Thorin in the Blue Mountains

[Mithalwen]

Originally Posted by Kuruharan

Why didn't Thorin just crown himself King of the Blue Mountains while he was there? Was there some sort of wealth level requirement that had to be satisfied before he could do that? Were the Blue Mountains just too ghetto for any self-respecting dwarf to want to have his kingdom there?

Typically I can't lay my hand on UT just now but I seem to remember in the Quest of Erebor Gandalf says that the dwarves were in very reduced circumstances in the Blue Mountains scraping a living. It was probably too pitiful and existance by comparison to declare oneself king of such an impoverished community - as the Chieftains of the Dunedain did not call themselves King or Elrond designate himself "High King of the Noldor" after Gil-galad - there was just too few and nothing that could really be called a realm.