Mardil
| Mardil | |
|---|---|
| Gondorian | |
 | |
| "Earnur and Mardil" by Oznerol-1516 | |
| Biographical Information | |
| Other names | Voronwë (Q, "Steadfast") |
| Titles | Steward of Gondor, Ruling Steward |
| Location | Gondor |
| Language | Westron, Sindarin |
| Birth | T.A. 1960 |
| Rule | T.A. 2050 - 2080 (30 years) |
| Death | T.A. 2080 (aged 120) |
| Family | |
| House | House of Húrin |
| Parentage | Vorondil |
| Children | Eradan |
| Physical Description | |
| Gender | Male |
| Gallery | Images of Mardil |
Mardil Voronwë (Third Age 1960[1] – 2080,[2]) was Steward under the kings Eärnil II and Eärnur, and then became the first Ruling Steward of Gondor.
History
In T.A. 2029, Mardil succeeded his father Vorondil as the second hereditary Steward of Gondor (a tradition begun with his grandfather Pelendur).[3]
When Eärnil II died in T.A. 2043 and Eärnur ascended to the throne, the King of Minas Morgul (the Witch-king of Angmar) challenged him to single combat. Mardil was able to restrain Eärnur's wrath at that time, but in T.A. 2050 the King of Morgul renewed his challenge, adding taunts that Eärnur could not ignore. Mardil was powerless to prevent Eärnur from riding to Minas Morgul; he and his small escort were never heard from again.
Eärnur had died unmarried with no heirs. Royal descendants had become few and no claimant for the throne could be found of pure Númenórean blood, or whose claim all would accept, and people were afraid of a new Kin-strife that would devastate the kingdom. Thus, by default, Mardil began the line of Ruling Stewards of Gondor.[4]
Because the fate of the King was unknown, Mardil made an oath to rule in the King's name until "the King returns". This oath would be sworn by all of the Ruling Stewards.
Mardil ruled Gondor with a steady hand and earned the epithet Voronwë, which means "the Steadfast" in Quenya.[5][6] One of his works was to introduce and establish the Stewards' Reckoning in Gondor. He inserted two leap-days in the year T.A. 2050.[7] After Mardil the Stewards of Gondor no longer took names in Quenya (High-elven[8]), but took names in Sindarin instead.[5]
Etymology
Mardil is Quenya for "Devoted to the House" (of the Kings),[9] being a combination of mar(da) ("house") + suffix -(n)dil ("friend", "lover", "devoted to").[10]
Genealogy
| Pelendur 1879 - 1998 | |||||||
| Vorondil 1919 - 2029 | |||||||
| MARDIL 1960 - 2080 | |||||||
| Eradan 1999 - 2116 | |||||||
| Herion 2037 - 2148 | |||||||
Portrayal in adaptations
| Mardil in adaptations | |||||||||
| |||||||||
2019: The Lord of the Rings Online:
- Mardil appears in a flashback depicting the fate of King Eärnur. In the flashback, the messenger of Minas Morgul succeeds in delivering the Witch-king's second challenge by revealing the wight of Egalmoth the Lord of Minas Ithil, Mardil's cousin, causing the Steward to turn away in grief and disgust long enough for Eärnur to accept the challenge.
References
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "VII. The Heirs of Elendil", p. 204
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The Númenorean Kings", "The Realms in Exile", "The Southern Line: Heirs of Anarion"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The Númenorean Kings", "Gondor and the Heirs of Anárion", "The Stewards"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The Númenorean Kings", "Gondor and the Heirs of Anárion"
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The Númenorean Kings", "The Realms in Exile", "The Southern Line: Heirs of Anarion", Stewards of Gondor, entry for Steward Mardil Voronwë
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, "Words, Phrases and Passages in Various Tongues in The Lord of the Rings", in Parma Eldalamberon XVII (edited by Christopher Gilson), p. 115 entry Q Voronwe 'steadfastness'
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix D, "The Calendars"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix F, "The Languages and Peoples of the Third Age", "Of the Elves", first paragraph
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Note 118 to Letter 297, (dated August 1967)
- ↑ Paul Strack, "Q. Mardil m.", Eldamo - An Elvish Lexicon (accessed 5 February 2022)
| Mardil House of Húrin | ||
| Preceded by: Vorondil | Steward to the King of Gondor T.A. 2029 – 2050 | Vacant Next held by: Faramir, 969 years later |
| None Position created | 1st Ruling Steward of Gondor T.A. 2050 - 2080 | Followed by: Eradan |
