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Does House Velaryon and Redwyne have vassals and cadet branches like House Harlaw?


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Does House Velaryon and Redwyne have cadet branches and smaller vassals similar to House Harlaw? Harlaw seems more fleshed out and developed then either Driftmark or the Arbor due to the many Ironborn POV's but I was curious what people think. I would understand if Dragonstone is to small and infertile for multiple castles or holdfasts but I would think Driftmark or the Arbor would have just as many vassals or cadet branches as Harlaw. The Velayrons did have at least two castles, Driftmark and Hightide during there peak before the Dance of the Dragons but there was a plethora of uncles, nephews and cousins for Corliss as well as two thriving towns.

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I'd expect that they do. For the Velaryons we know that they were in the past (or are still today) a pretty large family. The second Daemon Velaryon had many children, the Sea Snake had at least two brothers and six nephews, and so on.

We know that there are minor seats and holdfasts on Driftmark because Rhaenyra grants two such to Ulf White and Hugh Hammer after they become dragonriders. It stands to reason that the lesser branches of House Velaryon live at similar places. In addition, one should expect that as Velaryon wealth increased during the reign of the Old King, so, too, did the allowances and incomes of Corlys' extended family - his siblings and nephews and nieces and cousins.

There is also a good chance that some of the lesser Velaryons eventually went into trade ... or that some Velaryons always were directly involved in trade, considering the fact that they were island lords whose originally purpose likely was to move the riches of Westeros and the Narrow Sea to Valyrian territories.

About the Arbor we know practically nothing, but what little we know so far implies that there are many holdings within the Redwyne domains - the Ironborn did raid some of the outlying islands around the Arbor the last time we heard about them. In addition, the Arbor is a very large island and the Redwynes clearly are among the most wealthy lords of Westeros. This implies that there are many harbors and booming towns on the Arbor.

We have no idea about the seat of the Lord of Arbor, but one assumes Paxter resides in a pretty large castle, possibly within a large town. The wealth and the international wine business of the Redwynes also implies that they are a pretty large family - among the captains and commanders of the war fleet of House Redwyne are likely many cousins and kinsmen of Lord Paxter.

And since we have no clue what houses make up the Redwyne bannermen and vassals on the Arbor - and they would have to have such bannermen and retainers - chances are not that bad that some of those are cadet branches of House Redwyne.

But it is also not unlikely that it might turn out that quite a few of the Reach house we have no seats so far might turn out to be minor Arbor houses.

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10 hours ago, The Merling King said:

Does House Velaryon and Redwyne have cadet branches and smaller vassals similar to House Harlaw? Harlaw seems more fleshed out and developed then either Driftmark or the Arbor due to the many Ironborn POV's but I was curious what people think. I would understand if Dragonstone is to small and infertile for multiple castles or holdfasts but I would think Driftmark or the Arbor would have just as many vassals or cadet branches as Harlaw. The Velayrons did have at least two castles, Driftmark and Hightide during there peak before the Dance of the Dragons but there was a plethora of uncles, nephews and cousins for Corliss as well as two thriving towns.

Smaller vassals? Sure. These people are direct vassals of Lord Paramounts, the King or the Crown Prince. That would make them counts or dukes at least. As for cadet branches: We got a pretty detailed description of the Harlaws because Asha might end up inheriting her uncle's titles and lands. At the same point, the Redwyne internal buildup played no significance in the story yet, and we've got enough explanation about the Velaryons to understand who is who. 

There might easily be off- and cadet branches of both houses under them. We don't know yet. This applies on the Harlaws and the Darklyns (previous lords of a port city), why shouldn't it apply to them as well?. We know of 3 of their own cadet branches so far who were their vassals (or at least lived in the city/had minor titles or local prestigous jobs), and are still to House Rykker.

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