A high-fantasy campaign for Tolkiens

Middle-Earth
If you liked the campaign and wish to join a play-by-email campaign using Rolemaster 2
rules, please give me an e-mail at (dalewarrior2001@yahoo.com). Cheers, Antnio
Simes.

Harad is a town in present-day Saudi Arabia.

Index
Gazetteer of the lands............................2
The Second Age (SA)...5
Nmenrean technology..12
The Weapons of Possession.16
The Third Age (TA).23

Tolkien dated the War of the Ring at 6,000 BC; that would make the destruction of
Nmenor, which he also named as Atalant, at 9,000 BC, like Plato on the destruction of
Atlantis, whose authority Tolkien probably followed. The Lord of the Rings was written
by Hobbits and by what they heard the big people say. Here I try to decipher the missing
pieces and put together my own campaign with background from other role-playing
games.
Ive divided the history of The Lord of the Rings in 500-year periods like Tolkien does so
often; it took 500 years in the S.A. for Sauron to stir again; the first Easterling attacks
against Gondor came in T.A 500; the Watchful Peace lasted for about 500 years.
Basically this mirrors the history of Europe also divided in periods of 500 years:
2000-1500
BC
Minoan
thalassocracy

Imperial
Period
1500-1000 BC Mycenaean sack of Thera (1450 BC) Dark Ages
1000-500
BC

Age
of
Heroes
(Middle
Ages)
500-0 BC - Age of the Greek and Roman city-republics or of the Middle-class
0-500 AD - Imperial Roman Age Emergence of the class of the People; decline of the
Middle-class that was preponderant until the middle of the period, circa 284 AD, when
revolutionaries (Bagaudae) appeared in an organized fashion and defied regular armies,
and from then onwards liberal rights, such as of association and free press, were as a
consequence
ended
with
emperors
Diocletian
and
Constantine.
500-1000 AD - Dark Ages Decline of the class of the People who held in this period a

communal organization from sex to goods; emergence of the class of the Clergy.
1000-1500 AD Age of Heroes (Middle Ages) Decline of the class of the Clergy that
controlled political affairs until the middle of the period, when pope Boniface VIII. was
slain by the chief minister of the French king, Nogaret, and the papacy entered the period
called The Babylonian Captivity in France; emergence of the class of the Nobility.
1500-2000 AD Age of the Bourgeoisie Decline of the class of the Nobility who
controlled affairs until circa the middle of the period; emergence of the class of the
Bourgeoisie that controlled political affairs from circa 1789, the date of the beginning of
the French revolution.

Gazetteer of Middle-Earth in the early to middle Third Age

- Harad Geographically, I joined the Utter South of ICEs map to Harad because the Mmakil
armies, described in the Return of the King as coming out of the Far South, are stated as
an integral part of the Haradrim hosts; indeed the Oliphaunt is called the Mmak of
Harad. (The Return of the King, Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit)
Near Harad is formed of the countries, from west to east, of Oroboro, Haruzan, Pezarsan,
Lurmsakn, Chelkar, Arysis, and Siakan (Sampsa Rydmans Lindefirion maps). Near
Harad was the first country to be reached by the Easterlings that came via the Gap of
Khand. They fought with the black men of Dark Harad conquering them; later with the
Nmenrean colonization these two peoples intermingled thoroughly, giving rise to the
Haradrim race. The Haradrim of Near Harad devoted themselves to agriculture near the
Harnen River. There are also a few cities where manufactured goods are produced. The
Near Harad urbanized regions use Gondorian, Northmen, Nriad and Khandish slaves in
their armies. Their religious practices enforce polygamy; a man is allowed to marry as
many women as he has money to sustain; the regional rulers, called emirs, keep private
brothels for themselves called harems; these are guarded by slaves that were castrated
since childhood, called eunuchs. Further inland there are nomadic tribes that devote
themselves to herding camels and goats across the Desert Oases. These Haradrim carry
heavy robes and turbans to shield them from the heat. The Near, Far and Greater Harad
regions have a small, agile horse, whose tail it swings up and down as his emotions vary,
that is famous for its swiftness, and that they export a few to the countries of the Ormal
Bay. Near Harad was formed of the confederations of tribes of the Allaiyee, Jeluteie,
Quarsague, and Eluaieen. These tribes were as said before a mixture between Black and
White Men. They were ruled by an elite of Far Haradrim origin in the Early Second Age.
Then there is the country of Umbar. Umbar is the most fertile country of the Harad. Its
lands were settled to the widest extent seen in Middle-Earth by the Nmenreans that
came to comprise the ruling class, directing the agriculture of the lands from the cities.
The size of its workshops, factories, arsenals and ship-yards was unequalled in MiddleEarth. Further south along the coast lies the country of Bellakar. In the centre of Harad

lies Far Harad, also called the Raj. Far Harads deserts were in the First age largely
uninhabited save the fertile coastland. Its settlement was possible because the Easterlings
coming past the Chy Gap learnt to tame the camel and so its Nomadic tribes came to
roam the Oases of the Dune Sea and the Mirror of Fire. The Nomadic Haradrim tribes
heavily clad in turbans and robes herded the Camel packs throughout the year to the
places with water. In the summer they staid in the fertile lands of the Raj, while in the
winter they toured the oases across the vast deserts of the Dune Sea and the Mirror of
Fire. They also composed the majority of the caravans that took trade goods from Umbar
and Near Harad to the fertile coastline of the Raj and thence to the South, eastwards to
Greater Harad or westwards along the coast all the way to Mirdor.
Far Harad is the country which has seen less intermixing between the White and Black
races. It is also the country where adherence to the religion of the One True God Eru, as
taught by the Early Nmenreans, was strongest, until it was corrupted into the worship
of Melkor in the Late Third Age. Its holy city of Tresti was the centre for religious
pilgrimages coming from all the Harad. Going west down along the coast lies Tulwang.
Tulwang was a Nmenrean colony in the SA, being in the Third Age a highly disputed
and warring nest of pirates, armed with strong ships learnt from the Nmenrean
colonization. South-east of Far Harad lies Greater Harad, also called in Haradaic Srayn.
It is a highly urbanized and rich environment, for Haradrim standards; its armies are
comprised mostly of slaves brought up since their childhood in the military crafts. Northeast of Greater Harad lies Harshandatt. At the eastern part of Haradwaith lies Chy, called
in Haradaic Al-Quebir. The emigration of Easterlings that came through the Chy Gap was
small in numbers and fought fierce wars with the indigenous Negro inhabitants. It staid
only long enough to learn to domesticate the camel and leaving for the far expanses of
Far Harad. The Negro farmers and nomads of Al-Quebir retained their independence but
later exchanged their Animist religion for that of the Eruhin, the Children of Eru, in the
Early TA, learnt from the Far Haradrim. The Negroes also adopted from the Haradrim the
skill to tame the camel, but they retained as their clothes the barest to cover their
necessities. North of Chy lies Clyan, called in Haradaic Al-Marin.
Further south lie the Yellow Mountains, in Quenya Ered Laranor, that divide Greater
Harad from Utter Harad. On the western coast of Utter Harad lies Ciryatandor, also called
in Adnaic Anbalukkhr. This was the home of a fierce and cruel Haradrim people called
the Al-Moraque. They were a confederation of nomadic tribes that passed the summer in
Ciryatandor and the winters eastward in Zajantak just above the Yellow Mountains. They
mingled extensively with the Nmenrean colonists and were drilled extensively in
Nmenrean military practices, giving birth to the strongest infantry forces of the Harad,
the phalangites of Anbalukkhr, although they lacked the ships to transport themselves to
other regions of Haradwaith. South of Ciryatandor is situated Hyarn, or Khradne in
Adnaic. It is comprised mostly of vast grasslands. Its Haradrim people call themselves
Adena; they have a brownish dark skin and plain dark hair. They dedicated themselves to
agriculture but the Nmenreans took most of the lands for pastoral use, forcing the
Adena to change trade and become herders. The few cities that exist dedicate themselves
to the construction of large carracks used in the export of the cows in fresh, live condition
to the other countries of the Harad. At the tip of Utter Harad lies Mirdor, called in

Adnaic Zimrathni. It was heavily settled by the Nmenreans around the Bay of Drel
and Pelegebu.
East of Mirdor is located Mag and Tumag. These countries are inhabited by Negroes
from Mrenor that adhere to Animist religions and make up wandering tribes. They
retain the lies that the Black Nmenreans inflicted upon them in the Late SA that there
is an all-powerful evil Deity that presides over their destinies; they are cannibalistic
therefore offering human sacrifices to Melkor. The Mmakil roam these expenses wild,
the Negroes not knowing the skill to tame them. Slavers from Tantrak, Greater Harad
and even Sakal an-Khr raid the coasts for the Black Gold. East of Tumag and in the
north of the Bay of Koros lies sakan. It was in the SA the prison-state of Nmenor; to
this tropical land were deported Nmenors criminals, minor and major. After the
Akallabth, the prisons were rent free, and the Nmenreans mingled with the Black
Men, relatives of Mag and Tumag, creating a mulatto population. Drawing on their
Atalantean skills these mulattos make a living as fishermen; they have a hard time
retaining their independence from Tantrak; only their jungle hideouts and a handful of
pirate nests keep them in that state indeed. In the center of Utter Harad, in the northeastern part of the Bay of Koros lies Tantrak. It was the main Nmenrean trading point
with Utter Harad and Dark Harad, therefore having a high percentage of Nmenreans
coming each year to live among the already mixed mulatto population until in the days of
Ar-Pharazn, four great port-cities were built in the inhospitable continent of Dark Harad
for its exploitation. Tantraks capital Sarl builds catamarans, galleasses and Galleons
but no multi-levelled cannon bearing ships-of-the-line. East of Tantrak lies the country
of Mmakan. The people of Mmakan are a mix between White and Black Men, of a
dark brown color with long dark hair to the lower neck, medium beards, and brown eyes.
They are a large people mainly with an agricultural occupation, and have an urban
civilization not too inferior to that of Greater Harad, with vast armies of heavy cavalry
and oliphaunts, as their cities devote a high percentage of the treasury to the military
sector. The island of Mlambur is a jungle hive populated by dark Elves, forming a
kingdom known as the Court of Ardor.
To the south of the Utter South lies a continent called Mrenor or Dark Harad. It is
composed to the north of savannas and deserts where tribal organizations predominate,
while to the south jungles predominate filled with pigmies, Orcs, apes and snakes. In the
southern part of Dark Harad Orcs sprang up them like apes in the dark forests of the
South. In central Mrenor lies Dor-en-Luini, known in Westron as Syrte, after its
capital Lond Iorbeth, the empire of the Thousand kingdoms. It dominates nominally the
many tribes and petty kingdoms of northern Dark Harad. Its ruling class is composed of a
mixture of Black Nmenreans and demons of Morgoth. Of late the priestly class of
Sakal an-Khr, the Ordainers, has gained large influence in the empire. The people is
largely composed of black men and half-orcs. Long accustomed to the oppression of the
demons, the populace has as its customs to pay chaos mages to change the skin colour
and body shape to resemble the many colours and shapes of its demon-rulers. These
people are known as changelings. A sizeable half-demon population abounds. The
merchants, mostly, use little and kind telepathic flurry animals the size of a hand, known

as Spiglics, that they carry on the top of their heads, to subdue their natures. The same
system prevails in Sakal an-Khr.
As of late the Dark Haradrim have been able to cast off the yoke of demon-worship. The
hated pyramids have been destroyed and the centralized empires that supported the rule
of the demons have been shattered by rebellions and tribal invasions and a large help
from the Elendili of Gondor and Cardolan, whose Mariners Guild was paramount in
establishing a network of secret contacts. Still, deep in the jungles there are some that still
do human sacrifices to the names of the demons.

History from the archives of Gondor and Arnor

The Harad was first settled by black people from the southern part of Harad, called
Mrenor or Dark Harad, in the Early First Age. But northern and central Harad were rift
asunder in the War of the Wrath in the Late First Age from Dark Harad, and the black
peoples colonization became separated from the motherland and lost impulse, mixing
with white men coming from the East. The white men, Easterlings, coming from the East
past the Ered Harmal through the Khand and Chy Gaps mixed with the black men giving
rise to the unique race of the Haradrim. Haradwaith was always of concern to the Southkingdom, more so than Rhn, because it was pocketed with Black Nmenrean colonies,
enemies equal in power and capacity to the Dnedain.
SA 0-500: Age of Heroes: Decline of the Wise-Seers-Clergy, emergence of the
Nobility. The Edain settle Nmenor and live in peace.
1 Foundation of the Grey Havens, and of Lindon.
32 The Edain reach Nmenor.
c. 40 Many Dwarves leaving their old cities in Ered Luin go to Moria and swell its
numbers. (The Return of the King)
The Noldor and the Valar came among the Nmenreans and taught them magic in
reward for their help in the fight against Morgoth. `Among the wrights of the Edain were
weaponsmiths, and they had with the teaching of the Noldor acquired great skill in the
forging of swords, of axe-blades, and of spearheads and knives.' (Unfinished Tales) `To
the Fathers of Men of the three faithful houses rich reward was also given. Eoenwee
came among them and taught them; and they were given wisdom and power and life
more enduring than any others of mortal races have possessed. (The Silmarillion, The
Akllabeth)
And after the victory of the Lords of the West those of the evil Men that were not
destroyed fled back into the east, where many of their race were still wandering in the
unharvested land, wild and lawless, refusing alike the summons of the Valar and of
Morgoth. And the evil Men came among them, and cast over them a shadow of fear, and
they took them for kings. Then the Valar forsook for a time the Men of Middle-earth who

had refused their summons and had taken the friends of Morgoth to be their masters; and
men dwelt in darkness and were troubled by many evil things that Morgoth had devised
in the days of his dominion: demons, and dragons, and misshapen beasts, and the unclean
Orcs that are mockeries of the Children of Ilvatar. And the lot of Men was unhappy.
(The Silmarillion)
Elsewhere in Middle-earth there was peace for many years; yet the lands were for the
most part savage and desolate, save only where the people of Beleriand came. Many
Elves dwelt there indeed, as they had dwelt through the countless years, wandering free
in the wide lands far from the Sea; but they were Avari, to whom the deeds of Beleriand
were but a rumour and Valinor only a distant name. And in the south and in the further
east Men multiplied; and most of them turned to evil, for Sauron was at work. (Of the
Third Age and the Rings of Power)
Four major demons of Morgoth, later called gods by the middle Men, escaped the
cataclysmiscal battle of War of Wrath that ended the First Age. Together with 5 legions
of great Orcs of Angband and Drakes they installed themselves in the Northern Waste.
They attacked the Dwarves of Durin in the Misty and Grey Mountains, and later the
Northmen tribes that the Dwarves settled north of the Grey Mountains to help them in the
war.
Out of the dungeons of the North, came 4 demons of Morgoth that settled in the Northern
Waste, with the secret of the creation of warpstone, the stone whose radiations create
horrible mutations in the body and make necessary dependence on demon-magic for the
hope of survival. These four demon gods were known as Nurgle, demon of pestilence and
disease; Khorne, demon of hatred and despise; Slaanesh, demon of lust and vice; and
Tzeentch, demon of insanity and despair.
The great Orcs of Angband knew how to build machines in the likeness of dragons that
transported Orcs inside. Though having lost the secret of instilling artificial intelligence
in these machines, they were more than a match for the Dwarves and Northmen. Then
on a time Melko assembled all his most cunning smiths and sorcerers, and of
iron and flame they wrought a host of monsters such as have only at that time been seen
and shall not again be till the Great End. Some were all of iron so cunningly linked that
they might flow like slow rivers of metal or coil themselves around and above all
obstacles before them, and these were filled in their innermost depths with the grimmest
of the Orcs with scimitars and spears; others of bronze and copper were given hearts and
spirits of blazing fire, and they blasted all that stood before them with the terror of their
snorting or trampled whatso escaped the ardour of their breath; yet others were creatures
of pure flame that writhed like ropes of molten metal, and they brought to ruin whatever
fabric they came nigh, and iron and stone melted before them and became as water, and
upon them rode the Balrogs in hundreds. (Book of Lost Tales II, The fall of Gondolin)
For the creation of such artificial intelligence the invention of electrical circuits was
necessary. And these came also to be known to the Dnedain, being what was used to
power the flame throwers that were available at Isengard and that Saruman used against

the Ents. Suddenly up came fires and foul fumes: the vents and shafts all over the plain
began to spout and belch. Several of the Ents got scorched and blistered. One of them,
Beechbone I think he was called, a very tall handsome Ent, got caught in a spray of some
liquid fire and burned like a torch: a horrible sight. (The Two Towers) For it is doubtful
that in the mile-wide span of Isengard simple levers and pulleys would suffice to power
the flame-throwers. The reason the Nmenreans had this is that they either learned it
from the Valar or Elves or they might have learnt it from Sauron while he was
commanding them in Nmenor and persecuting the Faithful. It is said in the Silmarillion
that Sauron and the Nmenreans devised many new machines in this period. The
Nmenreans also brought from Nmenor the crystal ball that Isildur used to create the
Oath-breaker undead; the Seats of Seeing and Hearing similar to the ones that Melkor
forced Hrin to seat on; and gun-powder.
But among the Enemy some of these inventions never were forgotten. The Orcs of Baraddr and Minas Morgul had gun-powder or earth-thunder as the Dredain called it; they
used it to blast the walls of the Hornburg and the Pellennor. (The Return of the King)
Four major demons of Morgoth, later called gods by the middle Men, escaped the
cataclysmiscal battle of the War of the Wrath that ended the First Age. Together with 5
legions of great Orcs of Angband and numerous Drakes they installed themselves in the
Northern Waste. They attacked the Dwarves of Durin in the Misty and Grey Mountains,
and later the Northmen tribes that the Dwarves settled north of the Grey Mountains to
help them in the war.
Men became the chief providers of food, as herdsmen, shepherds, and landtillers, which
the Dwarves exchanged for work as builders, roadmakers, miners, and the makers of
things of craft, from useful tools to weapons and arms and many other things of great cost
and skill. The Longbeards regarded the Iron Hills, the Ered Mithrin [the Grey
Mountains], and the east dales of the Misty Mountains as their own land.
But they were under attack from the Orks of Morgoth. In the battles that followed the
Dwarves were outnumbered, and though they were the most redoubtable warriors of all
the Speaking Peoples they were glad to make alliance with Men of the House of
Hador. They were brave and loyal folk, truehearted haters of Morgoth and his servants,
and at first had regarded the Dwarves askance, fearing that they were under the Shadow
(as they said). For they had met some far to the East who were of evil mind.` `Alas it
seems probable that (as Men did later) the Dwarves of the far eastern mansions (and
some of the nearer ones?) came under the Shadow of Morgoth and turned to evil.` `But
they were glad of the alliance, for they were more vulnerable to the attacks of the Orks:
they dwelt largely in isolated homesteads and villages, and if they drew together into
small townships they were poorly defended, at best by dikes and wooden fences and so
were vulnerable to raids that were assembled in secret. Also they were lightly armed,
chiefly with bows, for they had little metal and the few smiths among them had little
skill. These things the Dwarves amended in return for one great service that Men could
offer. They were tamers of beasts and had learned the mastery of horses, and many were
skilled and fearless riders. These would often ride far afield as scouts and keep watch on

movements of their enemies; and if the Orks dared to assemble in the open for some great
raid, they would gather great force of horsed archers to surround them and destroy them.
(Peoples of Middle-Earth)
To the South and East went other demon-gods, or fallen Maiar, and in Harad, the Last
Desert and Sakal an-Khr they succeeded in creating centralized empires, where great
flat-topped pyramids were built to gather human sacrifices, from which flying ships, like
Earendurs one, came to collect the victims. The demon-god of Harad was known as
Curatin, demon of serpents; that of the Last Desert as Niorufal; and that of Sakal an-Khr
as Keolog.
SA 500-1000: Age of the Middle-class: decline of the Nobility, emergence of the
Middle-Class. Great Age of Explorations.
c. 500
Sauron begins to stir again in Middle-earth.
600
The first ships of the Nmenoreans appear off the coasts.
The Nmenreans came first as explorers and helped the Dark Men under Saurons yoke
in the Second Age (SA). This was in the age of the Middling Sort, TA 500-1000. TA
600 The first ships of the Nmenreans appear off the coasts. And the Dnedain came
at times to the shores of the Great Lands, and they took pity on the forsaken world of
Middle-earth; and the Lords of Nmenor set foot again upon the western shores in the
Dark Years of Men, and none yet dared to withstand them. For most of the Men of that
age that sat under the Shadow were now grown weak and fearful. (Silmarillion)
SA 1000-1500: Imperial Age: Decline of the Middle-class, emergence of the People.
Colonization of Endor by the Nmenreans.
c. 1000
Sauron, alarmed by the growing power of the Nmenoreans, chooses Mordor as a land to
make into a stronghold. He begins the building of Barad-dr.
1200
Sauron endeavours to seduce the Eldar. Gil-galad refuses to treat with him; but the smiths
of Eregion are won over. The Nmenoreans begin to make permanent havens.
SA 1000-1500 was an imperial age in Nmenor. Now he [Sauron] learned that the kings
of Nmenor had increased in power and splendour, and he hated them the more; and he
feared them, lest they should invade his lands and wrest from him the dominion of the
East. Between SA 1200-1800 onwards there came the Nmenrean settlement of the
western coast-lands of the Harad, nearest to Saurons realm of Mordor, namely to Umbar,
Bellakar, or Al-Harish in Haradaic, Tulwang, and Ciryatandor. No kingdoms or states
were however established; only protectorates, as the Nmenreans at this time were
intent only on helping the Men of Middle-Earth shake off the yoke of Sauron; and the
lackeys of Sauron harassed and attacked these havens whenever opportunity arose.
SA 1500-2000: Dark Ages or Age of the Wise: Decline of the People, emergence of

the Wise-Seers. The Nmenreans establish independent states in Endor.

