Authors: J. R. R. Tolkien

The War of the Ring (77 page)

BOOK: The War of the Ring

2.29Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub

ads

The emergence of the new geography can be traced in the texts. In the outline 'The march of Aragorn and defeat of the Haradrim' (see pp. 397 - 8 and note 4) occurs the following:

Erech to Fords of Lameduin (say Linhir?) is 175 miles direct, about 200 by road.... At Linhir on Lameduin men of Lebennin and Lamedon are defending passage of river against Haradwaith.

When this was written Lamedon still lay north of Ethir Anduin, a northward region of Lebennin, and 'the men of Lebennin and Lamedon' had withdrawn westwards to the line of the river, which they were attempting to hold. But already in the original drafts for the story of the ride of the Grey Company in 'The Last Debate'

(see pp. 411 - 12) they passed 'over Tarlang's Neck into Lamedon', Lameduin has become Gilrain, and (as in RK, p. 151) it was the men of Lamedon who contested the passage of Gilrain against the Haradrim.(2) The dot near the bottom right-hand corner of P 11 marks Erech (named on the original); this was an addition, as was the river flowing down from Erech to join the course of Morthond as originally marked on P - Q 11. To the dot on the river Kiril (Q 12), a later addition, is attached the pencilled name Caerost on Kiril; this was the forerunner of Calembel, where Kiril was crossed (RK p. 63). Neither Caerost nor Calembel is found in the original manuscript of 'The Last Debate' (see p. 419). The other dot on Q12, east of the crossing of Ringlo, is marked with the pencilled name Tarnost, which so far as I know does not appear elsewhere.

The name Belfalas was a late addition (see p. 293 note 22); and a note added early to the map directs that Pinnath Gelin should be made into 'lower Green Hills'.

The name Odotheg 'Seventh' of Gwathlo or Greyflood was changed in pencil to Odothui; on this name see VII.311 - 12. The last letter of Lhefneg was also changed: most probably it was first written Lhefned and then immediately altered to Lhefneg, the form of the name in the list of rivers written on the map.

North of the White Mountains a line of dots on squares P 13, Q 13-14 represents the beacon hills; on this see p. 354 note 3.

Moving eastwards to Q14, the original course of Anduin can be j discerned on the original, running in a straight line from below the confluence of Ereg to where the river bends north-west below Osgiliath. The great elbow in Anduin here and the hills of Haramon that caused it were superimposed later in blue ink, Haramon being afterwards struck out and Emyn Arnen substituted (with some totally illegible name preceding it). In the original text of the chapter 'Minas j Tirith' (p. 278) there was no mention of this feature. It is shown (but without the hills around which the river bends) on the little map drawn on a page added to the manuscript of 'The Ride of the Rohirrim' (p. 353); and it first appears in the texts in the outline

'The Story Foreseen from Forannest' (see p. 359 and note 3): 'the

[Pelennor] wall right above the stream which bends round the Hills of Haramon'. The name Emyn Arnen appears in the drafting of 'The Battle of the Pelennor Fields' (p. 370). I have very little doubt that it was indeed the development of the story of the battle that brought the great bend in Anduin around the hills of Haramon/Emyn Arnen into being; for so the black fleet could be brought right under the wall of the Pelennor, and victory assured in the face of disaster by the exceedingly dramatic and utterly unlooked for arrival, on the very field, of Aragorn with the Rangers and the sons of Elrond, and all the men newly gathered from the southern fiefs.

Osgiliath is now north-east of Minas Tirith (see pp. 269 - 70, 353).

A note on the map says that 'Minas Morgul must be rather more north' (cf. the plan reproduced on p. 181 and the large LR map).

Within the confines of Mordor a major change was made in the last stage of the use of this map. The great peninsula of high land (Q16) thrust out southwards from the Ash Mountains, on which stood Barad-dur, was struck through, and Barad-dur was moved north-west (to P 16). This was where Orodruin had stood as the map was first drawn.(3) Orodruin was moved to stand near the bottom right-hand corner of P 15. I have in this case preserved the original site of Barad-dur in my redrawing, for the alterations were carried out very roughly. Other additions of this time were the rough outline of the Sea of Nurnen, the names Lithlad, Morgai, and Nurn, and also Gorgoroth of the vale running back from the Morannon. Gorgoroth was struck out, and in its place was pencilled here the name Narch Udun.(4) NOTES.

1. The fact that the track of Frodo's journey from the Emil Muil to the Morannon (not shown on my redrawing) is very carefully marked and probably belongs to the first 'layer' does not demonstrate that in its making this map goes back to the writing of Book IV. For one thing, it seems unlikely that my father would have made the map redrawn on p. 269 if the Second Map had been already in existence.

2. A name in scarcely visible pencilling that is almost certainly Lamedon can be seen written right across q 11 - 12 (from below the r of Morthond to east of the crossing of Ringlo), which suggests that Lamedon was at first a larger region.

3. When Barad-dur was moved to the site of Orodruin the original markings were obliterated.

4. The names Harad Road, Near Harad (and an arrow directing to Far Harad), Desert of Lostladen (see p. 426 note 35), Khand (see p. 369), and Umbar were scribbled in pencil or blue crayon.

Document Outline