Though his origins were shrouded in mystery, the folk hero Tom Bombadil was thought to
be the oldest living being in existence, possibly alive before the coming of the Valar and shaping
of the world.
An Immortal being, capable of powerful magic with seemingly limitless mastery over any
area he inhabited, Tom lived for thousands of years in Middle Earth becoming a figure
of legend for the races of the continent.
Yet despite such extraordinary abilities, Tom was seemingly bereft of ambition, content
to live in nature and pursue his own humble adventures, completely indifferent to the
world outside his realm.
By the Third Age, he settled in Eriador, by the Withywindle River, known to locals as
an eccentric but cheerful man in a blue jacket, yellow boots and fathered cap.
Master of wood, water and hill, Tom spent his days walking through the Old Forest, singing
songs and interacting with creatures dwelling in his domain.
During one of his more famous adventures, an innocent stroll along the Withywindle turned
into a day of challenges, when the beautiful river spirit Goldberry sprang up to pull on
Tom’s beard, playfully dragging him into the water.
Goldberry was the daughter of the River woman, and while her origins were uncertain, some
thought her a minor water-spirit maia or perhaps the daughter of a maia, whose essence was
tied to the Withywindle.
After freeing himself from her grasp, the troubles continued when Old Man Willow, an
ancient tree tried to wrap himself around Tom, only to be rebuffed and admonished.
Bombadil then faced Badger Brock, who pulled him into an underground tunnel, but again
Tom escaped.
Finally, he faced an attack by terrifying Barrow-Wights, undead creatures set loose
upon the world by the Witch King of Angmar many centuries earlier.
In all 4 of these assaults, Tom simply spoke some words to secure his release or frighten
away the enemy, as his voice held a great power to sway others.
After surviving this harrowing journey, Tom returned home but could not stop thinking
about the beautiful river spirit he met and so the next daymarched down to the river,
and asked Goldberry to attend a feast.
Soon enough they were married, with Old Man Willow, the Badger-Folk and other forest creatures
attending the wedding.
Throughout his travels, he charmed birds and animals with his enchanting voice, and by
the end of the third age befriended many of the local hobbits and men who lived near the
old Forest, including Farmer Maggot, the Hobbits of Buckland, and the owner of the Prancing
Pony Inn, Barliman Butterbur of Bree.
When the Dark Lord Sauron marched his armies in the War of the Ring, the lands around the
Old Forest were swept up in the chaos, starting when the hobbits Meriadoc Brandybuck, Peregrin
Took and Samwise Gamgee escorted their friend Frodo Baggins on a perilous but crucial quest
to bring the One Ring of Power to the council of Elrond in the city of Rivendell.
Leaving the Shire, they attempted to move through the Old Forest, but quickly came to
danger when Merry and Pippin were caught by Old Man Willow and dragged into his roots.
Fortunately, Tom Bombadil came to the rescue, ordering their release.
Greeting them with a cheery smile, he brought them home to meet his wife and partake in
a feast.
Frodo found himself completely at ease around his host, to the point where Tom asked to
see the One Ring of Power, and it was given without hesitation.
Created by Sauron, and imbued with part of his spirit, the ring was enormously powerful,
able to corrupt the mind of everyone it touched.
Frodo, like his uncle Bilbo the previous ringbearer, could be trusted with the ring because they
were especially humble and good natured, thereby slowing the corruption upon them.
But Tom was not affected in anyway.
Tossing it in the air and making the ring momentarily disappear, he treated the ring
of power like a minor curiosity before handing it back to the hobbit.
After 2 days of merriment, Frodo and his companions bid farwell and continued their journey east,
only to once again face danger when attacked by Barrow-Wights.
Yet as they were still within the realm of Tom Bombadil, he soon arrived to lend them
aid, and escorted them to the edge of the forest.
Among the treasures found after defeating the barrow wights, Tom took a pretty hair
brooch for his wife, along with 4 rare and valuable Westerness Daggers he gifted to the
hobbits.
These weapons were specially forged by the Dunedain of Arnor many centuries earlier to
fight and kill their enemy the Witch King of Angmar.
This act of kindness went on to have enormous consequences for the entire continent, as
Meriadoc Brandybuck used his dagger in the battle of the pelennor fields, to stab and
help kill the Witch King, who served as Lieutenant for the Dark Lord Sauron.
After arriving in Bree, the ponies of the hobbits were frightened and broke loose, eventually
finding their way back to Bombadil, who took care of them until sending them to work for
the owner of the Prancing Pony in Bree.
When Frodo and the others arrived in Rivendell for the meeting, Tom was briefly considered
as a possible Ringbearer, but the wizard Gandalf spoke against it, as Bombadil was unlikely
to appreciate the magnitude of this responsibility, and might forget about or lose the ring without
concern.
As the War continued, Frodo and Sam went on to help destroy the one ring in the fires
of mount doom, while Merry and Pippin fought with the allied armies, contributing to their
victory against the dark Lord.
When it was over, Gandalf accompanied the 4 hobbits on their journey home, but temporarily
parted company when they reached the Old Forest, as the wizard visited Tom Bombadil, who proved
as happy and inscrutable as ever.
Though the fourth age saw many like Gandalf, Frodo and others leave Middle Earth, Tom Bombadil
remained, with two of his more famous adventures written into the Red Book of Westmarch by
Samwise Gamgee.
Over the years many theorized about who or what this mysterious man truly was, with some
believing him a physical manifestation of Arda, allowing him to manipulate nature.
Others meanwhile, say he was a counter point to the Ungoliant, another immortal being who
took the form of a great spider with an insatiable hunger, so powerful she once defeated the
First Dark Lord Morgoth in battle.
Perhaps both these creatures, were among the nameless things born into the world upon its
creation.
Elsewise they may have been born as an intended or unintended consequence of the War of Sound
during the Ainulindale, the great song which inspired the creation of the world.