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While the timeline of House of the Dragon may seem worlds away from that of Jon Snow, Tyrion Lannister, and Daenerys Targaryen, key storylines in the ongoing spinoff series strongly connect to the events of Game of Thrones, proving that an understanding of history helps explain the present.
Laws of Succession
At the beginning of House of the Dragon, the old king, Jaeherys I, outlived both of his sons, which led to a succession crisis. Traditional laws determine Rhaenys, his granddaughter, through his first son, or even her son Laenor, as the heir. Instead, he names Viserys, his grandson through his second son, the successor on his claim of an unbroken male line.
The preference for a male heir to the throne would ripple for years and centuries to come, as currently unfolding in the ongoing series, but also in Game of Thrones, when Dany increasingly worries about Jon Snow’s real lineage as the son of her older brother Rhaegar.
Dragons in Westeros
With both Black and Green factions using dragons in their warfare, the Dance of the Dragons set the extinction of the magical beasts into motion. While eggs were left afterwards, House Targaryen had problems hatching them, resulting in weak or deformed creatures that died soon after or eggs that never hatched.
Dany's successful hatching of three dragons more than a century after the last one died marks a rebirth of the Targaryen line, accompanied by a legitimate claim to the throne.
The Fall of House Targaryen
While the eventual fall of the Targaryen line did not happen overnight, their influence gradually declined when they lost their dragons, considered by many as the “greatest power in the world,” and when their bloodline started to show a propensity for madness.
In the end, a weakened House Targaryen encouraged other political players in Westeros to lay their claim to the Iron Throne, which we see in the first few seasons of Game of Thrones. Infighting, reliance on magic, and hubris through the centuries have led to the dynasty’s downfall. Like their dragons, the Targaryen blood is almost extinct by the end of the series, save for one character.
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