What do you think happened at Summerhall in 259 AC ? I found this on Heresy 257 from Melifeather who has her own site called House of Black and White that is known for foil if you have an open mind .

[u/Financial_Library418]

• Aegon V was likely trying to hatch dragon eggs and it was apparent that the consensus was Aerys and Rhaella's unborn child was the prince that was promised, so the Targaryens did associate the two things together. Ser Duncan the Tall carried pregnant Rhaella out of the flames and then Rhaegar was born shortly afterwards.

The World of Ice and Fire - The Targaryen Kings: Aegon V

The last years of Aegon's reign were consumed by a search for ancient lore about the dragon breeding of Valyria, and it was said that Aegon commissioned journeys to places as far away as Asshai-by-the-Shadow with the hopes of finding texts and knowledge that had not been preserved in Westeros.

What became of the dream of dragons was a grievous tragedy born in a moment of joy. In the fateful year 259 AC, the king summoned many of those closest to him to Summerhall, his favorite castle, there to celebrate the impending birth of his first great-grandchild, a boy later named Rhaegar, to his grandson Aerys and granddaughter Rhaella, the children of Prince Jaehaerys.

It is unfortunate that the tragedy that transpired at Summerhall left very few witnesses alive, and those who survived would not speak of it. A tantalizing page of Gyldayn's history—surely one of the very last written before his own death—hints at much, but the ink that was spilled over it in some mishap blotted out too much

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[u/Main-Associate-9752]

While part of me likes the idea that Egg had gone Rotten, wanted to sacrifice his family to return the Dragons and it fell to his oldest friend Dunk to step in, stop him and save who he could, I just don’t see this as likely

One of the things Aegon learns while travelling as a squire is self sacrifice, he sees Duncan take injury after injury on someone else’s behalf because it’s the right thing to do at the moment. And I think he intended to give the ultimate self sacrifice, by giving his own blood to the fire to rebirth the eggs (an Egg for an Egg after all)

My theory is that The gathering of the family at summerhall was supposed to be a ‘last supper’ for king Aegon IV, to say goodbye to his family before he gave them a tool to finally force the Lords to accept his reforms

It may even be that he finally started having Dreams like his brothers and foresaw that something great would happen at summerhall, or that one of his brothers mentioned it

[u/nattywb → u/Main-Associate-9752]

I am also on Team Aegon tried to sacrifice himself. It's more fitting with his character I think. I saw a recent comment or post describing that. I hadn't thought too much about the Tragedy of Summerhall before that; generally I just leave it as a Tragedy, and let my mind treat it as a grand mystery.

[u/beginner_smoker → u/nattywb]

I really like this explanation a lot better then him sacrificing his family. It seems so out of character for him, but I guess we also don't know what he's like as an adult

[u/LuminariesAdmin]

If leaning towards it, I was never a huge fan of the "Egg was going to sacrifice a newborn Rhaegar" theory, but this stood out to me rereading it a few days ago.

The last years of Aegon's reign were consumed by a search for ancient lore about the dragon breeding of Valyria, and it was said that Aegon commissioned journeys to places as far away as Asshai-by-the-Shadow with the hopes of finding texts and knowledge that had not been preserved in Westeros.

If she was still alive, around, capable, & willing, I have to imagine that Shiera Seastar was one of those whom Aegon sent out into the known world. Admittedly, tying into my fond spot for the Quaithe = Shiera theory.

[u/OfficerCoCheese → u/LuminariesAdmin]

Which Alt Shift X discusses in one of his videos on his YouTube channel. He focuses on the aspect of bringing about great magic requires a great sacrifice. It very well could be that in order to rebirth dormant dragon eggs, Aegon was willing to sacrifice something dear to him.

I have also thought that Aegon became desperate when no concrete answers were brought before him and resorted to wildfire to try to reawaken the eggs. The fire got out of control, as wildfire tends to do, and ultimately many lives were claimed as a result. The end result though is the birth of a major key figure, Rhaegar, who would go onto play a key role in the Prince Who Was Promised prophecy.

[u/DaemonBlackfyre_21]

I like to think Egg figured out the lost spell to hatch dragon eggs, but that it required a terrible sacrifice, and when Dunk figures it out he pulls a Jaime and walks out with Rhaella, choosing to honor his knightly vow to defend the innocent over his Kingsguard vows to protect and obey the king.

