ARNOR

In the legendarium of J. R. R. Tolkien, 'Arnor', or the 'Northern Kingdom', was a kingdom of the Dúnedain in the land of Eriador in Middle-earth. The name probably means "Land of the King", from Sindarin 'Ara-' (high, kingly) + '(n)dor' (land).
At its greatest, Arnor encompassed almost the whole region of Eriador between Bruinen, Gwathló and Lhûn, and the region which would later be known as the Shire. Arnor's population was composed by Dúnedain in western-central regions and mixed or indigenous (and reluctant as citizens) peoples. Its capital was Annúminas near the lake Nenuial.

Contents

History

Decline

Civil war and successor states

Fall

Reunited Kingdom

See also

External links

History

Arnor was founded at the end of the Second Age () by Elendil, whose sons founded Gondor at the same time. The history of the two kingdoms is intertwined; both kingdoms are known as the Realms of the Dúnedain in Exile.
Before the foundation of Arnor there was already a sizable Númenórean population living there, a result of the slow emigration of Númenóreans which had started under Tar-Meneldur and Tar-Aldarion. Before the arrival of the Dúnedain Arnor was home to Middle Men of Edain stock, and the early colonists soon interbred with the indigenous population. Arnor was originally favoured over the more southern regions (Gondor) because the Elves under Gil-galad lived near it across the river Lhûn. However, in later days after the Númenóreans fell under Sauron's shadow they settled more to the south. This led to a situation where Elendil arrived in an area populated by people who, unlike his own Númenóreans, were mainly still friends with the Elves, and unlike Gondor to the south in Arnor much knowledge of the Elder Days was preserved.
Arnor's second king Isildur (also King of Gondor) was killed in by Orcs in the disastrous Battle of the Gladden Fields. His three eldest sons were killed with him, but the fourth and youngest, Valandil, survived and became king of Arnor ().
Because Valandil and his heirs did not claim the throne of Gondor the realms were split, but Arnor's ruler kept the title High King, whereas in the south the ruler was 'just' King.

Decline

With the victory of the War of the Last Alliance, Arnor's power reached its zenith. The King of Arnor held the overlordship of all the land between the Ered Luin and the River Poros on the southern borders of Ithilien, east to the eastern borders of Mordor. After the Disaster of the Gladden Fields, Arnor began its slow decline. In many ways, Arnor never truly recovered from this disastrous blow to its manpower: While the dawn of the Third Age heralded a new era of opportunity and expansion for Gondor, Arnor began it in a futile attempt to simply recover lost strength.

Civil war and successor states

After the death of its tenth king, Eärendur, in , Arnor was shaken by civil war between the three sons of Eärendur. The eldest son, Amlaith, claimed Kingship over all Arnor but was reduced to only ruling the region of Arthedain as his kingdom, while the other sons founded the kingdoms of Cardolan and Rhudaur. The former capital, Annúminas, became depopulated and fell into ruin.
This marked the start of the decline of the Northern Dúnedain. The three kingdoms had frequent border skirmishes over boundary disputes, but the relationship of Arthedain and Cardolan remained relatively peaceful. However, Rhudaur was unfriendly towards the two other successor states, and took part in a bitter conflict with Cardolan over the tower of Amon Sûl and the ''palantír'' associated with the tower.
Around , an evil power, the Witch-king, arose in the mountains of the North East, where he founded Angmar. It was later revealed he was the leader of the Nazgûl, who were dispersed after the first overthrow of Sauron in at the hands of the Last Alliance of Elves and Men, but survived nonetheless.

Fall

The last Kings of Rhudaur were not of Númenórean blood, but were descended of Men in service of Angmar. Under their rule the land became a vassal of Angmar, and thus enemies of Cardolan and Arthedain (the two remaining kingdoms). Angmar annexed and terminated the kingdom in . By this time the Dúnedain were gone from the region, as well as most of the other inhabitants. Constant battle with Angmar began to wear down the forces of Arthedain, while Cardolan as a political entity came to an end shortly after 1409.
In theory Arthedain became Arnor with the end of Cardolan and Rhudaur, but the Kingdom was a poor reflection of the large and powerful realm of Arnor before 861. Arthedain was destroyed in 1974, culminating in the pyrrhic victory of the Battle of Fornost. A coalition of Elves, the forces of Gondor and the remainder of Arnor's armies destroyed Angmar and freed Fornost. The population of Arnor were mostly wiped out by the wars, but the Hobbits survived in the Shire, men survived in Bree and probably other villages, and the Dúnedain of Arnor created new homes in the Angle south of Rivendell, where some of them became known as the Rangers of the North. With the help of the Elves, those people remained hidden from the rest of Middle-Earth, and became an isolated, wandering people.

Reunited Kingdom

Aragorn II as King Elessar refounded the Kingdom of Arnor as part of the Reunited Kingdom, and again made Annúminas his capital city. After the fall of Sauron, Arnor was safe again for human population, and although it remained less populated than Gondor to the south in time Arnor became a more densely populated area again, even if it had dwindled in size due to the independence of the Shire.

See also

★ Kings of Arnor

External links

★ Complete Chronology of Arnor and Gondor
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