In the aftermath of the battle of Black Gate and the destruction of the One Ring,
Aragorn was returning to Gondor to be duly crowned as King Elessar having been given the name by
Galadriel on May First TA 3109. The ceremony was vast in nature with people from all over Middle
Earth coming to witness the events. Faramir met with the soon-to-be King outside the walls of
the city before announcing the Return of the King to his people: “Here is Aragorn, son of Arathorn,
chieftain of the Dúnedain of Arnor, Captain of the Host of the West, bearer of the Star of the North,
wielder of the Sword Reforged, victorious in battle, whose hands bring healing, the Elfstone,
Elessar of the line of Valandil, Isildur's son, Elendil's son of Numenor. Shall he be
king and enter into the City and dwell there?" And all those gathered cried approval aloud in
one voice, allowing Aragorn to once more enter the city he had saved not long before, this time not
only as a healer but also as King. Frodo was given the honour of carrying the Crown and Gandalf then
placed the wings of pearl and silver which formed the likeness of a seabird upon Aragorn’s head.
Faramir, who was now the Steward of Gondor cried aloud, “Behold the King” a cry which was taken
up once more by the populace of the city in one voice. With this, King Elessar entered the city to
the ringing of silver trumpets as the royal banner was unfurled from the highest tower in the city.
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Several months later a company of Elves led by Elrond came to the city. He handed over to Aragorn
the symbol of royalty in Arnor, the Sceptre of Annúminas, confirming his status as King of Arnor.
Shortly afterward Aragorn and Arwen were married, with the new Queen of Gondor and Arnor renouncing
her immortality for the love she bore the greatest of the line of Isildur. Aragorn became
the twenty-sixth King of Arnor, the thirty-fifth King of Gondor, and the first High King of the
Reunited Kingdom. He would found the House of Telcontar and rule until the year 120 of the
Fourth Age. Soon after this, a great host led by Aragorn went north and while the king and the rest
of the Fellowship stopped in Rivendell, Gandalf and the hobbits continued onwards to the Shire.
Dark events transpired in the region in the dying days of the war of the Ring, while the
Fellowship was in the south. Using the money earned from selling the pipe-weed to the wizard
Saruman, a relative of Bilbo and Frodo Lotho Sackville-Baggins initiated a massive land grab,
allowing him to take the place of Chief of the Shire. The former White Wizard sent Dunlendings
and Goblin-Men - who the locals started calling Ruffians, to assist in this process providing
the necessary support to maintain rule over the Hobbits, who were left without protection when
the Dunedain went South to support Aragorn. Following the defeat of Sauron, Saruman used
the power of his voice, which was one of the last elements of magic he could yet control,
to convince Treebeard to allow him to leave the tower of Isengard.
Then Saruman under the guise of Sharkey came to the Shire accompanied by Grima Wormtongue,
quickly deposing and imprisoning the former Chief and taking direct control over his new dominion.
He had begun to turn the once content and peaceful region into an industrialized area similar to what
he had achieved in Isengard. However, Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin arrived just in time to
thwart his plans to despoil the region in what came to be known as the Scouring of the Shire.
Before entering the Shire, Gandalf, Frodo, and company stayed the night in the Prancing Pony in
Bree and were informed by Barliman Butterbur that the situation had changed. Strange and harsh men
from the South had begun to settle around Bree, much to the discomfort of the men and hobbits who
had previously lived in the area. This culminated in a fight on the streets of Bree, where Saruman’s
forces led by Bill Ferny were driven out by the men of Bree led by Mat Heathertoes.
Gandalf then took the Hobbits to the edge of the Shire before leaving to meet with Tom Bombadil,
assuring his companions that their training and experiences during the War of the Ring
would mean they could meet the challenge with which they were about to be posed.
The four Hobbits upon arriving in the Shire were shocked to see what had become of the home they
had fought for so long to protect during the prior events of the War of the Ring.
Having grown much in terms of courage and strength throughout their travels, the returning Hobbits
soon took up a leadership role rousing all who wished to put an end to Sharkey’s cruelty.
Prior to this mustering, the leader of Saruman’s Ruffians challenged Frodo’s authority, but when
challenged by the blades of the Hobbits, fled, allowing Merry to make use of the Horn of Rohan
given to him by Théoden to great effect. Moving swiftly a force of Shire-folk was assembled in
short order and made what preparations they could to meet the forces of the disgraced former wizard.
