Who Is The Merling King Mentioned In House Of The Dragon Episode 7?

While the Targaryens get their power from fire and the dragons they ride, the Velaryons are the opposite. As legend has it, when the Velaryons were escaping the Doom of Old Valyria, they made a pact with the Merling King of Essos to obtain the Driftwood Throne. As many may be able to intuit, this figure is not a literal king. He is a deity of the sea that takes the shape of a merman. In his capacity as the Lord of the Tides, Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint) has fashioned his legacy in honor of the sea. His castle Driftmark hovers above the ocean, and he does indeed sit upon the Driftwood Throne. And when Velaryons are laid to rest, their caskets are pushed into the sea where their power lies.

The Merling King appears in the Velaryons worship of the god as well as personified in King's Landing, too. After the battle of Blackwater Bay, Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham) finds himself stranded on the Spears of Merling. The dangerous rock formation is named for the sharp points that threaten to rip apart any ship that comes within distance. Though many in Westerosi culture worship the Gods of the Seven, the Merling King is part of the Velaryon way of life and an apt way to say goodbye to loved ones such as Laena.