c. 1500
The Elven-smiths instructed by Sauron reach the height of their skill. They begin the
forging of the Rings of Power.
c. 1800
From about this time onward the Nmenoreans begin to establish dominions on the
coasts. Sauron extends his power eastwards. The shadow falls on Nmenor.
From SA 1500-2000 Nmenrean colonization was sporadic as it was under a Dark
Ages. There were internal problems in Nmenor as its people was tired of wars and toils,
and a ruralization took place until circa SA 1670. Then the Wise and Seers of Nmenor
gained preponderance and established a limited centralization of resources to save Northwestern Middle-Earth from the grip of Sauron in the War of the Elves and Sauron, SA
1695-1701. In this war the alliance between the Dwarves of Durin and the Northmen was
broken, as Sauron brought many tribes of Easterlings from the East to strengthen the Orcs
of Angband. The Dwarves and Northmen were defeated and Gundabad taken. The
Northmen were driven from the Northern Waste into Rhovanion.
`The Three were not made by Sauron ... But they were not made as weapons of war or
conquest: that is not their power.' (The Council of Elrond) And of all the Elven-rings
Sauron most desired to possess them, for those who had them in their keeping could ward
off the decays of time and postpone the weariness of the world.' (Silmarillion)
The Nmenreans intervened in the War of the Elves and Sauron in Middle-Earth when it
was widespread knowledge that the war was over the Rings of Power that had been
crafted in Eregion by Annatar and the Mrdain, the smiths that ruled the technocracy or
republic of Eregion that had abolished the monarchy of Galadriel and Celeborn. At this
stage the Nmenreans were under the protection of the Valar and there was widespread
interaction with the Elves of Eressa. Thus, they were given special magics by the Valar
against the power of the One Ring. Sauron could twist and undo the very hills upon
which men stood, but the Nmenreans had magic items that dispelled the very magic of
the One Ring though temporarily. I know little of Iarwain save the name,' said Galdor;
`but Glorfindel, I think, is right. Power to defy our Enemy is not in him, unless such
power is in the earth itself. And yet we see that Sauron can torture and destroy the very
hills. (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Council of Elrond)
The Second Age had reached only the middle of its course (c. SA 1695) when he
[Sauron] invaded Eriador and destroyed Eregion, a small realm that had formed an
alliance with the Longbeards of Moria. This marked the end of the Alliance of the
Longbeards with Men of the North. For though Moria remained impregnable for many
centuries, the Orks reinforced and commanded by servants of Sauron invaded the
Mountains again. Gundabad was retaken, the Ered Mithrim infested and the
communication between Moria and the Iron Hills for a time cut off. The Men of the
Alliance were involved in war not only with Orks but with alien Men of evil sort. For
Sauron had acquired dominion over many savage tribes in the East (of old corrupted by
Morgoth), and he now urged them to seek land and booty in the West. When the storm

passed, the Men of the Old Alliance were diminished and scattered, and those that
lingered on in their old regions were impoverished, and lived mostly in caves [in the
Misty and Grey Mountains] or in the borders of the Forest. (Peoples of Middle-Earth)
Next to be colonized into permanent Nmenrean kingdoms or coastal city-states was Far
Harad, Greater Harad, its Eastern coast-line, and Mirdor. Near Harad, Khand, Eastern
Harad, and the countries further inland, were held by the servants of Sauron.
Moreover after [Tar-] Minastir the Kings became greedy of wealth and power. At first
the Nmenreans had come to Middle-earth as teachers and friends of lesser Men
afflicted by Sauron; but now their havens became fortresses, holding wide coastlands in
subjection. [Tar-]Atanamir [SA 2251] and his successors levied heavy tribute, and the
ships of the Nmenreans returned laden with spoil. But for a long time he [Sauron] did
not dare to challenge the Lords of the Sea, and he withdrew from the coasts.
(Silmarillion)
In the SA, Sauron created a theocracy where he was worshipped as god and had the
powers of a dictator. `Thus the Black Years began [in SA 1600 and especially after SA
2251 when the Ringwraiths appeared], which the Elves call the Days of Flight. ...
Elsewhere Sauron reigned, and those who would be free took refuge in the fastnesses of
wood and mountain, and ever fear pursued them. In the east and south well nigh all Men
were under his dominion, and they grew strong in those days and built many towns and
walls of stone, and they were numerous and fierce in war and armed with iron. To them
Sauron was both king and god; and they feared him exceedingly, for he surrounded his
abode with fire. Yet there came at length a stay in the onslaught of Sauron upon the
westlands.' (The Silmarillion, Of the TA and the Rings of Power)
SA 2000-2500: Age of Heroes: Decline of the Wise-Seers-Clergy, emergence of the
Nobility. Division between the Faithful and the Kings Men; the Nmenrean
kingdom attempts to absorb its independent colonies; wars between the independent
potentates and Atalant.
2251
Tar-Atanamir takes the sceptre. Rebellion and division of the Nmenoreans begins.
About this time the Nazgl or Ringwraiths, slaves of the Nine Rings, first appear.
2280
Umbar is made into a great fortress of Nmenor.
2350
Pelargir is built. It becomes the chief haven of the Faithful Nmenoreans.
It was to Tar-Atanamir that the Messengers came; and he was the thirteenth King, and in
his day the Realm of Nmenor had endured for more than two thousand years, and was
come to the zenith of its bliss, if not yet of its power. (Silmarillion)
Later, when the Nazgl appeared in SA 2251, there were widespread wars between them
and the Nmenreans for the prize of Middle-Earth, which should give the latter
widespread knowledge of their foes, the greatest of the servants of Sauron. And when

the lairi arose [in SA 2251] that were the Ring-wraiths, his servants, and the strength of
his terror and mastery over Men had grown exceedingly great, he began to assail the
strong places of the Nmenreans upon the shores of the sea. (The Silmarillion) ; but
Umbar he could not yet take. (History of Middle-Earth 12) Thus the Black Years began,
which the Elves call the Days of Flight. In that time many of the Elves of Middle-earth
fled to Lindon and thence over the seas never to return; and many were destroyed by
Sauron and his servants. But in Lindon Gil-galad still maintained his power, and Sauron
dared as yet not to pass the Mountains of Ered Luin nor to assail the Havens; and Gilgalad was aided by the Nmenreans. Elsewhere Sauron reigned, and those who would
be free took refuge in the fastness of wood and mountain, and ever fear pursued them. In
the east and south well nigh all Men were under his dominion, and they grew strong in
those days and built many towns and walls of stone, and they were numerous and fierce
in war and armed with iron. To them Sauron was both king and god; and they feared him
exceedingly, for he surrounded his abode with fire. (The Silmarillion, Of the Rings of
Power and the Third Age) In SA 2251 Tar-Atanamir takes the sceptre. [The] Rebellion
[against the Valar] and [the] division of the Nmenreans begins. About this time, the
Nazgl or Ringwraiths, slaves of the nine rings, first appear. (The Return of the King,
Appendices) Of the Ring-wraiths, 3 were Nmenrean lords, and three others were of
mixed Nmenrean race. So, the people of the island of Elenna came to know of the
defections from amongst their race, and that the prize of immortality, heretofore denied to
them, was available to them if they would turn to the Enemy.
The Nmenreans were at first afraid of the terror that the Nazgl brought; though they
had many war standards and artifacts that dispelled evil magic, an offering from the first
days by the Valar, no magic could dispel the lairi for they were undead. Indeed later on
the Valar sent by hand of the Elves of Tol Eressa charms and talismans versus the fear
of undeath, but this fear that was brought upon them and made them look askance at the
new reality was one of the causes that the Shadow first fell on Nmenor. The
Ringwraiths are deadly enemies, but they are only shadows yet of the power and terror
they would possess if the Ruling Ring was on their master's hand again.' (The Fellowship
of the Ring, A Journey in the Dark)
These things took place in the days of Tar-Ciryatan the shipbuilder, and of Tar-Atanamir
his son [reigned 2251-?]; and they were proud men eager for wealth, and they laid the
men of Middle-earth under tribute, taking now rather than giving. Thus it came to pass
in that time that the Nmenreans first made great settlements upon the west shores of
the ancient lands; for their own land seemed to them shrunken and they had no rest or
content therein, and they desired now wealth and dominion in Middle-earth, since the
West was denied. Great harbours and strong towers they made and there many of them
took up their abode; but they appeared now rather as lords and masters and gatherers of
tribute than as helpers and teachers. And the great ships of the Nmenreans were borne
east on the winds and returned ever laden, and the power and majesty of their kings were
increased; and they drank and they feasted and they clad themselves in silver and gold. In
all this the Elf-friends had small part. They alone came now ever to the north and the land
of Gil-galad, keeping their friendship with the Elves and lending them aid against Sauron;
and their haven was Pelargir above the mouths of Anduin the Great [from SA 2350

onward]. But the Kings Men sailed far away to the south; and the lordships and
strongholds that they made have left many rumours in the legends of Men. (Silmarillion)
From circa TA 2251, the Nmenreans that wanted to gain immortality for their children
only though, traveled east to Lindon, and married Elves. Thus the kingdom of Gil-galad
was greatly enhanced by a Half-elven population, and it expanded into Eriador and
Rhovanion engaged in the wars against Saurons dominion in the Dark Years.
2280 Umbar is made into a great fortress of Nmenor. (Appendices) In their struggle
with Sauron for control of Middle-Earth the Nmenreans chose to build a great fortress
in north-western Harad; it was made the principal settlement for the people of the island
of the star, and in time more cities grew around that land, Pellardur, Mars, Ardmir,
Caldr, Erdas, Isigir, and Dsalan.
2350 Pelargir is built. It becomes the chief haven of the Faithful Nmenreans.
(Appendices) Long before it became a kingdom of the Atalanteans, the region of Gondor,
or stone-land, was first settled by the Faithful who undertook it as their mission to fight
against the Dark Lord right across east of his dominion of Mordor and so try to extirpate
this ancient servant of Morgoth. For a time these settlements of the Faithful received the
support of Umbar.
SA 2500-3000: Age of the Middle-class: decline of the Nobility, emergence of the
Middle-Class. The colonies of Nmenor are made into a dependency of the home
country, except for the colonies of the Elf-friends, the Faithful.
2899
Ar-Adnakhr takes the sceptre.
SA 3000-3500: Imperial Age: Decline of the Middle-class, emergence of the People.
The Faithful revolt and are persecuted but finally win control of the Nmenrean
states in Exile. Downfall of Nmenor and War of the Last Alliance between the Free
Peoples and Sauron.
3262 Sauron is taken prisoner to Nmenor.

NMENREAN TECHNOLOGY
In Nmenor, Sauron fomented class-struggle between the rich and poor as a means to
increase his power, and social inequalities grew apace. And men took weapons in those
days and slew one another for little cause; for they were become quick to anger, and
Sauron, or those whom he had bound to himself, went about the land setting man against
man, so that the people murmured against the King and the lords, or against any that had
aught that they had not; and the men of power took cruel revenge.
Nonetheless for long it seemed to the Nmenreans that they yet prospered, and if they
were not increased in happiness, yet they grew more strong, and their rich men ever
richer. For with the aid and counsel of Sauron they multiplied their possessions, and they

devised engines, and they built ever greater ships. And they sailed now with the power
and armoury to Middle-earth, and they came no longer as bringers of gifts, nor even as
rulers, but as fierce men of war. And they hunted the men of Middle-earth and took their
goods and enslaved them, and many they slew cruelly upon their altars. For they built in
their fortresses temples and great tombs in those days; and men feared them, and the
memory of the kindly kings of the ancient days faded from the world and was darkened
by many a tale of dread. Thus Ar-Parazn, King of the Land of the star, grew to be the
mightiest tyrant that had yet been in the world since the reign of Morgoth, though in truth
Sauron ruled all from behind the throne. (Silmarillion, Akallabth)
'And behold what hath happened since, step by step, At first he revealed only secrets of
craft, and taught the making of many things powerful and wonderful; and they seemed
good. Our ships go now without the wind, and many are made of metal that sheareth
hidden rocks, and they sink not in calm or storm; but they are no longer fair to look upon.
Our towers grow ever stronger and climb ever higher, but beauty they leave behind upon
earth. We who have no foes are embattled with impregnable fortresses - and mostly on
the West. Our arms are multiplied as if for an agelong war, and men are ceasing to give
love or care to the making of other things for use or delight. But our shields are
impenetrable, our swords cannot be withstood, our darts are like thunder and pass over
leagues unerring. Where are our enemies?
We have begun to slay one another. For Nmenor now seems narrow, that was so large.
Men covet, therefore, the lands that other families have long possessed. They fret as men
in chains.
'Wherefore Sauron hath preached deliverance; he has bidden our king to stretch forth
his hand to Empire. Yesterday it was over the East. To-morrow - it will be over the
West.
'We had no temples. But now the Mountain is despoiled. Its trees are felled, and it
stands naked; and upon its summit there is a Temple. It is of marble, and of gold, and of
glass and steel, and is wonderful, but terrible. No man prayeth there. It waiteth. For long
Sauron did not name his master by the name that from old is accursed here. He spoke at
first of the Strong One, of the Eldest Power, of the Master. But now he speaketh openly
of Alkar,(26) of Morgoth. He hath prophesied his return. The Temple is to be his house.
Numenor is to be the seat of the world's dominion.
Meanwhile Sauron dwelleth there. He surveys our land from the Mountain, and is risen
above the king, even proud Tarkalion, of the line chosen by the Lords, the seed of
Earendel.
'Yet Morgoth cometh not. But his shadow hath come; it lieth upon the hearts and
minds of men. It is between them and the Sun, and all that is beneath it.'
From Elendil's words at the end of The Lost Road there emerges a sinister picture:
the withdrawal of the besotted and aging king from the public view, the unexplained
disappearance of people unpopular with the 'government', informers, prisons, torture,
secrecy, fear of the night; propaganda in the form of the 'rewriting of history' (as
exemplified by Herendil's words concerning what was now said about Earendel, p.
60); the multiplication of weapons of war, the purpose of which is concealed but
guessed at; and behind all the dreadful figure of Sauron, the real power, surveying

the whole land from the Mountain of Numenor. The teaching of Sauron has led to
the invention of ships of metal that traverse the seas without sails, but which are hideous
in the eyes of those who have not abandoned or forgotten Tol-eressea; to the building of
grim fortresses and unlovely towers; and to missiles that pass with a noise like thunder
to strike their targets many miles away. Moreover, Numenor is seen by the young
as over-populous, boring, 'over-known': 'every tree and grass-blade is counted', in
Herendil's words; and this cause of discontent is used, it seems, by Sauron to further
the policy of 'imperial' expansion and ambition that he presses on the king. (History of
Middle-Earth 5, The Nmenrean chapters, Chapter IV)
To guide the missiles over many miles computers were needed, besides the airplanes to
carry them; this too the Nmenreans achieved under Sauron. The unbreakable walls of
the tower of Orthanc; its remote-control flamethrowers that were used against the Ents;
the walls of Minas Tirth to contain the folk of the White Mountains; the explosives used
by the Orcs of Isengard and Minas Morgul to blast the walls of the Hornburg and
Pellennor, respectively; the stone at Erech upon which the Dunlending tribesmen swore
their oath and were turned to undead on its breaking; the hidden way past the Dredain
forest of the wain-way (train-rails); the seats of Seeing and Hearing, all harckened back
to the period of Sauronic domination in Nmenor.
In this time many new machines were devised. One of them was the creation of a fuelpowered machine that set in motion a train with wheels set on iron rails to reduce the
pressure. The Nmenrean settlers built these wain roads for their trains on many parts of
Middle-Earth. So spoke the Dredain concerning the Dnedain in their prime, Many
paths were made when Stonehouse-folk were stronger. They carved hills as hunters carve
beast-flesh. Wild Men think they ate stone for food. They went through Dradan to
Rimmon with great wains. They go no longer. Road is forgotten, but not by Wild Men.
'Way is wide for four horses in Stonewain Valley yonder,' he waved his hand
southwards. (The Two Towers, The Muster of Rohan)
The Nmenreans also learnt the technology to build unbreakable walls in their
fortresses, as at Orthanc and Minas Tirith. And soon yet more companies of the enemy
were swiftly setting up, each behind the cover of a trench, great engines for the casting of
missiles. There were none upon the City walls large enough to reach so far or to stay the
work.
At first men laughed and did not greatly fear such devices. For the main wall of the City
was of great height and marvellous thickness, built ere the power and craft of Nmenor
waned in exile; and its outward face was like to the Tower of Orthanc, hard and dark and
smooth, unconquerable by steel or fire, unbreakable except by some convulsion that
would rend the very earth on which it stood. (The Return of the King)
They also learnt how to devise explosives, such as the servants of Saruman used at the
Hornburg. Even as they spoke there came a blare of trumpets. Then there was a crash
and and a flash of flame and smoke. The waters of the Deaping-stream came foaming and
hissing: they were chocked no longer, a gaping hole was blasted in the wall. A host of
dark shapes poured in.

