The Hunt for the Ring

[Gordis]

Here is the thread to discuss the "Hunt for the Ring" as described in the texts published in Unfinished Tales (UT) and Hammond and Scull's Reader's Companion (RC).

I propose to concentrate on the second part of the Hunt, starting with the moment when the Ringwraiths broke the guard of Rangers at Sarn Ford and entered the Shire and ending with the debacle at the ford of Bruinen (September 22-October 20, 3018). We can also discuss the earlier events if we feel like it.

Here we can discuss the timing of various events, whether the nazgul showed competence or ineptitude and what mistakes they have made and why.

I have prepared a few maps with the movements of the Black Riders. but first of all I will post the time-schemes I have prepared and explain how I made them.

As you all may have noticed, Tolkien schemes depicting the movement of the Black Riders published in RC lack an important element: letters (A-I) denoting individual Riders had been edited out. (That's why there are lots of square brackets in the text). Why it was done I cannot say, and I think it was an extremely BAD idea - a wealth of information had been lost.

I have managed to re-introduce the letters in the RC text - at least most of them. For this I used two earlier time-schemes (these two with letters for the individual riders, both published in HOME 7: one on p.13, another on page 71). I have compared them with the account in the "Hunt for the Ring" RC and found that the first one (p.13) agrees with RC well, while the other one on p. 71 contradicts it. The reason for it is that the scheme published on p.71 (HOME7) reflects a different subplot, later abandoned: the Riders DE (Khamul and his companion) capture Hamilcar Bolger at Crickhollow on September 26 and carry him to the captain at Andrath. As the attack on Crckhollow in this version happens three days before it happens in LOTR, the same two nazgul DE are later sent to Bree, thus according to this version Khamul is in charge of the attacks both at Crickhollow and in Bree. Of course in the final version such thing is impossible: Khamul is a worthy nazgul, but even he cannot be in two places at once.

As for the time-sheme found in HOME 7, p.13, it differs little from the account in RC, only the latter is more complete. I quote this time-scheme in full:

From "Gandalf's Delay" in Home 7 "The treason of Isengard", p.13

Scheme D also provides an account of the movements of the individual Riders, who are identified by the letters A to I. It was D who came to Hobbiton on 23 September, the night on which Frodo left, and it was D and E who trailed the hobbits in the Shire, while G H I were on the East Road and F was to the southward. On the 25th, the day that Frodo reached Crickhollow, DEGHI assembled at the Brandywine Bridge; G waited there while H and I passed through Bree on Monday the 26th. On the
27th D and E 'got into Buckland and looked for Baggins'; on the 28th they 'located' him and went to get the help of G. On the night of the 29th DEG crossed the River by the Ferry; and on the same night H and I returned and attacked The Prancing Pony. Pursued by Gandalf from Crickhollow DEG fled to the King. ABCDEFG 'rode East after Gandalf and the supposed Baggins' on 1 October; F and G were sent direct to Weathertop, and the other five, together with H and I, rode through Bree at night, throwing down the gates, and from the inn (where Gandalf was) the noise of their passage was heard like a wind. F and G reached Weathertop on the 2nd; Gandalf was pursued North from Weathertop by C D E, while A B F G H I patrolled the East Road.

Using this scheme, I have reinserted the letters denoting individual riders (A-I) into the RC text, with a bit of uncertainty only in 2-3 cases.

Difficulties I have encountered:
1. F in the HOME account appears to be part of Khamul's group of six. His position is described as "to the southward". Later he sort of disappears from screen and reappears already at Andrath. In the RC account, Khamul's group counts five nazgul (including Khamul himself), while F seems to be a member of the WK's group of four (ABCF) guarding the borders of the Shire and Bree-Land. I have voluntarily left F to guard Sarn Ford, as this position seems the only one to agree with both accounts.

2.Another ambiguity arises when out of the group of FGHI I have to choose one to guard Weathertop.

the four Black Riders who were sent ahead assemble near Weathertop. [One] remains [while three] go on eastwards on or near Road - RC p 167

I have chosen again the same "problematic" F , just to make the layout of the table easier. Maybe Tolkien intended G or H to stay, who knows. As the result of my choice, F later falls into the group following Gandalf, while GHI remain on the main road.

3.And finally, at the very last stages of the hunt, five nazgul were on the Great road. They were divided into 2 groups, WK with one other nazgul and Khamul with two others. But which one of GHI was chosen to travel with the Captain is impossible to tell.


