Viserys Targaryen is the king in House of the Dragon. In the Game of Thrones prequel, he rules over the seven kingdoms
Viserys Targaryen: This is the king in House of the Dragon
Viserys, played by Paddy Considine, is the king in the prequel to the acclaimed fantasy series Game of Thrones. In it, fans learn the prehistory of the Iron Throne. It is set around 200 years before the events of GOT and can be streamed on wowtv.de and other sites. It has already been announced that the second season will be released in summer 2024.
- Viserys is the first of his name. In the series, he is between 60 and 69 years old, was born in King’s Landing and belongs to the Targaryen family. He is therefore part of the House of the Dragon.
- His father Baelon dies young, which is why Viserys has to take his place in the line of succession after his grandfather Jaehaerys at a young age. At 16, he marries the love of his life, Lady Aemma, and at 26 he sits on the iron throne.
- “The young king” or “the peaceful one” is what Viserys is popularly known as. He avoids conflict, wants to please everyone, but is nevertheless determined. As king, he wants to preserve the power of the Targaryen, but also the peace in the land.
- As king, he has to assert himself time and again against his shady brother Daemon. After some intrigues and an incident with Visery’s daughter Rhaenyra, he banishes his brother from the capital for good.
- Attention: Viserys the First is not to be confused with Viserys Targaryen the Third, who is known from Game of Thrones. Although he also sees himself as a king, he succumbs to his strong sister Daenerys before he can become one.
Viserys creates his own family hell
He dreams of a son, a conqueror: this dream feels like a prophecy to Viserys. However, his belief plunges the family into misfortune and the kingdom into civil war.
- With Aemma, Viserys has a daughter, Rhaenyra. However, he dreams of a son to take over his throne. When his wife carries a baby after several miscarriages, Visery’s vision seems to come true.
- Complications arise during the birth. Viserys has to make a decision. But fate catches up with him: he decides against his wife’s life during the delivery, and the baby also dies one day after birth.
- Viserys names his only living child, his daughter Rhaenyra, as his rightful heir. She is to take over the throne after his death.
- When he remarries, he has more children with his new wife Alicent Hohenturm. Among them are two sons. Alicent urges him to reconsider his choice and appoint his son Aegon as his successor, but Viserys remains loyal to Rhaenyra.
- A dispute breaks out between Rhaenyra and Alicent, dividing the people into two camps. The Blacks see Visery’s daughter as the next queen, while the Greens want Aegon as his heir to the throne.
- Despite his good intentions for his kingdom, Viserys finds it increasingly difficult to be a good king amidst unrest and intrigue. The end of his reign sparks a civil war – the Dance of the Dragons.
The dark metaphor of King Viserys
In the first episode, Viserys cuts himself on the iron blades of his throne. In the second episode, wounds appear on his back, which soon turn into an uncontrollable inflammation. This illness describes Viserys’ existence as king only too well.
- When Viserys cuts his finger open, the wound simply won’t heal. The king’s body shows more and more wounds, which mysteriously spread
- Two of his fingers are amputated and he also loses an eye and an arm. Over time, the once handsome king looks more and more like a zombie.
- With his declining health, Viserys also loses his people. He tries to overlook the division, but then war breaks out after his death.
- In the podcast “EW’s West of Westeros”, actor Paddy Considine explains that Viserys suffers from leprosy. “His body is decaying, his bones are decomposing […] It becomes a metaphor for being king,” explains Considine.
- Viserys accepted his guilt for the death of his wife with the disease. As the leprosy progresses, the country becomes increasingly sick. Viserys dies and with him the peace of Westeros