'Devilry of Saruman! cried Aragorn. 'They have crept in the culvert again, while we
talked, and they have lit the fire of Orthanc beneath our feet. Elendil, Elendil!' he
shouted, as he leaped down into the breach. (The Two Towers)
Aragorn, whose unbroken Dnadan lineage had been mixed with the tribesmen of
Eriador after the dissolution of the kingdom of Arthedain, knew little about the
manufacture of the explosives; only that they came from Orthanc. 'But the Orcs have
brought a devilry from Orthanc,' said Aragorn. 'They have a blasting fire, and with it they
took the Wall. If they cannot come in the caves, they may seal up those that are inside.
But now we must turn all our thoughts to our own defence.'
There was a roar and a blast of fire. The archway of the gate above which he had stood a
moment before crumbled and crashed in smoke and dust. The barricade was scattered as
if by a thunderbolt. Aragorn ran to the king's tower. (The Two Towers)

The Black Nmenreans now decided on the wholesale exploitation of the continent of
Dark Harad, rich in natural resources, exotic timbers for construction, precious stones,
gold and copper; its people having up to then rejected the summons of both the Valar and
Morgoth, and, been left weak wandering the land, offered an easy target; the deserted and
semi-arid lands of the Harad could wait for another day; it was in this way that the
Noldor Elves of Lindon together with the Faithful of Pelargir were able to install a naval
blockade on the Harad, and to prevent its further colonization. From SA 3262, when
Sauron was taken prisoner to Nmenor, to SA 3441, when he was defeated in the war of
the Last Alliance, the lands of the Harad that had been previously held by Mordor were
conquered and colonized by the Black Nmenreans. These were the Lords Herumor and
Fuinur, representatives of powerful Nmenrean ministries of state, namely the Ministry
of Dry-Farming and the Ministry of Oil, that ruled Haradwaith from Umbar. They had
evaded the Noldorin naval blockade of Harad landing with an armament in eastern
Greater Harad and then made the trek to Umbar across the caravan trails of the deep
desert. They brought countless constructs the size and shape of Trolls, that walked and
ran, and on whose top a mechanic sat and operated the machine-robot, which could fight
with its steel arms and fire rounds of grenades. They also brought airplanes that could
defy the vastness of the deserts. Their armed personnel came armoured with a new
invention, a force-shield that covered the whole body like a rectangle and could deflect
and prevent damage from bullets and grenades and could only be pierced in a specially
slow way by knives or shortswords. So armed, their phalanges rapidly imposed their
power on the whole of Harad. They ended, in Harads inland parts, the dominion of
Sauron nominally, and raided from Umbar the Faithful lands of Pelargir and Lebennin.
The lands of the Faithful were aided by the Elves of Lindon, which the Black
Nmenreans yet feared to attack. But because of the power of Gil-galad these
renegades, lords both mighty and evil, for the most part took up their abodes in the
southlands far away; yet two there were, Herumor and Fuinur, who rose to power among
the Haradrim, a great and cruel people that dwelt in the wide lands south of Mordor
beyond the mouths of Anduin. (Silmarillion, Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age)

While Sauron was away in Nmenor for over 200 years and without the One Ring, his
power in Middle-Earth decreased; without the Ruling Ring in his hand the Ringwraiths
were left weaker, and their power of terror against the Eldar who had been in Valinor was
of small importance. When Saurons spirit returned to Middle-Earth, There he found that
the power of Gil-galad had grown great in the years of his absence, and it was spread now
over wide regions of the north and west, and had passed beyond the Misty Mountains and
the Great River even to the borders of Greenwood the Great, and was drawing nigh to the
strong places where once he had dwelt. Each time that Sauron was slain, he lost the
memory of what had gone before. Moreover, many of Saurons former dominions in the
South and the East had been conquered by the Black Nmenreans, and when the sinking
of Nmenor took place, the native peoples rebelled and they had the support of the Elves
and Dnedain. So, Sauron could not easily re-establish his dominion over
Middle-Earth. Sauron was indeed caught in the wreck of Nmenor, so that the bodily
form in which he long had walked perished; but he fled back to Middle-earth, a spirit of
hatred borne upon the dark wind. He was unable ever again to assume a form that seemed
fair to men, but became black and hideous, and his power thereafter was through terror
alone. He took up again the great Ring [when he returned from the wreck of Nmenor]
and clothed himself in power; and the malice of the Eye of Sauron few even of the great
among Elves and Men could endure. (The Silmarillion) `That would be Minas Ithil that
Isildur the son of Elendil built ' said Frodo. `It was Isildur who cut off the finger of the
Enemy.'
`Yes, He has only four on the Black Hand [meaning that the other hand is of another
colour], but they are enough,' said Gollum shuddering. 'And He hated Isildur's city.' (The
Return of the King) Sauron chose for himself a shape of black and white color. One part
was white, the other was black. The Ring misseth, maybe, the heat of Sauron's hand,
which was black and yet burned like fire, and so Gil-galad was destroyed; (The
Fellowship of the Ring, The Council of Elrond) But Sauron struck too soon, before his
own power was rebuilt; whereas the power of Gil-galad had grown in his absence; and in
the Last Alliance that was made against him Sauron was overthrown and the One Ring
was taken from him. So ended the Second Age. (The Silmarillion)

THE WEAPONS OF POSSESSION

One passage that always puzzled me about Middle-Earth was the apparition of the Eye of
Sauron at the end of the first book, when Frodo puts the One Ring in Amon Hen, and
activates the spell of the Seat of Seeing; then he looks toward the Barad-dr and draws
the attention of the Eye; but Gandalf sends a telepathic message to Frodo to take it off,
and attracts the Eye of Sauron defeating him. This is how I made sense of all these
passages about the Eyes.
There were many scrying devices in Middle-Earth. There were seats of Seeing and
Hearing as Morgoth had them and he forced Hrin to seat upon them. Then Morgoth
cursed Hrin and Morwen and their offspring, and set a doom upon them of darkness and
sorrow; and taking Hrin from prison he set him in a chair of stone upon a high place of
Thangorodrim. There he was bound by the power of Morgoth, and Morgoth standing

beside him cursed him again; and he said: Sit now there; and look out upon the lands
where evil and despair shall come upon those whom thou lovest. Thou hast dared to
mock me, and to question the power of Melkor, Master of the fates of Arda. Therefore
with my eyes thou shalt see, and with my ears thou shalt hear; (Silmarillion, Of the Fifth
Battle, Nirnaeth Arnoediad)
The Nmenreans when they were corrupted by Sauron in the late S.A. learned of these
seats and when they escaped the wreckage of Atalant, they built similar seats in MiddleEarth, such as the Hill of Seeing and Hearing on the Middle River Anduin, Amon Hen
and Amon Lhaw. Aragorn says these seats were in operation until the kings ended in
Gondor. These magic items were called by the Dnedain their Eyes. The world seemed
to have shrunk and fallen silent. He was sitting upon the Seat of Seeing, on Amon Hen,
the Hill of the Eye of the Men of Nmenor. (The Two Towers)
The strategy of Sauron was explained by Gandalf thus: `Therefore at last the Council was
again summoned and the lore of the Rings was much debated; but Mithrandir spoke to
the Council saying: "It is not needed that the [One] Ring should be found, for while it
abides on earth and is not unmade, still the power that it holds will live, and Sauron will
grow and have hope. The might of the Elves and the Elf-friends is less now than of old.
Soon he will be too strong for you, even without the Great Ring; for he rules the Nine,
and of the Seven he has recovered three. We must strike." To this Curunr now assented'.
(The Silmarillion, Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age)
So, his strategy was bent on recovering the Rings of Power, which must have been magic
items of extraordinary power. As there is no mention of there being three additional
Ringwraiths, created with the three of the Seven that were not destroyed, Sauron must
have used these for crafting evil magic items, that caused the decline of the good magicusing peoples, ie the Elves and the Dnedain.
The magic weapons of the Enemy, the weapons of possession worked thus, first they
localized geographically the caster of a spell, the greater the spell the greater the chance
of location. Therefore Gandalf was wary of casting any spell, for fear of being located.
As he said in the Redhorn pass, If there are any watchers that can endure this storm, then
they can see us, fire or no.
If there are any to see, then I at least am revealed to them, he said. I have written
Gandalf is here in signs that all can read from Rivendell to the mouths of Anduin. (The
Fellowship of the Ring, The Ring Goes South). Second, as the spell-caster was located, a
sorcerer of the Enemy would be allocated to him and given the task to plague him with
spells of fear and telepathy that would drive him into despair. These spells worked slowly
into the mind of their targets, and Sauron underestimated the strength to resist them of the
Elves and Dnedain in the late SA. Of these sorceries, they are related in the Silmarillion,
where it is said that Sauron was become now a sorceror of dreadful power, master of
shadows and of phantoms, foul in wisdom, cruel in strength, misshaping what he
touched, twisting what he ruled, lord of werewolves; his dominion was torment. He took
Minas Tirith by assault, for a dark cloud of fear fell upon those that defended it; and
Orodreth was driven out, and fled to Nargothrond. While the Riders of Rohan were

returning from Isengard one Nazgl flew over them: At that moment a shadow fell over
them. The bright moonlight seemed to be suddenly cut off. Several of the Riders cried
out, and crouched, holding their arms above their heads, as if to ward off a blow from
above: a blind fear and a deadly cold fell on them.(The Two Towers) The spells of fear
were thus of an awesome power.
Third, and this feature was only developed in circa TA 1940, a lesser physical
manifestation of the spell-caster, or avatar, was sent with the speed of a teleportation spell
to the location whence came the detected spell to confront and fight the spell-caster.
Frodo nearly became a prey of Saurons avatar when he activated the Seat of Seeing on
Amon Hen with the One Ring. And suddenly he felt the Eye. There was an eye in the
Dark Tower that did not sleep. He knew that it had become aware of his gaze. A fierce
eager will was there. It leaped towards him; almost like a finger he felt it, searching for
him. Very soon it would nail him down, know just exactly where he was. Amon Lhaw it
touched. It glanced upon Tol Brandir [but] he threw himself from the seat, crouching,
covering his head with his grey hood.
He heard himself crying out: _Never, never!_Or was it: _Verily I come, I come to
you_? He could not tell. Then as a flash from some other point of power there came to his
mind another thought: _Take it off! Take it off! Fool, take it off! Take off the Ring!_
The two powers strove in him. For a moment, perfectly balanced between their
piercing points, he writhed, tormented. Suddenly he was aware of himself again. Frodo,
neither the Voice nor the Eye: free to choose, and with one remaining instant in which to
do so. He took the Ring off his finger. He was kneeling in clear sunlight before the high
seat. A black shadow seemed to pass like an arm above him; it missed Amon Hen and
groped out west, and faded [ie, Saurons avatar, or magical manifestation, flew with the
speed of a teleportation spell from the Barad-dr to the Emyn Muil and then onwards to
confront Gandalf, who attracted it]. Then all the sky was clean and blue and birds sang in
every tree. (The Fellowship of the Ring) On this occasion Gandalf sent a telepathic
message to Frodo to take off the One Ring and so cancel the scrying spell he had
activated at Amon Hen, and attracted the avatar of Sauron himself, and successfully
defeated him. The Ring now has passed beyond my help, or the help of any of the
Company that set out from Rivendell. Very nearly it was revealed to the Enemy, but it
escaped. I had some part in that: for I sat in a high place, and I strove with the Dark
Tower; and the Shadow passed. Then I was weary, very weary; and I walked long in dark
thought.' This, Gandalf related to Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli, He often comes here
[Treebeard], especially when his mind is uneasy, and rumours of the world outside
trouble him. I saw him four days ago striding among the trees, and I think he saw me, for
he paused; but I did not speak, for I was heavy with thought, and weary after my struggle
with the Eye of Mordor; and he did not speak either, nor call my name.' (The Two
Towers)
In TA 1939 when Sauron captured a second Dwarven Ring he was able to increase the
range and power of these weapons of Possession. From circa TA 1940, Sauron developed
the spell ability to send wraiths and other undead as avatars. Of these he had created a lot
in the middle T.A, and his reputation was built as the Necromancer in Mirkwood. This
prompted Gandalf to investigate the tower of the Necromancer, the chief undead-creator

of north-western Middle-Earth, to see if he was linked to the weapons of possession.

This is not one of the lairi, as many have long supposed. It is Sauron himself who has
taken shape again and now grows apace; and he is gathering again all the Rings to his
hand. (Silmarillion, Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age.) He joined the technology
stored in the Three Dwarven Rings with the Sorcery contained in the Nine Rings to create
some new Necromantic artifacts that possessed good magic-users with evil spirits and
haunted with phantoms all who used good magic, charms or artifacts. Basically he used
the Dwarven Rings with their technology of creating new items to create and power the
artifacts, identifying the users of good magic, and the Nine Rings to fill these people with
Necromantic spells of possession and phantoms. Thus weakening the magic-users and
semi-spell users of the Dnedain he destroyed Arthedain and drove the last of the
Gondorian kings mad; Earnil II couldnt hold any more and went with a small escort
alone to Minas Morgul to confront the Witch-king who of course betrayed and captured
him. Besides phantoms and delusions, the Watchers located geographically (Gandalfs
citation) the caster and send Watchers of Minas Morgul or Barad-Dr to inflict terror and
sorcery on them. So, in 1940-2060 Sauron created undead avatars that teleported
immediately to spell casters when they were localized. The sheer numbers of these
undead overpowered the spell-casters in Arthedain and Gondor.
Minas Morgul was said by Faramir to be filled with many of these sorcerors and wraiths,
lidless eyes he called them. As he warned Frodo, Then the Nine Riders issued forth from
the gates of horror, and we could not withstand them [and they took Ithilien, and later
Osgiliath, which became deserted]. Do not approach their citadel. You will be espied. It
is a place of sleepless malice, full of lidless eyes. Do not go that way! ' 'But where else
will you direct me? ' said Frodo. (The Two Towers)
Gollum also spoke of Minas Morgul as filled with terrible things, maybe wraiths that
were seated on Seats of Seeing and Hearing, for his description is of more terrible things
than humans. 'But what has the Tower of the Moon to do with us? '
'Well, master, there it was and there it is: the tall tower and the white houses and the wall;
but not nice now, not beautiful. He conquered it long ago. It is a very terrible place now.
The tower isn't empty, is it? '
`O no, not empty! ' whispered Gollum. `It seems empty, but it isn't, O no! Very dreadful
things live there. Orcs, yes always Orcs; but worse things, worse things live there too.
The road climbs right under the shadow of the walls and passes the gate. Nothing moves
on the road that they don't know about. The things inside know: the Silent Watchers.'
(The Two Towers) Gollum says the main screening devices are handled by Sauron
himself. `No, no indeed,' said Gollum. `Hobbits must see, must try to understand. He
does not expect attack that way. His Eye is all round, but it attends more to some places
than to others. He can't see everything all at once, not yet. (The Two Towers)
Gollum spoke of Minas Morgul as the main seat of the Eyes of Mordor in the struggle
against the magic-users that still lasted of Minas Tirith. 'Smagol has talked to Orcs, yes
of course, before he met master, and to many peoples: he has walked very far. And what
he says now many peoples are saying. It's here in the North that the big danger is for
Him, and for us. He will come out of the Black Gate one day, one day soon. That is the

only way big armies can come. But away down west He is not afraid, and there are the
Silent Watchers.' (The Two Towers) He says its Eyes range all over the land around the
city. `Not here, no. Not rest here. Fools! Eyes can see us. When they come to the bridge
they will see us. Come away! Climb, climb! Come! ' (The Two Towers)
Elrond recognized that the Weapons of Possession, as they were perfected in the late TA
would defeat the Noldor Elves easily, and that this, and Isildurs error on keeping the One
Ring, was the main reason the majority of the Noldor had left Middle-Earth. The magicusing of the Elves was made obsolete by the weapons of possession from circa TA 1940
onwards. `And I will choose you companions to go with you, as far as they will or
fortune allows. The number must be few, since your hope is in speed and secrecy. Had I a
host of Elves in armour of the Elder Days, it would avail little, save to arouse the power
of Mordor. (The Fellowship of the Ring)
Those that used magic, like Aragorn, were tormented day and night,
'Alas!' said Aragorn. 'Thus passes the heir of Denethor, Lord of the Tower of Guard! This
is a bitter end. Now the Company is all in ruin. It is I that have failed. Vain was Gandalf's
trust in me. What shall I do now? Boromir has laid it on me to go to Minas Tirith, and my
heart desires it; but where are the Ring and the Bearer? How shall I find them and save
the Quest from disaster?' (The Two Towers, The Departure of Boromir)

Gildor, a Noldor Elf lord, acknowledged to Frodo that in the late T.A. the magic-using
Elves only dwelt at peace when they were living under the protection of the Three Rings,
in this case in Rivendell. 'I am Gildor,' answered their leader, the Elf who had first hailed
him. 'Gildor Inglorion of the House of Finrod. We are Exiles, and most of our kindred
have long ago departed and we too are now only tarrying here a while, ere we return over
the Great Sea. But some of our kinsfolk dwell still in peace in Rivendell.' (The
Fellowship of the Ring)
To those who ceded to the Enemys telepathic messages and changed their alignment to
evil and worshipped him, Sauron gave spells that granted added determination and
morale. After the fall of the Dark Tower and the passing of Sauron the Shadow was
lifted from the hearts of all who opposed him, but fear and despair fell upon his servants
and allies. (The Return of the King, The Tale of Years)
But the Nazgl turned and fled, and vanished into Mordor's shadows, hearing a sudden
terrible call out of the Dark Tower; and even at that moment all the hosts of Mordor
trembled, doubt clutched their hearts, their laughter failed, their hands shook and their
limbs were loosed. The Power that drove them on and filled them with hate and fury was
wavering, its will was removed from them; and now looking in the eyes of their enemies
they saw a deadly light and were afraid.
Then all the Captains of the West cried aloud, for their hearts were filled with a new hope
in the midst of darkness. (The Return of the King, The Field of Cormallen)

