WARNING! This article contains SPOILERS for Fire & Blood and House of the Dragon season 1, episode 9!House of the Dragon episode 9 briefly focuses on a young blonde boy implied to be one of Aegon Targaryen’s bastards, whose age and background hint at his identity being an extremely important character in the war to come. As Ser Arryk and Erryk Cargyll search for Aegon in House of the Dragon episode 9, the knights reveal that he has become a deviant in Flea Bottom over the past six years, having fathered numerous bastards, watching children in fighting pits, and sexually assaulting women without consequences. This is all the more worrying considering Aegon is now King, with the truth of his illegitimate children also exposing Alicent and the greens’ hypocrisy toward Rhaenyra.
The silver-haired boy in House of the Dragon episode 9 appears to be Gaemon Palehair, an alleged bastard of Aegon Targaryen in George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood book. Gaemon is around four years old when the Dance of the Dragons begins, and his mother is a sex worker on the Street of Silk named Essie. While Aegon never claims Gaemon, the women at the House of Kisses raise him as king after the disappearance of Aegon, who flees the Red Keep when Rhaenyra takes the Iron Throne. When Rhaenyra escapes the capital during a series of riots, Aegon’s bastard Gaemon Palehair is one of three “pretender” monarchs during the “Moon of the Three Kings.” Gaemon rules from the House of Kisses and accrues thousands of followers, who apparently consist of sex workers, mummers, thieves, drunkards, sellswords, and gangs. Fire & Blood explains that Gaemon’s court introduced four edicts: Girls and boys have equal claims to inheritances, the poor are given bread and beer during famines, lords must house and feed injured men who fought for them, and husbands who beat their wives are beaten in return.
Is Gaemon Really Aegon Targaryen’s Bastard Son?
Since there’s no DNA testing in Westeros, it’s nearly impossible to prove the true parentage of a bastard child, but Gaemon’s silver hair and Aegon’s notable philandering make the claim credible. Considering Alicent was only able to prevent the pregnancies of the women who Aegon assaulted within the Red Keep, there’s no telling how many bastards he fathered in Flea Bottom. Similar to how Robert Baratheon’s bastards like Gendry were confirmed by their black hair in Game of Thrones, Aegon’s bastards are hard to deny when they express his Valyrian silver hair. However, there is still some doubt about Gaemon’s parentage in House of the Dragon. Fire & Blood reveals that Gaemon’s mother Essie is tortured into confirming that he was actually fathered by a silver-haired Lysene oarsman, but this is likely a false confession.
What Happens To Gaemon Palehair In House Of The Dragon
Like many House of the Dragon characters, Aegon’s son Gaemon Palehair will have a short life. After Rhaenyra’s death, Gaemon is captured and spared by Aegon due to his age, with the King allowing him to be a ward of the crown following the executions of his mother and followers. Gaemon’s father Aegon II Targaryen soon dies from being poisoned, with Rhaenyra’s son Aegon III Targaryen becoming King of Westeros. Gaemon then becomes the only friend of the lonely King, as he reminds Aegon of his missing younger brother Viserys.
Aegon II Targaryen’s son later becomes the food-taster and whipping boy for Aegon the Younger, with Rhaenyra’s son growing resentful of the men who beat Gaemon in his stead. Gaemon would soon be somewhat neglected by the King after the return of Aegon’s brother Viserys, with tragedy quickly striking the nine-year-old cupbearer. In 135 AC, Gaemon and Aegon’s wife Daenaera were poisoned, leading Aegon II’s son to die while the young Queen recovered. As if the boy King Aegon III Targaryen hadn’t suffered enough during House of the Dragon’s civil war, Gaemon Palehair’s death leaves him inconsolable.
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