Helm Hammerhand
Encyclopedia
Helm Hammerhand is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien
's Middle-earth
legendarium
. His story appears in the appendices of The Return of the King
, and he is referred to briefly in the main story of The Lord of the Rings
.
and last King of the first line, becoming King at the death of his father Gram during a time of crisis. His father had already fought open warfare with the Dunlendings, who operated from the captured fortress of Isengard
.
Later in Helm's reign, a man named Freca
appeared, a Dunlending with Rohirric blood. Freca held lands at either side of the river Adorn, the border of Rohan, and claimed to be a descendant of King Fréawine
of Rohan. He planned to marry his son Wulf to Helm's daughter. Freca marched to Edoras with a great force of men, planning to threaten the old King to comply with his demand. Helm denied his request, and insults were exchanged. Helm struck Freca with his fist and killed him in a single blow (giving rise to the name Hammerhand). Enraged, the men of Freca left Edoras. Four years later they returned with a great force of Dunlendings under the leadership of Wulf, and Gondor
could not help for the Corsairs of Umbar
were attacking them in great force and war raged up and down its coasts. The Dunlending force overran Rohan and took Edoras, but Helm withdrew to the Hornburg which was later renamed Helm's Deep
in his honour, where a long siege endured.
The siege of Helm's forces in the Deep lasted through the long winter; their supplies were low and they were desperate. Helm began to launch sorties alone against the Dunlendings: wearing white clothing and under the cover of storms he would go into their camps and slay the enemy with his bare hands. So ferocious were his attacks that the Dunlendings began to believe that, as he bore no weapons, no weapons could hurt him. Before each sortie he would blow the great horn of the Hornburg, which echoed through the deep, and the Dunlendings learned to fear his coming. One night the great horn sounded and Helm left, never to return. When the sun rose, his body was found frozen in the snow where he stood, knees unbent. Even after his death the Rohirrim believed that his wraith continued to stalk their enemies and kill men with fear.
His burial mound near Edoras was known for its snow-like covering of simbelmynë flowers.
Helm was succeeded by his nephew Fréaláf Hildeson, who, with a small party of men, surprised Wulf in Edoras and killed him, and at last Gondor sent help both by land and sea. Together, the forces of Rohan and Gondor defeated the Dunlendings, and Fréaláf became the first king of the second line.
blows The Horn of Helm Hammerhand as a rallying call for the mounted charge of Rohirrim at the end of the Battle of the Hornburg
.
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
Legendarium
Legendary may refer to:*A hagiography, or study of the lives of saints and other religious figures**The South English Legendary, a Middle English legendary*A legend-Entertainment:*Legendary, an album by Kaysha*Legendary...
. His story appears in the appendices of The Return of the King
The Return of the King
The Return of the King is the third and final volume of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, following The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers.-Title:...
, and he is referred to briefly in the main story of 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...
.
Literature
In the narrative Helm was the ninth King of RohanRohan
Rohan is a realm in J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy era of Middle-earth. It is a grassland which lies north of its ally Gondor and north-west of Mordor, the realm of Sauron, their enemy . It is inhabited by the Rohirrim, a people of herdsmen and farmers who are well-known for their horses and cavalry....
and last King of the first line, becoming King at the death of his father Gram during a time of crisis. His father had already fought open warfare with the Dunlendings, who operated from the captured fortress of Isengard
Isengard
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth, Isengard , a translation of the Sindarin Angrenost, was a large fortress. Both names mean "Iron fortress" In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth, Isengard , a translation of the Sindarin Angrenost, was a large fortress....
.
Later in Helm's reign, a man named Freca
Freca
Freca is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth. He appears in the Appendices of Return of the King as a Dunlending lord who challenged the King of Rohan....
appeared, a Dunlending with Rohirric blood. Freca held lands at either side of the river Adorn, the border of Rohan, and claimed to be a descendant of King Fréawine
Freawine
Freawine, Frowin or Frowinus figures as a governor of Schleswig in Gesta Danorum and in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle as an ancestor of the kings of Wessex, but the latter source only tells that he was the son of Frithugar and the father of Wig....
of Rohan. He planned to marry his son Wulf to Helm's daughter. Freca marched to Edoras with a great force of men, planning to threaten the old King to comply with his demand. Helm denied his request, and insults were exchanged. Helm struck Freca with his fist and killed him in a single blow (giving rise to the name Hammerhand). Enraged, the men of Freca left Edoras. Four years later they returned with a great force of Dunlendings under the leadership of Wulf, and 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...
could not help for the Corsairs of Umbar
Corsairs of Umbar
The Corsairs of Umbar were a fleet of Men of Umbar in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium, allied to Sauron in his war against Gondor.-Literature:...
were attacking them in great force and war raged up and down its coasts. The Dunlending force overran Rohan and took Edoras, but Helm withdrew to the Hornburg which was later renamed Helm's Deep
Helm's Deep
In J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth writings, Helm's Deep was a large valley in the north-western Ered Nimrais .The valley was described as being blocked over its entire width by the natural series of hills called Helm's Dike and behind that lay the fortress of Aglarond or the Hornburg, at the...
in his honour, where a long siege endured.
The siege of Helm's forces in the Deep lasted through the long winter; their supplies were low and they were desperate. Helm began to launch sorties alone against the Dunlendings: wearing white clothing and under the cover of storms he would go into their camps and slay the enemy with his bare hands. So ferocious were his attacks that the Dunlendings began to believe that, as he bore no weapons, no weapons could hurt him. Before each sortie he would blow the great horn of the Hornburg, which echoed through the deep, and the Dunlendings learned to fear his coming. One night the great horn sounded and Helm left, never to return. When the sun rose, his body was found frozen in the snow where he stood, knees unbent. Even after his death the Rohirrim believed that his wraith continued to stalk their enemies and kill men with fear.
His burial mound near Edoras was known for its snow-like covering of simbelmynë flowers.
Helm was succeeded by his nephew Fréaláf Hildeson, who, with a small party of men, surprised Wulf in Edoras and killed him, and at last Gondor sent help both by land and sea. Together, the forces of Rohan and Gondor defeated the Dunlendings, and Fréaláf became the first king of the second line.
Film
In Peter Jackson's version of The Two Towers, Helm is referenced when GimliGimli (Middle-earth)
Gimli is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium, featured in The Lord of the Rings. A Dwarf warrior, he is the son of Glóin ....
blows The Horn of Helm Hammerhand as a rallying call for the mounted charge of Rohirrim at the end of the Battle of the Hornburg
Battle of the Hornburg
The Battle of the Hornburg is a fictional battle in J. R. R. Tolkien's novel The Lord of the Rings. The battle pitted the forces of the Wizard Saruman against the Rohirrim under King Théoden, who had taken refuge in the mountain fortress of the Hornburg at Helm's Deep...
.