How Queen Alicent Hightower Was Hit By Brutal Poetic Justice For Crowning Aegon II As King

Queen Alicent Hightower relentlessly pursued the Throne for Aegon II. But in doing so she has brought Poetic Justice to her story

By Ishita Chatterjee
December 14,2022
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War is brewing between the Blacks and the Greens in season 2 of House of the Dragon. But before the Dance of the Dragons begins, fans are busy decoding the journeys of various characters. And during a rewatch, we found that no character will suffer poetic justice like Queen Alicent Hightower later on. Let us explain:

Why Did Queen Alicent Hightower Put Aegon II Targaryen On The Throne?

Alicent Hightower and Rhaenyra Targaryen
Alicent Hightower and Rhaenyra Targaryen

Throughout the first season of House of the Dragon, the reason behind Alicent Hightower scheming and plotting to put her son Aegon II Targaryen on the throne is made clear. It’s because she believes that if she doesn’t, then Rhaenyra will kill her children. After all, they have a claim to the throne too.

So she’s motivated by fear for her children’s lives. It’s a fear that’s not real since Rhaenyra had a lot of chances to kill her half-siblings, but she didn’t. Instead, she proposed marrying her eldest son, Jacaerys, to her daughter, Helaena. So they could rule together after her. It would have ended any tensions between the two sides.

But Alicent Hightower was too consumed by the fear instilled by her father, Otto Hightower, and abandoned by her husband to see reason. As a result, she unrelentingly pursued the throne for her son.

The Poetic Justice That’s In Store For Her

Aegon II, Aemond, Helaena, Alicent, and Otto
Aegon II, Aemond, Helaena, Alicent, and Otto

Alicent Hightower faces poetic justice at the end of the Dance of the Dragons. In the end, it is her mad pursuit of the throne that takes her children’s lives. Her eldest son, Aegon II, dies after being poisoned, Aemond Targaryen dies during a battle with Daemon, and her prophetic daughter, Helaena, commits suicide.

Thus, her line ends, and after years of scheming and pain, she has nothing to show for it. It’s Rhaenyra Targaryen’s line that ultimately survives because Aegon III Targaryen becomes the next King. As for Alicent Hightower, she doesn’t see death with her children. The Queen dies during an epidemic called the Winter Fever that gripped Westeros after the Dance of the Dragons ended.

Stay tuned for more analysis.