In total there were two hundred Bucklanders, one hundred Tooks,
and a number of locals supplementing this company, which had to face one hundred and fifty Ruffians.
What came next would be known as the Battle of Bywater and it occurred on November third TA 3019.
As Pippin was still a Knight of Gondor and wasn’t released from his oath by Aragorn,
this could also be seen as the first battle in the restoration of Arnor.
At this point the Shire was still a part of the realm of Arnor, allowing the Hobbits to
engage in combat with the will of the High King of the Dunedain behind them.
After being initially rebuked the leader of the Ruffians returned with a larger force;
however, they were promptly surrounded and when he attempted to assault Merry, he was struck down by
four arrows from the ever-effective archers of the Shire. As they displayed the same strength which
had allowed them to aid the King of Gondor as far back as the Battle of Fornost. The rest of the
Ruffians were then arrested and imprisoned. More men were dispatched by Sharkey however the Hobbit
forward scouts gave the members of the Fellowship sufficient time to prepare a defence of Bywater.
Merry and Pippin took charge utilizing everything they had learned during their service in the
employ of the King of Rohan and Steward of Gondor. Makeshift roadblocks were prepared using carts and
wagons and when the Ruffians arrived, they entered the center of the built-up area only
to find they had been entrapped. Their greater stature and strength compared to an individual
Hobbit were eliminated in this way. Attempting a breakout many were struck down by the deadly
volleys of arrows loosed by the Hobbits and those who successfully broke through their
entrapment were promptly surrounded and cut down. Sam, Merry, and Pippin took an active role in the
combat displaying their martial prowess and inspiring their fellow Shire-folk to hold the
line even though they were not comparable in terms of strength. Frodo meanwhile did not fight but
instead ensured that every Ruffian who threw down their arms and surrendered was not slaughtered but
instead imprisoned and treated fairly. The Battle was a resounding victory for the Shire-folk as
only nineteen Hobbits were killed with thirty wounded, compared to the seventy Ruffians who
were killed and twelve captured, while the remainder of Sharkey’s men fled the Shire.
The following day Frodo and the other Hobbits led their force to Hobbiton to confront Sharkey,
discovering it was in fact Saruman. The wizard was now powerless and Frodo exiled
him granting him his life if he was to leave the Shire and never return.
Saruman having been forever tainted by his former master Sauron, responded with characteristic
cruelty decrying the weakness of the Hobbits before viciously kicking Grima Wormtongue.
This was too much for the former man of Rohan whose patience broke and he lunged
for the former despot of the Shire, slitting his throat. Before Frodo could stop them, the
archers of the Shire reacted, piercing Grima with multiple arrows and ending his life immediately.
This was the last military engagement of the War of the Ring.
The War of the Ring had far-ranging ramifications for every nation in Middle Earth, none more so
than that of Gondor. Aragorn went on to rebuild the Kingdom of Arnor after so many years of decay,
fostering close relations with the other realms of Men, Dwarves, and Elves, among them Dale and
Erebor who continued to prosper in the Fourth Age. He also successfully campaigned alongside
his chief commanders Imrahil and Éomer against the Easterlings and Haradrim forever ending the
threat posed by them. The three men led campaigns beyond the Sea of Rhun enforcing peace with the
Easterlings who dwelt there. Campaigns to the South were also conducted with the dual might
of Gondor and Rohan forcing the men of Harad to give up their possessions in Southern Gondor.
Likewise, an assault was made on the city of Umbar which Aragorn had last entered while
serving under Denethor’s father under the guise of Thorongil. The Corsairs of Umbar were utterly
routed and the port city which had been founded by the Numenoreans so many centuries prior was
returned to its holdings, with the remaining Black Númenoreans who resided there seemingly killed
also, bringing to an end their destructive legacy since the fall of Númenor. The Orcs
had also been reduced to insignificant mountain bands following the destruction of the Dark Lord
and the United Kingdom, not that one, reached its greatest territorial extent since Elendil
first arrived in the West, ensuring there were no longer any true threats to the High Kingship.
Aragorn maintained Minas Tirith as his capital, leading to a quick repopulation of the region,
reconstructed Annúminas to serve as his Northern Capital, and rebuilt Fornost Erain from the ruins
of the desolation of the Witch King constructing a great city in which many men came to reside.
