Gondor and the Heirs of Anárion

[ArcusCalion]

After we decided to add in the bits from the Prologue to LotR about the Finding of the Ring, I think we should take as much of the Prologue as possible. Therefore I have tried to find the best places for all of it to fit. Here is where I placed some of it, in a replacement of GHA-SL-12:

GHA-SL-12b LotR Prologue About this time legend among the Hobbits first becomes history with a reckoning of years. For it was in the one thousand six hundred and first year of the Third Age that the Fallohide brothers, Marcho and Blanco, set out from Bree; and having obtained permission from the high king at Fornost, they crossed the brown river Baranduin with a great following of Hobbits. They passed over the Bridge of Stonebows, that had been built in the days of the power of the North Kingdom, and they took all the land beyond to dwell in, between the river and the Far Downs. All that was demanded of them was that they should keep the Great Bridge in repair, and all other bridges and roads, speed the king's messengers, and acknowledge his lordship.
Thus began the Shire-reckoning, for the year of the crossing of the Brandywine (as the Hobbits turned the name) became Year One of the Shire, and all later dates were reckoned from it. At once the western Hobbits fell in love with their new land, and they remained there, and soon passed once more out of the history of Men and of Elves. While there was still a king they were in name his subjects, but they were, in fact, ruled by their own chieftains and meddled not at all with events in the world outside.>
GHA-SL-12.1 <HoME 12: TY4 The land beyond the Brandywine, between the Baranduin and Emyn Beraid, had been a demesne of the Kings of Arnor, where they had both chases and rich farms; but they were now untended and falling into wilderness. The king Argeleb II therefore allowed the Periannath to settle there, for they were good husbandmen. {They became his subjects in name but were virtually independent and ruled by their own chieftains.} Their numbers were swelled by Stoors that came up from southern Eriador and entered the land from the south and dwelt mostly near to the Baranduin.>

[Findegil]

Agreed, very nicely integrated.

Respectfully
Findegil

[Findegil]

I copy this post from gandalf85, because I think this is where it should have been:

Originally Posted by gandalf85

This chapter turned out great. First, some minor grammatical issues:

1) In the paragraph starting "A great host came out of Angmar..." there is a missing period:

There should be a period after "west".

2)

"be" should be "he".

3)

There is a missing comma before "raising".

4) After GHA-SL-23:

"be" should be "he".

I have a few suggestions/questions:

1) In the paragraph following GHA-SL-08, this is redundant:

GHA-SL-08 already establishes the Northmen as Edain and kinsmen of the men of the Dunedain. I propose just removing the section in the quote above. In addition,
in GHA-SL-08 it states that the Northmen "were in fact a bulwark of Gondor, keeping its northern and eastern frontiers from invasion; though that was not fully realized by the Kings until the bulwark was weakened and at last destroyed." The next paragraph says the men of Gondor "gave them wide lands beyond Anduin south of Greenwood the Great, to be a defense against men of the East." This seems contradictory: they were given the lands explicitly to be a defense against men of the East, but it was not realized that they kept the frontiers free from invasion? Maybe it was not fully realized how important of a bulwark they were. If that's the interpretation we are going with, I propose the following re-ordering:

2) Before GHA-SL-14 it says "Then for weariness and fewness of men the watch on the borders of Mordor ceased and the fortresses that guarded the passes were unmanned. " But in the first paragraph it says the watch upon Mordor was already neglected before the death of Atanatar: "The waning of Gondor had already begun before he died, and was doubtless observed by its enemies. The watch upon Mordor was neglected." Is this a contradiction? Or am I missing something?

3) The addition of GHA-SL-14.5 is a great find but it feels slightly out of place. The phrase "King Telemnar died" is repeated twice in close succession and slightly after the paragraph which starts with the death of King Telemnar and his family. I propose this ordering:

Then the later paragraph which previously had GHA-SL-14.5 becomes:

This flows more naturally to me.

4) Regarding the addition of GHA-SL-21 :

Should "behind" be after GHA-SL-21 ?

