New cast members of the next series have been presented in a featurette released by author George RR Martin in anticipation of House of the Dragon. The video runs for around 5 minutes & has Martin discussing the history of Westeros 300 years before the events of Game of Thrones, after the victory of Aegon the Conqueror. Martin stated this about the show, which is based on the civil war described in Dance of Dragons: “The narrative of House of the Dragon is a story of extremely imperfect human people, capable of doing wonderful things and capable of doing horrible things, capable of valour and capable of cowardice.
To me, the best fictional characters are those who are like this. In continuation, the author states, “Jaehaerys Targaryen, the ancient king who was the fourth Targaryen to rule over Westeros, seized the throne at the tender age of fourteen and reigned for fifty-five years. There had been a period of relative calm in Westeros’s past. King’s Landing had phenomenal expansion during this period of economic success. Fun was had by all. When it came time to describe the historical context of the programme, Martin said, “Viserys I, who is the heir & chosen by the Great Council when Jaehaerys passed away, he took over and he is now reigning over the 7 Kingdoms.” You can see how the seeds of conflict are occasionally sowed in times of calm, and there were more Targaryens at that time.
People die, and their sons succeed them as lords,” he said. Seeds are being planted with the idea that the next generation is not necessarily bound by their father’s allegiances, actions, or pledges. According to the author, “Game of Thrones centred on Starks and Lannisters,” a reference to the original series. The Targaryen people are the focus of House of the Dragon. Furthermore, Martin provided some background on the Hightowers by saying, To put it simply, the Hightowers are the oldest buildings in all of Westeros. For hundreds of years, at least. Their capital, Old Town, was the largest city in Westeros for thousands of years. They are a highly affluent family since Old Town is prosperous due to commerce. The High Tower, from which the Hightowers gain their name, stands at its heart.
Lord Hightower, it goes on, “is in Old Town, and from there he rules the city’s possessions.” While Ned Stark serves as Hand of the King to Robert at the start of Game of Thrones, in this narrative it is Otto, his younger brother, who has this post. The author then moves on to the Velaryon family, saying, In addition, the Velaroyns were a noble family from the Valyrian Freehold. The strongest empire in my universe, at least in the west. They beat the Targaryens to Westeros. They weren’t dragon lords, but they were skilled sailors anyway. The Freehold of Valyria was heavily reliant on commerce at the period, and it was in an advantageous position to control trade with all the kingdoms of Westeros and other northern regions. So, they uprooted to pursue better economic opportunities.
His revelation that “Corlys Velaryon is Lord Admiral and Masters of Ship like his ancestor of the same name” introduced the prominent members of house Velaryon and their ties to the Targaryens. Because of this, the Velaryons have risen rapidly through the ranks of House Targaryen ever since Aegon’s victory. And after all his travels, he settled down with the “queen who never was,” Rhaenys Targaryen. Martin, when asked about the might of dragons, says, “Dragons are incredibly strong and can truly swing the course of a fight.” It can glide through the air, is tough to strike, and exhales flames if it does so. That’s why the Targaryens felt so safe in their position of power: they had Dragons and everyone was afraid of them. The premiere of House of the Dragon will air on August 21.