Bree-land
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The term Bree-land referred to the land around the Bree-hill. The land contained a few settlements:[1]
- Bree proper was on the south-western side of Bree-hill, the major township of the area with the famous Prancing Pony inn.
- Staddle was populated primarily by hobbits who made a living from light agriculture, of pipeweed, primarily. Staddle was on the south-eastern side of Breehill, sitting south of Combe and Archet. It was the only of the villages (other than Bree itself) visible from the Great East Road.
- Combe was populated primarily by Men, with some hobbits, all of whom made a living from agriculture. Combe was situated on the borders of the Chetwood and on the edge of Breehill, between the villages of Archet and Staddle.
History
The origins of its inhabitants are obscure, but apparently they were Pre-Númenóreans, related to the Dunlendings, who had moved far to the North during the Dark Years, and the Bree-landers managed to survive through the violent history of Middle-earth until they were absorbed into Arnor. It was also the only place of Middle-earth where Men lived with Hobbits on a daily basis: the population of the Bree-land had become a mix of Men and Hobbits, who had migrated from Angmar around T.A. 1300. The ratio varied between each of the four townships of the Bree-land.
In any case, they were still thriving in Bree long after Arnor had collapsed and the memory of fallen kings faded into the grass. The now independent land enjoyed the (unknowing) protection of the Rangers of the North. After the War of the Ring, Bree-land became part of the Reunited Kingdom.
Portrayal in adaptations
2007: The Lord of the Rings Online:
- Bree-land is a major region, that covers a large area: from Buckland in the far west to the Weather Hills to the far east. Old Forest, Barrow-downs, Midgewater Marshes and Chetwood are all included within its boundaries.