5) I think the paragraph starting with GHA-SL-22 feels abrupt and out of place. I think it should be moved to after "When the main host of the Wainriders advanced to the attack it was then two hours after noon ... half a mile beyond the point where it turned east to the Watch-towers of the Morannon." The sentence starting "Men of the Eothed fought with Ondoher." still feels abrupt but I can't see an easy way to fix that. However, by moving the paragraph starting with GHA-SL-22 the section about the Wainriders flows smoother:

Respectfully
Findegil

[Findegil]

Grammatical issues: Thanks for spoting these.

Suggestions/questions:
1) Yes, we thought that the importance of that protection was not fully understood. I agree to the reordering.

2) ‘neglected’ does not mean that it was fully stopped. The meanings I found are ‘uncared-for’; ‘bedraggled’. While ‘cased’ and ‘unmanned’ suggest the final end guarding Mordor. At least that is how I saw these quotes. That why I don’t see a contradiction but step by step degeneration.

3) Agreed, very nice final result, but the editing should be a bit easier in this way:

GHA-SL-13.5{The King and}<{when}In Gondor King Telemnar died within two years of the slaying of King Minardil by the Corsairs.> And all his children died, and great numbers of the people of Gondor, especially those that lived in Osgiliath. GHA-SL-14.5b<Heires of Elendil {They were descended, father to son, from} Hurin, Steward to King Minardil, {who had }laboured greatly for the ordering of the realm in the disastrous days of the plague{, when King Telemnar died within two years of the slaying of King Minardil by the Corsairs}. From that time on the kings usually chose their steward from this family, though a son did not necessarily succeed a father.> Then for weariness and fewness of men ...

4) I see your concerns, what about this:

... Ondoher had only time to turn and face the assault with his right flank close to the Morannon, and to send word to Minohtar, GHA-SL-21b<based on the end notes the King’s sister-son,> Captain of the Right Wing behind, to cover his left flank as swiftly as he could, when the chariots and horsemen crashed into his disordered line. ...

5) Agreed.

Maybe we should as well move GHA-SL-29 and GHA-SL-30, since as they stand they are separating to connected narratives. I would move GHA-SL-29 to this place:

In the meanwhile the Wainriders licked their wounds, and plotted their revenge. ... and an attack was prepared that should be made at the same time from north and south.
Little or nothing, of course, was known of these designs and movements in Gondor. ... But Gondor could do no more at that time than gather and train as great an army as it could find or afford. Thus when the assault came at last it did not find Gondor unprepared, though its strength was less than it needed.
GHA-SL-29b<Appendix A {Calimehtar, son of Narmacil II, helped by a revolt in Rhovanion, avenged his father with a great victory over the Easterlings upon Dagorlad in 1899, and for a while the peril was averted.} It was in the reign of Araphant in the North and of Ondoher son of Calimehtar in the South that the two kingdoms again took counsel together after long silence and estrangement. For at last they perceived that some single power and will was directing the assault from many quarters upon the survivors of Númenor. It was at that time that Arvedui heir of Araphant wedded Fíriel daughter of Ondoher (1940). But neither kingdom was able to send help to the other; for Angmar renewed its attack upon Arthedain at the same time as the Wainriders reappeared in great force.>
Ondoher was aware that his southern enemies were preparing for war, and he had the wisdom to divide his forces into a northern army and a southern. ...

And GHA-SL-30 should be put some where nearer to the greate plague, since that is mentioned at the end of the text. What about placing it directly before the sub heading FY-HL-06 The Northmen and the Wainriders?

Respectfully
Findegil

[gandalf85]

2) OK, a step by step degeneration makes sense.

3) Looks good.

4) That works.

5) I agree to where you moved GHA-SL-29. Moving GHA-SL-30 right before the subheading FY-HL-06 The Northmen and the Wainriders makes sense to me.

[ArcusCalion]

Sorry for the late response. All of these changes look great to me, thank you once again for the astute analysis gandalf!