Who is Alyn of Hull? Everything you need to know about Alyn Velaryon from House of the Dragon Season 2

House of the Dragon season 1 introduced us to House Velaryon, an old Valyrian House whose members are master seafarers. The seat of House Velaryon is on Driftmark, with the head of the House holding the title “Lord of the Tides.”

In season 1, the Sea Snake, Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint), held this title. Though the title was to pass to his son Ser Laenor, we witnessed the Velaryon lord fleeing the land of Westeros. This left Corlys without an heir.

However, we will see events from George R.R. Martin’s book Fire and Blood come to life in House of the Dragon Season 2. The show will introduce two new characters from the town of Hull on Driftmark.

The first, Addam of Hull, will fight for the Blacks as a dragonrider. His brother Alyn Velaryon, also called Alyn Oakenfist and Alyn of Hull, however, has a different destiny. The latest House of the Dragon Season 2 trailer gave us our first look at the character. Here’s everything you need to know about Alyn of Hull.

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Who was Alyn of Hull?

Credits: laurelizabetharts

Alyn Velaryon was born on the island of Driftmark as Alyn of Hull. Along with his brother Addam, we find his origins shrouded mostly in mystery.

In Fire and Blood, the description of Alyn says that he has silver hair and purple eyes. He was small and quick, like his mother, Marilda of Hull, the daughter of a shipwright. Marilda claimed that the two boys were sons of Ser Laenor Velaryon.

However, it was common knowledge that Laenor had no romantic interest in women. The historian and court fool Mushroom claimed that Both Addam and Alyn were actually the sons of Lord Corlys himself.

He went on to claim that the Sea Snake had kept them hidden from the eyes of the court to avoid offending his wife, Rhaenys, known for her fiery temper. Alyn grew up in the shipyard owned by Marilda’s father and served on her trading ship, Mouse.

Read More: Abubakar Salim calls Alyn of Hull a “fantastic beast” in House of the Dragon Season 2

Who plays Alyn of Hull in House of the Dragon Season 2?

Send a raven.

Simon Russell Beale, Freddie Fox, Gayle Rankin and Abubakar Salim have joined the cast of House of the Dragon Season 2. pic.twitter.com/dChVN9WJE9

— House of the Dragon (@HouseofDragon) April 24, 2023

House of the Dragon Season 2 has found its Alyn Velaryon in Abubakar Salim. Abubakar Salim, born on January 7, 1993, is a British actor of Kenyan descent. He’s known for his work in video game Assassin’s Creed Origins, earning a British Academy Games Award nomination.

He has also starred in the Sky One series Jamestown and the HBO Max series Raised by Wolves, which makes House of the Dragon his second Max project. Beyond acting, he has also founded his own video game development studio, Surgent Studios, and released the 2D side-scrolling platform game Tales of Kenzera: Zau, very recently, in April 2024.

Max confirmed his casting in April 2023 alongside others, including Simon Russell Beale of The Lehman Trilogy, who will play Ser Simon Strong in the upcoming season, and Freddie Fox, who will play Ser Gwayne Hightower.

Alyn Velaryon during the Sowing of the Dragonseeds

Credits: mrm215

Alyn of Hull and his brother came to prominence during the event known as the Sowing. Prince Jacaerys called for new dragonriders to serve in the war and fight for the Blacks. It was necessary for the Blacks to have warriors mounted on their dragons that were riderless. During the Sowing, many potential riders were burned or killed.

Addam managed to tame Ser Laenor’s old dragon, Seasmoke. Alyn himself made an attempt to find the wild dragon Grey Ghost but was unsuccessful. He then approached another wild dragon, Sheepstealer.

Upon entering Sheepstealer’s lair, the wild dragon let loose dragonfire on Alyn, setting his cloak aflame. Addam hurried to help his brother, beating out the flames using his own cloak. Meanwhile, Seamoke drove Sheepstealer away.

