Gondor

Tolkien intended the name Gondor to be Sindarin for "land of stone".[T 2][T 3] This is echoed in the text of The Lord of the Rings by the name for Gondor among the Rohirrim, Stoningland.[T 4] Tolkien's early writings suggest that this was a reference to the highly developed masonry of Gondorians in contrast to their rustic neighbours.[T 5] This view is supported by the Drúedain terms for Gondorians and Minas Tirith—Stonehouse-folk and Stone-city.[T 6] Tolkien denied that the name Gondor had been inspired by the ancient Ethiopian citadel of Gondar, stating that the root Ond went back to an account he had read as a child mentioning ond ("stone") as one of only two words known of the pre-Celtic languages of Britain.[T 7] Gondor is also called the South-kingdom or Southern Realm, and together with Arnor as the Númenórean Realms in Exile. Researchers Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull have proposed a Quenya translation of Gondor: Ondonórë.[1] The Men of Gondor are nicknamed "Tarks" (from Quenya tarkil "High Man", Numenorean)[T 8] by the orcs of Mordor.[T 9]

Sketch map of Gondor in the Third Age, bordered by Rohan and Mordor

Gondor's geography is illustrated in the maps for The Lord of the Rings and Unfinished Tales made by Christopher Tolkien on the basis of his father's sketches, and geographical accounts in The Rivers and Beacon-Hills of Gondor, Cirion and Eorl, and The Lord of the Rings. Gondor lies in the west of Middle-earth, on the northern shores of Anfalas[T 10][T 11] and the Bay of Belfalas[T 12] with the great port of Pelargir near the river Anduin's delta in the fertile[T 13] and populous[T 11] region of Lebennin,[T 14] stretching up to the White Mountains (Sindarin: Ered Nimrais, "Mountains of White Horns"). Near the mouths of Anduin was the island of Tolfalas.[T 15]

New Zealand's Southern Alps served as Gondor's White Mountains in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

To the north-west of Gondor lies Arnor; to the north, Gondor is neighboured by Wilderland and Rohan; to the north-east, by Rhûn; to the east, across the great river Anduin and the province of Ithilien, by Mordor; to the south, by the deserts of northern Harad. To the west lies the Great Sea.[2]

The wide land to the west of Rohan was Enedwaith; in some of Tolkien's writings it is part of Gondor, in others not.[T 16][T 17][T 18][T 19] The hot and dry region of South Gondor was by the time of the War of the Rings "a debatable and desert land", contested by the men of Harad.[T 14]

The region of Lamedon and the uplands of the prosperous Morthond, with the desolate Hill of Erech,[T 20] lay to the south of the White Mountains, while the populous[T 4] valleys of Lossarnach were just south of Minas Tirith. Ringló Vale lay between Lamedon and Lebennin.[T 21]

The regions of Anórien, with its capital Minas Anor, and Calenardhon, with fortresses at Isengard[T 19][T 22] and Helm's Deep, lie to the north of the White Mountains. Calenardhon was granted independence as the kingdom of Rohan. To the northeast, the river Anduin enters the hills of the Emyn Muil and passes the Sarn Gebir, dangerous straits, above a large river-lake, Nen Hithoel. Its entrance was once the northern border of Gondor, and is marked by the Gates of Argonath, an enormous pair of kingly statues, as a warning to trespassers. At the southern end of the lake are the hills of Amon Hen (the Hill of Seeing) and Amon Lhaw (the Hill of Hearing) on the west and east shores; below Amon Hen is the lawn of Parth Galen, where the Fellowship disembarked and was then broken, with the capture of Merry and Pippin, and the death of Boromir. Between the two hills is a rocky islet, Tol Brandir, which partly dams the river; just below it is an enormous waterfall, the Falls of Rauros, over which Boromir's funeral-boat is sent. Further down the river are the hills of Emyn Arnen.[3]

The capital, Minas Tirith, lay at the eastern end of the White Mountains, built around a shoulder of Mount Mindolluin. It had seven walls, the gates facing alternately somewhat north or south, so the main street up to the citadel wound in zigzags up the hill, each time passing through a tunnel in the central spur of rock. In the citadel, atop the spur, were the Court of the Fountain with the White Tree and the White Tower. This was the seat of the Kings or Stewards of Gondor. Behind the tower, reached from the sixth level, was a saddle leading to the necropolis of the Kings and Stewards.[lower-alpha 1] Tolkien's map-notes for the illustrator Pauline Baynes indicate that the city had the latitude of Ravenna, a city on the Mediterranean sea, though it lay "900 miles east of Hobbiton more near Belgrade".[4][5][lower-alpha 2] The Warning beacons of Gondor were atop a line of foothills running back west from Minas Tirith towards Rohan.

