Quote:
Originally Posted by Zigūr
On the other hand perhaps Saruman presented these actions as simply being defensive measures which were, he may have claimed, in the best interests of the local area in general, "protecting his territory" (seizing land beyond his own borders) and "strengthening friendships/alliances/etc in the region" (giving materiel to the Dunlendings). He could easily have been telling the Rohirrim one thing and the Dunlendings another.
Thus I think it's possible that Saruman could be attacking Rohan and trying to forge an "alliance" with them simultaneously, if he was sufficiently crafty. Thus it could occur in Théoden's reign despite the fact that he'd already actually begun troubling Rohan by that point. Politics can be a very messy business, and Saruman is one of the most "political" characters in all of Professor Tolkien's work.
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I agree completely with you here about Saruman,
Zigūr. I can certainly see him being like many a present-day politician, shaping his speeches to the audience he's talking to, without as many of the dangers of being 'found out'.
I also agree that Appendix A is written with the benefit of hindsight in the Fourth Age, other sources then being available to the authors, including what was found in Orthanc when King Elessar took it back for Gondor. In
Unfinished Tales, we read that a search of the tower revealed, among other things, that Saruman possibly came across Isildur's bones in his search for the Ring.