WARNING! This post contains SPOILERS for House of the Dragon season 1, episode 3!The white stag in House of the Dragon episode 3 makes a clear choice when he finds Rhaenyra after evading the hunt. Prince Aegon’s nameday features a hunt for a white stag, which has an important meaning within Game of Thrones’ lore. But, instead of the white hart being a symbolic prize for King Viserys’ eldest son, the regal stag quietly walks up to Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen – which carries even more significance.
House of the Dragon episode 3 picks up three years after episode 2’s ending, with the unseen events including Viserys and Alicent getting married, Alicent giving birth to Prince Aegon, Alicent becoming pregnant yet again, and Daemon and Corlys fighting a losing war in the Stepstones. At King’s Landing, high lords and ladies from around the realm gather to celebrate Prince Aegon Targaryen’s second nameday, which features a feast and celebratory hunt. While Viserys would rather drink and hunt, he’s constantly bombarded with the one subject he doesn’t want to discuss: His succession. After already naming Rhaenyra Targaryen heir to the Iron Throne, Otto Hightower (and various other lords like Jason Lannister) assume that Viserys will supplant Rhaenyra with Aegon – the king’s first son.
The king’s greatest distraction is the discovery of a white hart in the kingswood, which Otto Hightower very unsubtly mentions is a sign that the gods have placed their favor on Aegon. The lords spend the day tracking the white stag again to no avail, with Aegon’s nameday hunt ending as Viserys kills a large red stag instead. However, that same morning, Rhaenyra and Criston are on their horses in the woods when the white stag wanders toward them. As Rhaenyra and the white stag look at each other in awe, she tells Ser Criston Cole to let it go. After Viserys’ choice is constantly undermined in favor of Aegon, Rhaenyra seeing House of the Dragon’s coveted white stag is yet another confirmation that she is the rightful heir.
The White Hart's Symbolism In Game Of Thrones Lore Explained
Much like the animal’s real-life symbolism, the white hart in Game of Thrones represents royalty. House of the Dragon’s hunt leader mentions that before the Targaryens ruled Westeros and their dragons became symbols of royalty, the white stag represented power, grace, and majesty. They’re quite rare in Westeros, so hunting one is an incredible prize that represents incredible strength and, in the case of the Targaryens, regality. In Game of Thrones’ books, Sansa Stark reveals that white stags are thought to be magical, which clearly connects to House of the Dragon’s suggestion that the appearance of the hart was a sign from the gods in choosing Viserys’ rightful heir.
Rhaenyra Seeing The White Stag Fits With GRRM's Influences
George R.R. Martin often took major political conflicts, themes, and legends from real history, including the myth of the white stag. One notably white stag myth comes from Arthurian legends, which have inspired certain elements of Game of Thrones’ world. In the legends of King Arthur, the white stag can never be caught, representing a journey for spiritual knowledge or glory. It can also symbolize purity, otherworldliness, and prophecies, themes often associated with Game of Thrones’ House Targaryen. One Arthurian story also implies that when a white stag’s appearance was meant to mark the beginning of King Arthur’s reign and quests.
Additionally, The white hart was notably the historic symbol of King Richard II, with House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones’ stories often finding inspiration in the real-life House of Plantagenet. The white stag was meant to symbolize the nobility of Richard II, and was thus used as his badge to represent his regal dynasty. With the white stag continuing to signify nobility in House of the Dragon episode 3, there are plenty of historic parallels in Rhaenyra and Aegon’s story.
What The White Hart Means For Rhaenyra & Aegon In House Of The Dragon
Rhaenyra didn’t simply track down the white stag to try to prove her claim – it found her. She didn’t even try to take and kill it to prove her strength, as she respected its claim to the woods and majesty in this area. This clearly symbolizes that Rhaenyra is naturally the rightful heir to the Iron Throne; she didn’t have to hunt it down, it naturally came across her as a sign of the gods showing their favor. Aegon, on the other hand, had dozens of lords actively hunting for the white stag to desperately seek another sign that he should be heir instead. Of course, they never caught it, so even the conniving Otto Hightower’s attempt at saying the gods favored Aegon couldn’t be supported.
This is also another example of what Rhaenyra will have to go through for the rest of her life as she continues to defend her claim. While her father named her heir and the symbolic white stag chose her, men will always try to find ways to prove her claim unfounded simply because she’s a woman. Rhaenyra rightfully deserves the Iron Throne and was even deemed worthier than Aegon by the royal white stag, but House of the Dragon’s lords like Otto Hightower will not stop until Aegon Targaryen becomes king.
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New episodes of House of the Dragon release Sundays on HBO/HBO Max.