Anárion
| Anárion | |
|---|---|
| Númenórean | |
 | |
| "Anárion" by Liz Danforth | |
| Biographical Information | |
| Pronunciation | Q, [aˈnaːri.on] |
| Titles | King of Gondor |
| Location | Númenor, Gondor |
| Affiliation | Faithful, Last Alliance of Elves and Men |
| Language | Quenya, Sindarin, and Adûnaic |
| Birth | S.A. 3219 Andúnië, Númenor |
| Rule | S.A. 3320 - 3440 (joint reign) |
| Death | S.A. 3440 (aged 221) During Siege of Barad-dûr |
| Notable for | Founded Gondor with Isildur |
| Family | |
| House | House of Elendil, founded the House of Anárion |
| Parentage | Elendil |
| Siblings | Isildur |
| Children | Three unnamed children, Meneldil |
| Physical Description | |
| Gender | Male |
| Gallery | Images of Anárion |
Anárion was the second son of Elendil and the brother of Isildur.[1] His son Meneldil was the last man born in Númenor before its Downfall.[2]
History[edit | edit source]
Anárion, together with his father and brother, were the leaders of the Faithful, the small minority of Númenóreans that resisted the dark rule of Ar-Pharazôn and his councilor Sauron. In S.A. 3319, when Ar-Pharazôn assailed the land of Aman,[3] nine ships of the Faithful escaped to the east (four for Elendil, three for Isildur, and two for Anárion).[4] They were separated by the great storm that arose during the Downfall. Elendil landed in northern Middle-earth near Lindon and there established the realm of Arnor. Isildur and Anárion, however, landed in the south and founded the realm of Gondor in 3320 about the Mouths of Anduin.[1]
Together, Anárion and Isildur were chiefly responsible for the early ordering of Gondor, and their thrones were set side by side in the Great Hall of Osgiliath. In the city of Minas Anor, Anárion established his house while Isildur set up his in Minas Ithil.
Sauron also survived the Downfall of Númenor and reentered Mordor in 3320. In 3429, Sauron attacked Gondor with a force great enough to take Minas Ithil and force Isildur to flee. Whilst Isildur, his wife, and his sons sailed from Gondor seeking Elendil’s aid, Anárion defended Osgiliath and was able to drive his forces back into the mountains. Yet Sauron gathered greater strength and Anárion knew that without succor Gondor would fall.[3][1]
Aid did arrive when Elendil, Isildur, and the Men of Arnor, in league with the High King of the Noldor, Gil-galad, formed the Last Alliance of Elves and Men and marched south. Anárion led the Gondorians to the plain between Cirith Gorgor and the Dead Marshes and fought in the Battle of Dagorlad alongside the alliance. The allies entered Mordor and laid the Siege of Barad-dûr, but Anárion was slain by a thrown rock in 3440.[5]
Legacy[edit | edit source]
Minas Anor and its attached land of Anórien were named following the heraldic meaning of his name.[6]
Anárion had four children, the youngest of whom was a son, Meneldil.[note 1] It is said that he was well-pleased at the departure of Isildur and his sons.[2] After the Disaster of the Gladden Fields, Meneldil became the first independent King of Gondor and the two realms in exile were estranged.
Anárion's war-helm, which was also used as a crown, was crushed when he was killed. The war-helm of Isildur was used for the crowning of the Kings of Gondor.[7]
The Line of Anárion lasted over two thousand years, their members being known as Anárioni.[8] In honor of the founding co-rulers, when Rómendacil II built the Argonath he had the Pillars of the Kings carved in the likenesses of Anárion and Isildur.[9] Yet the male line of Anárion dwindled and finally perished when King Eärnur died childless. From that time forth the Ruling Stewards ruled in the name of the House of Anárion.[10]
Etymology[edit | edit source]
 | Anarion.mp3 |
| By Ardamir. (Help; more articles) | |
Anárion is a Quenya name. Although its meaning is not glossed, it is ostensibly a compound of anar ("sun") and the patronymic suffix -ion ("son of"), therefore having the meaning "Son of the Sun".[11]
Genealogy[edit | edit source]
| Amandil Sailed west S.A. 3316† | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Elendil S.A. 3119 - 3441† | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Isildur S.A. 3209 - T.A. 2† | ANÁRION S.A. 3219 - 3440† | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kings of Arnor | Three children unknown | Meneldil S.A. 3318 - T.A. 158 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Cemendur S.A. 3399 - T.A. 238 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Other versions of the legendarium[edit | edit source]
In The Peoples of Middle-earth, in Section VII "The Heirs of Elendil", Christopher Tolkien explained that there were three manuscripts in the textual history of this section. Manuscript A contained the information about the Southern Line of Gondor, and from its condition it appeared to be the first stage of composition. Manuscript B added the Northern Line, and began as a fair copy of A for the Southern line but became heavily amended. Manuscript B led to Manuscript C, a fine copy (but with later emendations), which led to a final typescript D. In the earlier Manuscripts A and B, Anárion's date of birth was S.A. 3209 instead of S.A. 3219. It was Isildur who was born in 3219 instead of 3209 and thus Anárion was the older of Elendil's two sons.[5]
Portrayal in adaptations[edit | edit source]
| Anárion in adaptations | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Films[edit | edit source]
2003: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King:
- In the Extended Edition, Denethor refers to himself as being "Steward of the House of Anárion" before he lights his pyre. However, Anárion himself is not otherwise mentioned, nor is it made clear that his line received kingship of Gondor from Isildur.
Games[edit | edit source]
2001-2007: The Lord of the Rings Trading Card Game:
- Although Anárion does not appear in The Lord of the Rings film series, Decipher produced a card for the character.
2019: The Lord of the Rings Online:
- Anárion appears during an extended flashback set during the Siege of Barad-dûr in the year S.A. 3440, shortly before his death.
Television[edit | edit source]
2022: The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power:
- 9 September: Adar:
- Anárion is mentioned by Elendil in his advice for Isildur to let the past die. Anárion had ignored the same advice years earlier and since then, dwelled on the Western Shores of Númenor, despite there being nothing there according to Elendil.
Notes
- ↑ The records only state that Meneldil was Anárion's "4th child"; these would either be daughters or sons who died before Meneldil succeeded his uncle.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The Disaster of the Gladden Fields", Note 10
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, "The Second Age"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Akallabêth: The Downfall of Númenor"
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "VII. The Heirs of Elendil"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, "Nomenclature of The Lord of the Rings" in Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull (eds), The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, p. 776
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The Númenorean Kings", "Eriador, Arnor, and the Heirs of Isildur"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "VII. The Heirs of Elendil", p. 196
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The Númenorean Kings", "Gondor and the Heirs of Anárion"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, "The Pyre of Denethor"
- ↑ Paul Strack, "Q. Anárion m.", Eldamo - An Elvish Lexicon (accessed 27 May 2021)
| Anárion House of Elendil Cadet branch of the House of Elros | ||
| Preceded by: Elendil (as High King) | 2nd King of Gondor (under High Kingship of Elendil) S.A. 3320 - S.A. 3440 (with Isildur) | Followed by: Isildur (as sole King of Gondor) |
