The prequel to ‘Game of Thrones‘, ‘House of the Dragon‘, set 200 years earlier is a fabulous show and season two begins this evening.

‘House of the Dragon‘ is based on  George R.R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood.

The story centres on how the greatest power in Westeros tore itself apart by family infighting and the right to rule the kingdom. 

Following this thrilling show, one can see parallels with what is happening here in Jamaica with one of the great families of business and the fight for succession. People will get hurt and displaced.

Beginning in his twenties, Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart over half a century built one of the greatest conglomerates Jamaica has seen. Hailing from St Ann with prowess as a salesman, he began the retailer ATL and then went on to found the Caribbean’s premier resort chain Sandals which is recognised globally. Bloomberg has valued Sandals at US $4.5 billion.

Butch Stewart put his imprimatur on his operations and was a man who worked assiduously, always striving for excellence and to surpass his previous achievements. Retirement was never in the cards for him. He possessed indomitable will and energy. But men are mortal and he died at the age of 79 in January 2021, leaving behind a treasure trove of assets and his son Adam Stewart to succeed him.

Now Adam served as group CEO since his mid-twenties, working by his father’s side, preparing for the day when he would become the executive chairman. This was acknowledged and understood by both line workers and executives at the Sandals/ATL Group. For certain executives, Butch Stewart would always say, “Run it by Adam”.

There’s a famous cartoon by Clovis of Butch handing the baton to Adam on a race track—prophetic and apt.

Some say leaders are born, others say they are made nevertheless experience is invaluable. Both Alexander the Great and Frederick the Great put great stock on what transpired before and the lessons that should be learnt. 

In the first season of ‘House of the Dragon’, King Viserys I (Targaryen) rules the Seven Kingdoms and is the patriarch. He is intelligent, kind-hearted and versed in statecraft. He is well respected but not feared. He succumbs to an illness that afflicts him for years draining away his life force. He married a woman whom he loved but she died leaving him a spirited daughter Rhaenyra Targaryen. However, he remarries no doubt looking for a male heir. He marries Alicent who becomes Queen Alicent Hightower with her father Sir Otto Hightower becoming Hand of the King. Alicent bears him sons. 

Both Queen Alicent and her father Sir Otto Hightower are only interested in securing the succession for their bloodline and Sir Otto plots to do away with Princess Rhaenyra. The two families claim what they believe is rightfully theirs an in the process undo what was built and begin the course of its demise.

Cheryl Hammersmith Stewart became Butch’s common-law wife and bore him three children. She maintains she played a significant role in building the Sandals brand. Butch Stewart died in Miami and she claims that he changed his will before he died stating she and her children have a significant stake and role in the group. There seems to be little regard for Butch Stewart’s wish that his son Adam should succeed him and take his place as executive chairman of what is essentially a family business.

Now there are court proceedings and the bile and acrimony are overflowing. A family is divided and people are choosing sides like in ‘House of the Dragon‘—either you are for “The Blacks” or ‘The Greens” . 

Before his death, Viserys held a banquet for his family.

Gravely ill, his face deteriorated, unable to stand steady on his feet, he beseechs that the realm be ruled by the family working together in harmony and love, that bitterness and hatred would lead to the fall of the House of the Dragon. They all listened but they didn’t heed his words. In fact, too ill to continue, guards took him back to his quarters and immediately the young princes set upon each other.

Family dynamics are not easy and it becomes more treacherous when factions battle for power to claim what was built and accomplished. It has been said that because of the ugliness of human nature, great houses more often than not come to an end in three generations—the intrepid founder, his blood successor and then the idiot son who lays it to waste. 

Butch Stewart was able to surround himself with some great executives—Wayne Cummings, Jeremy Jones, Shawn Decosta, Merrick Fray, Arlene Lindo, Betty-Jo Desnoes, Patrick and John Lynch, Dmitri Singh, Brian and  David Roper. They all built a company from Jamaica that was a world-beater. Butch Stewart was able to tap into Jamaican excellence and had an ability to get you to produce more than you thought you were capable of. He was generous and caring and loved Jamaicans and the Caribbean. Will all that be threatened now? 

There are ugly stories appearing in the international press, tales that besmirch family members who want to continue the legacy and see to it that 18,000 of its employees continue to have jobs and prosper. The remnants of a fractured group will not serve Jamaica well. It may make some investment bankers happy but will be to the detriment of Jamaica where the group was founded and grew. Sandals/ATL remains an institution of what Jamaica itself can be. That cannot be lost.

There is a new generation of executives under the leadership of Adam Stewart, people like Jordan Samuda, Rachel McClarty, and Ricky DuQuesnay. They must carry on and improve on what was bequeathed to the new executive chairman who has a number of accomplishments under his belt, adding new resorts to the group. The goal is to contribute US$5 billion to the economy by the end of 2025.

Smooth continuity is important in succession. Making drastic changes and going into an altogether different direction with leadership not au fait with the culture of the organisation can have an unsettling effect.

On his death bed, doused with ‘Milk of the Poppy,’ King Viserys becomes delirious and mutters incoherently about Aegon’s dream about “ Ice and Fire”. Queen Alicent is the only one with him and totally misunderstands, taking his words to mean that her son Aegon should succeed him. 

She tells her father that the King’s dying wish was for their son  Aegon to succeed him thus erasing his stated announcement before the court that his daughter Rhaenyra and her heirs should ascend to the throne. He dies with his wish purposefully ignored plunging the kingdom into internal strife and civil war.. A family tearing itself apart and destroying each other.

Sometimes one should take a moment to count your blessings no matter how small they may be. 

Butch Stweart was extremely intuitive and a man who was not given to vacillation. He was no Hamlet, plagued by procrastination and self-doubt. You knew where you stood and there was no doubt as to his command and what he wanted accomplished.

Could it be like Viserys Butch Stewart was befuddled by powerful medication, not altogether sure of the intent of those around him, his utterances totally misunderstood?