The Party Tree: Difference between revisions

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Revision as of 20:17, 16 August 2010

The Party Tree was the tree in the center of Party Field south of Bag End. A pavilion was erected that was large enough to accommodate The Party Tree and it stood at the head of the main table during Bilbo's Farewell Party with lanterns hanging from its branches. When Bilbo announced he would be leaving the Shire, he did so underneath the Tree.

After The War of the Ring, Samwise Gamgee returned to the Shire in November of 3019 only to find The Party Tree had been cut down by Saruman and his men and was lying on the field. After The Scouring of the Shire, in place of the Tree, Sam planted the silver nut from the box given to him by Galadriel. In the spring of 3020, the sapling of a mallorn tree emerged; it was the only mallorn west of the mountains and east of the Sea, people came from miles around to gaze upon it.

Inspiration

  • Possibly a willow hanging over the mill-pool at Sarehole, Warwickshire, England
"‘They’ve cut it down!’ cried Sam. ‘They’ve cut down the Party Tree!’ He pointed to where the tree had stood under which Bilbo had made his Farewell Speech. It was lying lopped and dead in the field. As if this was the last straw Sam burst into tears."
The Lord of the Rings, The Scouring of the Shire
"One incident in particular remained in his [Tolkien’s] memory: “There was a willow hanging over the mill-pool [at Sarehole] and I learned to climb it. It belonged to a butcher on the Stratford Road, I think. One day they cut it down. They didn’t do anything with it: the log just lay there. I never forgot that.""
J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography

References