Dramatis personae: The Witch King (A) and eight nazgul, often divided into four pairs: BC, DE, FG, HI. Note it was also the way they had crossed Enedwaith and Minhiriath:

Now [the WK] divided his company into four pairs, and they rode separately, but he himself went ahead with the swiftest pair. Thus they passed west out of Rohan, and explored the desolation of Enedwaith, and came at last to Tharbad. Thence they rode through Minhiriath -UT

A is the Witch-King, Black Captain. Directed the operation from Andrath, visited the Barrows, then rode to Weathertop, fought with Gandalf, attacked Frodo, then patrolled the road to the Ford.

BC are two nazgul, who remain with the Captain at Andrath to guard the Breeland from the south and from the East. From Weathertop were sent to follow Gandalf north-east. Prepared the ambush at the Ford. BC always stick together. Likely they are the strongest of the Eight.

D is Khamul, the Shadow of the East, Lieutenant of Dol Guldur and Second to the chief. "He was the most ready of all the Nazgûl after the Black Captain himself, to perceive the presence of the Ring, but also the one whose power was most confused and diminished by daylight.-UT" Directed the search of the Shire, the attack on Crickhollow, on Oct. 3-6 guarded Weathertop with the Witch-King, later guarded the Bridge of Mitheithel.

E is Khamul's companion and messenger from Dol Guldur. At the beginning of the Hunt he was never far from Khamul (leading the blind man around in day-time, most likely). Later became separated from Khamul and was in the group that followed Gandalf.

F - This one had to ride a lot: twice made a round-trip to Weathertop. He is the third nazgul in Bree, who was sent to the WK with the news, but got waylaid by the Dunedain. Uncharacteristically, F was separated from his pair G from the start and also by the end. F often operated alone.

G - Was separated from F and added to DE, guarded the horses and the Bridge over Baranduin, then was riding with HI, also traveled a lot.

HI - inseparable pair, the two nazgul in Bree. Also had to ride a lot.

HERE ARE MY TIME-SCHEMES

Time scheme page 1
Time-scheme page 2

HERE ARE MY MAPS

1.Shire_Sept 22-26
2.Bree_Sept 26-29
3.Bree-Weathertop_Sept 30-Oct 3
4.Weahertop_Oct 3-6

Please have a look, so we can start the discussion.

[Alcuin]

I propose we henceforth refer to the hapless H and I as “Frick and Frack�.

-|-

This is very thorough. It will take a while to go through all of it.

(As we work through the exercise, it is worth considering which of the Nazgûl might be the other two Númenóreans. B and C are obvious choices, because the Witch-king seems to keep them with him, and because in making a list, Tolkien might start by listing the three fallen Númenóreans first; after all, Khamûl is surely D, “the vanguard Rider� who reached Bag End, and he is the “second to the Chief� (Glossary, UT). Khamûl should naturally have been designated B unless there were some other compelling reason to list him fourth (D). F and G might also good choices, because they each appear to work well independently.)

[Coffeehouse]

Originally Posted by Gordis

Please have a look, so we can start the discussion.

Excellent. I'll read it all when I get the time, which probably won't be before the weekend due to the ridiculous amount of studying I have on my hands

This will be fun

[Alcuin]

I have problem right away, not with the timeline you’ve laid out, Gordis, but with dates and timelines in the published texts.

“Tale of Years” says Gandalf escaped Sept 18 SR 1418. The Black Riders cross the Fords of Isen the same day. Unfinished Tales “Hunt for the Ring” (p 339 in my Houghton Mifflin hardback) says the Nazgûl reached Isengard two days later, Sept 20, and spoke to Saruman without profit. Sept 20 is also the day Gandalf meets Théoden and starts looking for Shadowfax. Sept 21, According to Unfinished Tales “Hunt for the Ring”, the Nazgûl capture Wormtongue in the evening and learn where the Shire is (p 340). Then “Tale of Years” says the Nazgûl chase off the Rangers at Sarn Ford on the evening of September 22.

Let’s say they caught Wormtongue on the main road at the Dol Baran near the North-South Road (the south end of the Greenway, near where Aragorn met his Rangers of the North and the sons of Elrond), and that they know exactly where they’re going and exactly how to get there. It’s 250–275 miles to Tharbad, which is a dangerous crossing (Boromir lost his horse there), and another 150–160 miles to Sarn Ford. (Those are straight lines.) At 40 miles per day for a mounted rider – and I’m no horseman, but I think that’s a very respectable pace for both the horse and the rider – that should be 10 days of travel.

