Eldarion
Encyclopedia
Eldarion Telcontar is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien
's Middle-earth
legendarium
. He was the only recorded son of Arwen
and Aragorn
, born in the Fourth Age
. He became the Second High King of the Reunited Kingdom
of Gondor
and Arnor
after his father died.
"Eldarion" means "Son of the Eldar" or "Son of the Elves". He was also recorded as having at least two sisters.
Eldarion was descended from several royal Elven
houses, including the Three High Kings of the Elves, and from the Edain
. He was a grandson of Elrond
and, through his grandmother Celebrían
, a great-grandson of Galadriel
. He was great-grandson of Eärendil
the Mariner (Eldarion is descended from Eärendil on both sides of his family and in him the two genealogical lines of the Half-elven
are reunited), through his Half-elven mother Arwen; he was also the nephew of the Half-elf lords Elladan and Elrohir
. He was descended also from the great Kings of Westernesse
on his father's side.
, etc.) by his father, who then willingly gave up his own life
so that Eldarion could become King.
During Eldarion's reign, Findegil served as the royal scribe (or King's Writer). In the year 172 of the Fourth Age
, Findegil completed a copy of the Thain's Book, the most complete copy of the Red Book of Westmarch
wherein Bilbo Baggins
, Frodo Baggins
and Samwise Gamgee
recorded their adventures. Within the context of Tolkien's work, the Thain's Book was the original source for what we know as The Lord of the Rings
and The Hobbit
. The copy made by Findegil was brought to the Shire
and kept by the head of the Took
family, the Thain
of the Shire, at Great Smials.
In Peter Jackson
's movie The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
, Arwen is exhorted by her father to sail into the West, leaving Middle-earth
and Aragorn forever. While reluctantly on her way to the Grey Havens, she has a prescient vision of Eldarion as a little boy (although Eldarion's name is only mentioned in the closing credits), which persuades her to stay. This is a departure from the events in the book.
For a time, Tolkien considered writing a sequel to The Lord of the Rings, called The New Shadow, which would have taken place in Eldarion's reign, and in which Eldarion deals with his people turning to evil practices; however, Tolkien later dropped the idea.
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
's Middle-earth
Middle-earth
Middle-earth is the fictional setting of the majority of author J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy writings. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings take place entirely in Middle-earth, as does much of The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales....
legendarium
Tolkien's legendarium
The phrase Tolkien's legendarium is used in the literary discipline of Tolkien studiesto refer to the part of J. R. R. Tolkien's high fantasy fiction being concerned with his Elven legends; that is, historic events that have become legendary from the perspective of the characters of The Lord of the...
. He was the only recorded son of Arwen
Arwen
Arwen Undómiel is a fictional character in J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium. She appears in his novel, The Lord of the Rings, usually published in three volumes. Arwen is one of the Half-elven who lived during the Third Age.-Literature:...
and Aragorn
Aragorn
Aragorn II is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, one of the main protagonists of The Lord of the Rings. He is first introduced by the name Strider, which the hobbits continue to call him...
, born in the Fourth Age
Fourth Age
In the fictional world of middle earth "'the fourth age'" and the ages that preceded it, are time periods from J. R. R. Tolkien's universe of Middle-earth, described in his fantasy writings...
. He became the Second High King of the Reunited Kingdom
Reunited Kingdom
The Reunited Kingdom of Arnor and Gondor is a fictional realm from J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth.When Aragorn became King of Gondor at the end of the War of the Ring, he was also the descendant of the Kings of Arnor, and by right he was crowned High King of both Arnor and Gondor and Reunited the...
of Gondor
Gondor
Gondor is a fictional kingdom in J. R. R. Tolkien's writings, described as the greatest realm of Men in the west of Middle-earth by the end of the Third Age. The third volume of The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, is concerned with the events in Gondor during the War of the Ring and with...
and Arnor
Arnor
Arnor is a fictional kingdom in J. R. R. Tolkien's writings. Arnor, or the Northern Kingdom, was a kingdom of the Dúnedain in the land of Eriador in Middle-earth. The name probably means "Land of the King", from Sindarin Ara- + dor...
after his father died.
"Eldarion" means "Son of the Eldar" or "Son of the Elves". He was also recorded as having at least two sisters.
Eldarion was descended from several royal Elven
Elf (Middle-earth)
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Elves are one of the races that inhabit a fictional Earth, often called Middle-earth, and set in the remote past. They appear in The Hobbit and in The Lord of the Rings, but their complex history is described more fully in The Silmarillion...
houses, including the Three High Kings of the Elves, and from the Edain
Edain
In the fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien, the Edain were men who made their way into Beleriand in the First Age, and were friendly to the Elves....
. He was a grandson of Elrond
Elrond
Elrond Half-elven is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He is introduced in The Hobbit, and plays a supporting role in The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion.-Character overview:...
and, through his grandmother Celebrían
Celebrían
Celebrían is a fictional character created by J. R. R. Tolkien. She is an Elven noblewoman, the daughter of Celeborn and Galadriel, wife of Elrond, and mother of Elrohir, Elladan and Arwen. She was called the Lady of Rivendell. Her name means "silver queen" in Sindarin.- Biography :The place and...
, a great-grandson of Galadriel
Galadriel
Galadriel is a character created by J.R.R. Tolkien, appearing in his Middle-earth legendarium. She appears in The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, and Unfinished Tales....
