Editor's note: The below contains spoilers for Episode 9 of House of the Dragon.
House of the DragonEpisode 9 sees Queen Alicent (Olivia Cooke) and Ser Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) calling a meeting of the small council in the middle of the night to both inform them of the death of King Viserys (Paddy Considine), and make preparations for the ascension of Prince Aegon Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney) to the Iron Throne. When the news is delivered, it quickly becomes clear that not only are a majority of these men, who supposedly serve the realm, siding with the Greens and House Hightower, but they have also been scheming to supplant Princess Rhaenyra (Emma D'Arcy) with the King's eldest son for some time now, and are not going to let anyone get in the way of their plans.
Most of the men present at this meeting have been plotting to overthrow the succession secretly; Hand of the King Ser Otto Hightower, Master of Laws Lord Jasper Wylde (Paul Kennedy), and Master of Ships Ser Tyland Lannister (Jefferson Hall) admit openly to having "long-laid plans," and though she is Aegon's mother and greatest champion, Queen Alicent is only now brought into the loop. While it is not clear if he has been a part of it up until this point, Grand Maester Orwyle (Kurt Egiawan) is obviously on board with a coup for the Iron Throne. That leaves the only dissenters present as the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard Ser Harrold Westerling (Graham McTavish) and Master of Coin Lord Lyman Beesbury (Bill Paterson).
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What Happens to Lyman Beesbury?
Lord Lyman Beesbury was often treated like an annoyance by the other members of the Green Council when he gave his exhaustive reports on the finances of the realm. His dedication to the realm is fierce, and it is unsurprising that he stays true to the vows he swore, and to the memory of his friend who he rightfully believes would never want Rhaenyra replaced with Aegon as Lord of the Seven Kingdoms. He is a true man of honor, who, even when he stands alone, stands firmly and calls the actions of those around him "theft" and "treason."
He may have survived the council, and been simply dragged off to the dungeons until he could be made to bend the knee, or traded as a hostage if he had not made the mistake of bringing up the possibility of regicide. When he does, Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel), who possesses a violent temper and no self-control, yells at him to "Sit down!" and pushes him down by the shoulders, smashing his face into the table and killing him instantly. While he claims that he was defending the Queen's honor, it's clear at this point that Ser Criston loves murdering people. Poor Beesbury is then left to lie in a pool of his own blood as the callous Greens continue to plan their next moves.
Beesbury Is Not the Only Casualty of Episode 9
While Beesbury is the first casualty of this war, he won't be the last — and isn't even the last of this episode. Ser Harrold Westerling refuses Otto Hightower's order to go to Dragonstone and kill Rhaenyra and her family, but they will find someone loyal to them to send on this mission, no doubt very soon. Westerling hands in his white cloak and tells the Green Council he will only serve a new ruler once they are crowned, and in his place, Ser Criston Cole is named Lord Commander of the Kingsguard. Westerling is allowed to leave, yet his safety is hardly guaranteed going forward as the Greens have drawn a very clear line in the sand, and if you are not on their side of it you are in danger.
In order to keep the secret of the King's death from the world, until they are ready to move (and have found Aegon), the Greens imprison what looks like the entire staff of the Red Keep. Princess Rhaenys (Eve Best) is imprisoned in her room, and the Lords and Ladies who were unlucky enough to be in King's Landing at the time are brought to the throne room where Otto Hightower asks them to bend the knee and pledge their banners to Aegon. Lord Merryweather (Paul Clayton) tries to leave to confer with his family but is stopped by Otto, who requires that he declare "his intention" before he is allowed to leave. Lady Fell (Miriam Lucia) also refuses, and together they are escorted to the dungeons by Hightower guards. Lord Allyn Caswell (Paul Hickey) is reticent to break his oath as well but tries something smarter; he, upon seeing the others taken away, bends the knee and leads a chant of "long live the King."
Very soon afterward, Lord Caswell attempts to leave the castle on horseback. Unfortunately for him, the ever-creepy Larys Strong (MatthewNeedham) had been present in the throne room and seemed to sense his deception. Larys advises Otto of Caswell's imminent attempt to flee, possibly to Rhaenyra's side. Caswell is seconds away from safety (ain't that always the way) when he gets accosted by Targaryen guards and dragged away. We do not learn his fate until Ser Arryk Carrgyll (Luke Tittensor) is whisking Princess Rhaenys (Eve Best) to safety, and they see his body hanging by the neck as a warning to others who would betray their new vows. While it is possible that Caswell was on his way to Rhaenyra's side to inform her of the Greens' betrayal, it is equally possible that he was just a perceptive man who could feel the danger lurking in every corner of King's Landing and was trying to flee the situation altogether.
While Princess Rhaenys had the opportunity to draw blood for the Blacks, she did not, and so far only those loyal to Rhaenyra have suffered. However now that Rhaenys has made her escape, the Blacks will soon be informed of what has happened, and it will be their turn to make their moves. If the show sticks to the trajectory set out in Fire and Blood, the deaths of Lords Beesbury and Caswell (and the King's Landing folk who got trampled by the dragon Meleys) will be only the first drops in an ocean of blood.
