I've tried to get the links to work, though the English Heritage one might remain slightly iffy - still, search for Lambourn Downs and something should come up on there (and there are many more interesting pages to look at anyway!).
Tolkien was accustomed to horse-riding himself, and I don't doubt he would have been struck by the spectacle of watching horses being trained, especially in a place like Lambourn with its rolling downs, springs and mists. Strangely enough, horse-racing is an interest which does cut across the classes in both Britain and Ireland (especially so in Ireland), with most race meetings attended by all kinds of people. One of my favourite novels is
Esther Waters by George Moore, which features a fair amount about horse racing, breeding and the associated gambling in the 19th century; the novel isn't
all about this however, and I have to recommend it as a wonderful naturalistic portrait of poverty in Victorian England.
An interesting aspect of Rohan is that their horses are all bred for speed and strength and are described in the terms usually reserved for thoroughbreds. Yet it is based on an Anglo-Saxon culture, and such horses would have been unthinkable, as thoroughbreds are said to be descended from creatures raised in the Middle East. The type of horse that would have been common in England in the Anglo-Saxon period would have had more in common with the modern 'shire horse'. Perhaps this explains something about the Mearas, in that they are uncommon and originate from 'elsewhere' much as an exotic creature such as a thoroughbred might.
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Originally Posted by davem
Of course, Grima is an odd cove. We know little about him. We're told he was once a man of Rohan, but he doesn't seem like that at all.
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Now I want to speculate a little. It isn't said where Grima comes from or how he got to be Theoden's 'special adviser', but how might such a man have got into such a position? I suspect that he could already have been a person of some influence or status within Rohan's upper echelons, but not of immense status. This might explain how Saruman has 'won' him to his side, by offering greater power and reward in the form of Eowyn. It would not make sense for Saruman to 'corrupt' a man who did not already have some influence or at least the potential for it, so Grima's origins must have been interesting to begin with. I do wonder if he has been so corrupted for a long time or not, as if he desired Eowyn and this desire was used as his 'lure', then his evil influence over Theoden may not have been going on for a long period of time.
The person I am often reminded of when reading about Grima is Rapsutin who held a similar level of influence. He operated by exploiting the fear of illness, much as Grima operates by exploiting fear in Theoden and 'grinding him down'. With Grima we see not the skill of osanwe or magic or anything else which Saruman might have used, but simply human cunning in exploiting the king's fears and doubts.