An essential guide to all the Targaryen kids on 'House of the Dragon'

Kim Renfro, Ayomikun Adekaiyero, and Palmer Haasch

Updated

2024-06-20T20:12:27Z

left: leo ashton as young aemond targaryen, a teenage boy with messy long blonde hair and a bloody wound over his left eye, bathed in warm light; right: ewan mitchell as adult aemond targaryen, with a scar and eyepatch over his left eye and well-kept blonde hair pulled back — Leo Ashton and Ewan Mitchell as young and adult versions of Aemond Targaryen in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO

The Targaryens have a confusing at best family tree in "House of the Dragon."
Alicent and Rhaenyra's kids grew from toddlers to young adults within the first season.
We put together a guide for all the children, with photos of all the actors who played them.

"House of the Dragon" is finally back — and so is its wildly expansive Targaryen brood .

By season two, Westeros is coalescing around two potential rules: Aegon II, King Viserys' eldest male descendant, and Rhaenyra, his eldest daughter and chosen heir. By the time Viserys dies, both Aegon II and Rhaenyra have children of their own. Furthermore, some of the Targaryen children are finally coming of age, making them players in the war themselves.

Still, they're a lot to keep track of. We've put together a guide to all of the children in the Targaryen family with pictures, so you can keep all of those silver-haired (and brown-haired, if your name starts with "J" and ends with "acaerys") kids straight.

Warning: Major spoilers for "House of the Dragon" season one, and the season two premiere.

Let's start with Jace, the firstborn child of Rhaenyra and heir to the Iron Throne after his mother.

left: a young jacaerys in house of the dragon, wearing armor and with fluffy brown hair; right: older jacaerys played by harry collett, he has shoulder-length curly hair and is wearing a cloak as he walks through snow — Jacaerys is starting to become a player in the war by season two of "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO

His full name is Jacaerys, though everyone calls him "Jace."

Jace was born sometime in the 10-year gap between episodes five and six of "House of the Dragon." Though Rhaenyra and her allies insist on publicly claiming that Jace is the son of Laenor Velaryon (Rhaenyra's first husband and future king-consort), his real father is the late Harwin Strong.

Luke was Rhaenyra's second-born son and heir to the Driftwood Throne.

Side by side images of a young boy with curly hair, and a teen boy with the same hair. — Lucerys in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton / HBO

Lucerys "Luke" Velaryon is another of Rhaenyra's children she had with Harwin Strong, though the realm is meant to believe he is the second son born to Laenor and Rhaenyra.

Luke was the kid who cut Aemond's eye (we'll get to Aemond and his siblings soon) in episode seven, "Driftmark." In the finale, the pair face off again with their dragons, Vhagar and Arrax. Unfortunately, this time their fight ends badly for Luke.

Joffrey is the youngest son from Rhaenyra's first marriage (and affair).

Side by side images of a woman holding a baby and a young boy with dark hair. — Joffrey as a baby and as a young boy. HBO

Joffrey was named after the man who was in a secret relationship with Laenor when they were both teenagers. Even though Joffrey (like Jace and Luke) was really Harwin Strong's son, his faux-father chose the name shortly after his birth in episode six.

Joffrey is bonded to the dragon Tyraxes.

Now onto Alicent's children, all fathered by King Viserys. Their oldest child together is Aegon II.

left: aegon II as a baby with white hair; center: aegon as a teenager with long, white hair and armor; right: tom glynn-carney as aegon in season two, with shoulder length white hair — Aegon II is Alicent and Viserys' first son. Ollie Upton/HBO

Aegon II (also called "Aegon the Elder" in the "Fire and Blood" book by George R.R. Martin) was the first boy born to King Viserys who survived childbirth.

Aegon the Elder is the son of Queen Alicent, and many lords in the realm of Westeros argued that he should ascend the Iron Throne after Viserys dies, surpassing the named heir: Rhaenyra. After Viserys dies in episode eight, the Green Council crowns Aegon with the conqueror's crown, before word can reach Rhaenyra.

Aegon II is bonded to the dragon Sunfyre.

Alicent and Viserys' second born child is Helaena.

Three side-by-side images of a baby, a teenage girl, and a young woman. — Helaena Targaryen as a baby, a young girl, and a young woman. HBO

Helaena was the first girl born to either Alicent or Rhaenyra. In between episodes, Helaena was married off to her older brother, Aegon the Elder.

