Warning: SPOILERS For House Of The Dragon Season 3, Episode 1 – “Salt And Sea, Fire And Blood”
House of the Dragon‘s Battle of the Gullet displayed seamanship that destroyed House Greyjoy’s claim to fame in Game of Thrones. House of the Dragon season 3 kicked off with one of the most anticipated and bloody battles in the Dance of the Dragons, as the Triarchy sailed from Essos to attack Driftmark, the seat of Lord Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint).
The Battle of the Gullet was costly for Rhaenyra Targaryen’s (Emmy D’Arcy) side. Though the Triarchy was stopped, a third of the Velaryon Fleet was destroyed, and Lord Corlys’ castle, High Tide, was sacked. Corlys himself was seemingly killed by Admiral Sharako Lohar (Abigail Thorn), who was then finished off by Corlys’ son, Alyn of Hull (Abubakar Salim).
The most tragic deaths in the Battle of the Gullet were Prince Jacaerys Velaryon (Harry Collett) and his dragon Vermax, who were both felled by the Triarchy’s arrows and Scorpion dragon-slayers. Even as the Targaryen and Velaryon dragons entered the conflict, however, the Battle of the Gullet was a war on the seas between the most powerful navies of Westeros and Essos, and their greatest sailors.
Corlys Velaryon & Admiral Lohar Are Better Sailors Than Game Of Thrones’ Greyjoys
House of the Dragon‘s Battle of the Gullet featured the most spectacular naval conflict ever seen in Game of Thrones, showing off the unmatched skills of Corlys Velaryon and Admiral Lohar as sea captains. Corlys and Lohar proved their worth in the shallow waters of the Teeth, as the Triarchy’s flagship, the Bitchfist, pursued Corlys’ famed vessel, the Sea Snake.
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Lord Corlys specifically led Admiral Lohar into the Teeth in a bid to sink the head of the Triarchy’s fleet. Taking manual control of the Sea Snake himself, Corlys used his intimate knowledge of his home waters, his unerring judgment, and precision to navigate through the Teeth. Corlys expected the Teeth to be the end of Lohar, and the rest of the Triarchy’s ship’s did succumb, but not the Admiral.
Tossing aside everything weighing the Bitchfist down, including Ser Tyland Lannister (Jefferson Hall), Admiral Lohar matched Lord Velaryon’s skill and deftly guided her ship through the Teeth, shocking Corlys. Lohar’s faster vessel then rammed the Sea Snake, sparking their final showdown.
Both Corlys and Lohar exhibited breathtaking seamanship in House of the Dragon season 3’s premiere, better than anything by the Greyjoys in Game of Thrones. To be fair, Game of Thrones only showed one great naval battle: the Battle of the Blackwater in season 2. Otherwise, the Greyjoy’s fabled seamanship was mainly talked about. Sadly, Game of Thrones never truly showed Yara Greyjoy’s (Gemma Whelan) skills as a captain.
It wasn’t until Euron Greyjoy (Pilou Asbæk) was introduced in Game of Thrones season 7 that a Greyjoy displayed the seamanship befitting House Greyjoy’s reputation as Westeros’ greatest sailors. Euron’s savagery destroyed Daenerys Targaryen’s (Emilia Clarke) Iron Fleet, and Euron himself killed Rhaegal, one of her dragons.
House Of The Dragon Set Up How The Greyjoys Became Westeros’ Greatest Sailors
House of the Dragon takes place nearly two centuries before Game of Thrones, but the Battle of the Gullet marks the beginning of House Velaryon’s downfall. Lord Corlys’ Velaryon Fleet made his House one of the wealthiest in Westeros, and their blood ties to House Targaryen also made them among the most powerful families in the Seven Kingdoms.
However, the Battle of the Gullet was a devastating event for Corlys and House Velaryon. In George R.R. Martin’s “Fire and Blood,” Lord Corlys survives the Battle of the Gullet and continues serving as Rhaenyra’s Hand of the Queen. This should also be the case in House of the Dragon, but the Triarchy sacking High Tide and the loss of the Sea Snake diminishes the power of House Velaryon.
The upcoming events of House of the Dragon season 3 and 4 also don’t bode well for House Velaryon, and they never regain their wealth, power, and dominance of the seas before the Battle of the Gullet. As time marches on in Westeros, House Velaryon loses its stature as one of the Great Houses of the Seven Kingdoms, so that they are rarely mentioned in Game of Thrones.
The fall of House Velaryon after House of the Dragon leads to House Greyjoy’s rise, with their Iron Fleet supplanting the Velaryons’, and Pyke replacing Driftmark as the seat of the most powerful navy in Westeros. Just like dragons until Drogon, Rhaegal, and Visarion in Game of Thrones, Corlys Velaryon’s legend as Westeros’ greatest sailor faded from memory after House of the Dragon.
- Release Date
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August 21, 2022
- Network
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HBO
- Directors
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Clare Kilner, Geeta Patel
- Writers
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Gabe Fonseca
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Fabien Frankel
Ser Criston Cole
