The Field of Cormallen

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This article is about the chapter in The Return of the King. For the the field in Ithilien, see Field of Cormallen.
The Field of Cormallen
Chapter of The Return of the King
Number14
Synopsis
EventFrodo and Samwise rest and recover.
Date25 March-April 3019
LocationIthilien
PerspectiveFrodo, Samwise, and Gandalf
Navigation
<  Mount Doom (chapter)
The Steward and the King  >

The Field of Cormallen is the fourth chapter of the second book in The Return of the King.

Summary[edit | edit source]

The narrative returns to Gandalf and those outside the Black Gate. To the north, the Captains of the West foundered on the hills outside the Gate, surrounded by a dark, rolling sea of Orcs and Wild Men. Gandalf stood proudly, white and calm, with no shadow falling upon him. Suddenly, a great cry rose up: “The Eagles are coming!”[1] Out of the north arrived a company of great eagles, led by Gwaihir the Windlord. The will of Sauron faltered, and all the armies of Mordor quailed in terror. A great roar shook the hills. Gandalf cried in victory that the Ring-bearer had completed his quest, and that the reign of Sauron has ended.[2] As Gandalf spoke, a huge shadow rose in the south, extending across the sky like a giant hand, and then vanished in the wind with a great rush.

Aragorn led the Captains in a great sweep over the plains. Gandalf then soared into Mordor on the back of Gwaihir. Meanwhile, Frodo and Sam, still in the heart of Mordor, had given up all hope of survival. As they talked quietly below the ruin of Mount Doom, Gwaihir spotted them before they lost consciousness. Two eagles swept down and lifted the hobbits into the air.

When Sam awoke, he found himself on a soft bed in Ithilien, the eastern lands of Gondor. He first commented on the extraordinary dream he had just had and then cried out in astonishment that his dream actually happened. Frodo slept next to Sam, and Gandalf watched over the two of them. The wizard said that a great Shadow had departed, asked the Hobbits to dress in their worn and ragged attire, and escorted them out of the wood. They were to attend a reception hosted by the King of Gondor.

A great throng of people awaited the Hobbits. At their emergence, the crowd burst into thunderous applause, singing songs in praise of the Hobbits. Frodo and Sam approached a great throne, where Aragorn welcomed them. He lifted them and set them on the throne, and the joy of the people flowed over them like a warm wind. In a regal ceremony, Frodo bequeathed his knife Sting to Sam, who initially resisted but finally accepted the gift. That evening, Frodo and Sam attended a generous feast. They reunited with their old companions. Sam was greatly surprised by Pippin, who seemed to have grown several inches. The next morning, King Aragorn prepared to enter the great city of Minas Tirith as its rightful ruler.

References