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 rejected this proposal and instead chose to marry Princess Rhaenyra to Laenor Velaryon. Fans have now speculated that if King Viserys had married Aegon and Rhaenyra, the Targaryen Civil War might have been averted. In the past, we’ve seen Viserys make a number of terrible decisions. In fact, he was deemed unfit for the crown by many fans and the Iron Throne. However, his decision not to pair Rhaenyra and Aegon wasn’t necessarily without thought or reason. Here’s why brother-sister marriage isn’t as good as it seems.
That may not have stopped the Dance of the Dragons
Marrying Aegon II Targaryen and Princess Rhaenyra may not have stopped 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 was maybe put it off for a few more years. Despite Otto Hightower himself wanting the marriage between Aegon and Rhaenyra, there’s a good chance there were problems nonetheless. First, when Otto suggested this union, Aegon was much too young. Second and most importantly, Rhaenyra would always be queen. Aegon would have been only the king consort. While Aegon himself may have been happy with it since he didn’t seem to want to rule anyway, Otto Hightower would have wanted more. He most likely would have manipulated Alicent like he did in the actual events.
Rhaenyra would have refused to become a puppet on the throne, controlled by House Hightower. His dominant personality would also continually clash with Aegon, Alicent, and Otto. In fact, she would have chosen a different hand for herself and removed Otto from his post just as she asked King Viserys. This could have led to Alicent poisoning or killing Rhaenyra after the birth of a son to advance the line of Aegon. That way Aegon would sit on the throne and a Dance of the Dragons would break out again. Another possibility was that the kingdom itself would have refused to accept Rhaenyra as queen. They could have wanted Aegon instead since he was male, 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 big.
Just as King Viserys himself pointed out, Aegon was only 2 years old when Otto Hightower proposed to them. When Princess Rhaenyra was 17 or 18 years old. Viserys was obviously opposed to this idea just as he had refused to marry Laena Velaryon. Although this age gap may not seem significant since Rhaenyra and Daemon also have a 16 year gap between them. It is different when the woman is significantly older. The Targaryens begin producing children early enough in their lives to produce multiple heirs. The age gap between Aegon and Rhaenyra would have cost him some very significant childbearing years.
King Viserys wanted to strengthen the bond with House Velaryon
King Viserys wanted Laenor Velaryon to be the king’s consort
Finally, arguably the most important reason was that Viserys needed to strengthen the bond between House Targaryen and House Velaryon. Lyonel Strong also believed that Rhaenyra should marry 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 preparing to betroth Laena to the son of the Sea Lord of Braavos. A marriage between Rhaenyra and Laenor would prevent any rebellion Lord Corlys might have planned. Additionally, with the Velaryons at their side, they would have the largest navy and largest fleet of ships in all of Westeros. They would essentially rule the seas. The Velaryons also had pure Valyrian blood flowing through their veins, which was a big plus.