Helaena is bonded to the dragon Dreamfyre.

Aegon and Helaena have children of their own — twins named Jaehaerys and Jaehaera.

A scene from "House of the Dragon" season one, episode nine. HBO

In the ninth episode of "House of the Dragon" season one, we saw a glimpse of the blonde twins when Alicent went into Helaena's room.

The twins come back into play in the season two premiere after Daemon hires a pair of assassins known as "Blood and Cheese" to kill Aemond. When they're unable to find Aemond, they decide to kill Jaehaerys instead while Helaena runs away with Jaehaera.

Alicent's youngest child is Aemond, now known as Aemond One-Eye.

A side by side image of a young boy with white hair, and an older man with an eyepatch. — Aemond "One Eye" Targaryen as a boy and a young man. HBO

Aemond was the last of his siblings to claim a dragon, though taking Vhagar for his own cost him an eye after a fight broke out among all the children in season one, episode seven.

In season one, episode eight, Aemond is now a confident swordsman and seemingly more capable than his older brother, Aegon the Elder. In the finale, Aemond reveals that under his eyepatch, his eye has turned bright blue, similar to the White Walkers in "Game of Thrones."

By season two, he — and more importantly, his extremely large dragon — are a big asset for Aegon II's side of the war.

Now, onto Daemon's children. He has two daughters with his deceased wife Laena Velaryon, and Baela is the elder.

Side by side images of a young girl and a young woman with curly white hair. — Baela Velaryon in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton / HBO

In episode eight, we see that Baela has been sent to live at Driftmark as a ward, learning the ways of the court from her grandmother (Rhaenys). She was betrothed to Lucerys Velaryon before his death.

Baela is a dragonrider, and bonded to the dragon Moondancer.

Rhaena is Daemon and Laena's younger daughter.

Side by side images of a young girl and a young woman with long white hair. — Rhaena Velaryon in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton / HBO

Daemon and Laena married and had their two children in the intervening 10 years between episodes five and six. By episode eight, Rhaena was happily living with Daemon and her new stepmother, Rhaenyra. She was eventually betrothed to Lucerys Velaryon, prior to his death.

Unlike her family members, Rhaena isn't bonded to a dragon.

And last but not least, Daemon and Rhaenyra now have children together. Their first trueborn son is also named Aegon.

A young baby in a dark room. — Aegon the Younger, son of Rhaenyra and Daemon. HBO

Aegon was also named after Aegon the Conqueror, adding to some confusion about which Aegon is which.

Since Aegon III is just a toddler in season one, episode eight, with Aegon II in his 20s, the books refer to him as Aegon the Younger.

So Aegon the Elder is Alicent's son with Viserys, and Aegon the Younger is Rhaenyra's son with Daemon (and also Aegon the Elder's half-nephew).

In "Fire and Blood," Aegon the Younger is bonded to the dragon Stormcloud.

Rhaenyra and Daemon had a second boy they named Viserys.

A woman with blonde hair holding a baby with blonde hair. — Rhaenyra holding baby Viserys II. HBO

Named for Rhaenyra's dad (and Daemon's brother) King Viserys, little Viserys II was introduced in season one, episode eight as an infant.

Daemon and Rhaenyra were expecting a third child, but Rhaenyra experienced a stillbirth in the season one finale.

Matt Smith, Emma D'Arcy in "House of the Dragon" episode 10 — Daemon and a pregnant Rhaenyra. Ollie Upton / HBO

Rhaenyra, who was pregnant with her third child with Daemon at the start of the season finale, tragically went into early labor and delivered a stillborn daughter, named Visenya, after learning about her father's death.

For more, read our breakdown of the best details you might have missed in the season one finale.

"House of the Dragon" has yet to introduce a few Targaryen children from "Fire and Blood."

Olivia Cooke in HOUSE OF THE DRAGON Season 2 — Olivia Cooke as Alicent in "House of the Dragon" season two. Theo Whiteman/HBO

In "Fire and Blood," Alicent and Viserys have one other son: Daeron, the youngest of their children. Daeron is bonded to the dragon Tessarion. Daeron has yet to appear in "House of the Dragon."

Aegon II and Helaena also have a third child in the book: Maelor, a son, who is younger than Jaehaerys and Jaehaera.

House of the Dragon HBO TV

More...