Théoden
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In J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Théoden was the seventeenth King of Rohan. He first appears in The Two Towers and remains an important character in The Return of the King.
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[edit] Early life
Théoden was the only son of King Thengel and Morwen of Lossarnach (a region of Gondor). He had four sisters, with the eldest of them being older than him. He was closest to the youngest, Théodwyn.
He was born in Gondor in T.A. 2948., where his family lived until Thengel became king. Théoden was raised speaking Sindarin and Westron rather than Rohirric, but learned the tongue of his people later.
He became king after the death of his father in T.A. 2980. Théodwyn lived with him in Edoras. He married one Elfhild, but she died giving birth to their son, Théodred. After Théodwyn and her husband Éomund also died, he adopted their children Éomer and Éowyn as his own.
In his prime, Théoden was a strong and vital king. He possessed a powerful and decisive personality, a strong and highly charismatic character. Théoden was (by necessity) a skilled horseman. He was tall and proud, strong and stern, as was the nature of the Men of the Riddermark.
He acted as the First Marshal of the Mark after the death of Éomund, who had filled that position; as First Marshal he commanded the Muster of Edoras. His sword was called Herugrim (his son and nephew were respectively the Second and Third Marshal).
[edit] Role in the War of the Ring
By the time of the War of the Ring, Théoden had been king for nearly 30 years, and was showing signs of his age. He was increasingly misled by his chief advisor Gríma (or Wormtongue as most others in the Mark called him), who was secretly in the employ of Saruman the White, and who may even have increased his ageing through "subtle poisons" (as told in Unfinished Tales). The king also had a minstrel called Gléowine.
In the last years before the War of the Ring, Théoden let his rule slip out of his hands, and Gríma became increasingly powerful. Rohan was troubled again by Orcs and Dunlendings, who operated under the will of Saruman, ruling from Isengard.
When Théodred was mortally wounded at a battle at the Fords of Isen with the Orcs of Saruman, his nephew Éomer became his heir. Éomer was out of favour with Wormtongue, however, and was eventually arrested.
When Gandalf the White and Aragorn appeared before him, Théoden initially rebuffed Gandalf's advice to ride out against Saruman, but after Gríma was exposed by the wizard, he restored his nephew, took up his sword, and in spite of his age, led the Riders of Rohan into battle at Helm's Deep. After this he became known as Théoden Ednew, the Renewed, because he had thrown off the yoke of Saruman and Gríma.
Bound by the Oath of Eorl the Young (the first king of Rohan), Théoden led the Rohirrim to the aid of Gondor at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. In that battle he routed a superior cavalry force of Harad. But he challenged the Witch-king of the Nine Ringwraiths and was mortally wounded when his horse Snowmane fell upon and crushed him after being struck by an arrow. He was immediately avenged by Éowyn and the Hobbit Meriadoc Brandybuck, both of whom had ridden to war in secret. Before mustering the Rohhirim to ride to Gondor's aid, he enlisted Meriadoc Brandybuck into his army, but did not let the Hobbit ride into battle at Pelannor. In his last moments, he bid farewell to Merry and appointed Éomer the next king.
His body lay in Minas Tirith until it was buried in Rohan after the defeat of Sauron. He was the last of the Second Line of the kings, judging from direct descent from Eorl the Young.
[edit] Other versions of the legendarium
In one of Tolkien's early drafts, Théoden also had a daughter by the name of Idis, but she was eventually removed when her character was eclipsed by that of Éowyn.
[edit] The name
The name is taken from the Anglo-Saxon word þēoden (also spelled ðeoden), cognate to the Old Norse word þjóðann, both meaning "leader of the people" (i.e. "King").
In Tolkien's fiction, the name Théoden is the Old English translation of the original Rohirric Tûrac, an old word for King, showing influence from the Sindarin stem tur- ("power/mastery"), also present in Turgon and related names.
[edit] Portrayal in adaptations
In Ralph Bakshi's 1978 animated version of The Lord of the Rings, the voice of Théoden was provided by Philip Stone. Théoden also appears in Rankin/Bass's attempt to complete the story left unfinished by Bakshi in their television adaptation of The Return of the King, but does not speak; his death is narrated by Gandalf, played by John Huston .
In the 1981 BBC Radio 4 version of The Lord of the Rings , Théoden's death is described in song rather than dramatized conventionally, which tends to lessen its impact for some. In this adaptation he is voiced by Jack May of The Archers fame.
Peter Jackson's film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) deviates from Tolkien's story by having Théoden (played by Bernard Hill) actually semi-possessed and magically aged by Saruman rather than simply deceived (and poisoned) by Gríma. Gandalf exorcises him, and he is restored to his true age. He then goes to Helm's Deep to take his people to safety rather than to make a stand against the enemy at the Fords of Isen. In Jackson's The Return of the King (2003), he initially refuses to aid Gondor, due to the filmmakers omitting the Oath of Eorl. Later Théoden is aware of Éowyn's presence at his death, whereas in the book he says his farewells to Merry and does not know that Éowyn is also there.
[edit] External links
- Theoden at The Thain's Book
| Preceded by: Thengel | Kings of Rohan | Succeeded by: Éomer Éadig |
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