Alyn was burned and scarred from the encounter. Regardless, he counted himself fortunate. The others that had attempted to tame Sheepstealer had not been as lucky as the wild dragon had devoured them whole.

After Addam had claimed Seasmoke, Lord Corlys petitioned Rhaenyra to remove the mark of bastardy from the two brothers. Rhaenyra complied with the request, and thus, the two brothers became Addam and Alyn Velaryon.

Lord Corlys named Addam the heir to Driftmark, as his children Laena and Laenor had passed. When the Dance of the Dragons was well underway, two of the Blacks’ new dragonriders betrayed them.

These were Ulf White and Hugh Hammer, and they came to be known as the Two Betrayers. During the First Battle of Tumbleton, they turned their dragons on the Blacks and burned down the entire town. This caused Rhaenyra and the Black Council to grow suspicious of the remaining dragonseeds.

Read More: Abubakar Salim (Alyn of Hull) posts photo with Steve Toussaint (Corlys) and Clinton Liberty (Addam of Hull)

Alyn Velaryon during the Dance of the Dragons

Credits: Warp Speed

Rhaenyra attempted to imprison Addamn after growing suspicious of him. However, Addam escaped with the Sea Snake’s help. to prove his loyalty, Addam then gathered four thousand men to take back Tumbleton from the Greens.

Though the Blacks emerged victorious in the Second Battle of Tumbleton, Addam Velaryon lost his life in the attempt. Rhaenyra met her end at the hands of King Aegon II and his dragon Sunfyre while the king was hiding out on the island of Dragonstone.

However, King Aegon II was unable to return to King’s Landing due to the Velaryon fleet commanded by fifteen-year-old Alyn. As Alyn prepared to attack Dragonstone with his ships, Queen Alicent Hightower entered into an accord with Lord Corlys. According to their agreement, Alyn himself transported King Aegon II back to King’s Landing aboard the ship Mouse.

Towards the end of the war, Braavosi ships began to descend upon King’s Landing, carrying forces from the Vale. Alyn’s fleet was the only defense against these ships. Meanwhile, The Riverlords marched towards the capital on behalf of the Blacks. Lords Corlys urged King Aegon II to surrender, to which refused.

Soon after, King Aegon II died from poison. Alyn sailed to Dragonstone to take the castle back. After laying siege to the castle, Alyn’s men quickly overwhelmed Aegon II’s supporters. The castle of Dragonstone passed into Alyn’s possession.

When Lord Cregan Stark held Lord Corlys guilty of treason, Alysanne Blackwood convinced him to change his mind. Historians believe Lord Cregan was also concerned about provoking Alyn and the fleet he commanded. When Rhaenyra’s son was crowned King Aegon III Targaryen, Alyn attended the coronation. He was also present at the king’s wedding.

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Alyn Velaryon after the Dance of the Dragons

Credits: magic_dragon1611

When Lord Corlys Velaryon passed away, the title of the Lord of the Tides passed to Alyn. Along with his mother, Marilda of Hull, Alyn transported Lord Corlys’ body to Driftmark aboard a ship named Mermaid’s Kiss.

From here, they took Corlys aboard his famous ship, Sea Snake, and gave him a burial at sea. Lord Corlys’ brother, Ser Vaemond Velaryon, had left two sons. They briefly contested Alyn’s claims to Driftmark, advancing their own names as successors to the title.

However, they put them aside and reconciled with Alyn after King Aegon III’s regents ruled against them. Two more of Lord Corlys’ nephews rose up against Alyn. Ser Malentine Velaryon and Ser Rhogar Velaryon attempted to assassinate Alyn at Castle Driftmark.

Ser Malentine died in the attempt and Ser Rhogar chose to join the Night’s Watch after the guards captured him. Once Alyn’s claim as the heir of Lord Corlys Velaryon was firmly established, he approached King Aegon III’s regents.

Alyn wished to take his father’s place among the king’s regents. The Hand of the King Tyland Lannister chose to reject Alyn on account of his youth. Instead, he chose Lord Unwin Peake to take Corlys’ place.

