The King beneath the mountains
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The King beneath the mountains is a poem about the King under the Mountain.[1] This song was sung by the people of Lake-town upon the arrival of Thorin Oakenshield and the Company. It was a prophecy made after the fall of Erebor and Dale about Thrór and Thráin.
Text
The King beneath the mountains,
The King of carven stone,
The lord of silver fountains
Shall come into his own!
His crown shall be upholden,
His harp shall be restrung,
His halls shall echo golden
To songs of yore re-sung.
The woods shall wave on mountains
And grass beneath the sun;
His wealth shall flow in fountains
And the rivers golden run.
The streams shall run in gladness,
The lakes shall shine and burn,
All sorrow fail and sadness
At the Mountain-king's return!
Other
Then suddenly a great light appeared in the low place in the hills and the northern end of the lake turned golden.
"The King beneath the mountain!"
They shouted.
"His wealth is like the Sun,
His silver like a fountain,
His rivers golden run!"
They cried, and everywhere windows were opening and feet were hurrying.
See also
Portrayal in adaptations
2013: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
- Bard notices that one of the Dwarves he is hosting is named Thorin, and realizes their identity after confronting an old tapestry showing the King's Line. Upon hearing someone mention the 'Lord of Silver Fountains', he remembers the "prophecy". The words of the prophecy in the film mirror the first and fourth stanza of the poem but re-arranged and with the focus of the second part altered to make it a prophecy of dread rather than a celebration of joy:
The lord of silver fountains
The King of carven stone,
The King beneath the mountains,
Shall come into his own!
And the bells shall ring in gladness,
At the Mountain-king's return!
But all shall fail in sadness
And the lake will shine and burn,
As the final line is delivered, the camera lingers on the Sunset over the Long Lake.