The first people in the region were the Drúedain, a hunter-gatherer people of Men who arrive in the First Age. They were pushed aside by later settlers and came to live in the pine-woods of the Druadan Forest[T 6] by the north-eastern White Mountains.[T 23] The next people settled in the White Mountains, and became known as the Men of the Mountains. They built a subterranean complex at Dunharrow, later known as the Paths of the Dead, which extended through the mountain-range from north to south.[T 13] They became subject to Sauron in the Dark Years. Fragments of pre-Númenórean languages survive in later ages in place-names such as Erech, Arnach, and Umbar.[T 24]

The shorelands of Gondor were widely colonized by the Númenóreans from the middle of the Second Age, especially by Elf-friends loyal to Elendil.[T 25] His sons Isildur and Anárion landed in Gondor after the drowning of Númenor, and co-founded the Kingdom of Gondor. Isildur brought with him a seedling of Nimloth the fair, the white tree from Númenór, and it appeared on the coat of arms of Gondor. Elendil, who founded the Kingdom of Arnor to the north, was held to be the High King of all the lands of the Dúnedain.[T 17] Isildur established the city of Minas Ithil while Anárion established the city of Minas Anor.[T 17]

Sauron survived the destruction of Númenor and secretly returned to his realm of Mordor, soon launching a war against the Númenórean kingdoms. He captured Minas Ithil, but Isildur escaped by ship to Arnor; meanwhile, Anárion was able to defend Osgiliath.[T 25] Elendil and the Elven-king Gil-galad formed the Last Alliance of Elves and Men, and together with Isildur and Anárion, they besieged and defeated Mordor.[T 25] Sauron was overthrown; but the One Ring that Isildur took from him was not destroyed, and thus Sauron continued to exist.[T 26]

Both Elendil and Anárion were killed in the war, so Isildur conferred rule of Gondor upon Anárion's son Meneldil, retaining suzerainty over Gondor as High King of the Dúnedain. Isildur and his three elder sons were ambushed and killed by Orcs in the Gladden Fields. Isildur's remaining son Valandil did not attempt to claim his father's place as Gondor's monarch; the kingdom is ruled solely by Meneldil and his descendants until their line dies out.[T 26]

Seal of the Stewards of Gondor[lower-alpha 3]

During the early years of the Third Age, Gondor was victorious and wealthy, and kept a careful watch on Mordor, but the peace ended with Easterling invasions.[T 28] Gondor established a powerful navy and captured the southern port of Umbar from the Black Númenóreans,[T 28] becoming very rich.[T 17] As time went by, Gondor neglected the watch on Mordor. There was a civil war, giving Umbar the opportunity to declare independence.[T 28] The kings of Harad grew stronger, leading to fighting in the south.[T 29] With a Great Plague the population began a steep decline.[T 28] The capital was moved from Osgiliath to the less affected Minas Anor and evil creatures returned to the mountains bordering Mordor. There was war with the Easterling Wainriders, and Gondor lost its line of kings.[T 30] The Ringwraiths captured and occupied Minas Ithil[T 25] which became Minas Morgul.[T 31][T 25][T 17] At this time Minas Anor was renamed to Minas Tirith. Without kings, Gondor was ruled by stewards for many generations, father to son; despite their exercise of power and hereditary status, they were never accepted as kings, or sat in the high throne.[T 32][lower-alpha 4] After several attacks by evil forces the province of Ithilien[T 11] and the city of Osgiliath were abandoned.[T 17][T 28] Later the forces of Gondor, led by Aragorn under an alias, attacked Umbar and destroyed the Corsair fleet, allowing Denethor II to devote his attention to Mordor.[T 27][8]

Battle of the Pelennor Fields

Denethor sent his son Boromir to Rivendell for advice as war loomed. There, Boromir attended the Council of Elrond, saw the One Ring, and suggested it be used as a weapon to save Gondor. Elrond rebuked him, explaining the danger of such use, and instead, the hobbit Frodo was made ring-bearer, and a Fellowship, including Boromir, was sent on a quest to destroy the Ring.[T 33] Growing in strength, Sauron attacked Osgiliath, forcing the defenders to leave, destroying the last bridge across the Anduin behind them. Minas Tirith then faced direct land attack from Mordor, combined with naval attack by the Corsairs of Umbar. The hobbits Frodo and Sam travelled through Ithilien, and were captured by Faramir, Boromir's brother, who held them at the hidden cave of Henneth Annûn, but aided them to continue their quest.[T 34] Aragorn summoned the Dead of Dunharrow to destroy the forces from Umbar, freeing men from the southern provinces of Gondor such as Dol Amroth[T 11][T 12] to come to the aid of Minas Tirith. Gondor, with the Riders of Rohan as cavalry, defeated the army of Mordor in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. Aragorn led a smaller army to the Black Gate of Mordor to distract Sauron from the hobbits' quest to destroy the One Ring in Mount Doom. The hobbits succeeded, and Sauron was defeated. The war and the Third Age over, Aragorn was crowned King of both Gondor and Arnor, the sister kingdom in the north.[T 22][T 29][T 35][T 36]

This list identifies each item's location in Tolkien's writings.