The Kingdom of Arnor once more prospered, as the corruption wrought by the Great War in the
North was finally cleansed from the region and it would once more regain the strength it had
once possessed during the at its height. Minas Morgul was razed to the ground, as its corruption
would take many years to ever be fully cleansed from the former joint fortresses of Gondor with
a new holding being built in the Emyn Arnen for Faramir and Eowyn to dwell within. Osgiliath was
once more rebuilt also regaining the splendour which had initially made it the first capital
of the Kingdom, becoming more and more populous as the reign of Elessar continued.
Aragorn named Faramir Prince of Ithilien marrying Eowyn and the Shire was given independent status
from the newly re-established Realm of Arnor under the Sceptre of Annúminas. The king even added the
Westmarch to its territory, decreeing that no man was ever to enter into the Shire again, himself
included. Even after Aragorn’s death following 120 years of wise rule and the accession of his
son Eldarion, the descendants of this line would continue rule wisely and well, maintaining the
Golden Age started by their patriarch following on from the flames of war. Meanwhile, Arwen would
die just a year after her husband of a broken heart and was buried at Cerin Amroth in Lórien.
In Rohan, Éomer assumed the throne, marrying his dear friend Imrahil’s daughter Lothíriel who he
had fallen in love with during his stay in Gondor. He would prove a gallant ally to the Gondorians
in the campaigns that followed, ensuring the Oath of Eorl would continue in perpetuity.
Isengard was granted to the Ents, who filled in Saruman's pits and reforested the area renaming
it the Treegarth of Orthanc. While in the Glittering Caves which Gimli had been forced
to take refuge in during the Battle of Helm’s Deep, permission was given by Éomer for him to
set up a Dwarven colony there which prospered for many years due to the mineral wealth of the caves.
The Balrog being now defeated also allowed the Longbeard Dwarves under
Durin VII to retake Khazad-dum after so many years exiled from their holds.
Legolas would go on to found a colony in Ithilien, while his father Thranduil alongside Celeborn and
Galadriel purged Dol Guldur of corruption and created a land for the Beornings to reside.
However, the destruction of the One Ring ensured the decline of the Elves, as the Three Rings
began to fade in power, causing the Kingdoms which had been preserved by them to fade also.
This caused a mass exodus of Elves across the Sea to Valinor, with all three of the
Ring Bearers departing, Lórien was eventually abandoned with the Elves of Lothloríen who did
not depart moving to the Southern part of Mirkwood founding the realm of East Lórien.
The majority of the Elves of Rivendell also departed, leaving only Elrond’s sons,
Celeborn, and a small population of Elves to inhabit the region. Eventually,
Celeborn whose heart yearned for Galadriel took passage to the Undying Lands with his company,
and it was said that "with him went the last living memory of the Elder Days in Middle-earth."
Frodo never truly recovered from his wounds and upon finishing his version of The Lord of the
Rings in the Red Book of Westmarch, in the year of the Third Age 3021 joined Bilbo and Gandalf,
who by now achieved all that was required of him in the Middle Earth, Elrond and Galadriel aboard
an Elven ship. Frodo and Bilbo were allowed passage to the Undying Lands, as they were
ring-bearers, in the hopes of healing the damage to their spirit that bearing the Ring had caused.
Sam married Rosie Cotton having thirteen children with her and was elected Mayor
of the Shire for seven consecutive seven-year terms before in the year 61 of the Fourth Age
leaving to take a ship to the Undying Lands as a former Ring-Bearer to join Frodo in Valinor.
Meanwhile Merry became the Master of Buckland in the year 11 of the Fourth Age living at Brandy
Hall and also Crickhollow and in the year 13 of the Fourth Age, Pippin became the 32nd
Thain of the Shire, a position he maintained for firty years before renouncing it in the year 63
of the Fourth Age, when he revisited Rohan and Gondor with Merry. Merry was 102 years
old at this stage and died in Gondor not long after arriving, being laid to rest in Gondor.
Pippin died not long after and was laid to rest with Merry in Gondor. After the great
King Elessar died in the year 120 of the Fourth Age Merry and Pippin were entombed next to him.
After Aragorn’s death, Legolas and Gimli left their respective colonies in the hands
of their people. The pair that had grown incomprehensibly close despite initial
frictions between them then went West, where Legolas built one last ship at the Havens to
take them across the Sea towards Valinor. In doing so Gimli became the first and only ever
Dwarf to make his way to the Undying Lands. Neither of them was ever again seen in Middle
Earth and lived in Valinor with their old friends to the very dying days of the World.
This video brings us to the end of the War of the Ring. We sincerely hope you enjoyed this
series on the world of Middle Earth and hope to return to Tolkien’s work in the future. We are
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