It is the land far to the East of Middle-earth.
A land where the earliest peoples would awaken and the dark lord would focus his early efforts
on corrupting them. In time, these lands would be home to not only men and elves,
but also four clans of the dwarves, three of the wizards, and creatures unique to the East.
Today on Nerd of the Rings, we cover the history of Rhûn.
In the early days of the world, specifically the Years of the Trees 1050, the Elves awake
in the far east at Cuivienen. We are told Cuivienen is 450 miles east or south-east
of the future location of the Sea of Rhun and it lies on the East side of the Sea of Helcar.
While many elves would make the Great Journey west, there are some, called the Avari elves,
who remain in the east. It is believed that some of these Avari elves were corrupted
by Melkor in the ancient days to become the race of orcs. We are told some of the Avari
would eventually wander westward, though this implies there are some who remain in the east.
450 Years of the Trees later, roughly 4,311 of our years, these lands look completely different,
as we are told Cuivienen had been lost to time and these lands look much closer to
what we see in later ages . It is here the first men awake in the far eastern land of
Hildorien, in year 1 of the First Age. As covered in my Houses of the Edain video,
the ancestors of the men in the First Age tales travel west and meet both
the Avari elves and another race of being living in the east - dwarves.
The Seven Fathers of the Dwarves awake sometime between the awakening of the elves and the
awakening of men. Two dwarf fathers - those of the Firebeards and Broadbeams - would awake in the
Blue Mountains in the West, founding Nogrod and Belegost. Durin, father of the Longbeards, would
awake in Mount Gundabad in the north and travel south to found Khazad-dum. The remaining four, the
fathers of the Ironfists, Stiffbeards, Blacklocks, and Stonefoots are said to have awakened in the
East. The only clue we are given to the location of the halls of the Rhun dwarves is that they
were as far or farther from the Misty Mountains as Mount Gundabad was from the Blue Mountains.
When the men migrating westward encounter the dwarves, it is said that some among the
dwarves had fallen under the shadow and were of evil mind and distrustful of the men. While
many of these men would move on to Beleriand and become the three houses of the Edain,
some men would remain in the lands of Rhun, becoming the people we know as the Easterlings.
Not only would men, elves and dwarves be found in Rhun. Tolkien also tells us of beasts that
were unique to the region - some are very real and believable, others are extraordinary and
perhaps even mythical. First we have the Kine of Araw, which were a species of oxen that lived in
the fields near the Sea of Rhun. They are said to have been hardier and wilder than any other
breed of oxen in Middle-earth. And stories claim that they were descended from the cattle of Orome
the Hunter - as evidenced by the fact that Araw is the Sindarin form of Orome’s name.
These creatures would have a direct connection to one of the members of
the Fellowship of the Ring. For Boromir’s ancestor Vorondil, who lived 1000 years earlier,
would hunt the Kine of Araw. And it was from one of their horns that he would fashion the Great
Horn - which would be passed down the line of the Stewards of Gondor, all the way to Boromir.
Another creature unique to Rhun is debatable whether it ever truly existed. These are
the were-worms. There is but a single reference to these creatures. In the Hobbit,
Bilbo says “Tell me what you want done, and I will try it,
if I have to walk from here to the East of East and fight the wild Were-worms in the Last Desert.
Thus, we are left to speculate completely as to what these were-worms were like,
and whether they did in fact exist or were merely a mythical creature of hobbit legend.
Just as he had done with the elves, Morgoth personally travels to the lands of the East,
working to corrupt its inhabitants to his will. Many Easterlings would
come under the dominion of the dark lord and this old allegiance would
be used by Morgoth’s successor as well. For throughout the Second and Third Ages,
we see Sauron repeatedly use the East as a hiding place as well as a location to find followers.
As Sauron begins to rise in the Second Age, the Valar send the two blue
wizards to Middle-earth. And while their actions and final fate remains a mystery,
Tolkien gives us two very intriguing possibilities. In his earlier writings,
Tolkien envisioned the Blue Wizards arriving with the other three, traveling to the East and
never returning. He also suspected that they failed at their duty to work against
Sauron and instead founded secret cults and magic traditions that outlasted the dark lord’s fall.
However, in his later writings, in which they arrive in 1600 SA,
the same year Sauron forges his One Ring, they travel to the East and South. We are told they
were never again heard or seen west of Mordor. In these writings, which appear in the History of
Middle-earth volume The Peoples of Middle-earth, we find the blue wizards are named Morinehtar,
which means Darkness-slayer and Rómestámo, meaning East-helper.
During the Dark Years where Sauron influences most of Middle-earth and makes war upon the
elves of Eriador, many men fall under his sway, and the East is no exception. He encourages the
Easterlings during these years to go west to loot the other men of Middle-earth.
This results in a war between the Easterlings and orcs and the Northmen of Rhovanion.
Also during these Dark Years, which encompass much of the Second Age, Sauron gives a ring of power to
an Easterling lord named Khamul. With it, he gains great power among his people, becoming a mighty
lord and sorcerer. This would of course, come at an insurmountable cost as he turns into a wraith,
a slave to the power of The One Ring. Khamul, the only Nazgul we know the name of,
is the second greatest of his kind, surpassed only by the Witch-king. We are told that while
his ability to perceive the presence of the One Ring is only surpassed by the Witch-king,
his power was most confused and diminished by daylight.
