The Peoples of Middle-earth (40 page)

3 ... 2120-2254 (134)

4 ... 2172-2299 (127)

5 ... 2225-2348 (123)

6 ... 2274-2400 (126)

7 ... 2324-2458 (134)

8 ... 2373-2498 (125)

9 ... 2418-2540 (122)

10 ... 2463-2582 (119)

11 ... 2505-2623 (118)

12 ... 2546-2660 (114)

13 ... 2588-2701 (113)

14 ... 2627-2733 (106)

15 ... 2671-+2746 (75) slain by Corsairs of Umbar 16 ... 2709-f2799 ([90]) slain in battle 17 ... 2746-2859 (113)

18 ... 2785-2899 (114)

19 Aglahad 2827-2932 (105)

20 Angelimir 2866-2977 (111)

21 Adrahil 2917-3010 (93)

22 Imrahil 2955-3054 (99)

23 Elphir 2987-(3087 =) F.A.57 (100)

24 Alphros 3017-(3115 =) F.A.95 (98)

In contrast to this carefully written page, the other form of this list (that written on the back of the document of 1954) has a scrawled note at its head, the same as that in the text just given but extending only to the words 'harboured by Imrazor the Numenorean, who weds her'; and the dates are written in pencil, with some corrections.

Imrazor is numbered 1, so that Angelimir is the twenty-first prince; but this was corrected. The life-span of the sixteenth prince was given as 91 years instead of 90, and my father followed this in the second text; and where the second text has 'slain in battle' the first has 'Battle with Orcs'.

The statement here that Amroth was the brother of Celeborn appears to be unique (for other accounts of him see The History of Galadriel and Celeborn in Unfinished Tales: but all the material concerning Amroth collected there comes from after, much of it long after, the publication of The Lord of the Rings). On both forms of the present text the words were struck out, and on the second my father pencilled 'was a Sinda from Beleriand'. With the time of Amroth's flight from Lorien cf. the entry for 1981 in Appendix B: 'The Dwarves flee from Moria. Many of the Silvan Elves of Lorien flee south.

Amroth and Nimrodel are lost'; also Unfinished Tales pp. 240, 245.

No events are recorded elsewhere in the years 2746 and 2799 that cast light on the deaths in battle of the fifteenth and sixteenth Princes of Dol Amroth.

The dates of the deaths of Prince Imrahil and of Faramir Prince of Ithilien in the genealogy redrawn on p. 221 (3054 = Fourth Age 34, and 3103 = F.A.83) place the beginning of the Fourth Age in 3021; similarly in the list of the princes given above the dates of the deaths of Elphir and Alphros, 3087 and 3115, and equated with F.A.67 and 95. In text C of The Heirs of Elendil the Fourth Age began in 3022, and in text B the Third Age ended in 3019 (see pp. 196, 211).

The Princes Aglahad, Angelimir, Elphir, and Alphros are only recorded in these texts, as also are other members of the line of Dol Amroth in the genealogical table, Ivriniel, Erchirion, and Amrothos.

Faramir's son Elboron likewise only appears in this genealogy. In him an old name reappears: Elboron and Elbereth were the original names of the young sons of Dior Thingol's Heir who were murdered by the followers of Maidros (IV.307, V.142). Later the sons of Elrond were named Elboron and Elbereth, before they became Elladan and Elrohir (VIII.297, 301, 370).

The further development of Appendix A is postponed to Chapter IX.

VIII.

THE TALE OF YEARS OF

THE THIRD AGE.

The earliest text of the Tale of Years of the Third Age is a brief manuscript apparently closely associated with the very early form of that of the Second Age which I have called T 2 (see pp. 168-70); and although they are separate texts and not continuous it is convenient to refer to this likewise as T 2.

Though subsequently covered with somewhat haphazard accretions, for the most part obviously associated with work on the chronology of the Realms in Exile, it is possible to extricate with fair certainty the text of T 2 as originally set down, and I give it in this form here.

Of the History of the Third Age

little is known.

0 If we reckon from the death of Isildur.

Years of Third Age.