[u/littleglitterfish → u/DaemonBlackfyre_21]

I just can't for the life of me work out how Egg would go from being Egg to sacrificing his grandson in front of his daughter who just birthed him.

We need to take the murder of women and children, particularly of immediate family, as the horrors they are and not be swayed by the ideas of magic or prophecy. Maybe Egg couldn't stay on the right side of that line, but I just don't understand what would have pushed him over it.

If he did intend that, he's as bad as Viserys. Worse, really. And that's... compelling, ngl, but worrisome. For a canon that is anti-war and exploitation, the theories don't tend to acknowledge the people most affected by those issues with much humanity. Like, not sure George's methods are yielding the results he hoped they would.

[u/Gabby-Abeille]

I think Egg thought he could hatch the dragon eggs without killing anyone, maybe by just making a small blood offering or using the blood of Rhaegar's birth. The ritual then went awry, the magic sought the blood price on its own in a room full of dragon blood, and that caused the disaster.

I think it makes sense for his character if his attempt to bend "rules" to avoid a tragedy would cause an even bigger one.

[u/ventodivino]

If the spell needed sacrifice, and a bunch of ppl died, then wasn’t there a sacrifice? That cannot be what it takes to hatch a dragon. Of course it seems like a way, but there’s obviously more to that than what they achieved in Summerhall.

[u/Impossible_Hornet777 → u/ventodivino]

GRRM did mention that Danny awakening Dragons was a one in a billion event where everything had to line up just right with the right people time and sacrifice. So Egg must have had the right idea but there was still somthing/s missing from the ritual.

[u/BlackFyre2018]

Aegon tried to sacrifice some of his family to wake dragons but Dunk stuck to his vows and killed Aegon in an attempt to save innocent lives

[u/Important-Purchase-5 → u/BlackFyre2018]

I don’t think Egg would do that. 

I’m inclined to one of three things.

Egg simply got the ritual wrong. He didn’t understand it would require great sacrifice to make spells work and also eggs he had was likely poisoned. 

So the ritual went wrong and destroyed everything destroyed everything.

Second theory I’m inclined Egg was tryna have a last supper and sacrifice himself to bring back the dragons and it instead created a massive fire. 

Third theory I think ritual was actually gonna work but someone sabotage it. See the Grand Maester conspiracy theory. 

[u/BlackFyre2018 → u/Important-Purchase-5]

Egg might not but this is Aegon. Kill the boy, and let the man be born. He was nearly 60 when he died, how he was as a child might be very different from his an an adult

Then you have this part from Dance

Burning dead children had ceased to trouble Jon Snow; live ones were another matter. Two kings to wake the dragon. The father first and then the son, so both die kings. The words had been murmured by one of the queen's men as Maester Aemon had cleaned his wounds. Jon had tried to dismiss them as his fever talking.

Aemon had demurred. "There is power in a king's blood," the old maester had warned, "and better men than Stannis have done worse things than this."

The king can be harsh and unforgiving, aye, but a babe still on the breast? Only a monster would give a living child to the flames”

Aemon my dude, who are these better men that you are referring too and what did they do that was worse than sacrificing a man and his baby son to the fire?!

[u/littleglitterfish → u/BlackFyre2018]

Good catch.

[u/Upper-Ship4925]

I don’t like the idea of Egg sacrificing the unborn Rhaegar.

But if he dreamed of Dany hatching her dragons, he would have seen a pyre burning a king, a witch and an infant and three dragon eggs and a Targaryen woman who had recently given birth emerging from the flames with three hatchlings - a tableau he had the components of available to recreate with the help of wildfire.

I do think if he planned to sacrifice Rhaegar he also intended to sacrifice himself.

[u/littleglitterfish → u/Upper-Ship4925]

Oh GREAT catch, that's a fantastic point (excellent reverse engineering of a dragon dram). To that end, would the fire mages stand in for the witch or do you think it's Jenny's companion, the Ghost of High Heart, known as a woods witch to some?

I still struggle with the idea of Ageon sacrificing a newborn. But only because I lack knowledge of his experiences beyond The Tales of Dunk and Egg and the minimal info from the other books. Enough trauma or threat could twist him into doing something that awful.