Samwell Tarly is one of the most beloved characters in both "A Song of Ice And Fire" books and "Game of Thrones" TV adaptation. He isn't by any means a typical hero, a fierce warrior who is expected to fight in battles, but he is a hero nonetheless. Sam was the first man to have killed a White Walker in the last thousand years to protect Gilly and her son. Besides, Sam is one of the most intelligent and knowledgeable people in Westeros. As such he is likely to survive until the very end.
But could he be someone else secretly? Well, as crazy as it may sound, according to one theory Samwell Tarly could very well be the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Elia Martell.
I wouldn't dare to say there is actual evidence that supports this claim, but some interesting parallels do exist. So bear with me as I go over each and every one of them, and then decide for yourself if this is possible or not.
Sam Tarly
This theory was first brought up by YouTube user Bonz, and then further explored by Secrets of the Citadel. You can check out all the details in the video at the end of this article, but for now, let's see what this rather unusual theory is all about in a nutshell.
The theory states that there was a baby swap during the Sack of King's Landing at the very end of Robert's Rebellion. Varys smuggled the real baby Aegon away, and it was really Elia, her daughter Rhaenys, and some random baby from Flea Bottom who ended up dead at the hands of the Mountain.
Then, in the fifth book of the series "A Dance with Dragons," we are introduced to a character that goes by the name of Young Griff, whom Varys says is, in fact, the son of Rhaegar and Elia.
Many fans believe, however, that Young Griff is actually a Blackfyre impostor. This theory also supports this claim, but it introduces a new idea of real Aegon being alive and fostered somewhere else to escape certain death.
And what better place for him to be fostered than at Hornhill with Randyll Tarly, a fierce Targaryen loyalist who defeated Robert during the Battle of Ashford.
Why could Sam be Aegon?
First of all, Sam is the right age. We don't know when Aegon was born, but it was probably in 282 AC meaning that he would be around 16 years old during "A Game of Thrones" that takes place in 298 AC.
We also know that on the morning of Sam's 15th name day, Randyll told him that he must give up all the lands and title that should be Dickon's and join the Night's Watch. ("A Wiki of Ice and Fire" states that Samwell was born in 283 AC, but nobody knows if this information is true since Sam's age isn't specifically stated in the books.)
Second, Sam loves music, to write songs and read books, same as Rhaegar. And him being adopted would explain why Randyll treated him so bad.
Could Sam fit Azor Ahai prophecy?
If Sam is really Aegon, then he fits Azor Ahai prophecy rather nicely. He was born on Dragonstone, amidst salt and smoke, he has a Valyrian steel sword conveniently named Heartsbane that could be Lightbringer.
And most importantly, in "A House of Undying" Daenerys had a vision of Rhaegar talking to Elia about Aegon, calling him the Prince that was Promised, who has the song of ice and fire. Interestingly enough, this is an only time in the text that the title of the series was mentioned in its entirety. So it's bound to be important.
It could be just like in "Game of Thrones" Season 8 alleged plot leak we talked about in one of the previous articles. Melisandre will probably want to sacrifice little Sam at some point during "Game of Thrones" Season 8, but instead of Jon plunging Heartsbane into her bare chest, it would be Sam himself, thus forging Lightbringer.
My opinion
Even though I don't believe one bit that Samwell Tarly is actually Aegon, son of Rhaegar, or Azor Ahai reborn for that matter, the song of ice and fire could still be his.
And if you heard about the "Sam the narrator" theory, you know exactly what I am talking about. It basically states that after everything is said and done, Sam will write a book with a poetic title "A Song of Ice and Fire" describing all events we saw in the series.