And as the Captains gazed south to the Land of Mordor, it seemed to them that, black
against the pall of cloud, there rose a huge shape of shadow, impenetrable, lightningcrowned, filling all the sky. Enormous it reared above the world, and stretched out
towards them a vast threatening hand, terrible but impotent: for even as it leaned over
them, a great wind took it, and it was all blown away, and passed; and then a hush fell.
The Captains bowed their heads; and when they looked up again, behold! their enemies
were flying and the power of Mordor was scattering like dust in the wind. As when death
smites the swollen brooding thing that inhabits their crawling hill and holds them all in
sway, ants will wander witless and purposeless and then feebly die, so the creatures of
Sauron, orc or troll or beast spell-enslaved, ran hither and thither mindless; and some
slew themselves, or cast themselves in pits, or fled wailing back to hide in holes and dark
lightless places far from hope. (The Return of the King, The Field of Cormallen)
But there were other scrying devices in Middle-Earth. When speaking of the palantri,
Gandalf says that the society of Gondor was much more open than that of Arnor. We
had not yet given thought to the fate of the palantri of Gondor in its ruinous [civil] wars.
By Men they were almost forgotten. Even in Gondor they were a secret known only to a
few; in Arnor they were remembered only in a rhyme of lore among the Dnedain.' (The
Two Towers)
Spells could be cast through the Palantri without risking magical detection; Sauron left a
message imprinted in Pippins mind when the latter looked at the stone. He also cast
spells of command to question Pippin. 'It is not for you, Saruman!' he cried in a shrill and
toneless voice shrinking away from Gandalf. 'I will send for it at once. Do you
understand? Say just that!' Then he struggled to get up and escape but Gandalf held him
gently and firmly. And I wanted to go away, but I couldn't. And then he came and
questioned me; and he looked at me, and, and that is all I remember.' Then he came.
He did not speak so that I could hear words. He just looked, and I understood.
'"So you have come back? Why have you neglected to report for so long?"
'I did not answer. He said: "Who are you?" I still did not answer, but it hurt me horribly;
and he pressed me, so I said: "A hobbit." (The Two Towers, The Palantr)
Gandalf also cast a spell on Pippin to learn what he had talked to Sauron. 'All right!' he
said. 'Say no more! You have taken no harm. There is no lie in your eyes, as I feared. But
he did not speak long with you. (The Two Towers, The Palantr)
Aragorn was wearied by the magic combat with the Eye of Sauron through the palantr,
which gave him added levels and allowed him barely to defeat Saurons avatar form.
But Merry had eyes only for Aragorn, so startling was the change that he saw in him, as
if in one night many years had fallen on his head. Grim was his face, grey-hued and
weary. (The Return of the King, The Passing of the Grey Company)
Aragorn also engaged in magic combat with Sauron through the palantr. He even cast an
illusion on himself showing himself probably in Nmenrean garb to scare Sauron into
believing that a sizeable Dnedain people had kept itself living in secret in the west-lands
of Eriador and was ready to make war on him. Nay, Gimli,' he said in a softer voice, and

the grimness left his face, and he looked like one who has laboured in sleepless pain for
many nights. 'Nay, my friends, I and the lawful master of the Stone, and I had both the
right and the strength to use it, or so I judged. The right cannot be doubted. The strength
was enough - barely.'
He drew a deep breath. 'It was a bitter struggle, and the weariness is slow to pass. I spoke
no word to him, and in the end I wrenched the Stone to my own will. That alone he will
find hard to endure. And he beheld me. Yes, Master Gimli, he saw me, but in other guise
than you see me here [ie, he cast an illusion spell on himself]. If that will aid him, then I
have done ill. But I do not think so. To know that I lived and walked the earth was a blow
to his heart, I deem; for he knew it not till now. The eyes in Orthanc did not see through
the armour of Thoden; but Sauron has not forgotten Isildur and the sword of Elendil.
Now in the very hour of his great designs the heir of Isildur and the Sword are revealed;
for l showed the blade re-forged to him. He is not so mighty yet that he is above fear;
nay, doubt ever gnaws him.' (The Return of the King, The Passing of the Grey Company)
Aragorn told the council at Minas Tirith of his combat with the avatar of Sauron, his Eye,
that could teleport at ease, For do I not guess rightly, Aragorn, that you have shown
yourself to him in the Stone of Orthanc?' 'I did so ere I rode from the Hornburg,'
answered Aragorn. 'I deemed that the time was ripe, and that the Stone had come to me
for just such a purpose. It was then ten days since the Ring-bearer went east from Rauros,
and the Eye of Sauron, I thought, should be drawn out from his own land. Too seldom
has he been challenged since he returned to his Tower. (The Return of the King)
But the Free Peoples lacked these spells of teleportation; without the technology of the
Seven Rings they were unable to develop teleportation spells. Elronds and Galadriels
scrying devices were very different. Elrond could look only into friendly lands; enemy
lands were black to him.
`Then I cannot help you much, not even with counsel,' said Elrond. `I can foresee very
little of your road; and how your task is to be achieved I do not know. The Shadow has
crept now to the feet of the Mountains, and draws nigh even to the borders of Greyflood;
and under the Shadow all is dark to me. You will meet many foes, some open, and some
disguised; and you may find friends upon your way when you least look for it. I will send
out messages, such as I can contrive, to those whom I know in the wide world; but so
perilous are the lands now become that some may well miscarry, or come no quicker than
you yourself. (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Ring Goes South)
`Many things I can command the Mirror to reveal,' she answered, `and to some I can
show what they desire to see. But the Mirror will also show things unbidden, and those
are often stranger and more profitable than things which we wish to behold. What you
will see, if you leave the Mirror free to work, I cannot tell. For it shows things that were,
and things that are, things that yet may be. But which it is that he sees, even the wisest
cannot always tell.
In the black abyss there appeared a single Eye that slowly grew, until it filled nearly all
the Mirror. So terrible was it that Frodo stood rooted, unable to cry out or to withdraw his

gaze. The Eye was rimmed with fire, but was itself glazed, yellow as a cat's, watchful and
intent, and the black slit of its pupil opened on a pit, a window into nothing.
Then the Eye began to rove, searching this way and that; and Frodo knew with certainty
and horror that among the many things that it sought he himself was one. But he also
knew that it could not see him-not yet, not unless he willed it. The Ring that hung upon
its chain about his neck grew heavy, heavier than a great stone, and his head was dragged
downwards. The Mirror seemed to be growing hot and curls of steam were rising from
the water. He was slipping forward.
`Do not touch the water!' said the Lady Galadriel softly. The vision faded, and Frodo
found that he was looking at the cool stars twinkling in the silver basin. He stepped back
shaking all over and looked at the Lady.
`I know what it was that you last saw,' she said; `for that is also in my mind. Do not be
afraid! But do not think that only by singing amid the trees, nor even by the slender
arrows of elven-bows, is this land of Lothlrien maintained and defended against its
Enemy. I say to you, Frodo, that even as I speak to you, I perceive the Dark Lord and
know his mind, or all of his mind that concerns the Elves. And he gropes ever to see me
and my thought. But still the door is closed! '
This is Nenya, the Ring of Adamant, and I am its keeper.
`He suspects, but he does not know - not yet. Do you not see now wherefore your coming
is to us as the footstep of Doom? For if you fail, then we are laid bare to the Enemy. Yet
if you succeed, then our power is diminished, and Lothlrien will fade, and the tides of
Time will sweep it away. We must depart into the West, or dwindle to a rustic folk of dell
and cave, slowly to forget and to be forgotten.' (The Fellowship of the Ring)

TA 0-500: Dark Ages or Age of the Wise: Decline of the People, emergence of the
Wise-Seers.
The servants of Sauron were routed and dispersed, yet they were not wholly destroyed;
and though many Men turned now from evil and became subject to the heirs of Elendil,
yet many more remembered Sauron in their hearts and hated the kingdoms of the West.
The Dark Tower was levelled to the ground, yet its foundations remained, and it was not
forgotten. The Nmenreans indeed set a guard upon the land of Mordor, but none dared
dwell there because of the terror of the memory of Sauron, and because of the Mountain
of Fire that stood nigh to Barad-dr; and the valley of Gorgoroth was filled with ash.
(Silmarillion, Of the Third Age and the Rings of Power)
Other strong places they [the Dnedain] built also upon either hand [with technology
brought from Nmenor]: Minas Ithil, the Tower of the Rising Moon, eastward upon a
shoulder of the Mountains of Shadow as a threat to Mordor; and to the westward Minas
Anor, the Tower of the Setting Sun, at the feet of Mount Mindolluin, as a shield against
the wild men of the dales. In Minas Ithil was the house of Isildur, and in Minas Anor the
house of Anrion, but they shared the realm between them and their thrones were set side
by side in the Great Hall of Osgiliath. These were the chief dwellings of the

Nmenreans in Gondor, but other works marvellous and strong they built in the land in
the days of their power, at the Argonath, and at Aglarond, and at Erech; and in the circle
of Angrenost, which Men called Isengard, they made the Pinnacle of Orthanc of
unbreakable stone. (Silmarillion)
Despite all the rebellions that troubled the Enemys former empire in the East and South
of Middle-Earth, he counted on a new weapon that he had developed in secret contact
with the Nazgl while in Nmenor. His priesthood had carried forth and back messages
to the lairi with the intent to develop a magical item that would locate geographically
any users of magic and plague them with delusions and telepathic messages. Now Sauron
thought that this would crush any attempt of the Noldor Elves and the Men of
Westernesse to overthrow him, and so he rose in power attempting to destroy his enemies
one by one. But the Weapons of Possession and the telepathic knowledge of his servants
to cause torment were not so well developed as he thought and though they weakened
and laid heavy pain on their enemies, they could still resist them, if for a short time. It
was this way that the Elves and Dnedain seeing their days counted, hastened to make an
alliance that would overthrow Sauron. In this they were successful, but already the evil
effects of the Weapons of Possession lingered on the Free Peoples and Isildur took the
One Ring to be his. Of this action, the Elves despaired and they ended the alliance and
departed to their homes.
The effect on the Elves of Isildurs non-destruction of the One Ring was that there was
civil war in the former kingdom of Gil-galad, the successor of Gil-galad being accused of
having joined in a pact with Isildur; and the essence of Sauron stored in the One Ring
was said to be cause for his return one day, and for the mainstay of his servants. Many
Elves were of a party that sought to force the Dnedain to destroy the One Ring. There
was war between some of the Elves of Western Lindon, from the former cities of
Gondolin and Nargothrond, and the Dnedain, which caused Isildur to remain on the
defensive in the South-kingdom. He was no magic-user of power and could not put the
One Ring to great use, so, not being yet in the power of the ring, he gave it up to one of
his chief mages. With the battle-magic of the One Ring, the Dnedain were successful in
defeating the Elves of Western Lindon. The defeated Elves had to sign a treaty giving up
all the lands to the Exiles east of the Grey Havens up to Mirkwood that had belonged to
Gil-galads kingdom. After this day many Elves departed to the Undying Lands. Only the
havens protected by the Three, the fortress-cities of the Grey Havens, Rivendell and
Caras Galadon were freed from the effects of the weapons of possession, and hither many
Elves would travel to heal themselves of the weariness caused by said weapons.
After the defeat of Sauron in the War of the Last Alliance and the flight of the Nazgl
and a few minions of the Enemy to the East, servants of Sauron traveled to the marches
of the demons of Morgoth, in the Northern Wastes and elsewhere, as they were the only
ones with sufficient magical power to wield the magical items that would power the
weapons of possession. These demons accepted with joy these weapons but without the
Ring-lore to let much of their inner essence flow into magical items that were strong
enough to power these weapons and cover the North of Middle-Earth, Arnor and Lindon
included, they were forced to depend on one of the Seven Rings of power. This, the

servants of Sauron that remained obtained through deceit; they sent an embassy to the
corrupted tribe of the Dwarves, known as the Ironfists, and feigning friendship kidnapped
the king and took his ring by torture in their dungeons. `Alas it seems probable that (as
Men did later) the Dwarves of the far eastern mansions (and some of the nearer ones?)
came under the Shadow of Morgoth and turned to evil.` (History of Middle-Earth 12)
But the One Ring was wholly evil and took hold of Eargon, the mage to whom Isildur
had lent the ring. He gathered a following among the schools of magic to try to usurp the
power. Without enough followers, he tried an assassination attempt; but Isildur, armed
with the charms and protections of the Valar, was the greatest man; and for the second
time he defeated a wielder of the One Ring. Now Isildur determined to return to the
North-kingdom. He had already in mind later to crush the remaining demons of the
Northern Wastes as the most pressing menace to the North-kingdom, but for now all he
wished was some peace. But the Elves of Gil-galads former kingdom near the forest
Greenwood were now hostile to the Dnedain, which they feared would become the next
dark power and gave them no help nor intelligence. The Dwarves of Drins line that
inhabited the Misty Mountains and had attempted, before, with Dnedain help, a
reconquest of the Grey Mountains, failed to spot an army that was gathered under
demons and Boldogs leadership of Great Orcs of the Northern Wastes and snaga Orcs
of the Misty Mountains that traveled through their subterranean tunnels and underground
passages connecting their cities. It was thus with great surprise that Isildur was ambushed
near the Misty Mountains by Great Orcs of former Angband and defeated and the One
Ring lost. But Isildur was overwhelmed by a host of Orcs that lay in wait in the Misty
Mountains; and they descended upon him at unawares in his camp between the
Greenwood and the Great River, nigh to Loeg Ningloron, the Gladden Fields, for he was
heedless and set no guard, deeming that all his foes were overthrown [that is, he had
made and overthrown more foes than Sauron, namely the Elves of Lindon]. There well
nigh all his people were slain, and among them were his three elder sons, Elendur,
Aratan, and Ciryon; but his wife and his youngest son, Valandil, he had left in Imladris
when he went to the war. (The Silmarillion, Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age)
This was the second great rent in the relations between Elves, Dwarves, and Men. From
that point onwards, Arnor was ever in the defensive against the Great Orcs and
Easterlings of the Northern Wastes. The contested land was the plateau of Angmar.
The servants of Barad-Dr, that were now fled to the East, further gave weapons of
possession to the 3 remaining demons of Morgoth in Sakal an-Khr, The Last Desert, and
Haradwaith. With Sauron vanished, however, these weapons of possession had a limited
range as there was no available artifact as the One Ring, or the Nine Rings which the
much weakened Nazgl required, with sufficient power points to power the weapons of
possession. Until circa TA 2000 the south-kingdom remained free of their sphere of
power, and it was held to be a blessed land, unlike Arnor which was covered by the
Weapons of Possession; hither the Dnedain of the south ever returned when weary of
fighting in the South and the East.

In the South-kingdom, after Saurons defeat the Imperial Age or Age of the People was
over; the Faithful had been saved from the Akallabth and they had new technology. A
time of peace and status quo lasted from TA 0-500, the Age of the Wise. Gondor was
exhausted, healing from the wounds of the War of the Last Alliance and bent on the only
course it could pursue, isolationism. Eastern Gondor up to Osgiliath was in ruins; and for
the task of reconstruction the armies of the Faithful were disbanded; the class of the
people was now dominant relying on the power and rights it had achieved in the age past;
the age-long evolution of clans and groups into autonomous groups that were against the
open society and its free institutions now took to full flight with the formation of new
political entities; these were tribes. These groups were based on feeling, with elected
leaders, and the attempt to respond against assassination attempts. Pacifism against the
armies of Gondor and revolution against the established order and property rights were
the order of the day. Whole divisions disbanded and kept their weapons establishing a
new order. Many cities were abandoned. A new age of peace and happiness was declared
as the class of the people ruralized and wanted to live in common leveling all hierarchies.
But the maxims of free property and free love didnt work for long. Too much sex causes
addiction like a drug, and that was the end to it all. Consequently, the realms of the Exiles
passed from a sophisticated cosmopolitanism to an underdeveloped backwater. Gondor
helped the Haradrim only with arms supplies and secret emissaries as the people could
not be prevailed upon by its lords to continue to make war on the former servants of
Sauron, as they were seen to be defeated; the other peoples could look to themselves and
their interests; but slowly the Wise Men, or Seers of Gondor, through complots and
intrigues sapped the strength of the people and changed their mind; there was even open
warfare between the people and the wise mens henchmen, the latter wanting to bring the
former again to the cities from the countryside; many took to hiding with their animals
and tools and living off the forests products, merging with the Dunlendings. But peasant
rebellions kept springing up, gaining control of the countryside, except the few fortified
cities and castles of the Wise and their followers. From circa TA 250 the Wise were able
to institute a system where every piece of land, rather than being communal, in theory,
belonged to a lord who could not sell the land, this bowing to popular pressure. Due to
class-struggle, there was formalized a three-class system of workers, fighters, and
intellectuals, who lived apart to be able to confront popular pressures against property
rights and its defence. From this time on, the order of the people entered on a slow decay
relying on the accomplishments it had built in the age past; the time was now of the Wise
Men who with limited resources tried to steer Gondor to a good port. In these Dark Ages,
the Wise used religion as the only means left to maintain law and order and inspire a fear
of breaking the traditions. Churches appeared on a voluntary basis. This gave to those
weary of the world the middling sort at this time - recourse against adversity. But
maybe this was just the effect of genetics and the race was exhausted and needed a rest.
Or, the unfolding of historical events of cause and effect.
Upon Saurons downfall, the Orcs everywhere reverted to a tribal organization and
internal conflicts. In the Northern Waste, the former Orcs of Angband retained a
cannibalistic organization, but to the Misty Mountains escaped many of the former slave
Snaga breeds and they abandoned cannibalism, of which they had been the prey. The
Northmen of Rhovanion and the Dwarves of Durin reclaimed the southern expanses of

the Northern Waste and the Grey Mountains displacing the Easterlings and Orcs to the
colder northern parts. We are the servants of Saruman the Wise, the White Hand: the
Hand that gives us man's-flesh to eat. We came out of Isengard, and led you here, and we
shall lead you back by the way we choose. I am Uglk. I have spoken.'
'You have spoken more than enough, Uglk,' sneered the evil voice. 'I wonder how they
would like it in Lugbrz. They might think that Uglk's shoulders needed relieving of a
swollen head. They might ask where his strange ideas came from. Did they come from
Saruman, perhaps? Who does he think he is, setting up on his own with his filthy white
badges? They might agree with me, with Grishnkh their trusted messenger; and I
Grishnkh say this: Saruman is a fool, and a dirty treacherous fool. But the Great Eye is
on him.
'Swine is it? How do you folk like being called swine by the muck-rakers of a dirty little
wizard? It's orc-flesh they eat, I'll warrant.'
Many loud yells in orc-speech answered him, and the ringing clash of weapons being
drawn [but only from the northerners who had given up that custom, that being taken as
an insult]. Cautiously Pippin rolled over, hoping to see what would happen. His guards
had gone to join in the fray. In the twilight he saw a large black Orc, probably Uglk,
standing facing Grishnkh, a short crook-legged creature, very broad and with long arms
that hung almost to the ground. Round them were many smaller goblins. Pippin supposed
that these were the ones from the North. They had drawn their knives and swords, but
hesitated to attack Uglk.
The Orcs were getting ready to march again, but some of the Northerners were still
unwilling, and the Isengarders slew two more before the rest were cowed. (The Two
Towers)

The Black Nmenreans of Harad, on their hand were in a similar Dark Ages, and the
wide majority, settled in the coastlands, were recovering from the great cataclysm that
destroyed Akallabth, and which also in Middle-Earth, ruined many coastal cities and
harbors. The Black Nmenreans, ruling from Umbar, maintained on the whole their
dominion on the Harad though with guerrillas erupting everywhere against the worship of
Gorthaur, which was seen to be not invincible. Guerrilla movements were operative on
the inland and mountainous lands of Haradwaith, where the navies of the Black
Nmenreans and the Oliphaunts of Utter Harad (Mmakan) could not reach. However,
only the people inhabiting the great expanses of Desert of Far Harad gained their
independence. Surrounded on North, East and South by burning Deserts, the irregular
infantry formations of the Far Haradrim used with deadly efficacy the Gondorian
flamethrowers against the Oliphaunts. The Black Nmenreans, with their navies,
dominated the coastline but the interior Oases especially those around the holy city of
Tresti, called in Haradrim Al-Harif, where the worship of the One True God Eru as
taught by the early Nmenreans continued, were not subdued. The Age ended with the
first attacks of the Easterlings on Gondor from the East. At the same time the Black
Nmenreans of Harad attacked Gondors southernmost provinces, Harondor, Lebennin,
Langstrand, Ithilien and Nrn.

