The White Council

Re: Dunedain of the North

Tolkien and Inklings Discussion

: : More evidence for the lives of The Dunedain of the North.

: : In POME in the section on the descendants of Elendil the home of Aragorn's mother (Gilrain) is described in passing as "A hidden fastness in Eriador." Now much depends on ones interpretation of the word "fastness," but to me this word suggests a fortified dwelling of some kind. At the very least it would be a fortified farmhouse where an extended family lived - a little like those still found in the Scottish/English borders where the walls are thick and strong and there is no opening in them at ground level. Alternatively it could describe something more grandiose and refer to either a type of "Manor house" or a fortified hamlet or village. In any case this reference points out that the description of the Dunedain as wandering folk is not wholly accurate but is really only applicable to those male Dunedain who were members of the Rangers.

: : In the same section of POME, the time when Bullroarer Took killed Golfimbul, is described (in connection with the Dunedain) as being a period of war in Eriador against the orcs of the Misty Mountains. The use of the word "War", rather than say fighting or strife, is somewhat suggestive that the population of the Dunedain may have been rather higher than is generally accepted. I think that population numbers in the thousands would be neccessary to persecute a conflict which could be described as a war.

: A war does not automatically require large armies or a population in the thousands to support the war. Tribal wars,during this century and the last, normally consisted of numerous small battles and skirmishes. A large battle could consist of as little as a hundred on each side. A series of skirmishes, small battles and one climactic large battle would be consisdered, and recorded as a war. This is no doubt the war between the Dunedain and the orcs.~Aelmer

I'm not saying my intertpretations are based on anything more than inference. However, in the context of Tolkien's use of the word war, I cannot find any parallel use referring to a series of small skirmishes. Which is why the word struck me so forcibly in the text. The War of the Dwarves and Orcs, fought on the other side of the mountains, was a sizeable conflict. I am not claiming that the war in Eriador was as large-scale as that, but it seems to me that the Dunedain may have fielded forces numbering in the many hundreds (given their martial superiority over orcs this may have been sufficient to counter raids consisting of several thousand orcs). This would tend to counteract the impression given by Halbarad's force of 30 horsemen that Dunedain numbers were tiny. After all Halbarad's force was essentially only a token squad hastily collected , and mostly acting as an an escort for Aragorn's royal standard.