Quote:
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Originally Posted by Elianna
It does seems strange to destroy Minas Ithil but then go looking through Orthanc, but then again, they can't destroy Orthanc, and perhaps hundreds of years of Nazgūl living there is worse than a briefer stay of a power-hungry wizard.
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I never found it strange, but my perception is that what Saruman and the Nazgul did were quite different things. Saruman is described in
Unfinished Tales as a packrat, he liked to rob graves and steal artefacts. For this reason, Saruman would keep Orthanc as is, and not desecrate it. It was only in the last half century or so of his life that he started perverting things, like the orks and the Shire, and things in general, although he had started going evil long before.
The Nazgul, on the other hand, were servants of Sauron, and like him they seem to have a direct effect on the places they live in, making them horrid and evil.
Another thought too is this: who knows what could have happened in Morgul Vale if there had been enough Ents to go do land reclamation?+