The realms of the Dnedain in the North were fallen in even direr straits. The realm of
Arnor was more heavily depopulated by the war of the Last Alliance than Gondor to the
south. Due to its heavy population losses in the ambush upon the Gladden Fields the
Dnedain had more trouble imposing their rule than in the south-kingdom. Only three of
his [Isildurs] people came ever back over the mountains after long wandering; and of
these one was Ohtar his esquire, to whose keeping he had given the shards of the sword
of Elendil.
Thus Narsil came in due time to the hand of Valandil, Isildur's heir, in Imladris; but the
blade was broken and its light was extinguished, and it was not forged anew. And Master
Elrond foretold that this would not be done until the Ruling Ring should be found again
and Sauron should return; but the hope of Elves and Men was that these things might
never come to pass.
Valandil took up his abode in Annminas, but his folk were diminished, and of the
Nmenreans and of the Men of Eriador there remained now too few to people the land
or to maintain all the places that Elendil had built; in Dagorlad, and in Mordor, and upon
the Gladden Fields many had fallen. And it came to pass after the days of Erendur, the
seventh king that followed Valandil, that the Men of Westernesse, the Dnedain of the
North, became divided into petty realms and lordships, and their foes devoured them one
by one. (The Silmarillion) 'In the North after the war and the slaughter of the Gladden
Fields the Men of Westernesse were diminished. (The Fellowship of the Ring, The
Council of Elrond)
The Great Orcs of Angband and the Easterlings of the Northern Wastes, who had escaped
from defeat at the Battle of Dagorlad in the War of the Last Alliance, now invaded
Angmar and Arnor. Though the Dragons had gone to sleep after Saurons fall, the great
Orcs knew how to construct huge constructs of the size of Dragons that carried in their
armoured bellies squads of Orcs like the in the wars of First Age Beleriand. The
Eriadorans and Dunlendings traumatized by the unceasing wars with Sauron and his
agents and their wish for a communal society, broke and fell into barbarity. Many
divisions of the army dissolved, kept their weapons, and with their families formed tribes.
Many of the Eriadorans and Dunlendings reverted to worshipping the northern Wastes
demons in closed tribal areas barred to travelers that would impose any social change.
The mixed Dnedain population was also affected and many horrified at Elven rumours
that the One Ring had not been destroyed and that Sauron would return. They turned
away from Elven ways and the crowds in the cities made government according to the
rule of law impossible with the many tumults and revolutions. With the breakdown of
civil society, famines and pestilences broke out. Mothers fed on their children in hunger,
and in general, human condition reached the final stages of degradation. In these
hecatombs of revolutions and turmoil the population fell to nearly 10% of the numbers in
the bourgeois and imperial periods.
With many regions of Arnor impassable and the cities in a state of dissolution, it was the
Dwarves of Drin that brought help over the Mountains as they had retained their alliance
with the Northmen tribes of the Northern Wastes that had emigrated also into Rhovanion.
Northmen mercenaries were settled high and wide over Eriador. As the state was nearly
bankrupt, and the army dissolved, recourse was had to the local strong men who were

given special privileges and rights above the law so that they would fight. Together with
the Northmen tribes, the newly-created nobility reclaimed many of the lands of Angmar
and the Northern Wastes to the dominion of Arnor.
Though the Northmen were a near-barbarian people, not knowing how to forge weapon
or armour of iron, and having a distaste for Dnedain and Elven magic, they were
redoubtable warriors, and their tribal chiefs came to enjoy a high influence in the feudal
armies of Arnor. However they did not want to abolish the Eriadoran and Dunlending
tribes, being themselves tribesmen. They just wanted to do their job, pacifying the
rebellions to grant right of passage to tradesmen, and buying with these wages the goods
the Dnedain and Dwarves had to offer. The majority of the tribesmen gone over to the
worship of the demon-gods now fell even further vying with each other for the imagined
and real favours of their deities in sacrificing the infirm, children or elderly. Others were
won over to serpent worship. In internal affairs, therefore, the most that could be done
now was to imprison the rebellious tribesmen and force them to work as slaves in the
fields, the most basic work to be done.
The vast subject peoples composed of the Eriadorans, the Hillmen of Rhudaur, and the
emigrated Dunlendings and Northmen, all fell away from friendship with the Elves and
their magical traditions. It was rumoured that Sauron would return despite the War of the
Last Alliance due to the failings of the Elves and the Dnedain. Further, men became
envious of the immortality of the Elves and said that only the realm of Channeling, that
which appeals to God and the angels was right. Also, they were rebellious, wanting to go
back to a tribal society rather than to the organized society of the Dnedain. Both races
drifted apart. Never again was such a host assembled, nor was there any such league of
Elves and Men; for after Elendil's day the two kindreds became estranged. (Silmarillion,
Of the Rings of Power and the TA)
TA 500-1000: Age of Heroes: Decline of the Wise-Seers-Clergy, emergence of the
Nobility.
A point that characterizes the Northern kingdoms well is that after the breaking of Arnor
into three realms, in c. TA 860 the names of the kings ceased to be given in Quenya.
After Eaerendur the Kings no longer took names in High-elven form. (The Return of
the King, Appendices) This means that the Elven languages and magical knowledge were
forbidden, at least nominally. This was a sign of decadence as occurred in Nmenor,
where it was the first sign of the rebellion against the Valar and a jealousy of their
immortality, and the change of the Nmenreans from explorers and helpers of the
peoples of Middle-Earth into conquerors. It was also the sign that a new ruling class had
taken over power.
To meet the widespread revolutions and the discontent of the subject races, the Dnedain
were forced to fragmentize and decentralize, from TA 861 onwards, dividing the northrealm into three successor states. The breach with Elven ways foreshadowed, as in
Nmenor with the Kings Men, a drift to imperialism. Instead of being teachers, the large
majority of the Dnedain now focused on dominion in Middle-earth. Energies were

fuelled to expansion into the plains and forests of the Northern Waste; the plateau of
Angmar; or the hills of Eregion. But, unlike in previous ages, there was resistance to
imperialism and there were squabbles within the elite between the newcomers and the old
guard. Many institutions were built to withstand organized war. The dominions of the
nobility and the clergy could not be taxed so as to provide for standing armies. Thus
many civil wars erupted in old Arnor. Often the kings were forced by the people in
rebellion to dismantle the empires they had acquired through conquest into regional
kingdoms that were united through the same dialect and customs, and which they gave as
inheritance to their sons. As the armies plundered the villages dependent on agrarian
produce, the people reverted to living on the produce of the forests totally independent of
the lords. Thus there was the need to decentralize and appease them. And it came to pass
that after the days of Eaerendur [that was king in TA 777-861], the seventh king that
followed Valandil, that the Men of Westernesse, the Dnedain of the North, became
divided into petty realms and lordships, and their foes devoured them one by one. (The
Fellowship of the Ring, The Council of Elrond)
The Dnedain were accused of imperialism by the Eriadorans and Dunlendings since the
wars of the Second Age with Sauron that deforested Eriador. The Dnedain used an
organized, capitalistic society; the Eriadorans and Dunlendings and Hillmen used a tribal,
communal way of life. The Dwarves of Drins line at Moria were only interested in
money due to the lure of the Ring of Power that they had accepted.
Also, in the successor kingdoms new social elites came to power that cut relations with
the Elves of Lindon and Rivendell. In Rhudaur a mixed Dnedain-Hillmen-Dunlending
elite came to power; in Cardolan a mixed Dnedain-Northmen-Dunlending elite was
formed; and in Arthedain a mixed Dnedain-Eriadoran elite reached the avenues of
power. Only in Arthedain was there a fragile alliance with the Elves of Lindon and
Rivendell maintained, and this only in the hours of dire need. Organized religion with a
centre at half-abandoned Annminas was introduced and headed by the Seers to prevent
social fragmentation. They named and educated the heirs to the throne and had a word on
the most important political decisions. 'Arvedui was indeed the last king, as his name
signifies. It is said that this name was given to him at his birth by Malbeth the Seer, who
said to his father: "Arvedui you shall call him, for he will be the last in Arthedain.
Though a choice will come to the Dnedain, and if they take the one that seems less
hopeful, then your son will change his name and become king of a great realm. If not,
then much sorrow and many lives of men shall pass, until the Dnedain arise and are
united again." (The Return of the King, Appendices)
In the wars in Eriador, recourse was made to the necromantic crystal globes used by
Sauron in Nmenor and taught to the Nmenreans. The prophecy rang that out of this
evil Sauron re-emerged would be defeated in the late TA so the Nmenreans were more
than happy to make use of these magical items to secure the loyalty of the subject races.
The truth of this came later to be realized by Malbeth the Seer, in the days of Arvedui,
last king at Fornost,' As Elrond said, Bid Aragorn remember the words of the seer, and
the Paths of the Dead.'
The Dead awaken;

for the hour is come for the oathbreakers;

at the Stone of Erech they shall stand again
and hear there a horn in the hills ringing. (The Two Towers, The Passing of the Grey
Company)
So, the Eriadorans and Dunlending were forced into oaths upon these stones to swear
allegiance to the wars of the successor kingdoms; break of the oath meant turning them
into undead. Long had the terror of the Dead lain upon that hill and upon the empty
fields about it. For upon the top stood a black stone, round as a great globe, the height of
a man, though its half was buried in the ground. Unearthly it looked, as though it had
fallen from the sky, as some believed; but those who remembered still the lore of
Westernesse told that it had been brought out of the ruin of Nmenor and there set by
Isildur at his landing. None of the people of the valley dared to approach it, nor would
they dwell near; for they said that it was a trysting-place of the Shadow-men, and there
they would gather in times of fear, thronging round the Stone and whispering. (The Two
Towers, The Passing of the Grey Company)
'I hope that the forgotten people will not have forgotten how to fight,' said Gimli; 'for
otherwise I see not why we should trouble them.'
'That we shall know if ever we come to Erech,' said Aragorn. 'But the oath that they
broke was to fight against Sauron, and they must fight therefore, if they are to fulfill it.
For at Erech there stands yet a black stone that was brought, it was said, from Nmenor
by Isildur; and it was set upon a hill, and upon it the King of the Mountains swore
allegiance to him in the beginning of the realm of Gondor. But when Sauron returned and
grew in might again, Isildur summoned the Men of the Mountains to fulfill their oath, and
they would not: for they had worshipped Sauron in the Dark Years.
'Then Isildur said to their king: "Thou shalt be the last king. And if the West prove
mightier than thy Black Master, this curse I lay upon thee and thy folk: to rest never until
your oath is fulfilled. For this war will last through years uncounted, and you shall be
summoned once again ere the end." And they fled before the wrath of Isildur, and did not
dare to go forth to war on Sauron's part; and they hid themselves in secret places in the
mountains and had no dealings with other men, but slowly dwindled in the barren hills.
And the terror of the Sleepless Dead lies about the Hill of Erech and all places where that
people lingered. But that way I must go, since there are none living to help me.' (The
Two Towers)
New swords of undead-slaying made of orichalch, the red metal of Atalant, newly found
in the South Downs of Cardolan, were made in vast amounts in these wars. The Dnedain
of Arnor drifted into civil wars in the middle TA, according to Tom Bombadil, or
Iarwain, Suddenly Tom's talk left the woods and went leaping up the young stream, over
bubbling waterfalls, over pebbles and worn rocks, and among small flowers in close grass
and wet crannies, wandering at last up on to the Downs. They heard of the Great
Barrows, and the green mounds, and the stone-rings upon the hills and in the hollows
among the hills. Sheep were bleating in flocks. Green walls and white walls rose. There
were fortresses on the heights. Kings of little kingdoms fought together, and the young
Sun shone like fire on the red metal of their new and greedy swords. There was victory
and defeat; and towers fell, fortresses were burned, and flames went up into the sky. Gold

was piled on the biers of dead kings and queens; and mounds covered them, and the stone
doors were shut; and the grass grew over all. Sheep walked for a while biting the grass,
but soon the hills were empty again. A shadow came out of dark places far away, and the
bones were stirred in the mounds. Barrow-wights walked in the hollow places with a
clink of rings on cold fingers, and gold chains in the wind.' Stone rings grinned out of the
ground like broken teeth in the moonlight. (The Fellowship of the Ring)
The Dnedain of Arnor fell away from the path of good when they split their Northkingdom into 3 warring states. The sign for this is that the kings ceased from using Elven
names after the TA 860. Even the Nmenreans when they were corrupted in their initial
stages had not gone so far.
In those days the Shadow grew deeper upon Nmenor; and the lives of the Kings of the
House of Elros waned because of their rebellion but they hardened their hearts the more
against the Valar. And the 20th king took the sceptre of his fathers and ascended the
throne in the name of Adnakhor, Lord of the West, forsaking the Elven tongues and
forbidding their use in his hearing. Yet in the scroll of Kings, the name Herunmen was
inscribed in the High-elven speech, because of ancient custom, which the kings feared to
break utterly, lest evil befall. (The Silmarillion)
The reference of Bombadil to the red metal of their new and greedy swords meant that
the Dnedain were using weapons like those the Hobbits found on the Barrow-Downs in
a very widespread manner.
Pippin in the Battle before the Black Gate drew his sword and looked at it, and the
intertwining shapes of red and gold; and the flowing characters of Nmenor glinted like
fire upon the blade.
Frodos barrow-wight sword also shone red on Weathertop,
Suddenly he knew in his heart that they were silently commanding him to wait. Then at
once fear and hatred awoke in him. His hand left the bridle and gripped the hilt of his
sword, and with a red flash he drew it.
In Weathertop the sword of Frodo taken from the Barrows flickered red and seemed to
inspire the Ringwraiths with fear as it was an undead slaying-weapon. Desperate, he
drew his own sword, and it seemed to him that it flickered red, as if it was a firebrand.
Two of the figures halted [with fear of the sword]. (The Fellowship of the Ring) With
their vast knowledge of fighting the ring-wraiths of Sauron in the SA, the men of
Westernesse crafted undead-slaying weapons to destroy the enemies of the Northkingdom in the mid TA, namely the Nazgl of Angmar and of the Northern Wastes,
Mrazor, the First, and Hoarmrath, the Sixth. And behold! there lay his weapon, but the
blade was smoking like a dry branch that has been thrust in a fire; and as he watched it, it
writhed and withered and was consumed. So passed the sword of the Barrow-downs,
work of Westernesse. But glad would he have been to know its fate who wrought it
slowly long ago in the North-kingdom when the Dnedain were young, and chief among
their foes was the dread realm of Angmar and its sorcerer king. No other blade, not

though mightier hands had wielded it, would have dealt that foe a wound so bitter,
cleaving the undead flesh, breaking the spell that knit his unseen sinews to his will. (The
Return of the King)
As Aragorn said, the Dnedain of the successor kingdoms in the North were mighty
spell-casters. 'See!' cried Aragorn. 'Here we find tokens!' He picked out from the pile of
grim weapons two knives, leaf-bladed, damasked in gold and red; and searching further
he found also the sheaths, black, set with small red gems. 'No orc-tools these!' he said.
'They were borne by the hobbits. Doubtless the Orcs despoiled them, but feared to keep
the knives, knowing them for what they are: work of Westernesse, wound about with
spells for the bane of Mordor. Well, now, if they still live, our friends are weaponless. I
will take these things, hoping against hope, to give them back.' (The Two Towers)
It has already been said that these weapons were undead-slaying weapons. So, why were
the Dnedain using these weapons. Because, having fallen from the path of goodness,
they were using necromantic crystal balls like Isildur used before on the Dunlendings of
the White Mountains, to gain the loyalties of the Eriadoran and Dunlending tribes in their
internal feuds. When the tribes broke their oaths of fealty they would have been turned
into undead armies. It was in this matter of things that the Witch-king rose and used antiDnedain feeling to crush them. When he was defeated with Gondors help which still
adhered to the path of righteousness, the Dnedain were so unpopular that they had to
give up re-establishing their kingdom, and had to adopt the tribal ways becoming rangers,
and on the other hand abandoned imperialism, joining the Elves of Rivendell and
returning to the good old ways.

To the south in the early TA, at the brink of a moment Gondor saw itself faced with a
two-front war. Its hosts were defeated in Nrn, Harondor, Lebennin and southern Ithilien
and the country was largely abandoned to the armies of the former minions of Sauron,
who settled it with the Jeluteie and Eluaieen confederations of tribes of the northern
Haradrim. The times were hard as now the class of the people entered into erstwhile
decay falling into bad customs and genetic diseases, while the Wise became dominant,
but with very limited resources; at the beginning of this age, it was said that the military
worth of a knight, a new class that had emerged, compared to a peasant was 1 to 100. A
new breed of men had come to save the times, the Age of Heroes, TA 500-1000, and the
Faithful of Gondor regained the initiative by many a deed of bravery and skill. Also, in
this era there arose fortified cities that where capitalism was re-instaured, unlike the
countryside, which remained collectivized. As the age went by, however, the cities threw
off the government of the Wise and the Nobles as the age passed by, establishing
independent self-governed city-state republics or communes; the middle-class was back
on its feet. It was a long time before Gondor could turn to its southern frontier though.
Only in TA 667 when king Turambar died were the Easterling hordes defeated. The
Lords of Gondor, steered by the Wise for the first 250 years of this period, decided it was
in their own best interest to help the Haradrim more actively. They sent irregular mixed
Dnedain-Dunlending ranger bands of the White Moutains dales through Mordor down
through Gorgoroth, which was occupied at the time by Gondor, to help the Men of Harad,

while their feudal hosts, a system implemented in the previous age, attacked Harondor.
For 300 years these ranger bands made a rendez-vous with the Far Haradrim on the
bleached deserts of the Dune Sea, but they could never wholly stop the flow of supplies
and men coming from Srayn and Mmakan up the Burning Walk. From TA 671
onwards the Dnedain embarked on the reconquest of Harondor but the former fey
followers of Saurons hosts commanded the sea supplies with their navies, which Gondor
largely lacked and harassed with raids Gondors coasts, while the Haradrim were
entrenched in their new-found land. Therefore it took the Lords of Gondor about half a
century to reconquer Harondor. It was a war of raid and counter-raid over a no-mansland; the exiled nobles and the urban and rural municipalities of Ithilien and Belfalas took
the brunt of the fighting. First, countless raids depopulated the countryside of peasant
farmers. Then, when the land was devastated and only around the cities were crops and
vegetable-gardens maintained, surprise attacks on the cities were undertaken. After TA
721 the nobles of Gondor attempted the conquest of Near Harad using the same strategy.
The wars for Near Harad took place during the reigns of king Atanatar I, reigned TA 667748, and Siriondil, reigned TA 748-830, and though Gondors hosts won the main battles,
they were on the whole fruitless in Western Near Harad because the Black Nmenreans
could sail up and down the river Harnen unmolested and re-supply their strong-points;
and the countryside remained populated and hostile to the Exiles of Atalant. During the
numerous cavalcades that the Dnedain made into Eastern Harad they came into
confrontation with the Variags of Khand that were allied with the Haradrim; these
nomads would rarely stand up to the heavy cavalry of the nobles but would rather use
guerrilla tactics. But because the Faithful reconquered Nrn, from which they made
incursions, they were able to seize Eastern Near Harad and install there vassal fiefs.
A change of policy was needed. The next king, Tarannon, reigned TA 830-913, asked the
Parliament of the Barons and the Cities extra taxes to build a navy comparable to Black
Nmenrean standards. In addition he sponsored a coup dtat in Mirdor of the Party of
the Kings Men against the followers of Sauron and married its queen, Berthiel;
monetary support flowed from this rich realm to Gondor. With these new resources
Tarannon was able to conquer Western Near Harad, TA 891-901, and raid Umbars
northern regions. In the Sea of Umbar he could not win the dominion, for his navy
suffered some defeats and he could do no further. To commemorate his victories as
Captain of the Hosts, Tarannon took the crown in the name of Falastur Lord of the
Coasts. But Berthiel had other plans too; after some time she tried to build up at the
Gondorian Court a following comprised of Kings Men, through intimidation and
murder, that would supplant the Faithful. As a result Tarannon repudiated her; because
without proofs he could go no further; and she was sent back to Mirdor; he died
childless. So started the Ship-kings. (The Return of the King, Appendices)
There followed Ernil I [reigned TA 913-936], his nephew, who succeeded him,
repaired the ancient haven of Pelargir, and built a great navy. He laid siege by sea and
land to Umbar, and took it [in TA 933], and it became a great harbour and fortress of the
power of Gondor. But Ernil did not long survive his triumph. He was lost with many
ships and men in a great storm off Umbar, in TA 936, when pursuing the Black
Nmenrean treasure fleet, that had laid hidden in secret at Dsalan, in expectance of the