Now, there is an alternate version (p 346) that has the Nazgûl arriving at Isengard just before Gandalf escapes. That would still be September 18, and we still need 9 Nazgûl at Sarn Ford a mere four days later. CJRT notes in Unfinished Tales “Hunt for the Ring”, footnote 17 that from “The Tale of Years”, this version of the story seems to be one his father adopted . Even so, the Nazgûl must still move more than 100 miles a day, making an extremely dangerous crossing of the Greyflood three-fifths of the way, which would be before noon (or midnight, if there were travelling at night) of the third day.

Again, this isn’t part of the timeline Gordis has laid out. But this is a problem in the texts as they stand, unless there is something somewhere else that I’ve missed, or I’ve completely misread the material (which would not be unprecedented).

[Gordis]

Originally Posted by Alcuin

This is very thorough. It will take a while to go through all of it.

I propose to go through it together, slowly, stage by stage, day by day, pinpointing uncertainties and mistakes and assessing nazgul performance.

The first question would be to assess the Captain's order to divide into 2 main groups: ABCF and DEGHI.

I think it became necessary because too many rangers (5-10?) have escaped the slaughter of Sarn Ford and were likely to bring help. Maybe some Elves were also spotted. Thus it became necessary for the strongest nazgul to remain on the eastern and southern borders of the Shire and Breeland. Though: why did they expect aid coming from South and South-east along the Greenway and not from the North or East along the Great Road?

Originally Posted by Alcuin

I propose we henceforth refer to the hapless H and I as “Frick and Frack”.

We might, but note BC are even more "Frick and Frack-ish than HI. BC never separated, while H and I took different roads in the Shire.

Originally Posted by Alcuin

(As we work through the exercise, it is worth considering which of the Nazgûl might be the other two Númenóreans. B and C are obvious choices, because the Witch-king seems to keep them with him, and because in making a list, Tolkien might start by listing the three fallen Númenóreans first; after all, Khamûl is surely D, “the vanguard Rider” who reached Bag End, and he is the “second to the Chief” (Glossary, UT). Khamûl should naturally have been designated B unless there were some other compelling reason to list him fourth (D). F and G might also good choices, because they each appear to work well independently.)

It is not exactly true that the WK always kept BC with him: after 3.10, B and C (together with F and E) were sent to follow Gandalf, and likely B was in command of the group. I guess B may well be "Gothmog, the lieutenant of Morgul" who took the command at the Pelennor after WK's death.
Anyway, I believe B and C were the strongest combat fighters of the Eight. Does it mean they were Numenoreans? It seems likely: a Numenorean was necessarily taller and stronger physically than say an Easterliing, it goes with the race. And physical strength meant a lot in Middle-Age fights with huge swords, maces etc. On the other hand an Easterling or a Southron may have been better trained (though in 4 thousand years they all likely became quite well trained).

Also the endurance to daylight may have been a factor in choosing BC. They had to guard the Greenway day and night, even in the Captain's absence.

The choice of F to operate alone and guard Sarn Ford may also be due to his daylight resistance. He was not very strong overall, as we know this guy was later waylaid by the Dunedain at night (Sept. 29-30). But maybe by day he was stronger than say, Khamul. Note that IF both B and C were Numenoreans, F couldn't have been another one: there were but three in all, including A.

E, by the way, though weaker than Khamûl (D), was surely not so blind by daylight. He clearly led his patron D through the Central Shire to Hobbiton during daytime of Sept. 23. See here the route of DE from the South to Hobbiton.

Can we suppose that Khamûl's buddy E was also an Easterling and they called to each other in some long-forgotten Eastern tongue? Maybe G was assigned to their group because he was the third Easterling?

And in general, is it reasonable to suppose there were 3 Numenoreans, 3 Easterlings and 3 Southrons? I have met this theory several times on different forums.

Or maybe there were 3 Numenoreans, 2 Easterlings, 2 Southrons and 2 Northmen akin to the ancestors of the Rohirrim? I think the latter would be closer to the mark: in mid Second Age the ancestors of the Rohirrim had to be there somewhere in Rhovanion or to the North-East of it, well within Sauron's sphere of interest. They were tall and strong people, racially close to the House of Hador. This theory would make the division in pairs according to the race quite easy:
BC Numenoreans
DE Easterlings of mongoloid (?) (Edit: not at all sure here) races
FG and HI Northmen and Southrons

Interesting to note that the Gaffer had great pains to understand Khamul's Westron ("he spoke funny"), while according to the drafts, the nazgul in Bree were not easy to understand either: maybe they were Southrons?

