[ Daily Tolkien ] Relations between the Kingdoms of Gondor and Arnor

This article is a result of my interest in the relationship between the two Dunedain realms of Middle-Earth.

The Realms-In-Exile were founded by the Faithful Numenoreans who survived the fall of Numenor in 3320 Second Age (SA). After the War of the Last Alliance (3434-41 SA) the relative standing of each throne changed, with Gondor growing to become a mighty power, whereas Arnor split into three separate kingdoms, Cardolan, Rhudaur and Arthedain and declined in strength until it was destroyed in war with Angmar.

In the Second Age Gondor was ruled cojointly by Elendil's sons Isildur and Anarion. Elendil ruled in the northern realm of Arnor and was High-King of Gondor and Arnor. The institution of the high-kingship is no where defined. It does not appear to have provided any authority in the affairs of the other kingdom(s). However, it conferred on a ruler a superior stature in dealings between the kingdoms, notably in wars involving the associated kingdoms. Hence, the leaders of the Last Alliance were Gil-Galad and Elendil, the High-Kings of their respective folk.

The ruling Dunedain of Arnor and Gondor were bound not only by the High-Kingship, but by kinship and a common foe, Sauron. Therefore, when Sauron attacked Gondor, Elendil formed the Last Alliance with Gil-Galad (3430 SA) and marched south with the Men of Arnor.

The war witnessed the overthrow of Sauron's power and large loss of life, including the death of Elendil and Anarion, and soon after, the death of Isildur at the Gladden Fields (2 TA). Menedil, born 3318 SA the fourth child of Anarion, became King of Gondor; Valandil, Isildur's surviving son, born c. 3431 SA, assumed the kingship of Arnor in 10 TA when he was around nineteen. The seniority of Menedil over Valandil and the gap of 8 years before Valandil assumed the throne probably contributed to a change in political relations. Though it is unstated, I think Isildur's death resulted, de facto, in the ending of the High-Kingship. The reasons may be found in comments by Tolkien on Isildur and Menedil:

"After the fall of Sauron, Isildur, the son and heir of Elendil, returned to Gondor. There he assumed the Elendilmir as King of Arnor, and proclaimed his sovreign lordship over all the Dunedain in the North and in the South; for he was a man of great pride and vigour."

"Isildur had established Menedil as King of Gondor...He was in fact well-pleased by the departure of Isildur and his sons, and hoped affairs in the North would keep them long occupied."

From these lines it seems that the High-kingship required an individual of strength to wield it and that the rulers of Gondor did not desire the involvement of the ruler of Arnor in their affairs. I would argue that after Isildur, Arnor's kings either lacked the power or the personal will to assert the High-Kingship in the face of Gondor's desire to have sovereign power exercised solely by the heir's of Anarion (see also the reply by the Council of Gondor to Arvedui's claim in LOTR App. A (iv) p.1086). Although the next ten rulers of Arnor after Isildur were called High-Kings, it is unknown if they exercised any superior authority in their relations with their southern kin.

After the overthrow of Sauron, the Two Kingdoms had no apparent common foe. Combined with the ending of the High-Kingship, this meant that neither kingdom provided military aid to the other in their wars until too late. Arnor battled Angmar from the 1300s; Gondor fought or conquered threats from Rhun and Harad. Both Arnor and Gondor had closer ties with neighbouring folk who were allies in their deadliest conflicts: Arnor with Rivendell and Lindon; Gondor with the Northmen of Rhovanion.

Close ties did exist between the Two Kingdoms, nonetheless Tolkien, referring to the movement of Hobbits into Eriador having been communicated to Gondor, stated that

"The kingdoms of the North and the South remained in close communication at that time [the Eleventh Century Third Age], and indeed until much later, and each was well informed of all events in the other region..."

Trade was conducted between Gondor and the North, based on the port of Tharbad (Unf. Part 2 section II, p.264). There were doubtless other undocumented contacts such as attendance at royal coronations in both regions, and merchant and scholars from both realms trading/studying in the other's cities. Such links were made possible by the North-South Road, sea-travel and, for royal purposes, the Palintiri.

There were may have been occasional tensions between the kingdoms: for instance, if Gondor showed favouritism towards one of Earendur's three sons in the succession dispute of 861 TA, or if Arnor gave recognition during Gondor's civil-war (1432-48 TA) to the rebel usurper Castimir only to find the lawful king restored a decade later. And there was definitely tensions caused over the succession dispute in 1944 TA. However there was never any armed conflict between Arnor and Gondor.

