Does Harwin Strong die in House of the Dragon? (Episode 6 ending explained)

It’s another eventful week on House of the Dragon with Episode 6, “The Princess and the Queen.” Not only do we get to see older versions of characters like Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) and Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke), but we also get to meet new family members like Rhaenyra and Laenor Velaryon’s (John MacMillan) children. Plus, some familiar faces will become more important as the storylines progress.

One of those familiar faces is Harwin Strong (Ryan Corr), who’s a pretty important character in Episode 6. Unfortunately, his storyline is cut short, but he’s involved in a scandal that I don’t think will just be forgotten anytime soon.

Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for House of the Dragon Episode 6!

As fans probably picked up on in the trailer for House of the Dragon Episode 6, it’s suspected by some that Rhaenyra and Laenor’s children weren’t actually fathered by Laenor. They have dark hair instead of the iconic Targaryen blonde, and after the third son is born and looks nothing like their supposed dad, people start to get curious. Alicent in particular is keeping a close watch and is convinced Laenor is not the father, though King Viserys (Paddy Considine) doesn’t want to hear it.

So who is the father? Well, that would be Harwin Strong. This becomes pretty evident after Rhaenyra’s third son is born and he comes to meet him. Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel), now in cahoots with Alicent, is convinced Harwin is the father as well and taunts him about it. After a fight breaks out between Harwin and Criston, Harwin is sent back to Harrenhal by his father, Hand of the King Lyonel Strong (Gavin Spokes).

But just because Harwin is gone doesn’t mean the drama is over. His brother Larys Strong (Matthew Needham), who has become close with Alicent, makes an unexpected move that leads to death.

Do Harwin and Lyonel Strong die in House of the Dragon?

Larys strikes a deal with a few men being held as prisoners, telling them he will release them if they did a job for him. He cuts off their tongues, presumably so they cannot reveal who sent them, and sends them to Harrenhal. The weird thing is that Larys gives them his sigil to wear on their cloaks, but I guess that’s beside the point right now. The men set the castle on fire, and sadly Harwin and Lyonel do not survive. They both lose their lives because of Larys.

Why does Larys Strong have Harwin and Lyonel killed?

So, the big question here is why Larys would arrange the fire and have his family members killed. Hopefully we get more of an explanation from the man himself in future episodes, but for now, we can offer up a few potential reasons.

For one, his relationship with Alicent is a big thing for him. He knew how she felt about Harwin and Rhaenyra, so it’s possible he wanted to show her that he would go to great lengths like this for her. On the flip side, it could also be because he wants Alicent to owe him one. When Alicent hears of what happened, she’s horrified. I don’t think she’ll voluntarily want to be tight with Larys after this, but if she’s in debt to him now, that could complicate things.

Another reason Larys might’ve done this is for power. What else does anyone want in Westeros? Now that his brother and father are gone, Larys will become the Lord of Harrenhal. That’ll be pretty big for him. In Fire & Blood, he goes on to sit on the Small Council as the Master of Whisperers and Lord Confessor for Viserys. That possibility alone could be motivation enough for him to arrange the fire.

Going into Episode 6, I wasn’t sure what to make of Larys, but I knew he was very sneaky. Definitely not a trustworthy guy. Now that we know what he’s capable of, I wouldn’t be surprised if he continues to be an important character in the first season of House of the Dragon. He’s certainly entertaining, but let’s just hope he doesn’t kill more fan-favorite characters. I was really starting to like Harwin!

For fun, here’s what we thought of Larys before watching “The Princess and the Queen”:

"@winteriscoming.net Thoughts on Larys?? #fyp #foryoupage #gameofthrones #got #houseofthedragon #larysstrong #hotd #targaryen ♬ House Of The Dragon (Trailer Theme) – Epic Version – Baltic House Orchestra"

Keep watching new episodes of House of the Dragon every Sunday night as we inch closer to the season finale.

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