result of the war, and carried to Sakal an-Khr the Nmenrean treasury of Middle-Earth,
hoarded in Mithril bars. (The Return of the King, Appendices)
TA 1000-1500: Age of the Middle-class: decline of the Nobility, emergence of the
Middle-Class.
c. [TA] 1100 The Wise ie the Istari and chief Eldar discover that an evil power has
made a stronghold at Dol Guldur. Southern Mirkwood became a haunt of Orcs, Giant
Spiders, Zombies, Skeletons, and other undead. Therefore, the new dark power arising
there was called the Necromancer. They were dead corpses animated by their spirits,
which gave them memory, the capacity to move and fight and so on, but no souls, which
had departed.
Ciryandil his son [reigned 936-1015] continued the building of ships; but the Men of the
Harad, led by the [Black Nmenrean] lords that had been driven from Umbar, came up
with great power against that stronghold, and Ciryandil fell in battle in Haradwaith [in
TA 1015]. For many years Umbar was invested, but could not be taken because of the
sea-power of Gondor. (Appendices) Since the Black Nmenreans of Umbar had ruled
the Harad from that province, with ruling classes or puppet rulers in the other kingdoms,
they could count on the help and obedience of the rest of the Harad to help it reconquer
the Umbar province. Furthermore, the armies of Greater and Utter Harad were joined by
forces of Sakal an-Khr who shared in their hatred against all followers of the Elendili.
This was a great colony of Nmenor founded back in the mid-SA, second only to Umbar
in importance, and firmly in the grasp of the Black Nmenreans, and where after the
defeat of Sauron in the War of the Last Alliance, the main part of the Ringwraiths, too
weak to assume shape, had found refuge; it was called New Nmenor. They now saw that
if Haradwaith fell, they would follow and so lent aid in navies and armies to the Black
Nmenreans of the Harad. In the battle of Quairawan, a town east of Umbar, TA 1015,
the cavalry hosts of the Gondorian nobility tried to use their heavy lances against the
large elephants of Mmakan meeting brute force with brute force. Though the Dnedain
cavalry smashed the Black Nmenrean forces to pieces, the Oliphaunts broke the back
of the Gondorian heavy cavalry formations. The times were changing though and the Age
of the Middling Sort, TA 1000-1500, had come in the realms of the Exiles as well as in
the Black Nmenrean realms. Correspondingly, there was a change from cavalry to
infantry formations, with a much larger number of soldiers recruited, and the Faithful of
Gondor returned to the use of Legions, masses of spearmen and swordsmen, which had
served them so well in the War of the Last Alliance. The flexible maniples of the Legions
would let the Oliphaunts penetrate their lines and would then isolate and attack them, or
would blow trumpets and try to scare them into stampeding their own lines. The heavy
cavalry of the nobility would then be brought upon the enemys forces. The domains of
the nobles and their preponderance lasted for about the first 250 years; then the middleclass took affairs wholly into their own hand and there was a change from an absolute to
a constitutional monarchy. Tolls on bridges and roads, and taxes on entering fiefs were
largely extinguished to subsidize commerce. With the traditional fiefs of the nobles gone,
where employment had been for life though encased in servitude for life, and the

communities were largely self-sufficient, the class of the people had to look after its own
care in a new inter-dependent world where business was business.
Ciryaher son of Ciryandil [reigned 1015-1149] bided his time, and at last when he had
gathered strength he came down from the north by sea and by land, and crossing the
River Harnen his armies utterly defeated the Men of the Harad, and their kings were
compelled to acknowledge the overlordship of Gondor ([in TA]1050). Ciryaher then took
the name of Hyarmendacil 'South-victor'. (Appendices) Umbar became a great fortress
and haven of fleets. (Peoples of Middle-Earth, The Heirs of Elendil)With the great
military victory and Umbar firmly in the grip of the Men of Gondor, the greatest fortresscity and base the Nmenreans had ever built on Endor, the rest of the Harad fell like a
castle of cards: Far Harad in TA 1053; Tulwang and Ciryatandor in TA 1056; Mirdor in
TA 1059; Tantrak and Utter Harad in TA 1064; Greater Harad in TA 1067. In TA 106773 the northern Black Nmenrean kingdoms of Mrenor were wrested from these
minions of Sauron. The Black Nmenreans that remained fled to Sakal an-Khr or went
into hiding; it was long before that land could field another army; its navy alone retained
the Dnedain from conquest of their land for it never lost dominion of the Bay of Ormal.
The Gondorians replaced the Black Nmenreans as the ruling class of the Harad
annexing these states; but the Haradrim states at first they did not annex but installed
protectorates in them; they put them as vassal states of Gondor. The might of
Hyarmendacil no enemy dared to contest during the remainder of his long reign. He was
king for one hundred and thirty-four years, the longest reign but one of all the Line of
Anrion. The realm then extended north to Celebrant and the southern eaves of
Mirkwood; west to the Greyflood; east to the inland Sea of Rhn; south to the River
Harnen, and thence along the coast to the peninsula and haven of Umbar. The Men of the
Vales of Anduin acknowledged its authority; and the kings of the Harad did homage to
Gondor, and their sons lived as hostages in the court of its King. Mordor was desolate,
but was watched over by great fortresses that guarded the passes. (The Return of the
King, Appendices)
The Galleons of Gondor reached the coasts of Mirdor, Tantrak, Utter Harad, and Dark
Harad and were then bent on the next step, the reduction of Sakal an-Khr. The struggle
for control of the Bay of Ormal lasted for about 25 years, TA 1068-1093, and neither side
could claim wholly victory, but the losses were pyrrhic to the Dnedain; and all it
reached was the conquest of the Western Ormal Bay to that deed making an alliance with
the old, beleaguered, Nmenrean colony of Anarik, which was mainly of the Kings
Men party, bent on dominion of Middle-Earth, despising the Black Nmenreans that
were worshippers of Sauron and Melkor. Later on, the Lynerian League, a coalition of
city-state republics of mixed Nmenrean provenance also entered the alliance. In 1084 a
beachhead was established in western Sakal an-Khr, despite the fact that the way
through the jungle from the coast was filled with perils and ambushes. Progress was slow
and cost-full. In 1097 the Gondorians reached Tarik an-Aruwanai, the capital of the
Black Nmenreans, and mounted a joint terrestrial and amphibious attack into the
eastern coast-line. That city was stormed, sacked and burnt to the ground, as the
Dnedain foresaw that they could not hold it due to the hostility of the mixed Black
Nmenrean people that held the control of the countryside and kept bombarding it. The

lore of old Nmenor, ranging from electrical circuits to computers and missiles that had
for long been in decay, was lost to the servants of Sauron. After the reconquest of eastern
Sakal an-Khr, their loremasters had lost the skill to read the old languages even when
they still possessed some of the lore in secret temples lost in the jungles of Zurghr.
But the tide had turned. By circa TA 1100 the Nazgl had reappeared in secret, able to
take shape again. The Nazgl Mrazor the First, and Adnaphel, the Seventh, reappeared
in the dread land of Sakal an-Khr; J Indr, the Fourth, appeared in Mmakan; the lair
Akhrahil, the Fifth, re-appeared in the desert expanses of eastern Ciryatandor; and
vatha, the Ninth, in Khand, which had never been subdued wholly to the mastery of
Gondor. These rebellions in occupied Harad and Sakal an-Khr demanded all of
Gondors resources. But spies told that in lands far away to the East, in the land of Rhn,
the Easterlings under the leadership of Khaml, the Second, Dwar of Waw, the Third,
and Ren of Chey Sart, the Eigth, were again on the move and Gondor, realizing the
danger of overextending its supply lines had to retrench having no manpower to control
the land and terrestrial supply routes of its enemies; the Ship-kings were ended. The
battle formations of the South-kingdoms ships-of-the-line had to abandon the clear-blue
sea lanes of the Ormal Bay. In this period the Dnedain could still outmatch the
Ringwraiths and other undead in skill and spell; the problem was that these newly
awakened servants of Sauron organized and disciplined the countless hordes of wild men
of Rhn, in the East, Harad, in the South, and the Last Desert, in the Far East, into
fanatical and hierarchized armies.

In the North, Hoarmrath of the Northern Waste, the Sixth, appeared there in secret in c.
TA 1100 and worked to re-establish the dominion of Sauron over the former Orcs of
Angband so that they would end internal squabbles and multiply like flies.
Atanatar II Alcarin 'the Glorious' [reigned 1149-1226] son of Hyarmendacil lived in
great splendour, so that men said precious stones are pebbles in Gondor for children to
play with. (The Return of the King, Appendices.) In his time, owing to the vigour of the
Ship-kings, from Falastur onwards, Gondor reached the height of its power. Having
given up the attempt to conquer Sakal an-Khr, the Dnedain of Gondor retrenched, and
annexed all the lands of the Harad into an empire to stop the Ring-wraiths rebellions,
though allowing the Haradrim some form of autonomy. The savannas of the black mens
tribes of northern Mrenor were also tributary to Gondor. 'In the South the realm of
Gondor long endured; and for a while its splendour grew, recalling somewhat of the
might of Nmenor, ere it fell. High towers that people built, and strong places, and
havens of many ships; and the winged crown of the Kings of Men was held in awe by
folk of many tongues. (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Council of Elrond) This
[empire] extended in direct rule as far north as Celebrant and the south-eaves of
Mirkwood, east to the Sea of Rhnaer, and south to Umbar, and westward to the river
Gwathl or Greyflood. In addition many other regions were tributary: the Men of Anduin
Vale as far as its sources, and the folk of Harad in the South. But Atanatar in fact did
nothing to increase this power, and lived mostly in splendour and ease. The waning of
Gondor began before he died, and the watch on the borders was neglected. (Peoples of

Middle-Earth, The Heirs of Elendil) In this time the control of politics came to be in the
hands of the middle-class; the access to the public service was determined to be elective,
the parties being eligible by Parliament. The men of influence chose to keep the
monarchy, as in numbers the middling sort was reactionary, being fewer than the class of
the people. In theory the kings were independent, in practice mere puppets of the
parliament; the kings that determined against the interests of the middle-class appeared
mysteriously dead by poison.
But this was the period, among all others of Gondors history, that saw the greatest extent
of prosperity and progress, if not in bliss, as had occurred earlier in the Nmenrean
periods. This was perhaps because in the two ages preceding, the mainstay of society,
namely agriculture, had been self-sufficient, and for a man to survive he had to know a
bit from everything. Now there was time to specialize, and apply a knowledge of the
whole corpus of science into specific areas as religious restrictions on magical and
scientific pursuits were lifted. The nobility had created a country, the middle-class was
now come to run it. So it was said that Atanatar loved ease and did nothing to maintain
the power that he had inherited, and his two sons [Narmacil I and Calmacil] were of like
temper. The waning of Gondor had already begun before he died, and was doubtless
observed by its enemies. The watch upon Mordor was neglected. (Appendices) In
Atanatars reign many public works were undertaken to try to integrate the Haradrim and
the annexed Black Nmenrean realms into an empire; a system of roads was constructed
that spanned the entirety of the Harad, going south from Ithilien and Harondor, and
separating just before the Dune Sea desert; one going by the coastline all the way to
Mirdor; the other going east through the foot of the Ered Harmal Mountains all the way
to Mmakan. Also, many aqueducts and irrigation channels were undertaken, such as at
Pelepelpl, or Sanfwhani in Haradaic, in Al-Quebir. 'Tis said that there were dealings of
old between Gondor and the kingdoms of the Harad in the Far South; though there was
never friendship. In those days our bounds were away south beyond the mouths of
Anduin, and Umbar, the nearest of their realms, acknowledged our sway. `These
cursed Southrons come now marching up the ancient roads to swell the hosts of the Dark
Tower. Yea, up the very roads that craft of Gondor made. (The Return of the King, Of
Herbs and Stewed Rabbit) The elections to the public service became an all-important
theme, as the places of employment in the state gave wide-ranging power and monetary
rewards; the elections were held by secret scrutiny at the amphitheatres of the cities.
There were always two groups represented in government, the Hawks, interested in
extending the government to other realms through empire, and the Doves, interested in
extending domestic government and the services provided by the state bureaucracy to the
people. When the policy of the Doves threatened to extend popular control and so
communion of goods into the realm, there was dictated a return of the Hawks. But the
suspicion always remained that if popular participation in the elections disappeared, there
would be established dictatorships. Concurrently, there now started revolutions of the
class of the people with the sole aim of collectivization and elected leaders. In the South,
these revolutions joined the cause of the ancient Enemy for the sake of despair and old
ways, but in the North they remained loyal to Ilvatar. A great popular revolution in the
northern provinces in TA 1224 threatened to overwhelm the whole realm as the troops
refused to quell the uprising and joined the revolutionaries; and the parliament dared not

to have recourse to the Haradrim. So, Northmen detachments of mercenaries enlisted in

the army were called in to put down the revolution.
In the reign of Narmacil I, reigned 1226-1294, the same problems persisted; the
rebellions of the Haradrim in Khand, Mmakan and Ciryatandor fostered by the Ringwraiths in secret; popular unrest; and the continuing war at sea with the Khanm for
control of the Bay of Ormal, whose navies were commanded also by a Ring-Wraith,
Adnaphel. It was known that the Khanm supplied with arms the rebellions in Harad
and, by land routes, in Khand and Gondor-occupied Western Rhn. The southern Exiles
attempted to eliminate Khanm influence in Khand by extending their commercial and
intelligence networks into Nrad and Chey Sart, both of which were countries that
belonged to the land of Rhn, the later country harbouring in secret the Ringwraith Ren
the Eight; the Dnedain succeeded in installing in Nrad and Chey Sart protectorates and
largely eliminate Khanm weapons supplies through that route, though rebellions kept
cropping up. Sakal an-Khr remained the main enemy of the Elendili for it controlled the
East, the centre from which all attacks against the Faithful were planned and directed. It
was a country where demons were worshipped and walked the land, and black magic
reigned supreme over the subject population of the Black Nmenreans. There, the Black
Nmenreans had learnt from Morgoths demons to prolong their life by allowing
horrible mutations in their bodies, and then maintaining an artificial life with recourse to
demon magic. Also, since circa the year 1000, the branch of black magic called
Necromancy had been strongly developed and the Khanm had learnt to create undead
skeleton armies from horses and dead humans; though poor in warfare the skeletons
inspired a fear of undeath. And thereupon the middle door of the Black Gate was thrown
open with a great clang, and out of it there came an embassy from the Dark Tower. At its
head there rode a tall and evil shape, mounted upon a black horse. (The Return of the
King, The Black Gate Opens)
From c. 1300 Evil things begin to multiply again. Orcs increase in the Misty Mountains
and attack the Dwarves. The Nazgl reappear. (The Return of the King)
Morgoth had dealt in genetics creating races predisposed to evil. His servants were to
continue his work. Laboratory tests in Sakal an-Khr in circa TA 1300 created a new
disease that used warpstone properties to make the human body acquire serpent-like
qualities to horrify its victims, and in this metamorphosis, the few bodies that could resist
the mutations acquired unexpectedly the prize of extended life. Most victims died.
Beforehand, the Khanm had been able to extend normal life by the use of warpstone and
demon-magic only. The disease was tested on the people of Rhudaur to exterminate it, at
which time the unknown consequences were revealed. Thus were born the Vampire-lords
of Rhudaur. Some thirty years later the Elves of Rivendell developed an antidote for the
initial stages of the disease, which prevented the destruction of Cardolan and Arthedain.
Further, in the far North maybe in parts of the Northern Wastes there lived a folk of the
Easterlings descended from Ulfangs people conquered and corrupted by the dragons. It
is said of the Wild Men in league with Angmar that conquered Rhudaur in 1409 that they
came out of the North,

In Rhudaur an evil folk, workers of sorcery, subjects of Angmar, slay the remnants of
the Dnedain and build dark forts in the hills. Cardolan is forsaken. The deserted
mounds of Cardolan become filled with deadly spirits; but in Rhudaur for long there
dwelt an evil people out of the North much given to sorcery. The Men of Bree and the
Periannath of the same region maintain their independence. (History of Middle-Earth 12)
From circa TA 1300, when dragons reappeared and started to attack the dwarves, the
Ringwraiths took an independent path. For the Dragons, like other beings of great power
and magic, were intent on destroying and absorbing the power levels put there by the
Elven smiths and Sauron; the Ringwraiths, on the contrary wanted to capture the rings for
their masters purposes.
The rings of power had been Saurons great tool into creating a theocracy over all of
Middle-Earth. `But Sauron gathered into his hands all the remaining Rings of Power and
he dealt them out to the other peoples of Middle-earth, hoping thus to bring under his
sway all those that desired secret power beyond the measure of their kind. Seven rings he
gave to the Dwarves; but to Men he gave Nine, for Men proved in this matter as in others
the readiest to his will. And all those rings that he governed he perverted, the more easily
since he had a part in their making, and they were accursed, and they betrayed in the end
all those that used them. The Dwarves indeed proved tough and hard to tame; they ill
endured the domination of others, and the thoughts of their hearts are hard to fathom, nor
can they be turned to shadows. They used their rings only for the getting of wealth [not
for kingship, sorcery, or war]; but wrath and an overmastering greed of gold were kindled
in their hearts, of which evil enough after came to the profit of Sauron. It is said that the
foundation of each of the Seven Hoards of the Dwarven-kings of old was a golden ring;
but all those hoards long were plundered and the Dragons devoured them [in TA 13001980], and of the Seven Rings some [four] were consumed in fire [by the Dragons] and
some
Sauron
recovered
[three].'
(The
Silmarillion)
The attacks on the Dwarven hoards and mansions started in the early TA by Dragons and
their
servants,
and
the
Ringwraiths,
In the Third Age `The Dwarves hid themselves in deep places, guarding their hoards
[accumulated in the Second Age due to the Seven Great Rings]; but when evil began to
stir again [in c. 1300] and dragons reappeared, one by one their ancient treasures were
plundered, and they became a wandering people. Moria [alone?] for long remained secure
[until TA 1980], but its numbers dwindled until many of its vast mansions became dark
and
empty.'
(Appendices,
Tale
of
Years,
The
Third
Age)
Until TA 1980, when of the Seven great mansions of the Dwarves only Moria remained,
`Seven the Dwarf-kings possessed, but three he has recovered, and the others the dragons
have consumed.' (The Fellowship of the Rings, The Shadow of the Past)
`It has been said that dragon-fire could melt and consume the Rings of Power, but there is
not now any dragon left on earth in which the old fire is hot enough [to melt and consume
Rings of Power]; nor was there ever any dragon, not even Ancalagon the Black, who

could have harmed the One Ring, the Ruling Ring, for that was made by Sauron himself.'
(The
Fellowship
of
the
Rings,
The
Shadow
of
the
Past)
There may well have been a war between the Dragons and the forces of the Necromancer
for the control of the Seven Rings; the Dragons seem to have been able to draw the power
of the Seven by consuming them, while the Ringwraiths wanted to recover them for
Sauron, for his own purposes of crafting evil magic items therewith; this conflict might
explain why there were no Dragons in Mordor in the late TA. The One Ring might have
constituted a watershed in the crafting of magical items; before the power invested in the
magical items could be recovered by the destroyer of the item; Sauron used new
techniques which would dissipate the power invested in the ring if it were destroyed. This
would render in his opinion the destruction of the One Ring useless.
Without the Ring of Power the dwarves, like the kingdom of Erebor lost the capacity to
craft magic items and magic weapons of high power. Before the loss of the Ring they had
been able to make highly magical items such as moon-letters and secret doors whose
locks opened only on a certain moon-light, and which were impervious to steel picks and
tools. The secrets were lost; though the dwarven folk endured migrating out of Erebor;
the loss of the Ring coupled with the loss of costly raw materials, such as Eog and
Mithril, available to them no longer after they left Erebor, ended their mastery of things
magical.
'Glin began then to talk of the works of his people, telling Frodo about their great
labours in Dale and under the Mountain. 'We have done well,' he said. `But in metalwork
we cannot rival our fathers, many of whose secrets are lost. We make good armour and
keen swords, but we cannot again make mail or blade to match those that were made
before the dragon came. Only in mining and building have we surpassed the old days.
You should see the waterways of Dale, Frodo, and the fountains, and the pools! You
should see the stone-paved roads of many colours! And the halls and cavernous streets
under the earth with arches carved like trees; and the terraces and towers upon the
Mountain's sides! Then you would see that we have not been idle.' (The Fellowship of the
Rings, The Council of Elrond)