Relations between the kingdoms changed however as a result of the Great Plague. Up till now they had shared a common border at the River Gwathlo (see LOTR App. A (iv) p.1082 for the expansion of Gondor's borders). Afterwards Arnor's borders withdrew from the Gwathlo to the Baranduin and East-West Road and the two kingdoms were separated by a large stretch of depopulated lands (Cardolan, Enedwaith and Calenardhon). There is a description of the impact of the disaster on one area of close co-operation, the port-town of Tharbad:

"...until the coming of the Great Plague in Third Age 1636, both kingdoms shared an interest in this region [Enedwaith], and together built and maintained the Bridge of Tharbad...A considerable garrison of soldiers, mariners and engineers had been kept there until the seventeenth century of the Third age. But from then onwards the region fell quickly into decay;"

This is most likely indicative of a general decline in trade and contacts between the two realms. Further factors in declining relations were the focus of royal attention in Gondor on the threat from the Wainrider's from the mid-eighteenth century TA and the reduced importance to Gondor's rulers and people of the surviving region of Arnor:

"..to most men in Gondor, the realm in Arthedain seemed a small thing, for all the lineage of its lords."

The two royal thrones are described as becoming estranged until around 1940 TA when they again started to take counsel together.

"It was in the reign of Araphant in the North [1891-1969] and of Ondoher in the South [1936-1944] that the two kingdoms again took counsel together after long silence and estrangement."

Subsequent events are described in detail in Appendix A (iv) to the Lord of the Rings: the perception by the Araphant and Ondoher that they had a common enemy who was directing apparently separate assaults against the survivors of Numenor, the marriage of Arvedui, heir to the Northern throne, to the daughter of the King of Gondor, and the agreement for the kingdoms to aid each other as soon as was possible. This new co-operation, though borne out of the danger facing each kingdom, was a good omen. Events take an unexpected twist in 1944 with the death of the Ondoher and his three sons: Arvedui claims the throne of Gondor, but his right is rejected by the Council of Gondor (because of pride, and fear perhaps of another Kin-Strife). Arvedui as King of Gondor and heir to the throne of Arthedain, would have restored the High-Kingship and this may have prevented later evils (see the words of Malbeth the Seer, LOTR App. A (iv) p. 1087).

War prevented either kingdom from aiding the other until in 1973 Arthedain sent urgent pleas for aid; the King of Gondor prepared a force and dispatched it under his son. Angmar meanwhile conquered Arthedain. But the Gondorian army with the aid of Lindon and the surviving people of Arnor destroyed Angmar. Though it failed to save its allie and sister kingdom, Gondor's action did prevent a victorious Angmar from ravaging Eriador and eventually posing a threat to Gondor's western border.

My work contains an amount of speculation mapped onto the known facts, but the overall pattern of relations is clear: Relations were closest under the High-King Elendil, and were still strong in the Third Age, until the Great Plague of 1636, after which contacts declined for three centuries. Contacts were renewed by the royal marriage of 1940 TA but then terminated by the fall of Arthedain. There the matter ends until the Fourth Age and the return of the King. The Northern Realm is gradually restored and Elessar rules both Gondor and Arnor as High-King of the Reunited Kingdom, suggesting a single throne for both realms and a return to the close ties that existed under Elendil.

TH - The Hobbit (Unwin Paperbacks, 1985) - References are by Chapter and/or Page

Unf - Unfinished Tales (Unwin Paperbacks, 1985) - References are by Part, Section and/or Page

Sil & QS - The Silmarillion (Unwin Paperbacks, 1979) - References are by Page

Letters - The Letters of J.R.R Tolkien (HarperCollins, 1995) - References are by letter number

LOTR - The Lord of the Rings (Unwin Paperbacks, 1984) - References are by Book, Chapter and Page

Background information contained in LOTR's Appendix A and the Tale of Years is sometimes used without reference.

The Daily Tolkien articles by various authors	The Tolkien Virgin articles by Mark-Edmond
ARTICLES 01-10	ARTICLES 01-10
ARTICLES 11-20	ARTICLES 11-20
ARTICLES 21-30	21) Of the Fifth Battle: Nirnaeth Arnoediad
ARTICLES 31-40
ARTICLES 41-50
51) And Now for the Other Love Story
52) Kryptic Tales of Middle-earth
53) The People of Eriador in the later Third Age
54) The Wild, Wild, Wood-elf West
55) The Middle-earth Mysteries
56) Relations between the Kingdoms of Gondor and Arnor

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