We know that Sauron frequently used men of the South and East alongside his orcs
in his wars against the free peoples, but in the final chapter of the Silmarillion,
we are told another race also allied with the dark lord:
All living things were divided in that day, and some of every kind, even of beasts and birds, were
found in either host, save the Elves only. They alone were undivided and followed Gil-galad. Of
the Dwarves, few fought upon either side; but the kindred of Durin of Moria fought against Sauron.
So while Durin’s Folk were firmly allied against Sauron,
there were indeed dwarves who allied with the dark lord in this great war of the Second
Age. It is highly likely that these dwarves were among the dwarves who lived in Rhun.
After Sauron’s defeat by the Last Alliance in 3441 SA, the lands of the
East are freed from his tyranny. However, many still had darkness in their hearts,
leading to battles between groups of men within Rhun. In the coming centuries,
the Easterlings would bring war to the men who had played a large role in Sauron’s defeat - the
men of Gondor. Each of these attacks, battles, and even the brief period when
Gondor conquers the westernmost land of Rhun, are detailed in my video on the Easterlings.
As for Sauron, he was greatly weakened by his bodily defeat and the loss
of his Ruling Ring. It is believed his spirit once again fled to the Far East,
where he sought to regain his strength. It would not be until 1000 years into the
Third Age that he could once again begin to take shape in a physical form. With this development,
the Valar send wizards to aid the Free Peoples in their struggle against the dark lord.. If we
are going by Tolkien’s later writings, this is when the remaining three wizards reach the Grey
Havens on the western coast of Middle-earth. Just 50 years later, Sauron would begin his
re-emergence by settling in the former elven realm of Amon Lanc, which becomes known as Dol Guldur.
Shortly after arriving in 1000 TA, a third wizard would make his way to the lands of Rhun - Saruman
the White. The leader of the Istari would spend the next 1500 years in the East. The last 400
of which would coincide with Sauron’s own time in the lands so often influenced by the dark lords.
For in 2063 TA, Gandalf investigates Dol Guldur, and the mysterious Necromancer
flees. Thus Sauron once again returns to the East, where he works to regain his power. Over
the course of these 400 years, he rallies more Easterlings to his service - no doubt playing
upon ancient alliances once more. During this time, Morinehtar and Romestamo are
tasked with finding where Sauron dwells in the East, but they are unsuccessful.
Sauron returns to Dol Guldur as the Necromancer in 2460 TA and three years later in 2463 TA, Saruman
is back in the westlands of Middle-earth and is named leader of the White Council.
Whether Saruman ever met the blue wizards in his 1500 years dwelling in Rhun, we can only guess.
In 2793 TA, dwarves of all four kingdoms of the east joined the other three dwarf clans
in the War of the Dwarves and Orcs. This war, prompted by the death of King Thror,
is when Durin’s Folk seek retribution and the reclamation of their ancient home of
Khazad-dum. After the war ends in 2799 TA, the survivors return home to their Eastern halls.
We would next hear of the dwarves of the East in the late Third Age. In The Fellowship of the Ring,
we are told that as war and darkness grew once more in Rhun, many of the dwarves of the East
leave their ancient homelands, moving as far as possible from Rhun, to the Blue Mountains
west of The Shire. Frodo Baggins meets some of these dwarves during their migration.
Returning to the Blue Wizards, Tolkien also states that Morinehtar and Romestamo play
an important role in both the East and the South, and that their efforts ensure
that Sauron’s forces from these lands do not outnumber and overwhelm the Men of the West,
thus helping secure victory for the Free Peoples and Sauron’s defeat.
This suggests that there may indeed have been great battles between
different groups of Easterlings. At the very least, it shows us that the Blue
Wizards helped counter Sauron’s efforts to recruit men of Rhun under his banner.
As we know, Easterlings would not only fight in the Battle of Pelennor Fields at Minas Tirith,
but they would also wage war upon the dwarf kingdom of Erebor and the Men of Dale in the
north. In both instances, they are ultimately defeated. While Sauron’s defeat on March 25,
3019 is final, there would be lingering effects of his and Morgoth’s evil throughout the lands
of Rhun. In Appendix A, we are told of some of Aragorn’s final battles as King Elessar:
In Gondor the King Elessar now ruled, and in Arnor also. In all the lands of those realms
of old he was king, save in Rohan only; for he renewed to Éomer the gift of Cirion, and Éomer
took again the Oath of Eorl. Often he fulfilled it. For though Sauron had passed, the hatreds
and evils that he bred had not died, and the King of the West had many enemies to subdue before the
White Tree could grow in peace. And wherever King Elessar went with war King Éomer went with him;
and beyond the Sea of Rhûn and on the far fields of the South the thunder of the cavalry
of the Mark was heard, and the White Horse upon Green flew in many winds until Éomer grew old.
Thus the lands of Western Rhun would finally be subdued in the Fourth Age by King Elessar. As
for the days to come, we are left to wonder what became of the inhabitants of the East. Would the
Easterlings who had been loyal to Sauron finally be able to throw off the yoke of his influence?
Would there be further war between the Easterlings loyal to Sauron and those who were not? Would the
dwarves of Rhun return to their ancient homes? And what would became of the blue wizards?
These are questions that remain of Rhun - one of the most interesting,
yet mysterious of the realms of Middle-earth.
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