 3 saw Ser Otto Hightower, the Hand of the King, suggest a marriage between Aegon II Targaryen and Princess Rhaenyra

By Chandraboli Majumdar
October 7,2022
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House of the Dragon episode 3 saw Ser Otto Hightower, the Hand of the King, suggest a marriage between Aegon II Targaryen and Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen. However, King Viserys shot down this proposal and instead chose to marry Princess Rhaenyra to Laenor Velaryon. Fans have now been theorizing that if King Viserys married Aegon and Rhaenyra, the Targaryen civil war may have been prevented. Now in the past, we have seen Viserys make a number of terrible decisions. In fact, he has been deemed unfit for the crown by many fans and the Iron Throne alike. However, his decision to not pair Rhaenyra and Aegon was not necessarily without thought or reason. Here’s why the brother-sister marriage is not as good as it seems.

It may not have prevented the Dance of the Dragons

Marrying Aegon II Targaryen and Princess Rhaenyra may not have prevented the Dance of the Dragons
Marrying Aegon II Targaryen and Princess Rhaenyra may not have prevented the Dance of the Dragons

The Dance of the Dragons was an inevitable event. Marrying Rhaenyra and Aegon may not have prevented the Targaryen Civil War. All it would have done is maybe postpone it for a few more years. Despite Otto Hightower himself wanting the marriage between Aegon and Rhaenyra, chances are that issues would have arisen nonetheless. Firstly, when Otto suggested this union, Aegon was far too young. Secondly and most importantly, Rhaenyra would still be queen. Aegon would have only been the King consort. While, Aegon himself may have been satisfied with that since he did not seem to want to rule anyways, Otto Hightower would have wanted more. He would have most likely manipulated Alicent just as he did in the actual happenings.

Rhaenyra would have refused to become a puppet on the throne, controlled by House Hightower. Her dominant personality would have continuously clashed with Aegon, Alicent and Otto as well. In fact she would have chosen a different Hand for herself and removed Otto from the position just as she asked of King Viserys. This could have led to Alicent poisoning or killing Rhaenyra after the birth of a son to carry forward Aegon’s line. This way, Aegon would sit on the throne and a Dance of the Dragons would have erupted still. Another possibility was that the realm itself would have refused to accept Rhaenyra as their Queen. They could have wanted Aegon instead since he was a man thus causing a rift between the two that could only end in violence and death.

The age difference between Aegon and Rhaenyra

The age difference between Rhaenyra and Aegon was too large
The age difference between Rhaenyra and Aegon was too large

Just as King Viserys himself pointed out, Aegon was just 2 years old when Otto Hightower proposed their marriage. While Princess Rhaenyra was 17 or 18 years old. Viserys was obviously opposed to this idea just as he had refused to marry Laena Velaryon. While this age gap may not seem significant since Rhaenyra and Daemon too have a 16 year gap between them. It is different when the woman is significantly older. The Targaryens start producing children quite early during their lifetime so as to produce multiple heirs. The age gap between Aegon and Rhaenyra would have costed her some very important child bearing years.

King Viserys wanted to strengthen the bond with House Velaryon

King Viserys wanted Laenor Velaryon to be King consort
King Viserys wanted Laenor Velaryon to be King consort

Lastly, arguably the most important reason was that Viserys needed to strengthen the bond between House Targaryen and House Velaryon. Lyonel Strong too believed that Rhaenyra should wed Ser Laenor Velaryon and unite the two houses in marriage. This way their contentious relationship with Lord Corlys would be mended. Lord Corlys was already getting ready to betroth Laena to the Son of the Sealord of Braavos. A marriage between Rhaenyra and Laenor would prevent any rebellion that Lord Corlys may have planned. Additionally, with the Velaryons by their side, they would have the largest navy and the largest fleet of ships in all of Westeros. They would essentially rule the seas. Velaryons also had pure Valyrian blood running through their veins which was a great advantage.