Aegon III and Daenaera Velaryon's Marriage

Aegon III and Daenaera Velaryon’s marriage began as the outcome of a contested royal bride selection and became a brief source of warmth in the young king’s life. Daenaera, a six-year-old orphan presented at court by Aegon’s half-sisters, was chosen over the other candidates, frustrating Hand Unwin Peake’s plans for his daughter. The wedding took place in 133 AC; afterward, Daenaera’s happier disposition helped lighten Aegon’s gloom for a time and coincided with his renewed interest in study and the world around him.

The bride selection and Peake’s plans

The marriage took shape at the Maiden’s Day ball, where maidens were presented to Aegon as possible brides. Unwin Peake had carefully arranged for his daughter Myrielle to appear at a favorable point in the proceedings. Three days before the ball, he gave her one of the little queen’s dolls; Myrielle understood the gift as a sign of affection and carried it to the presentation. Peake timed her entrance so she would not appear to receive special precedence, while still meeting the king before he had grown tired of the parade. When Aegon greeted her by name and remarked that he was pleased she liked the doll, Peake had reason to hope his preparation had succeeded.

That expectation was overturned when fewer than a dozen candidates remained. A trumpet announced the arrival of Baela Targaryen and Rhaena Targaryen, daughters of Prince Daemon. Baela was pregnant, while Rhaena looked wan after a miscarriage, but the sisters presented themselves together in matching black velvet and Targaryen colors. They rode side by side into the hall on black horses. When Ser Marston Waters blocked their way and demanded that they dismount, Baela made clear that only her brother, the king, could command her. At the foot of the Iron Throne, Rhaena told Aegon that they had brought him his new queen.

Daenaera’s family and presentation

The sisters brought forward Daenaera Velaryon, whom the herald identified as the daughter of Daeron Velaryon and Hazel of House Harte, and as a ward of Baela and Alyn Velaryon. She was an orphan: her mother had died during the Winter Fever, while her father had died in the Stepstones when his ship, the True Heart, went down. Daeron’s father had been Vaemond Velaryon, executed by Queen Rhaenyra, but Daeron had reconciled with Alyn and died fighting for him. Daenaera’s family history therefore joined loss and political conflict to a more recent reconciliation within House Velaryon.

At the presentation, Daenaera was six. She wore pale silk, Myrish lace, and pearls; her silver hair was streaked with gold, and her eyes were blue. The account emphasizes not only her Valyrian appearance but the effect of her smile, which was described as sweet, bold, and mischievous. Those gathered saw in the child a bright and happy presence, strikingly different from the young king’s customary gloom. When Aegon returned her smile and complimented her, his response made his preference unmistakable. The remaining presentations were hurried through, and the king’s evident wish to end the parade left Henrietta Woodhull in tears as she curtsied.

A choice against the Hand’s design

Aegon entrusted the announcement to his young cupbearer, Gaemon Palehair, who declared that the king would marry Daenaera. The choice defeated Peake’s purpose in promoting Myrielle. In the council meeting the following day, the Hand objected that Daenaera’s age meant she could not produce an heir for years, leaving the succession unsettled in the meantime. He argued that the regency should protect the king from youthful folly and sought to have the choice set aside in favor of an adult bride. Lord Rowan challenged the proposal by pointing out that Peake’s own daughter would be its beneficiary. The other regents did not support the Hand: they held firm, and the betrothal was announced the next day.

The episode made the bride selection a contest over who could direct the king’s marriage. Peake sought to turn the occasion toward his family’s advantage, but Aegon’s preference and the regents’ refusal to overturn it prevailed. His selection of a very young bride did leave the succession uncertain for the years before she could bear children, as Peake stressed; nevertheless, the council accepted the marriage rather than substitute the Hand’s preferred candidate.

Wedding and effect on the court

Aegon III married Daenaera on the last day of the 133rd year since Aegon’s Conquest. The crowd lining the streets was much smaller than the one that had attended Aegon’s earlier wedding to Jaehaera, because the Winter Fever had killed almost a fifth of King’s Landing’s population. Those who came to see the new royal couple welcomed Daenaera, while Baela and Rhaena, riding behind the royal litter, also received cheers. Peake rode farther back, his displeasure evident to those who noticed him.

In the following new year, the marriage’s immediate effect on Aegon’s household was presented through a change in the king’s behavior. Daenaera’s sunny nature lightened his gloom, at least temporarily. Aegon appeared at court more often and left the castle three times to show his bride the sights of the city, though he did not take her to the Dragonpit, where Rhaena’s young dragon, Morning, lived. He seemed to take greater interest in his studies, and Mushroom was often called upon to entertain the king and queen at supper. The account connects Daenaera’s laughter with occasions when even Aegon smiled.

The change was not confined to courtly appearances. Gareth Long, the master-at-arms, observed that Aegon needed less frequent correction and was beginning to show skill in training. The king also started attending council meetings. Though he seldom spoke, his presence heartened Grand Maester Munkun and pleased Lords Mooton and Rowan. Peake, by contrast, took the king’s attendance as a rebuke and bristled when Aegon asked questions, telling him that the matters were beyond a child’s understanding. Before long, Aegon again began to stay away from council. The marriage therefore brought a genuine but limited improvement: Daenaera briefly drew the king into a more active life, while the Hand’s treatment of him helped undo that renewed engagement.