 | |
| T.A. 2747 | |
| Battle of Greenfields | |
|---|---|
| Conflict | Series of Orc-invasions in northern Eriador |
| Place | Greenfields, Northfarthing |
| Outcome | Victory for the Hobbits |
| Combatants | |
Hobbits Orcs of Mount Gram | |
| Commanders | |
| Strength | |
Unknown Unknown | |
| Casualties | |
Unknown Unknown | |
The Battle of Greenfields or Battle of the Green Fields[1] was a battle that took place at the Greenfields region in the Northfarthing of the Shire. It was the first battle fought in the Shire, and the only one until the Battle of Bywater.[2]
History
Prelude
The Shire was generally untroubled by any harm for the first 1140 years of its history. Eriador was quiet until T.A. 2740, when Orcs of the Misty Mountains invaded several parts of Eriador.[3]
The Rangers of the North fought many battles trying to hold them back, but one party managed to reach the Shire.
The Battle
Seven years after the start of the unrest, a band of Orcs of Mount Gram, led by their king Golfimbul, entered the Northfarthing.[2] Bandobras Took, who was living in Long Cleeve, crossed the river Norbourn to engage them in the region of the Greenfields, between the Norbourn and the Brandywine.[4] Large enough to ride a horse, Bandobras charged the helm of the Orc-band and knocked Golfimbul's head off with his club. The head landed in a rabbit-hole a hundred yards away.[1] Dismayed by his death, the orcs fled.[5]
Aftermath
With the rout of the orcs and the death of their king, their short uprisings within Eriador ceased, and eventually their attacks on the region stopped altogether.[4] The Shire, and Eriador as a whole, would not suffer from any more invasions until the War of the Ring.[2]
Bandobras became a hero of Hobbit legend for his feat of arms, and was regarded in the Shire as one of the greatest Hobbits in history. To commemorate Golfimbul's head landing in the rabbit-hole, the hobbits invented the game of golf.[1]
Other versions of the legendarium
In the first phase of The Hobbit, Golfimbul was called "Fingolfin" and the conflict was called "’the Battle of the’ followed by a cancelled, illegible word of four or five letters that ended in -ll (possibly ‘Bull-’?)".[6] This was immediately changed to the battle of the Green Fields of Fellin,[7] before swiftly changing Fellin to Fao which in turn was changed, likely at once, to Merria before the word was fully written.[6] John D. Rateliff notes that while these names never appear again, Merria bears a resemblance to the Merrill, a stream in Rivendell.[6][8] While Rateliff stated that he could not decipher the meanings of the names nor figure out what languages they are from, he noted that his friend, Taum Santoski, had suggested in a linguistic note that Fellin may be connected with the Noldorin word fela ("cave") and that Merria may be connected with the Quenya word merka ("wild").[6] Rateliff concluded that regardless of the names had actually meant, he is certain that they were not direct translations of "Green Field".[6]
Tolkien originally wrote that chess, in addition to golf, was also invented, because the battle was won due to a "checkmate".[7] It is possible that the reference to chess was likely removed because it was a philologist's joke that would have gone over too many heads: "checkmate" comes from Persian shah mat ("the King is Dead").[9]
The name "Battle of the Green Fields" first arose in the second phase. The reference to chess was removed at this stage.[10]
In early versions of the Prologue to The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien gave the date of the battle as 1137,[11] before changing it to 1347 and then 1147.[11] It was changed to the published form in an early version of the Appendices.[12]
Portrayal in adaptations
2003: The Hobbit (2003 video game):
- The first Hobbit outside Bag End recounts the story of Bandobras, followed by the accusations that young hobbits do not know enough about their history.[13]
2006: The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II:
- In the evil campaign, the Goblins lay siege (and conquer) the Shire as part of their revenge; the Battle of Greenfields is not yet forgotten.[14]
2007: The Lord of the Rings Online:
- In the Shire Epic Prologue Quests, a group of Goblins led by Lubach, were convinced by Éogan to invade the Shire by claiming that Lubach was the heir of Golfimbul.[15]
2012: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey:
- Gandalf mentions the battle to Bilbo, including the role of Bandobras Took, as part of an encouragement for Bilbo to go with the Dwarves.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, "An Unexpected Party"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, "The Scouring of the Shire"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, "The Third Age"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, "Unfinished index for The Lord of the Rings", in Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull (eds), The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, p. 24
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, "Prologue", "Concerning Hobbits"
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 J.R.R. Tolkien, John D. Rateliff (ed.), The History of The Hobbit, Mr. Baggins, The First Phase, "The Pryftan Fragment", p. 12 (note 7)
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, John D. Rateliff (ed.), The History of The Hobbit, Mr. Baggins, The First Phase, "The Pryftan Fragment", pp. 8-9
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Return of the Shadow, "The First Phase: XI. From Weathertop to the Ford", p. 205
- ↑ "Checkmate", Etymonline.com
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, John D. Rateliff (ed.), The History of The Hobbit, Mr. Baggins, The First Phase, "The Bladorthin Typescript"
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "I. The Prologue", pp. 8-11, 15
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "VII. The Heirs of Elendil", pp. 211, 236
- ↑ The Hobbit (2003 video game), "Hobbiton"
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II, Evil Campaign Stage 3: "The Shire"
- ↑ Quest:Prologue: Beneath the Greenfields in The Lord of the Rings Online