The regents, meanwhile, had attempted to marry off Baela Targaryen, who was King Aegon III’s only successor at the time. Baela was incredibly wilful, and the regents hoped that marrying her off would keep her under their control if the throne passed to her.

Baela escaped the Red Keep and fled to Driftmark, where she confided in Alyn, who was her cousin. After a fortnight, the two married in a sept on Dragonstone. Though some of the regents were outraged, Tyland Lannister announced that the marriage had been arranged by the King himself.

Alyn Velaryon as the Lord Admiral

Credits: Chiara Cognigni

In 133 AC, the Hand of the King Ser Tyland Lannister passed away. Following this, King Aegon III Targaryen appointed Alyn as his lord admiral. Lord Unwin Peake became the Hand of the King, though Aegon III himself did not wish it to be so.

Meanwhile, a war raged in the Narrow Sea after the Triarchy of the Free Cities collapsed. The name given to this conflict was the Daughters’ War. It was so named because the civil war was between the Triarchy of Lys, Myr, and Tyrosh, known to the Westerosi as the Kingdom of the Three Daughters.

Lord Unwin Peake wished to have a presence on Bloodstone, one of the islands in the Narrow Sea. Unwin named his own uncle, Ser Gedmund Peake, as the commander of the royal fleet. He instructed Alyn to aid the inexperienced Gedmund in his attack on the Stepstones.

Alyn joined the campaign aboard his ship named the Queen Rhaenys. The Westerosi fleet joined forces with Lord Bryndemere from the island of Tarth. They were to lead a battle against Racallio Ryndoon, a Tyroshi captain general who declared himself King of the Narrow Sea.

Racallio had allied with Braavos, the largest of the Free Cities. While the other generals awaited instructions from the Hand of the King, Alyn chose not to wait. He led the Velaryon fleet forth and attacked the unsuspecting Braavosi ships at the Stepstones. Alyn sank thirty Braavosi ships and only lost three in the attempt.

For his victory, he received numerous honors and rewards. He received a knighthood from Ser Marston Waters, the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard. He was also known as the Hero of the Stepstones and earned the title Oakenfist. King Aegon III named him master of the ships.

The Voyages of Alyn Velaryon

Credits: HBO

When the Red Kraken Dalton Greyjoy began to stir up trouble in the Westerlands, Lord Unwin Peake sent Alyn to deal with him. Lord Peake hoped that Alyn would die in the attempt. Instead, his journey to the Westerlands became the first of his six great voyages, all of which took place on different ships.

First, Alyn sailed to Bloodstone aboard Lady Baela and spent a fortnight with the Tyroshi captain Racallio Ryndoon. Racallio first treated Alyn as a friend and later as an enemy. He first forced Alyn to wrestle him in a mud pit and then asked him to kill three Tyroshi prisoners.

Racallio suspected that Alyn was a Tyroshi spy, and he set him this task to prove his innocence. When Alyn completed the deed, Racallio was pleased and sent two of his wives to Alyn’s chamber. It is unknown how Alyn responded to their advances.

Alyn then traveled to Sunspear in Dorne, where he gained the favor of Princess Aliandra Martell. He traveled to Oldtown, where the High Septon blessed him at the Starry Sept.

He also visited the Maester’s Citadel and befriended Lord Lyonel Lyonel Hightower and Samantha Tarly. When Alyn finally reached the Westerlands to deal with Dalton Greyjoy, he found the pirate dead at the hands of his own paramour.

Lady Johanna Lannister, whom the Red Kraken had plagued, gave Alyn a golden seahorse. Alyn left a third of his fleet in the westerlands to help protect the people there. During his return voyage, Alyn learned that Prince Viserys Targaryen, King Aegon III’s younger brother, was a captive at Lys.

Prince Viserys had been presumed dead. Alyn sailed to Lys and negotiated the prince’s release. Alyn was widely praised in Westeros for reuniting the prince with his family.

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