. He was great-grandson of Eärendil
Eärendil
Eärendil the Mariner is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He is depicted in The Silmarillion as a great seafarer who, on his brow, carried the morning star across the sky.-Etymology:...
the Mariner (Eldarion is descended from Eärendil on both sides of his family and in him the two genealogical lines of the Half-elven
Half-elven
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth, the Half-elven are the children of the union of Elves and Men. The Half-elven are not a distinct race from Elves and Men, and must ultimately choose to which race they belong...
are reunited), through his Half-elven mother Arwen; he was also the nephew of the Half-elf lords Elladan and Elrohir
Elladan and Elrohir
Elladan and Elrohir are fictional characters in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, the sons of Elrond Half-elven and Celebrían and older brothers of Arwen.-Literature:...
. He was descended also from the great Kings of Westernesse
Númenor
Númenor is a fictional place in J. R. R. Tolkien's writings. It was a huge island located in the Sundering Seas to the west of Middle-earth, the main setting of Tolkien's writings, and was known to be the greatest realm of Men...
on his father's side.
Reign as King of the Reunited Kingdom
Tolkien wrote that at the time of his ascending to the throne, Eldarion was "full ripe and ready for kingship". It is known that Eldarion was given the tokens of kingship (AndúrilNarsil
Narsil is a fictional sword featured in J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. It is introduced in The Lord of the Rings as having once belonged to King Elendil of the Dúnedain...
, etc.) by his father, who then willingly gave up his own life
Gift of Men
The Gift of Men in Middle-earth refers to a gift of Ilúvatar to his Younger Children, which remains a source of some confusion for Tolkien enthusiasts. The concept includes both mortality and free will...
so that Eldarion could become King.
During Eldarion's reign, Findegil served as the royal scribe (or King's Writer). In the year 172 of the Fourth Age
Fourth Age
In the fictional world of middle earth "'the fourth age'" and the ages that preceded it, are time periods from J. R. R. Tolkien's universe of Middle-earth, described in his fantasy writings...
, Findegil completed a copy of the Thain's Book, the most complete copy of the Red Book of Westmarch
Red Book of Westmarch
The Red Book of Westmarch is a fictional manuscript written by hobbits, a conceit of author J. R. R...
wherein Bilbo Baggins
Bilbo Baggins
Bilbo Baggins is the protagonist and titular character of The Hobbit and a supporting character in The Lord of the Rings, two of the most well-known of J. R. R...
, Frodo Baggins
Frodo Baggins
Frodo Baggins is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium.He is the main protagonist of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. He was a hobbit of the Shire who inherited Sauron's Ring from Bilbo Baggins and undertook the quest to destroy it in the fires of Mount Doom...
and Samwise Gamgee
Samwise Gamgee
Samwise Gamgee, later known as Samwise Gardner and commonly as Sam, is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. Samwise is one of the chief characters in Tolkien's novel The Lord of the Rings, in which he fills an archetypical role as the sidekick of the protagonist, Frodo...
recorded their adventures. Within the context of Tolkien's work, the Thain's Book was the original source for what we know as The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings is a high fantasy epic written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in...
and The Hobbit
The Hobbit
The Hobbit, or There and Back Again, better known by its abbreviated title The Hobbit, is a fantasy novel and children's book by J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published on 21 September 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the New York Herald...
. The copy made by Findegil was brought to the Shire
Shire (Middle-earth)
The Shire is a region of J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional Middle-earth, described in The Lord of the Rings and other works. The Shire refers to an area settled exclusively by Hobbits and largely removed from the goings-on in the rest of Middle-earth. It is located in the northwest of the continent, in...
and kept by the head of the Took
Took clan
In J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium, the Took clan was one of the most famous Hobbit families.The first recorded Took was an Isumbras Took, who became the 13th Thain of the Shire after Gorhendad Oldbuck crossed into Buckland, becoming Master there.After Isumbras, the Thain position...
family, the Thain
Thain
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth, the Thain was the traditional military leader of the Hobbits of the Shire. The Hobbits first chose a Thain to "hold the authority of the king" when Arvedui, last King of Arnor, was lost and the kingship in the North discontinued. The...
of the Shire, at Great Smials.
In Peter Jackson
Peter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson, KNZM is a New Zealand film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter, known for his The Lord of the Rings film trilogy , adapted from the novel by J. R. R...
's movie The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is a 2003 epic fantasy-drama film directed by Peter Jackson that is based on the second and third volumes of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings...
, Arwen is exhorted by her father to sail into the West, leaving Middle-earth
Middle-earth
Middle-earth is the fictional setting of the majority of author J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy writings. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings take place entirely in Middle-earth, as does much of The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales....
and Aragorn forever. While reluctantly on her way to the Grey Havens, she has a prescient vision of Eldarion as a little boy (although Eldarion's name is only mentioned in the closing credits), which persuades her to stay. This is a departure from the events in the book.
For a time, Tolkien considered writing a sequel to The Lord of the Rings, called The New Shadow, which would have taken place in Eldarion's reign, and in which Eldarion deals with his people turning to evil practices; however, Tolkien later dropped the idea.
Sources
Tuckborough.net mentions the following parts of Tolkien's work as source for Eldarion:- Appendix A of LotR: "The Tale of Aragorn and ArwenThe Tale of Aragorn and ArwenThe Tale of Aragorn and Arwen is a story written by the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It can be found in Appendix A of Tolkien's most famous book, The Lord of the Rings. It takes place in the Third Age of the author's fictional universe, Middle-earth...
," p. 343-44 - The History of Middle-earthThe History of Middle-earthThe History of Middle-earth is a 12-volume series of books published from 1983 through to 1996 that collect and analyse material relating to the fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien, compiled and edited by his son, Christopher Tolkien. Some of the content consists of earlier versions of already published...
, vol. XII, The Peoples of Middle-earth: "The Heirs of Elendil," p. 202, 217-18, 244-46; "The New Shadow," p. 410, 419-20 - The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien: Letter #338 (reference to Eldarion's reign lasting 100 years)