Spoiler Warning: House of the Dragon
Laenor Velaryon, son of “The Sea Snake,” Corlys Velaryon, and Rhaenys Targaryen, “The Queen Who Never Was,” were quickly becoming one of the most influential people in all of Westeros. In the war for the Stepstones archipelago that took place over the first few episodes ofHouse of the Dragon, he was instrumental in defeating thevillainous Crabfeeder. Riding on the back of his dragon Seasmoke, he set fire to scores of enemy combatants, cementing himself as a formidable warrior despite his youth.
However, Laenor was forced to put his days of battling on the high seas behind him when he was married off to Princess Rhaenyra. Their royal union was cursed from the very beginning. Only moments before the two completed their nuptials, Laenor’s longtime romantic partner, Joffrey Lonmouth, was savagely beatento death by Ser Criston Colein a brutal scene that seemed to set the tone for their strained relationship.
Nevertheless, the two remained married and even built a family together. Though, the legitimacy of their three heirs is the subject of much dissent in the Kingdom. However, the most recent episode ofHouse of the Dragon, “Driftmark,” saw Princess Rhaenyra taking drastic actions against Laenor that would be insurmountable obstacles for even the most loving couple. What exactly happened to Laenor Valeryon?
Laenor’s Sham Marriage to Princess Rhaenyra
During the fifth episode ofHouse of the Dragon,“We Light the Way,“Laenor was married to Princess Rhaenyra in an arranged partnership set up by King Viserys in order to both bring the two houses together. It was also to assure his daughter, who he had previously selected as his heir, would have offspring who could eventually succeed her. Rhaenyra did have three children – Jacerys, Lucerys, and Joffrey. However, it is a poorly kept secret throughout the Kingdom that Laenor, who is a gay man, is not their father. The three children were born from a decade-spanning illicit affair that Rhaenyra had been having with a member of the City Watch, Ser Harwin Strong.
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From the very beginning, there was an understanding between Rhaenyra and Laenor that their marriage would be less than genuine and that they would both seek out happiness as they saw fit. Laenor is well aware that the children are not his, and “Driftmark” sees him drunk and grieving the loss of his sister Laena, utterly unconcerned with his children. Later in the episode, he apologizes to Rhaenyra and promises to recommit himself to their marriage, but it is too little, too late for the Princess.
Princess Rhaenyra and Prince Daemon Rekindle Their Relationship
Princess Rhaenyra never had a deep relationship with Laenor, but she has long been in love with heruncle, Daemon Targaryen. In “Driftmark,” the two finally see one another after almost a decade apart and quickly pick up their relationship where it left off, sneaking off to a remote corner of the beach to… couple, as Ser Otto Hightower put it in “King of the Narrow Sea.”
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Princess Rhaenyra is aware that conflict is brewing in the Kingdom, and she knows that Daemon would be a powerful ally in a fight against the “greens,” which is the term she uses to describe the faction who may reject her claim to the Iron Throne. At the end of “Driftmark,” after Laenor’s untimely death at the hands of Ser Qarl Correy,Rhaenyra and Daemon marryone another in the incestuous Targaryen tradition, thus creating one of the strongest partnerships in all of Westeros.
An Assassination Plot Turned Daring Escape
Before Rhaenyra married Daemon, something needed to be done about her current husband, Laenor. Daemon recruits Ser Qarl Correy, Laenor’s romantic partner, to assassinate him, offering a considerable amount of money.
Later, Laenor and Ser Qarl battle in Laenor’s chambers, and Laenor’s parents find their son’s charred corpse in the hearth. However, in the very last moments of “Driftmark,” audiences find out that Laenor is still very much alive and that Ser Qarl had been in on the plot from the beginning. Having shorn off his silver dreadlocks, Laenor gets into a rowboat with Ser Qarl and the two set sail for an unknown shore.
Laenor may very well be inclined to stay in hiding, living out the rest of his life as a free man in a country neighboring Westeros. Given the fact that he knows who attempted to kill him, Rhaenyra and Daemon had better hope that he doesn’t return, as the Kingdom becoming knowledgeable of the new couple’s assassination attempt would be disastrous for Rhaenyra’s reign. The Princess has made herself a powerful enemy, and Laenor will not forget her abhorrent actions any time soon.