There was an additional complication to Gondors troubles in the East and South at
around this time, as the Ringwraith Khaml, the Second, revealed openly his power and
strove to conquer western occupied Rhn. This made the Southern Exiles cast their
attention away from the South and East. Moreover, they had need of men for their armies
and the Northmen were deemed more trustful than the Haradrim; so there was a change
of focus to the North. In 1240 [king] Narmacil, to rid himself of all cares, made his
nephew Minalcar Regent of the realm. This was a formality, as the parliament replaced
Narmacil, who was intent on pursuing a policy in the South. As for Minalcar, His chief
concern was with the Northmen. These had increased greatly in the peace brought by the
power of Gondor. The kings showed them favour, since they were the nearest in kin of
lesser Men to the Dnedain (being for the most part descendants of those peoples from

whom the Edain of old had come); and they gave them wide lands beyond Anduin south
of Greenwood the Great, to be a defence against men of the East. For in the past the
attacks of the Easterlings had come mostly over the plain between the Inland Sea and the
Ash Mountains.
In the days of Narmacil I their attacks began again, though at first with little force; but it
was learned by the regent that the Northmen did not always remain true to Gondor, and
some would join forces with the Easterlings, either out of greed for spoil, or in the
furtherance of feuds among their princes. Minalcar therefore in 1248 led out a great force,
and between Rhovanion and the Inland Sea he defeated a large army of the Easterlings
and destroyed all their camps and settlements east of the Sea. He thus conquered Central
Rhn, including Kykurian Kyn, up to the Talathrant River. He then took the name of
Rmendacil [II, East-victor]. On his return Rmendacil fortified the west shore of
Anduin as far as the inflow of the Limlight, and forbade any stranger to pass down the
River beyond the Emyn Muil. He it was that built the pillars of the Argonath at the
entrance to Nen Hithoel. (Appendices) Though these people [the Northmen] were
ultimately related in speech and blood to the Atani (and so the Nmenreans), and were
usually friendly, they now became restless. Rmendakil was forced to withdraw his
northern border east of Anduin to the Emyn Muil. He there built the Gates of Argonath
beyond which no stranger was allowed to come south without leave.
The regent Minalcar had to fortify the Anduin because of the peril of the rumoured
ringwraiths of Dol Guldur that had infiltrated and acquired dominion over the tribes and
kingdoms of the Northmen and drawn many into alliance with the Easterlings and
hostility against Gondor. Gondor lost its influence in the region west of Mirkwood.
Minalcar made several attempts to storm the fortresses of southern Mirkwood that
guarded Dol Guldur. In this type of irregular warfare, the feudal mounted knights or the
new professional infantry pikemen of the Dnedain were useless and they had to rely
upon Dunlending scouts and mixed Dnedain-Dunlending rangers and the uneasy
alliance with the Silvan Elves of Greenwood, which was often broken due to mutual
distrust. In the wars with the undead and the fell creatures that peopled southern
Mirkwood, many evil strongholds were razed to the ground but the chief instigators were
never found. In conjunction with the Dnedain of the Northern successor kingdoms,
intelligence was gathered of the weapons of possession, made of jade circlets, that gave
magic-users fits of madness and rage. Many of these were found at the fortresses of the
servants of Sauron and they were said to be powered by the third Dwarven Ring of
Power. They had a range only at about southern Mirkwood but that was sufficient to stop
Dnedain activity in the area. And the undead armies grew with every year passing.
Defeated in these guerrilla wars that lasted for circa 30 years, southern Mirkwood was
abandoned to the enemy too. Then he looked eastward and saw all the land of Lrien
running down to the pale gleam of Anduin, the Great River. He lifted his eyes across the
river and all the light went out, and he was back again in the world he knew. Beyond the
river the land appeared flat and empty, formless and vague, until far away it rose again
like a wall, dark and drear. The sun that lay on Lothlrien had no power to enlighten the
shadow of that distant height. `There lies the fastness of Southern Mirkwood,' said
Haldir. `It is clad in a forest of dark fir, where the trees strive one against another and

their branches rot and wither. In the midst upon a stony height stands Dol Guldur, where
long the hidden Enemy had his dwelling. (The Fellowship of the Ring, Lothlrien)
Gondor was now submerged by waves of Northmen settlers; as in Arnor before in TA
860, it now faced the peril that the composition of its people would change, and a new
half-barbarian elite would form and take over power, eliminating the old ways of the
Elven languages and magical lore, and the magical wisdom of Westernesse. Because of
the menace of the Easterling attacks from the steppes and grasslands of Eastern Rhn,
namely the tribal confederations from Kargagis Ahar and Lu Tyr Su, and because the
largest part of its troops were bogged down in the Harad, fighting the Ring-wraiths and
their Khanm and Haradrim servants, Gondor had reached a time where it was dependent
upon the numbers of the Northmen and had to co-opt them into the leading ranks.
But Rmendakil being at this time much troubled by assaults of Easterlings sought to
attach the Northmen more closely to his allegiance. But since he needed men, and
desired to strengthen the bond between Gondor and the Northmen, he took many of them
into his service and gave to some high rank in his armies. In return he sent his son
Valacar to dwell for a while with Vidugavia, who called himself King of Rhovanion, and
was indeed the most powerful of the Northern princes, though his own realm lay between
Greenwood and the River Celduin. There Valacar was wedded to Vidugavias daughter,
and so caused later the evil war of the Kin-strife. After the birth of Vinitharya, later
called Eldakar, Rmendakil [II] gave his consent to the marriage. He could not forbid it
or refuse to recognize it without earning the enmity of Vidugavia. Indeed all the
Northmen would have been angered, and those in his service would have been no longer
to be trusted. He therefore waited in patience until 1260, and then he recalled Valakar,
saying that it was now time that he took part in the councils of the realm and the
command of its armies. (Peoples of Middle-Earth 12, The Heirs of Elendil)
The reign of Valacar, from 1366-1432, was a quasi-dictatorship to help maintain the new
balance of things, as the Northmen settlers came into power especially in the northern
provinces. But this dictatorship retained some paternalistic traces to care and provide for
the people and so it endured the strains of time. But the time of the Middling Sort was
coming to an end, and a new age, the Age of the People, was arriving. Trouble was
brewing . There was a backlash against the newcomers and their progression into power
as the Dnedain especially those of the Southern provinces tried to hold the reins of
government. The high men of Gondor had long looked askance at the Northmen among
them, who had borne themselves more proudly since the coming of Vidumavi.
There was already rebellion in the southern provinces when King Valacar grew old.
(Appendices) The rebellions, erupting between TA 1411-1432, were at first disunified,
some mixing discontent against the dictatorship of Valacar, others rising against the
growing power of the Northmen in the offices of the state. Various claimants to the
crown appeared, descendants of Atannatar II. The most favoured especially by the fleet,
and ship-folk of the southern shores was the Captain of the Ships, Kastamir greatgrandson of Kalmakils second son Kalimethar. (Peoples of Middle-Earth 12, The
Heirs of Elendil)

In 1432 broke out the Kin-strife when Eldacar assumed the crown. What was left of the
nobility and the southern provinces of the Empire fought against the royal house and the
northern provinces, where much mingling of blood had already taken place between
Dnedain and Northmen. In the end [TA 1437] Eldakar was driven into exile and
Kastamir, the leader of the southern provinces of the empire, became king. A
circumstance that later was noticed was that the weapons of possession were already at
work also in the South-kingdom; they caused the needless cruelty of Castamir in sacking
and setting aflame Osgiliath that resisted his siege for so long. But Eldakar drove him out
again, and after that time the blood of the kingly house became more mixed, for Eldakar
had the assistance of the Northmen of the Upper Anduin, his mothers kin, and they were
favoured by the kingly house afterwards, and many of them served in the armies of
Gondor and became great in the land. (Peoples of Middle-Earth 12, The Heirs of
Elendil)

Eldacar son of Valacar (at first called Vinitharya) reigned from 1432; deposed 1437.
Castamir the Usurper 1447. Eldacar restored, died 1490.
After the civil war in the South-kingdom, the Northmen settled in high number among
the people of Gondor and occupied places of high rank; they now held the position of an
occupying race for some time while they didnt amalgamate with the Dnedain. A
dictatorship was introduced, specially in the southern provinces, to control the disaffected
Dnedain from the southern provinces, and the conquered Black Nmenreans and
Haradrim. The Northmen were a primitive race with little knowledge of magic;
accordingly there was a high feeling among the Northmen against the use of magic save
the realm of Channeling, which was reserved for their priests, which integrated with the
priesthood of Gondor, the Seers.
The Northmen saw with hostility the Dnedain and their magic-using skills, of which
they were afraid. As a warrior society that they were, they had a deep distrust of magic
and had myths that only Elves could be turned into undead making them nearly enemies
and things to be abhorred about.
The Lady owyn greeted them and was glad of their coming; for no mightier men had
she seen than the Dnedain and the fair sons of Elrond.
When they were lost to view, she turned, stumbling as one that is blind, and went back to
her lodging. But none of her folk saw this parting, for they hid themselves in fear and
would not come forth until the day was up, and the reckless strangers were gone.
And some said: 'They are Elvish wights. Let them go where they belong, into the dark
places, and never return. The times are evil enough.' (The Two Towers, The Passing of
the Grey Company)

TA 1500-2000: Imperial Age: Decline of the Middle-class, emergence of the People.

Golden age of the people
There was now come the imperial age, TA 1500-2000. This was a golden age, because
the largest class of them all, the people, was in a state of prosperity. As the treasury was
increased, the state increased the protection and welfare of its citizens. The countries
south and east of Gondors sphere of influence lay in tatters and destroyed. The
government of the Stone-land had now complete control over these far-flung lands. The
imperial dictatorships had no trace of paternalism in them; slavery was re-introduced in
the middle of the period when the destruction brought upon by civil wars and
bankruptcies so demanded, and the people was forced to follow the profession of their
parents; social benefits and security were privatized. This outright oppression was
perhaps anchored in the fact that the society had come to resemble an empire, with people
from the four corners of the world coming to dwell in the peace and prosperity of
Gondor, isolated from their kin and old customs; but this made them the more reckless.
But as time went by, it became impossible to tell a slave from a freeman, as all looked
alike, in clothes and style. Cycles of popular unrest and revolutions and the bankruptcy of
the capitalist system followed cycles characterized by the increase of the state sector and
the bureaucracy, and the nationalization of private assets to buy the people out. When the
economy started to decline due to corruption and the less competitive terms of society,
there would be a renewed surge of sales of state assets and privatizations. Also, the class
of the people now rising to prosperity and craftiness, larger in numbers than the middleclass and wanting to live in common with elected leaders, sabotaged the capitalist system.
Thus, the state was often bankrupt, while the middle-class was in decline from weariness
of the increasingly more complex nature of work and laws. This period was full of
imperialist wars of expansion and civil wars for the control of the state between the
supporters of strong government (socialists and communists) and those of a market
economy supported by state taxes (social democrats).
From the start of this age the class of the people rose in capacity. So increased the
clamour by the majority for popular government and the abolition of private property.
The mode of government would change from a democracy to a dictatorship when the
anarchists threatened to topple it with a revolution, and then from a dictatorship to a
democracy when the communists were able for a time to throw off its yoke. But the
tyrants or communists broke the back of the middle-class in the course of time. By
disseminating ideologies and customs contrary to liberal capitalism they put it on the
defensive. They expropriated and persecuted the rich and the well-off disorganizing their
social networks, preventing the propagation of a free market ideology. But as much as
working-class power increased, its use of coercion made it more primitive bringing closer
the day of its decline. By the middle of the age, the people had organized, behind the
rights of free association and reunion, revolutionary armies that could only be defeated by
regular armies. To fight against the remaining guerrillas, emphasis was put on mobility
and the armies became ever more light in equipment. From the middle of that period
onwards, there was introduced a new religion and all the books that had come before of

history and politics were burnt because said to be pagan. Thereby, censorship was
introduced.
When the Great Plague broke out in c. TA 1640, riots in western Middle-Earth occurred
against magic-users accused of provoking the Great Plague with their experiments and
magics. Of the realm of Channeling all professions dealing with the undead are
forbidden, for the Northmen remembered with fear the capacity of the Nmenreans to
use the stones of necromancy to turn into undead any oath breakers. These disturbances
were propagated by the agents of Sauron who thereby intended to weaken the Dnedain.
After this great calamity which claimed 1/3 of the population of Gondor, many crafts of
knowledge were forgotten. Ships-of-the-line, and many magical schools fell into disuse.
The Great Plague caused a breakdown of institutions and order. The relations between the
North and South-kingdom were broken. c. 1700 Mordor being now left unguarded evil
things enter in again and take up their abode there secretly. Communication between the
North and South kingdoms ceases for a long while. (History of Middle-Earth 12)
In The Peoples of Middle Earth it is said about the events of TA 1975-76 that The
following year Elrond and Crdan with some belated help from Gondor, sent by sea,
defeated the forces of Angmar. The Witch-king was overthrown by Elrond, and his realm
brought to an end. The northern lands though made desolate were now made somewhat
more wholesome again. But it was found later that the Witch-king had fled away secretly
southwards, and had entered Minas Ithil (now called Minas Morgul) and become Lord of
the Ringwraiths. In this part of the book it is clearly said that the Witch-king became
lord of the lairi only in the middle of the TA.
Gandalf too, in the late T.A. mentioned the Witch-king as a king before his downfall into
evil as a wraith. The_ Shire," I said; but my heart sank. For even the Wise might fear to
withstand the Nine, when they are gathered together under their fell chieftain. A great
king and sorcerer he was of old [which means that he was human then], and now he
wields a deadly fear [come from his having become a Ringwraith only later onwards].
It was in the reign of Araphant in the North and of Ondoher son of Calimehtar that the
two kingdoms took counsel together after long silence and estrangement. For at last they
perceived that some single power and will was directing the assault from many quarters
upon the survivors of Nmenor. It was at that time that Arvedui heir of Araphant wedded
Friel [born 1896] daughter of Ondoher in TA 1940. From that time onwards the
magic-using Dnedain held out with dwindling strength, and they had to give up all
magic-using, and thus the Kings failed and a Dark Ages followed.
The Stewards had to adopt other policies to resist; as Faramir told to the Hobbits, `But the
stewards were wiser and more fortunate. Wiser, for they recruited the strength of our
people from the sturdy folk of the sea-coast, and from the hardy mountaineers of Ered
Nimrais. And they made a truce with the proud peoples of the North, who often had
assailed us, men of fierce valour, but our kin from afar off, unlike the wild Easterlings or
the cruel Haradrim. (The Return of the King)

Though still some magic-using Dnedain of far lesser power held out, their only remedy
was instinctively to seek sanctuary in the Elven havens of Lrien and Rivendell,
protected by the Elven Rings, And we of Gondor grow like other Men, like the men of
Rohan; for even they, who are the foes of the Dark Lord, shun the Elves and speak of the
Golden Wood with dread.
`Yet there are among us still some who have dealings with the Elves when they may, and
ever and anon one will go in secret to Lrien, seldom to return. Not I. For I deem it
perilous now for mortal man wilfully to seek out the Elder People. Yet I envy you that
have spoken with the White Lady.' (The Return of the King)
As Gandalf summarized the situation to Frodo, there only remained for Sauron to find the
One Ring and bare the Elven Rings to its power; Gondor, without magic, was no longer a
threat to him, 'So it is now: the Nine he has gathered to himself; the Seven also, or else
they are destroyed. The Three are hidden still. But that no longer troubles him. He only
needs the One; for he made that Ring himself, it is his, and he let a great part of his own
former power pass into it, so that he could rule all the others. If he recovers it, then he
will command them all again, wherever they be, even the Three, and all that has been
wrought with them will be laid bare, and he will be stronger than ever. (The Fellowship
of the Ring, The Shadow of the Past)
'He lacks the One Ring. The Three, fairest of all, the Elf-lords hid from him, and his hand
never touched them or sullied them. Seven the Dwarf-kings possessed, but three he has
recovered, and the others [four] the dragons have consumed. Nine he gave to Mortal
Men, proud and great, and so ensnared them. Long ago they fell under the dominion of
the One, and they became Ringwraiths, shadows under his great Shadow, his most
terrible servants. Long ago. It is many a year since the Nine walked abroad [because
without the Rings, that were given to Sauron, so that he could grow again and power the
weapons of possession]. Yet who knows? As the Shadow grows once more, they too may
walk again. But come we will not speak of such things even in the morning of the Shire.'
So, in TA 1300-1940 the Nazgl held their rings, Sauron being so weak that he could do
no other thing to give them shape, and the Nazgl were fought by the Dnedain
knowingly as what was rest of Saurons legacy, Sauron himself thought to be dead.
And in this period many were the champions that stormed Dol Guldur and Carn Dm and
slew some of the Nazgl, but lured by the artificial intelligence of the Rings of Power
they kept them and sooner or later took them for their own and in turn became ringwraiths. Mrazor, the First, was slain in the Northern Wastes by a Northman champion,
called Elokim, while trying to build a kingdom in the plateau of Angmar. The last to
become a Ringwraith was a half-orc of Black Nmenrean origin, Gothmog, that killed a
Nazgl in Nrn and captured the Second of the Nine, and so sealed his fate.
In TA 1940-3018 Sauron took the Nine and three of the Seven so that he could grow and
cast a new universal Amok curse over Middle-Earths spell-casters that would either join
the Shadow or grow mad like Earnil the king of Gondor, who rode with only a small
escort to Minas Morgul alone. That is why in 1940 Gondor and Arthedain joined:
because they could now recognize a universal threat to themselves. Weakened it took the

full nine lairi to capture Eastern Gondor in TA 2002, whereas with his Ring, the Witchking had been able solely to defeat Arthedain, Cardolan and Rhudaur in TA 1356-1409.
The Witch-king was never able to cross the Lhn but he seems to have taken Eastern
Mithlond several times sweeping the Elves and their allies to the western side of the river
Lune, or else Crdans host would not need to cross the river to attack him. Crdan had no
authority over Lindon besides the Grey Havens; his summonings were purely an appeal
to all who would join him. Then Crdan summoned all who would come to him, from
Lindon or Arnor, and when all was ready the host crossed the Lune and marched north to
challenge the Witch-king of Angmar. He was now dwelling, it is said, in Fornost, which
he had filled with evil folk, usurping the house and rule of the kings. In his pride he did
not await the onset of his enemies in his stronghold, but went out to meet them, thinking
to sweep them, as others before, into the Lune. (Return of the King, Appendices)
TA 2000-2500: Dark Ages or Age of the Wise: Decline of the People, emergence of
the Wise-Seers.
From circa TA 2050 Sauron improved the range of the weapons of possession so as to
cover all of Middle-Earth, but he had to expose himself, for their emanations out of Dol
Guldur could be located by scrying devices. 2060 The power of Dol Guldur grows. The
Wise fear that it may be Sauron taking shape again. In this he was toiled by Gandalf,
who was able to discover the ways to Dol Guldur through the fastness of the forest
evading the undead armies that guarded it and infiltrated it with a host of Elf-lords from
Rivendell destroying Dol Guldur for a while. Sauron could barely escape to the East,
beyond the Last Desert, and new weapons of possession were installed in Minas Morgoth
but without the range to cover Eriador and the North. 2063 Gandalf goes to Dol Guldur.
Sauron retreats and hides in the East. The Watchful Peace begins. The Nazgl remain
quiet in Minas Morgul. (The Return of the King, The Tale of Years)
So it is now: the Nine he has gathered to himself [because the Nazgl didnt take a
physical form for many centuries; they didnt venture forth from Minas Morgul for a very
long time, namely from T.A. 2475 when the eleventh Ruling Steward of Gondor,
Boromir, defeated the Nazgl and their Uruk-hai host in Ithilien but received a Morgulknife wound, up to T.A 3018 when the Nazgl issued forth from Minas Morgul again in
the hunt for the Ring for their Master was now strong enough to give them a physical
shape even without them holding the Rings]; the Seven also, or else they are destroyed.
The Three are hidden still.
They (the Nazgl) were by far the most powerful of his servants, and most suitable for
such a mission, since they were entirely enslaved to their Nine Rings, which he now
himself held. (The Unfinished Tales)
Galadriel also confirmed this by telling Frodo while in Lothlrien: "You saw the Eye of
him that holds the Seven and the Nine."
But, Gandalf speaking in The Council of Elrond, after the lairi went abroad again in
3018 reached the conclusion that Some would think the tidings of Glin, and the
pursuit of Frodo, proof enough that the halflings trove is a thing of great worth to the