Here comes my other far-fetched speculation : Edanic nazgul (ABC + the Northmen: FG) were more resistant to daylight than the Southrons HI and Easterlings DE.

Thoughts?

[Gordis]

Originally Posted by Alcuin

I have problem right away, not with the timeline you’ve laid out, Gordis, but with dates and timelines in the published texts.

“Tale of Years” says Gandalf escaped Sept 18 SR 1418. The Black Riders cross the Fords of Isen the same day. Unfinished Tales “Hunt for the Ring” (p 339 in my Houghton Mifflin hardback) says the Nazgûl reached Isengard two days later, Sept 20, and spoke to Saruman without profit. Sept 20 is also the day Gandalf meets Théoden and starts looking for Shadowfax. Sept 21, According to Unfinished Tales “Hunt for the Ring”, the Nazgûl capture Wormtongue in the evening and learn where the Shire is (p 340). Then “Tale of Years” says the Nazgûl chase off the Rangers at Sarn Ford on the evening of September 22.

Let’s say they caught Wormtongue on the main road at the Dol Baran near the North-South Road (the south end of the Greenway, near where Aragorn met his Rangers of the North and the sons of Elrond), and that they know exactly where they’re going and exactly how to get there. It’s 250–275 miles to Tharbad, which is a dangerous crossing (Boromir lost his horse there), and another 150–160 miles to Sarn Ford. (Those are straight lines.) At 40 miles per day for a mounted rider – and I’m no horseman, but I think that’s a very respectable pace for both the horse and the rider – that should be 10 days of travel.

Now, there is an alternate version (p 346) that has the Nazgûl arriving at Isengard just before Gandalf escapes. That would still be September 18, and we still need 9 Nazgûl at Sarn Ford a mere four days later. CJRT notes in Unfinished Tales “Hunt for the Ring”, footnote 17 that from “The Tale of Years”, this version of the story seems to be one his father adopted . Even so, the Nazgûl must still move more than 100 miles a day, making an extremely dangerous crossing of the Greyflood three-fifths of the way, which would be before noon (or midnight, if there were travelling at night) of the third day.

Again, this isn’t part of the timeline Gordis has laid out. But this is a problem in the texts as they stand, unless there is something somewhere else that I’ve missed, or I’ve completely misread the material (which would not be unprecedented).

The speed of the nazgul horses was discussed here (see post 7), in one of my first threads on Entmoot.Nazgul horses
The great ride of Gandalf from Edoras to Sarn Ford was described in detail on p. 252 RC. Seems the nazgul horses were only a tad slower than Shadowfax.

But, as far as I understand, Chris Tolkien seemingly was wrong as to the version his father had chosen as final. There was another version described only in RC p. 241-3. In this one the nazgul visited Saruman very early, "towards early? June", even before Gandalf was captured.

Anyway, I propose to leave the beginning of the Hunt for another thread. There is a lot to discuss about the period Sept 22-Oct 20 as it is.

[Alcuin]

The Gaffer might have had trouble understanding Denethor and his archaic way of speaking Westron: like an extremely rural, half-deaf outback American or Australian farmer trying to discern what the Marquess of Milford Haven was asking him. Worse, the Nazgûl are so old, it’s not the current Marquess, who speaks modern English, but more like a contemporary of Chaucer. (Look at the deliberately archaic – and insulting – way that the Witch-king addresses Éowyn using the familiar thee/thou/thy) And worst of all, Westron wasn’t Khamûl’s native tongue, as you have noted.

Originally Posted by Gordis

This ... would make the division in pairs ... quite easy:
BC Numenoreans
DE Easterlings...
FG and HI Northmen and Southrons

...Edanic nazgul (ABC + the Northmen: FG) were more resistant to daylight than the Southrons HI and Easterlings DE.

Sounds reasonable.

-|-

(Added later)

Originally Posted by Gordis

The speed of the nazgul horses was discussed here (see post 7), in one of my first threads on Entmoot.Nazgul horses
The great ride of Gandalf from Edoras to Sarn Ford was described in detail on p. 252 RC. Seems the nazgul horses were only a tad slower than Shadowfax.

Fonstad says Gandalf with Pippin rode Shadowfax 120 miles/day to Mins Tirith from Dol Baran, and the Rohirrim rode about 80 miles a day. My straight-line measure is about 60 miles/day for the Rohirrim and 75 miles/day for Shadowfax. Grumph!

Originally Posted by Gordis

But, as far as I understand, Chris Tolkien seemingly was wrong as to the version his father had chosen as final. There was another version described only in RC p. 241-3. In this one the nazgul visited Saruman very early, "towards early? June", even before Gandalf was captured.

