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The eldest of the Strongs, Lord Lyonel, sits at King Viserys I Targaryen's small council as Master of Laws in House of the Dragon season 1, episode 1 "The Heirs of the Dragon." A man of few words, he is wise, as well as prudent. In the show's canon, Lord Lyonel is accompanied by his sons in the capital city of King's Landing, namely, Ser Harwin and Larys Strong.
Lord Lyonel strongly objects to the small council naming a female heir after the deaths of Queen Aemma Arryn and the newborn, Prince Baelon, citing concerns for the stability of the realm, and precedent. He gives wise counsel to King Viserys, all the while ensuring the honor of House Strong remains intact. But what becomes of his House in House of the Dragon when his eldest son, and heir, Ser Harwin, fathers Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen's first three sons?
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House Strong Of Harrenhal
A Tryst With Destiny
At the beginning of House of the Dragon, the Noble House Strong rules from the cursed Harren's castle in the Riverlands. Taking up residence in the castle means that the family will sooner or later come under the curse of Harrenhal, as a result of which members suffer devastating fates, starting with Lord Lyonel and Princess Rhaenyra's paramour, Ser Harwin. Since Rhaenyra and Ser Harwin's affair is an open secret at court and has borne three illegitimate sons who are only Velaryon in the name (Jacaerys, Lucerys, and Joffrey), Lyonel escorts Harwin back to Harrenhal. By this time, Lord Lyonel has replaced Otto Hightower as Viserys' Hand, and the latter has great faith in his counsel.
Viserys chooses not to see the truth about the paternity of Rhaenyra's children, but Lord Lyonel takes action after Ser Harwin publicly assaults a knight of the Kingsguard, the vile Ser Criston Cole, who nurses a bitter grudge against Rhaenyra for rejecting his proposal and choosing duty to the crown over him years ago. In House of the Dragon season 1, episode 6 "The Princess and the Queen," Ser Harwin notices Ser Criston focusing intensely on Alicent's children and ignores Rhaenyra's, and unfairly pits the older Prince Aegon against the much younger, Prince Jacaerys Velaryon in the Red Keep's training yard. Ser Harwin calls off the practice but loses his cool when Ser Criston pokes fun at him:
Your interest in the princelings training is quite unusual, commander. Most men would only have that emotion for a cousin, or a brother… or a son.
Truth is, Ser Criston succeeds in trying to goad Ser Harwin into a fight to add credibility to the rumor about the "Strong Boys." This is another nail in Ser Harwin's coffin, who serves as Lord Commander of the City Watch. Soon after, tragedy visits them at Harren's castle. Following an intense argument with Harwin, who has been expelled from the City Watch, Lord Lyonel puts forward his resignation as Hand of the King. Viserys rejects it but allows him to escort Ser Harwin back to the family seat, Harrenhal, to assume his duties as his heir.
You have served me faithfully for many years, ten as Hand. Your advice has been sage, unmarked by self-interest... which stands in contrast to all others.
Lord Lyonel And Ser Harwin Perish In A Fire At Harrenhal
The tricky part comes when Alicent, who has been having private dinners with Lord Lyonel's younger son, Larys (who was born with a twisted foot) narrates the events of the resignation to her informer. Larys takes matters into his own hands by hiring criminals to set the Strong seat on fire. He has the criminals' tongues removed, so they never speak of it. In House of the Dragon's "The Princess and the Queen," he offers to pardon them for their crimes if they execute his plan. Those engulfed in the blaze are his father, and his elder brother, Harwin. The next morning, Lord Lyonel and Harwin's charred bodies are retrieved from the castle and Larys tells a shocked Alicent:
You've heard the stories of Harrenhal, Your Grace. It was built in hubris by Harren the Black as a monument to his own greatness. Blood mixed into the mortar. It is said to be a cursed place. That it passes judgment on all who pass beneath its gates.
Alicent still objects to Larys' plot to take out his family, but the latter expects to be rewarded when the time is right. Otto is reinstated as Hand in House of the Dragon, and Larys now has Harrenhal and a permanent place in the Red Keep's power lobby. Larys, who is present at Aegon's coronation, will serve as his Master of Whisperers, and Lord Confessor at the Green Council.
Daemon Targaryen's Assault On Harrenhal
As the Dance of the Dragons kicks off, a new character named Ser Simon Strong, who is Larys' great-uncle holds the fort against the Blacks. Portrayed by Simon Russell Beale in House of the Dragon season 2, Ser Simon will face Daemon Targaryen's wrath in the assault on Harrenhal, marking, along with other incidents, the start of the war. Daemon takes the castle by flying above Harrenhal's Kingspyre Tower on his mount, Caraxes. This event is a callback to Aegon the Conqueror and the Black Dread's burning of Harrenhal, which saw King Harren Hoare and his sons perish in a fire in Kingspyre Tower. Ser Simon surrenders the castle to Daemon and he and his grandsons become captives. It is a major win for the Blacks, and they demand the wealth of House Strong. More Blacks' victories follow, and Daemon's Blood and Cheese plot is set into motion.
An eye for an eye, a son for a son. Lucerys shall be avenged.
Daemon and the Blacks will abandon the castle after learning Ser Criston Cole and Prince Aemond Targaryen have left the capital undefended to reclaim Harrenhal. This allows the Blacks to take King's Landing, while the Greens retake Harrenhal in a swift motion. Aemond, meanwhile, sanctions the executions of Ser Simon and family as their names are sullied, but spares one - Alys Rivers.
Who Is Alys Rivers And What Is Her Connection To Aemond Targaryen?
Gayle Rankin Plays Alys Rivers In House Of The Dragon
Alys Rivers is a bastard of House Strong and a few claim she was a wet nurse to Harwin and Larys at Harren's castle. Accounts in Game of Thrones lore say different things about Alys' identity -- Lord Lyonel's illegitimate daughter, a woods witch, a simple slattern, a serving wench who specializes in potion making, or what have you, Alys becomes Aemond's bedmate and paramour in the Dance. She is in danger during Daemon's assault and the Greens' executions at Harrenhal but makes it out alive. She had had many stillborn children at Harrenhal but later claims to Lady Sabitha Frey that she is pregnant with Aemond's son, who arrives at her rescue. She bids goodbye to Aemond when he leaves to duel his uncle, Daemon in the Battle Above the Gods Eye. Alys watches the battle atop Kingspyre Tower.
As for House Strong of Harrenhal, Lord Larys in the Hour of the Wolf is found guilty of murdering King Aegon II but chooses death over being sentenced to the Wall. Lord Cregan Stark (Tom Taylor in House of the Dragon) beheads him using the Stark greatsword, Ice but grants him his last wish - to remove his clubfoot from his leg. Larys is quoted in lore:
When I am dead, hack off my clubfoot with that great sword of yours. I have dragged it with me all through life, let me be free of it in death at least.
Larys' head is mounted on a pike, his body handed over to the silent sisters, and later, his bones sent to Harrenhal. Though Cregan orders his clubfoot to be buried in a field, it goes missing. Lord Larys Strong's death wipes out House Strong from Westeros.
House of the Dragon
House of the Dragon is HBO's prequel series to Game of Thrones. Set hundreds of years earlier, the show follows the inner machinations and rivalries of the Targaryen royal family. The show was created by Ryan Condal and George R.R. Martin, and stars Matt Smith, Emma D'Arcy, Rhys Ifans, and Olivia Cooke.
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