i, for one, really hope that (f)Aegon is real in the sense that i really hope he actually is rhaegar & elia's son... mostly just out of spite at this point.
Not sure if you've spoke about it before, but what do you think of Young Griff? Do you think he's really Aegon?
Hi dalekofchaos! No, I haven’t talked very much about Young Griff before actually. I had a very brief conversation about him here, but that’s about it.
I feel certain that Young Griff is not actually Aegon VI Targaryen. I think that Young Griff definitely believes himself to be the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Elia Martell, but I think Gregor killed the real baby long ago. (Elio & Lindaaa also believe that Aegon is fake, if that counts for anything.)
I swear by the #fAegon tag on asoiafuniversity, so if you’re looking for some in depth discussion, I definitely recommend you click the link. I doubt there’s much I could say that isn’t already in that tag.
If you’re asking me about what I think of Aegon as a person rather than a theory … he seems nice enough. He would probably make a good enough king if he were given the chance, but I doubt he’ll get that chance, because I’m 99% certain he’s doomed to go out in a ball of wildfire at the end of TWOW or the beginning of ADOS. I think this is a decent assessment of Young Griff by donewithwoodenteeth and this is an interesting essay by racefortheironthrone.
So, I was reading the Chevalier de Jaucourt’s ’Monarchy’ entry in Encyclopedia (1765, p. 636) for a History of Public Law course and, while discussing the declines of such regimes the author writes:
"But, if someone should say to the subjects of a monarchy whose foundation is crumbling, ‘A Prince has been born to you who will reestablish that foundation in all its glory. Nature has endowed this successor with all of the virtues and with personal qualities that will delight you. All that you need do is help them to develop.’ Alas! I fear that your hopes will be disappointed. There are monsters who will cause this beautiful flower to wilt, who will smother it even as it is being born. Their poison breath will extinguish the faculties of this heir to the throne so that they can bend him to their will. They will fill his soul with errors, prejudices and superstitions. They will fill him with ignorance and with their pernicious maxims. They will infect him with the will to power that obsesses them."
Could this possibly reflect Aegon VI any more?
I have never read the text you've referenced, but that does sound a lot like (f)Aegon! In particular, I'm reminded of what Varys says about Aegon in the epilogue:
"Aegon has been shaped for rule before he could walk. He has been trained in arms, as befits a knight to be, but that was not the end of his education. He reads and writes, he speaks several tongues, he has studied history and law and poetry. A septa has instructed him in the mysteries of the Faith since he was old enough to understand them. He has lived with fisherfolk, worked with his hands, swum in rivers and mended nets and learned to wash his own clothes at need. He can fish and cook and bind up a wound, he knows what it is like to be hungry, to be hunted, to be afraid. Tommen has been taught that kingship is his right. Aegon knows kingship is his duty, that a king must put his people first, and live and rule for them."
The part about a monarchy whose foundation is crumbling is how I would describe Westeros right now and "I fear that your hopes will be disappointed" is pretty much Aegon's tagline in my opinion. Very interesting stuff, particularly to be able to associate ASOIAF to your Public Law text! I wonder if GRRM has read this book.
[I divided an ask into two parts before realizing you had set up your Submit to longer messages, dumb me. Resending the whole/unabridged/undivided version here. Again, sorry for contributing to fill your askbox.]
It's okay, you're not dumb! I would use that term to describe tumblr's messaging system tbh; I find the character limits on asks to be very frustrating. My askbox is a mess no matter what I do, so what's a little more? <3 Again, please accept my apologies on the lateness of this reply! This is actually very cool, and I appreciate you sending it to me, and I'm actually very embarrassed to have lost your submit earlier.
