Denethor vs. Aragorn

[Belegorn]

Originally Posted by cellurdur

Read what actually happens. They don't reject Arvedui's second argument, but they just choose someone else.

You understand that as long as they have Elendil as the first king of Gondor then they cannot say it was relinquished to just to Meneldil's heirs. They know this and that's why they have no come back.

That's why Aragorn's claim is based on being the heir of Elendil.

'Do you wish for the House of Elendil to return to the Land of Gondor?'

'Already you have raised the banner of the Kings and displayed the banner of Elendil's House.'

There is a subtle difference and it is something the Council could never argue against.

Elendil's two sons are Isildur and Anárion. Isildur is the elder line. They are of the opinion, in Gondor, that the elder line gave up the South Kingdom "the crown and royalty of Gondor belongs soley to the heirs of Meneldil, son of Anárion, to whom Isildur RELINQUISHED this realm". If Isildur is the rightful King but relinquishes the royalty of Gondor, then to the nobles of Gondor, it falls on Anárion and his descendants in the South. Certainly they are not rejecting Elendil because in either case they are still choosing a direct descendent in the paternal line from Elendil, in this case from Anárion since they think the other line [Isildur's] "RELINQUISHED this realm". They gave no answer because they were not hearing him. They already gave him their reasons why he could not be King and he could invoke Elendil all he wanted, because to them, the rule had been relinquished to the descendants of Elendil's second son.

In note #10 to The Disaster of the Gladden Fields:

"Meneldil was the nephew of Isildur, son of Isildur's younger brother Anárion, slain in the siege of Barad-dûr. Isildur had established Meneldil as King of Gondor. He was a man of courtesy, but farseeing, and he did not reveal his thoughts. He was in fact well-pleased by the departure of Isildur and his sons, and hoped that affairs in the North would keep them long occupied."