A Reckoning of the Shire - Chapter Two



Chapter Two

The Fall of Arthedain


It has already been written of how Marcho and Blanco were granted permission to settle in the Shire by the King of Arthedain, Argeleb the Second. The Kingdom of Arthedain was a realm of the Big Folk, extending from the Blue River in the west to the Brandywine River in the east. It is regarded as a successor kingdom, since it constituted but a part of the even more ancient and even mightier Kingdom of Arnor. Long before any reckoning of our people, the Kingdom of Arnor ruled over much of northern Middle-earth – and is therefore often referred to as the North Kingdom. Ten great kings are said to have ruled Arnor, until the younger sons of King Eärendur divided the realm in three: so came Arthedain, Cardolan and Rhudaur. Only in Arthedain did the lineage of Eärendur remain true, for in Cardolan and Rhudaur it was lost in but a few generations.

The great foe of Arnor, and subsequently Arthedain, was Angmar. This was a realm of evil, ruled over by the tyrant known only as the Witch-king – of whom it was said that none could slay. His malicious will was ever set on the destruction of Arnor and the domination of its lands and peoples. Our folk were no exception to this, for the hobbit population of Bree is thought to have been made up by those fleeing from Angmar some three hundred years before the beginning of the Shire-reckoning. Of the kingdoms descending from Arnor, Rhudaur was the first to fall to the tyranny of Angmar. The relentless wrath of the Witch-king was such that, in time, only Arthedain remained free from its fell grasp.

For almost four centuries the Hobbits of the Shire lived peacefully under the King of Arthedain’s protection. The previous chapter explained that, although compelled to pledge their fealty to Norbury, the Shire was by and large as independent as it is today. None forgot, however, their loyalty to their distant liege. Shielded by the Kingdom at large, the Shire flourished. Still at this time, the population of the land was concentrated in today’s Eastfarthing – and at this time the ancestors of the great clans of the present (perhaps most notably the Brandybucks) became prominent. Yet whilst the land prospered, the shadow of Angmar beyond the Brandywine River grew more and more dark. Most folk at the time likely trusted that the King would keep them safe, as he had done for all these years. Their faith, alas, was misplaced.

In the year 374, by reckoning of the Shire, Angmar had amassed enough strength to challenge Arthedain in the open. The growing power of Angmar must be considered alongside the waning strength of Arthedain. Some two hundred years before this time, when the Shire was very much in its youth, the Great Plague struck. It is known to us only in the oldest of songs, but this epidemic is thought to have spread throughout much of Middle-earth; the most terrible of calamities. Many hobbits perished during this pestilence, and the Kingdom at large likely endured the same degree of misery. The aftermath of the Great Plague left Arthedain weakened and depopulated; affording Angmar the opportunity to strike. Indeed, some say that the plague was no natural occurrence, but rather a malicious work of evil intent. For certain, the disasters facing Arthedain at this time seem beyond coincidence.

The collapse of Arthedain was swift and shocking. In 374, the great capital of Arthedain, the Norbury of the Kings, was assaulted by the Witch-king’s army. Little is recorded in these parts about the battle, although certain inferences can be made. Although the city fell swiftly to Angmar, it is apparent that this was no surprise attack. For according to our traditions, five hundred archers of the Shire travelled north to the capital so to defend their king. Assuming the truth of this matter, there must have been something of a muster throughout the kingdom in the prelude to the attack. Assuming further that such a call to arms was widely answered, and that the capital was as well-defended as it could be, this indicates the tremendous size of the Witch-king’s host. For, in a short time, Norbury indeed fell to Angmar, who occupied and ravaged the ancient capital. The King of Arthedain, however, survived this onslaught and fled northwards. He is said to have perished thereafter in the icy waters of Forochel. The hobbit archers who so valiantly fought alongside their king never returned to the Shire, and likely perished in the destruction of the city.

From Norbury, the forces of Angmar soon went about the destruction of the broken Kingdom at large. The Shire was no exception to the Witch-king’s wrath, and the green countryside was burned black, its livestock slaughtered and peoples slain. Most endured this ruin, however. Some are said to have burrowed deep beneath the earth; deeper than any hobbit had ever delved before, or since. Others departed the land entirely, fleeing westwards away from the shadow of Angmar, where by tradition they were sheltered by the Dwarves of the western mountains. The tyranny of Angmar was not to endure for long. A year after the Fall of Norbury, the old allies of Arthedain joined in a great host. Big Folk and Elves together marched on the ruined capital of the Kingdom, and there met the Witch-king in battle for the liberation of the land. Victory was achieved here, with the armies of Angmar being annihilated; the Witch-king either falling in battle or fleeing, never again to trouble these lands.

The defeat of Angmar was barely a victory for Arthedain, alas. The troubles it had faced in the recent centuries, coupled with the destruction of its greatest city and the Last King’s demise, prevented it from standing tall once more. The royal line of kings did not fail, however, though the son of the Last King instead elected exile over kingship. So ended the Kingdom of Arthedain; though its people endured, they were now scattered and weary of war. The Shire has seldom forgotten this early part of its history: for it was by grant of Arthedain that the land came into our possession.

(For a more comprehensive study on this subject, I refer you to my other work ‘The Lost Realm’).