Enemy. Yet it is a ring. What then? The Nine the Nazgl [now] keep [stored somewhere
in Minas Morgul as the One Ring was stored in the Barad-dr when Sauron went to
Nmenr] The Seven are taken or destroyed. The Three we know of. What then is this
one that he desires so much? (The Fellowship of the Ring)
Saruman who researched most of the arts of the Enemy devised a Dispel Magic spell to
erase the Undead of lower levels. That is how Gandalf told that they had stormed Dol
Guldur in TA 2941. And Dol Guldur, as the haunt of the Necromancer, was surely
guarded by an army of Undead. As Gandalf said, '"Saruman the White," answered
Radagast. "And he told me to say that if you feel the need, he will help; but you must
seek his aid at once, or it will be too late." 'And that message brought me hope. For
Saruman the White is the greatest of my order. Radagast is, of course, a worthy Wizard, a
master of shapes and changes of hue; and he has much lore of herbs and beasts, and birds
are especially his friends. But Saruman has long studied the arts of the Enemy himself,
and thus we have often been able to forestall him. It was by the devices of Saruman that
we drove him from Dol Guldur. It might be that he had found some weapons that would
drive
back
the
Nine.
There were many types of undead, normal skeletons like the horse of the Mouth of
Sauron, wraiths created with Morgul-blades, and the undead of the Dead Marshes. At its
head there rode a tall and evil shape, mounted upon a black horse, if horse it was; for it
was huge and hideous, and its face was a frightful mask, more like a skull than a living
head, and in the sockets of its eyes and in its nostrils there burned a flame. (The Return
of the King, The Black Gate Opens)
'I know not who they are; but I thought I saw there Men and Elves, and Orcs beside
them.'
`Yes, yes,' said Gollum. `All dead, all rotten. Elves and Men and Orcs. The Dead
Marshes. There was a great battle long ago, yes, so they told him when Smagol was
young, when I was young before the Precious came. It was a great battle. Tall Men with
long swords, and terrible Elves, and Orcses shrieking. They fought on the plain for days
and months at the Black Gates. But the Marshes have grown since then, swallowed up the
graves; always creeping, creeping.' (The Two Towers)
They tried to pierce your heart with a Morgul-knife which remains in the wound. If they
had succeeded, you would have become like they are, only weaker and under their
command. You would have became a wraith under the dominion of the Dark Lord; and
he would have tormented you for trying to keep his Ring, if any greater torment were
possible than being robbed of it and seeing it on his hand" (The Fellowship of the Ring)
The Faithful learnt of Necromantic Sorcery in Nmenor while they suffered under the
yoke of Sauron and it was with this magic that they defeated Sauron in the War of the
Ring as Gimli knew, by recurring to the Oathbreakers. Strange and wonderful I thought
it that the designs of Mordor should be overthrown by such wraiths of fear and darkness.
With its own weapons was it worsted! (The Return of the King, The Last Debate, 181)

From circa TA 2000 canons and the use of magic-items fell into disuse, due to the
outright hatred which the populace held magic-users, due to the madness provoked by the
weapons of possession. Still by the War of the Ring there were still some wizards in old
Arnor, though most were disliked because of the old uses to which magic had been put to.
And certainly it was from Bree that the art of smoking the genuine weed spread in the
recent centuries among Dwarves and such other folk, Rangers, Wizards, or wanderers, as
still passed to and fro through that ancient road-meeting. It was plain that many people
regarded them now as the companions of a traveling magician of unknown powers and
purpose. As said Barleyman, 'Ah! That was Gandalf, if you know who I mean. A wizard
they say he is, but he's a good friend of mine, whether or no. The study of magic had
become outlawed and only with self-study could the magicians improve as the old
universities had been closed. But, of course, Gandalf had made a special study of
bewitchments with fire and lights (even the hobbit had never forgotten the magic
fireworks at Old Took's midsummer-eve parties, as you remember). (The Hobbit, Out of
the Frying-Pan into the Fire)

'On the death of Ondoher and his sons, Arvedui of the North-kingdom claimed the crown
of Gondor, as the direct descendant of Isildur, and as the husband of Friel, only surviving
child of Ondoher. The claim was rejected. In this Pelendur, the Steward of King Ondoher,
played the chief part.
King Ernur, rendered insane by the weapons of possession, he rode with a small escort
of knights to the gate of Minas Morgul and was taken alive and killed in torment. After
Ernur gave himself up in torment and despair to the Nazgl, the mood in Gondors
people was against the continuation of the line of these kings because they were useless
and bereft of the use of magic due to the weapons of possession. The high men of Gondor
however were not still to be left at the mercy of the Nazgl so they entered into an
alliance with higher powers that could still use magic under the weapons of possession
and so resist the Nazgl. They summoned Saruman from the East, the head of the Istari,
and made him chief of the council of Gondor giving him up troops, Isengard and the
palantr. c. 2000 Curunr (Saruman), returning out of the East, takes up his abode in the
Tower of Orthanc in the Ring of Isengard. This had been an ancient stronghold of
Gondor, guarding their north-west frontier, but the northern parts of the realm were now
largely empty and King Eaernil [II] was glad to have the aid of Curunr against the
Ringwraiths, and gave Isengard to him for his own. (History of Middle-Earth 12)
`With that thought, I forsook the chase, and passed swiftly to Gondor. In former days the
members of my order had been well received there, but Saruman most of all. Often he
had been for long the guest of the Lords of the City [the Stewards which he helped
establish against the claims of the kings]. (The Fellowship of the Ring)
'In Gondor also one king only followed Ernil. It may be that if the crown and the sceptre
had been united, then the kingship would have been maintained and much evil averted.

Each new Steward indeed took office with the oath 'to hold rod and rule in the name of
the king, until he shall return.' But these soon became words of ritual little heeded, for the
Stewards exercised all the power of the kings. Yet many in Gondor still believed that a
king would indeed return in some time to come; and some remembered the ancient line of
the North, which it was rumoured still lived on in the shadows. But against such thoughts
the Ruling Stewards hardened their hearts. (Appendices)
The family of the Stewards now made an alliance with the Seers of Gondor. The Seers of
Gondor were to become supreme in Gondor in this age, the Age of the Wise TA 20002500. There were many who looked to the line of Elendil in Arthedain for government
but the stewards and seers of Gondor broke these coalitions; they used schemes and
assassinations to crush them in feeling, saying of the line of Arthedain that they were
nothing but half-breeds of Dnedain and Eriadorans. They even introduced organized
religion into the worship of Eru, which before had been personal, and a pantheon that
consisted of the Valar and the dark powers. But though with the will to carry on the fight
they were hopeless without the use of magic. Thus, the men of Gondor spoke of Sauron
in capital letters denoting in him a higher power that though they feared they respected.
Now of late we have learned that the Enemy has been among them, and they are gone
over to Him, or back to Him-they were ever ready to His will-as have so many also in the
East. I doubt not that the days of Gondor are numbered, and the walls of Minas Tirith are
doomed, so great is His strength and malice.' `But still we will not sit idle and let Him do
all as He would,' said Mablung. (The Two Towers, Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit)
Thereafter the control of the channels of information was a monopoly of the clergy.
'Ware! Ware!' cried Damrod to his companion. 'May the Valar turn him aside! Mmak!
Mmak!' (The Return of the King)
It is probable though that in the dire circumstances that Gondor found itself, adherence to
the worship of Eru from the Dunlendings of the valleys of the White Mountains, former
servants of Sauron back in the Dark Years of the SA and never fully converted except by
the might of Minas Tirith not to raid the lands of the lower Anduin valley, could not be
gained except with the new religion. The Dunlendings, long a subject race in Gondor,
were brought from the valleys to the cities of the lower Anduin valley; they were locked
at night in barracks and in the day worked the fields, built buildings or worked in the
factories. But there were often rebellions, and they often escaped to the valleys of the
White Mountains. The Northmen, dominant in Gondor since the Kin-strife, saw the
integration of the Dunlendings also as a means to disunite the unrestful Dnedain. After
the kings ended, so did the imperial age, and a dark ages begun where the ancient
languages of lore and the use of magic was abandoned; such was the fate of the scrying
devices, of the magical realm of mentalism, at the Middle Anduin, installed there to put a
watch on the servants of darkness coming from the East and from Dol Guldur to the
north. Also there was an abandonment of Elven friendship and their magical lores as
happened before in Nmenor when Elven names were dropped from the list of kings.
His successors [of Mardil Voronw, the first of the Ruling Stewards] ceased to use
High-elven names. (Appendices)

The dark ages that followed the end of the kings in the North and South-kingdom in the
period TA 1974-2050, meant an end in magic and an abandonment of most high
technology. As Gandalf said, `With that thought, I forsook the chase, and passed swiftly
to Gondor. In former days the members of my order had been well received there, but
Saruman most of all. Often he had been for long the guest of the Lords of the City. Less
welcome did the Lord Denethor show me then than of old, and grudgingly he permitted
me to search among his hoarded scrolls and books.
' "If indeed you look only, as you say, for records of ancient days, and the beginnings
of the City, read on! " he said. "For to me what was is less dark than what is to come, and
that is my care. But unless you have more skill even than Saruman, who has studied here
long, you will find naught that is not well known to me, who am master of the lore of this
City."
`So said Denethor. And yet there lie in his hoards many records that few now can
read, even of the lore-masters, for their scripts and tongues have become dark to later
men. And Boromir, there lies in Minas Tirith still, unread, I guess, by any save Saruman
and myself since the kings failed, a scroll that Isildur made himself. (The Fellowship of
the Ring, The council of Elrond)
The magic to make the unbreakable stone of the walls of Minas Tirith had been
forgotten. When the gate was destroyed by the army of Minas Morgul, the Dnedain
recognized that they did not have the skill or magic to rebuild it. 'The Gate is destroyed,'
said Imrahil, 'and where now is the skill to rebuild it and set it up anew?'
'In Erebor in the Kingdom of Din there is such skill,' said Aragorn; 'and if all our hopes
do not perish, then in time I will send Gimli Glin's son to ask for wrights of the
Mountain. (The Return of the King, The Last Debate) Later on, its gates were wrought
of mithril and steel. (The Return of the King, The Steward and the King)
The scrying devices at Amon Hen lay abandoned and derelict, as Aragorn recognized,
`Behold Tol Brandir! ' said Aragorn, pointing south to the tall peak. 'Upon the left stands
Amon Lhaw, and upon the right is Amon Hen the Hills of Hearing and of Sight. In the
days of the great kings there were high seats upon them, and watch was kept there. He
came to a path, the dwindling ruins of a road of long ago. In steep places stairs of stone
had been hewn, but now they were cracked and worn, and split by the roots of trees.
(The Fellowship of the Ring, The Breaking of the Fellowship)
This was the reason why Gondor could no longer keep the Nazgl at bay, as Galdor of
Lindon said, 'And yet its vigilance [of Gondor] can no longer keep back the Nine,' said
Galdor. (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Council of Elrond)
But things had not been always like this; in the SA to mid TA, magic was used farranging and by many spell-casters. As Gandalf said before the magical gate of Moria of
the many spells that had been available just for opening magical doors, I once knew
every spell in all the tongues of Elves or Men or Orcs that was ever used for such a
purpose. I can still remember ten score of them without searching in my mind. (The
Fellowship of the Ring)

The last magic-using Dnedain steadily declined in numbers due to the weapons of
possession even with the refuge of Rivendell at their disposal. Still they were recognized
by other folks to be the most powerful men around. But in the wild lands beyond Bree
there were mysterious wanderers. The Bree-folk called them Rangers, and knew nothing
of their origin. They were taller and darker than the Men of Bree and were believed to
have strange powers of sight and hearing, and to understand the languages of beasts and
birds. (The Fellowship of the Ring, At the Sign of The Prancing Pony)
'In a high chamber of the Burg,' said Legolas. 'He has neither rested nor slept, I think. He
went thither some hours ago, saying that he must take thought, and only his kinsman,
Halbarad, went with him; but some dark doubt or care sits on him.'
'They are a strange company, these newcomers,' said Gimli. 'Stout men and lordly they
are, and the Riders of Rohan look almost as boys beside them; for they are grim men of
face, worn like weathered rocks for the most part, even as Aragorn himself; and they are
silent.'
'But even as Aragorn they are courteous, if they break their silence.' said Legolas. 'And
have you marked the brethren Elladan and Elrohir? Less sombre is their gear than the
others', and they are fair and gallant as Elven-lords; and that is not to be wondered at in
the sons of Elrond of Rivendell.'
A little apart the Rangers sat, silent, in an ordered company, armed with spear and bow
and sword. They were clad in cloaks of dark grey, and their hoods were cast now over
helm and head. Their horses were strong and of proud bearing, but rough-haired; and one
stood there without a rider, Aragorn's own horse that they had brought from the North;
Roheryn was his name. There was no gleam of stone or gold, nor any fair thing in all
their gear and harness: nor did their riders bear any badge or token, save only that each
cloak was pinned upon the left shoulder by a brooch of silver shaped like a rayed star.
(The Return of the King, The Passing of the Grey Company)
The Lady owyn greeted them and was glad of their coming; for no mightier men had
she seen than the Dnedain and the fair sons of Elrond; but on Aragorn most of all her
eyes rested. (The Return of the King, The Passing of the Grey Company)
A policy of giving merit to men of worth irrespective of their race was begun, so as to
endure the hardships of the age now that the magic-using of the Dnedain was gone.
Such was the effect of the Enemys machines of Possession, powered with the technology
of the Seven Rings and embedded with the necromantic spells of undeath of the Nine
Rings that rendered all users of good magic insane.
And the last king of the line of Anrion had no heir. `But the stewards were wiser and
more fortunate. Wiser, for they recruited the strength of our people from the sturdy folk
of the sea-coast, and from the hardy mountaineers of Ered Nimrais. And they made a
truce with the proud peoples of the North, who often had assailed us, men of fierce
valour, but our kin from afar off, unlike the wild Easterlings or the cruel Haradrim. (The
Return of the King, The Window on the West)

In the South, Sakal an-Khr which was then occupied in the conquest of all the Bay of
Ormal and could not spare a troop to help the Nazgl of Mmakan and Ciryatandor in the
conquest of the Harad. But along with the Black Nmenrean colony of Tantrak they
now developed a plan; beforehand they had raided the coasts of Mrenor for slaves; they
now proposed the northern lords of Dark Harad to transport them to Utter Harad to join in
the conquest of Haradwaith, and to give them for settlement all of Western Harad up to
and including Far Harad. This took place in TA 2470. The northern black men of
Mrenor accepted the offer and they now met their doom; for they were successful in
overwhelming Mirdor and Hyarn along with their relatives of Mag and Tumag; under
the leadership of the Nazgl J Indr they stormed by sheer numbers the Nmenrean
fortresses of unbreakable stone scaling their walls with ladders and siege towers
constructed by the Tantraki; they then joined forces with the hosts of the Nazgl
Akhrahil of Ciryatandor for the conquest of Far Harad, where worship of Eru was still
strong. At this time the Mrenoreans came into permanent contact with the terror of the
Nazgl and they would prefer to slay themselves than to undo their bidding. When the
conquest of Far Harad was accomplished in TA 2495, these folks now came wholly
under the dominion of the Shadow; and the Nazgl brought creatures of Sauron from the
Yellow Mountains to live among them, and bred Trolls with Humans creating the race of
the Half-Trolls. These troll-men are mentioned in the War of the Ring as coming out of
Far Harad black men like half-trolls with white eyes and red tongues. (The Return of the
King, The Battle of the Pelennor Fields)
TA 2475 Attack on Gondor renewed. Osgiliath finally ruined, and its stone-bridge
broken. Boromir [I] son of Denethor [I] defeated them and regained Ithilien; but
Osgiliath was finally ruined, and its great stone-bridge was broken. No people dwelt there
afterwards. Boromir [I, 2410-2489] was a great captain, and even the Witch-king feared
him [How could this be if he had not issued forth from Minas Morgul and fight with him?
and then retreated defeated to Minas Morgul and was besieged and his physical shape and
of the others slain?]. He was noble and fair of face, a man strong in body and in will, but
he received a Morgul-wound in that war which shortened his years, and he became
shrunken with pain and died twelve years after his father. (The Return of the King,
Appendices)
TA 2500-3000: Age of Heroes: Decline of the Wise-Seers-Clergy; emergence of the
Nobility.
In circa TA 2500 Magic-use was outlawed in Gondor due to popular pressures, except for
the realm that applies to the angels and God, that of Channeling. In old Arnor and
Wilderland it was detested by the common folk. All the company drew away from
Pippin and Sam, who found themselves left alone in a comer, and eyed darkly and
doubtfully from a distance. It was plain that many people regarded them now as the
companions of a travelling magician of unknown powers and purpose.
'All right, Mr. Underhill! But if you're going to do any more tumbling, or conjuring, or
whatever it was, you'd best warn folk beforehand - and warn me. We're a bit suspicious

round here of anything out of the way -uncanny, if you understand me; and we don't take
to it all of a sudden.' (The Fellowship of the Ring)
TA 2463 And Curunr was chosen to be their chief [of the White Council], for he had
most studied the devices of Sauron of old. (Silmarillion)
TA 2941 The might of the Elves and the Elf-friends is less now than of old. Soon he will
be too strong for you, even without the Great Ring; for he rules the Nine, and of the
Seven he has recovered three. We must strike. To this Curunr now assented.
Therefore, for the last time he aided the Council, and they assailed Dol Guldur, and
drove Sauron from his hold, and Mirkwood for a brief while was made wholesome again.
(Silmarillion) Saruman had researched a spell that dispelled the undead hordes of the
Necromancer. Thus were the undead hordes of the Necromancer defeated and his power
in that realm ended. But Saruman has long studied the arts of the Enemy himself, and
thus we have often been able to forestall him. It was by the devices of Saruman that we
drove him from Dol Guldur. It might be that he had found some weapons that would
drive back the Nine. (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Council of Elrond)
Saruman had also researched into the spells that Sauron used to control and master his
hordes of fell creatures and instill them with hatred. Thus he put together his army of orcs
and half-orcs, and Gandalf was ready to forgive his crimes at Isengard if he would lend
them his support in the War of the Ring. `Then I gave him a last choice and a fair one: to
renounce both Mordor and his private schemes, and make amends by helping us in our
need. He knows our need, none better. Great service he could have rendered. But he has
chosen to withhold it, and keep the power of Orthanc.' (The Two Towers)
TA 3000-3018; FA 0-500: Age of the Middle-class: decline of the Nobility,
emergence of the Middle-Class.
The people had laid in decline in the previous time, TA 2500-3000 but now it recovered.
It wanted peace but lay helpless against the creatures of Sauron. 'They come from
Mordor,' said Strider in a low voice. 'From Mordor, Barliman, if that means anything to
you.'
'Save us!' cried Mr. Butterbur turning pale; the name evidently was known to him. 'That
is the worst news that has come to Bree in my time.' 'It is,' said Frodo. 'Are you still
willing to help me?' 'I am,' said Mr. Butterbur. 'More than ever. Though I don't know
what the likes of me can do against, against---' he faltered.
'Against the Shadow in the East,' said Strider quietly. 'Not much, Barliman, but every
little helps. (The Fellowship of the Ring)
Three of the four demon-gods of the Northern Waste, Khorne, Tzeentch, and Slanesh
gather the hordes of the Easterlings and Hobgoblins of Angband and attack the fortresscity of Rivendell intending to lay siege to it. But when the One Ring was destroyed their
siege turned into a route and they were defeated at the Fords of the Bruinen by the former
Elf-lords of Aman. The fourth demon-god of the Northern Waste, Nurgle, attacked with

his hordes and drakes the kingdom of Thranduil. His hordes defeated, when the One Ring
was destroyed, he escaped north to the Northern Wastes.
The End