1000- Sauron wakes again, and enters Mirkwood. Establishes a stronghold at Dol Dugul (1) and slowly grows.

c.1100. Deagol finds the One Ring and is slain by Smeagol.(2) Smeagol becomes Gollum.

c.1105. Gollum enters eaves of Misty Mountains.

c.1300. The people of Smeagol grow and begin to multiply.

They cross the Misty Mountains and journey westward. They become Hobbits.(3) Orcs begin to reappear.

c. 1500. Hobbits settle at Bree.

c. 1600. (S.R.1)(4) Marco and Cavallo cross the Baranduin (Brandywine) and are given 'the Shire' to live in by the king at Northworthy (5) (Fornost). 'Shire-reckoning'

begins.

c.1900. Last 'king at Northworthy'. The Dunedain or Rangers (last of the Numenoreans in the North) wander in the wild; but the heirs of the kings live at Imladris (Rivendell) with Elrond.

c. 2000. The line of the Kings of Gondor becomes extinct with death of Earnur.(6) The Line of the Stewards begins with Mardil the Good Steward.

c.2500. Elrond who had never before been wed, wedded Celebrian daughter of Galadriel of Lorien.(7) His children were Elrohir and Elladan and a daughter Finduilas (8) in whom the likeness of Luthien reappeared. These

children are of men's stature but Elven-blood.(9)

c. 2600. Celebrian is slain by Orcs on the road over the Mountains to visit Galadriel.

c. 2620. Isengrim Took the First establishes the Took family in the Shire.

c.2890. Bilbo born.

2910. Aragorn son of Arathorn heir of Isildur born.

2940. Bilbo goes on his adventures.

2950. Sauron re-enters Mordor.

3001. Bilbo's Farewell Party.

3018. Frodo sets out.

Whatever may have been the reasons for the selection of these particular events, it is striking that there are no entries referring to the history of Arnor and Gondor except those to the last king in the North and to the last king in the South (Earnur), with the beginning of the line of Stewards; and the dates of these entries show that this text preceded the earliest extant forms of The Heirs of Elendil.

The next version was the manuscript T 3 (see p. 172), which in the part of it treating the Second Age, as I have said, was 'little more than a copy of T 2, with a number of entries expanded'. This is not at all the case, however, with the Third Age. It was here that my father introduced a comprehensive and coherent chronology of the Age, and set his course, in this work that he called 'the Tale of Years', in a direction remarkably unlike its ultimate appearance in Appendix B to The Lord of the Rings. That it was closely associated with The Heirs of Elendil is very plain. The manuscript was covered with alterations, expansions and additions, and became a working draft for the major text T 4 which I have no doubt soon followed it.

As will be seen subsequently, T 4 was and remained for a long time the form of the Tale of Years that my father thought appropriate, and was indeed proposed to the publishers in 1954. I shall here pass over the text T 3, though with some reference to it in the notes at the end of the chapter, and give that of T 4 in its entirety.

This is a very clear manuscript with a notable lack of hesitation or second thoughts. That it was intended to be a final and publishable text is shown also by the fact that, when my father came to the conclusion that the establishment of the White Council was placed four hundred years too early, he rejected two pages and wrote two new ones in such a way that they fitted precisely into the original text. I give it here as it was written, say in the years 1949 - 50 (as I believe), but with the text of the substituted pages, since it seems probable that they were written before the manuscript was completed, or at any rate soon after. It was a good deal altered later, chiefly with respect to certain matters: the migrations of the Stoors; the machinations of Saruman; and the movements of Gollum. I have not included any revisions in the text, but give an account of them at the end of the chapter (p. 250).

The opening statement concerning the Four Ages, and the entries for the Second Age, have been given on pp. 172-7.

The Third Age

These were the Fading Years. Of this Age in its beginnings little is now known, save for the traditions of the realm of Gondor.

For a thousand years and more the Eldar in Middle-earth, protected by the Three Rings, were content and at peace, while Sauron slept; but they attempted no great deeds, and made no new things of wonder, living mostly in memory of the past. In all this time the things of old were slowly fading, and new things were stirring, though few observed the signs.

The Dwarves became ever more secretive, and hid themselves in deep places, guarding their hoards from their chief enemies, the dragons and the Orcs. One by one their ancient treasuries were plundered, and they became a wandering and dwindling people. In Moria the Dwarves of the race of Durin long held out, but this people once numerous steadily waned, until their vast mansions became dark and empty.

The might and lore and the life-span of the Numenoreans (or Dunedain as they were called by the Elves) also waned as the years passed and their blood became mingled with that of lesser Men.(10) More swift was the waning in the North-kingdom, for the lands of Eriador, as that region was now called, became colder and less friendly to Men in that time.

There the Dunedain became ever less. After the days of Earendur (11) of Arnor the North-kingdom became divided into petty realms, and the Heirs of Isildur of the direct line ruled only over Arthedain in the far North-west. In Gondor the power of the kings of Anarion's line endured longer, and their sway extended over many lands of Men; but there was little coming and going between the realms except in times of need.

1. Ohtar Isildur's esquire escapes with two other men only from the slaughter of the Gladden Fields.(12) He brings the shards of Elendil's sword, Narsil, which Isildur had saved, and delivers it to Valandil Isildur's son in Imladris. Valandil was a child, fourth son of Isildur.

His brothers perished with their father.

10. Valandil Isildur's son becomes King of Arnor and dwells at Annuminas.

420-30. Ostohir King of Gondor rebuilds and enlarges Minas Anor.

490. First invasion of Gondor by Easterlings.

500. Tarostar defeats the Easterlings and takes the name of Romendakil, East-slayer.

541. Romendakil slain in battle with a second invasion of Easterlings, who are driven out by his son Turambar.

861. Death of Earendur last and tenth king of Arnor. The North-kingdom becomes divided among Earendur's sons. The direct line of the eldest son, Amlaith of Fornost, rules the realm of Arthedain. Annuminas is deserted. The other realms were Cardolan (where later was Bree and the Barrowdowns) and Rhudaur, north of the River Baranduin. From this time the official names of the kings at Fornost were no longer given in High-elven form, but in Noldorin. Amlaith and his descendants maintained friendship with the Eldar, especially with Cirdan at the Havens.(13)

c. 1000. About this time the Istari, that is the Wise Men or wizards, appeared in the westlands of Middle-earth. It was not known whence they came (unless to Cirdan and Elrond). But afterwards, when it was revealed that the shadow of Sauron had first begun to take new shape at this same time, it was said by many that they came out of the Far West, and were messengers sent to contest the power of Sauron, if he should arise again, and to move all good folk and kindly creatures to resist him.

The Wizards appeared nonetheless in the likeness of Men, and resembled Men in most things, save that they were never young and aged but slowly, and had many powers of mind and hand. For long they journeyed far and wide among Elves and Men and all speaking-folk, and held converse also with beasts and birds. They did not reveal their true names, but used those that the peoples of Middle-earth gave to them, and they were many. The chief of this order were the two whom the Eldar called Mithrandir and Curunir, but Men in the North named Gandalf and Saruman. Of them Mithrandir was closest in counsel with the Eldar and with Elrond; he wandered far in the North and West and never made for himself any lasting abode. But Curunir journeyed often far into the East, and when he returned he dwelt at Orthanc in the Ring of Isengard.(14)

About this time also the Periannath, of whom there are no earlier accounts among Elves or Men, are first mentioned in ancient tales. These were a strange small people, called by Men (15) Halflings, but by themselves (later in the west of Eriador) Hobbits. They are thought to have long dwelt in Greenwood the Great or near its western eaves, and in the vale of the upper Anduin. But at this time they began to move westward over the Misty Mountains into Eriador. It is said that they moved from their earlier dwellings because Men increased much at that time; and because a shadow fell on Greenwood, and it became darkened, and was called Mirkwood, for an evil spirit stirred there.(16) The Harfoots were the first clan of Hobbits to enter Eriador.(17) c.1100. It becomes known to the Wise (being the chieftains of the Eldar and the Istari) that an evil power had arisen in Mirkwood and had established a stronghold on the hill of Dol Guldur in the southern forest. But it was still some time before they knew for certain that this was the shadow of Sauron himself and that he was awake again.