Anyway, I propose to leave the beginning of the Hunt for another thread. There is a lot to discuss about the period Sept 22-Oct 20 as it is.

Very well.

[Gordis]

So, let us take the first day, September 23. In early hours the five riders DEGHI invaded the Shire and rode through it during the day.

[One G] keeps to the east, passing northwards towards the Marish and Bridge. [One H] takes road leading northwest to Michel Delving, and [another I] goes with him, but there ?fares on and traverses the North Farthing. [Khamûl and his companion DE] go through the central Shire, until they reach the East Road, probably near the Three-Farthing Stone. - RC p. 97

I would say that although the maps taken from the Isengarder clearly pointed to Hobbiton as the prime target:

The Witch-king also obtained much information, including some about the only name that interested him: Baggins. It was for this reason that Hobbiton was singled out as one of the points for immediate visit and enquiry.-UT

, still much of the Shire territory had been covered.
See the map here - the riders are moving up north from Sarn Ford in three main directions: through western Shire (HI), central Shire (DE) and eastern Shire (G).

G rides through Marish directly to the Bridge of Stonebows, the principal exit from the Shire, and stays there to guard it.
Maybe G missed the existence of the Ferry, maybe he noted it while he passed by - anyway it was a serious mistake not to guard it as well. Maybe it was due to the fact that G was alone, so even if he saw the ferry, he still had to move on and guard the bridge as he was told?

By nightfall on the 23 G must have reached the bridge, H and I arrived to Michel Delving on the Great road and D (Khamul) and E came to Three-Farthing Stone. At nightfall the nazgul pairs separated, no doubt feeling surer of themselves in the dark.

I made his round-trip through the North Farthing (must have taken him all night) and H made his way eastwards along the Great road.

E keeps an eye on the East Road and Stock Road, lurking probably between the two, just south of Whitfurrows. [Khamûl D] just misses Frodo, and misled by the Gaffers [sic] starts out east again.

Khamul was alone when he visited Hobbiton. Why didn't he take his companion with him and had a good look at Bag End? After all Hobbiton was the main target, where Baggins was reportedly living: why only one nazgul there?

[jammi567]

One thing that I don't get about the Nazgul movements is why I made that massive round trip all on his own? If they had the maps, then they had to have known that there was no chance that Baggins would be up there. Unless it was a conginsency thing, just in case Baggins had changed location since Gollum had last encountered him.

As to your question, maybe it was because they realized that if they travelled in pairs or more, then they would have made themselves practically unapprachable by any sane person, even when they are fully covered up. I don't have the book on me at the moment, but I'm sure it mentioned something like that in Unfinished Tales.

[Alcuin]

We should bear in mind that the Witch-king and his loathsome companions probably believed that the Ringbearer was more likely to flee to Lindon than to Rivendell. Certainly that was Elrond’s first reaction to deal with the Ring: the road to the West was too easy, and too easily guessed: too often the Elves had taken that road, and only a harder one would do. From one perspective, sending the Ring to Lindon and then marching it in force to Rivendell, had that been the Bearer’s destination, would have seemed wiser, at least from the viewpoint of the servants of Sauron: it would have been more easily defended and better guarded. So H and I had to be certain that there were no escapes west or north. (The Grey Havens were almost due west of Hobbiton, while the ruins of Annúminas were almost due north.) So that movement makes sense to me.

The Nazgûl had the maps of the Isengarder spy. (Their vision could not have been so bad that they could not read the maps in any event.) So G moved to cut off the only escape to the east from the Shire, at least, the only one he could know about. Remember, Buckland wasn’t marked on any maps, and unless he noticed the side road to the Buckleberry Ferry, he would have missed the ferry altogether. I imagine it was something of a surprise for Khamûl to find his prey poling off across the “Elvish Baranduin�.

Gordis, this seems pretty solid to me. At least it is reasonable, and it fits the texts you have cited. My observations are these:

• Both the inset map in Fonstad’s atlas and the map of the Shire in the front of The Fellowship of the Ringwould seem to indicate that the main road from Sarn Ford passed through Sackville, Whitwell, and joined the Great East Road at Waymeet (hence its name, no doubt).
• It was fortunate for Frodo and his companions that there were no main road (maybe backroads) directly from San Ford to Hobbiton. It looks as if the road north from Longbottom stopped at Pincup, so I would assume that what was available through the hills were smaller, winding, less travelled ways. There appears to be no direct main route to the Marish from Sarn Ford at all, and there are two streams cutting the way (only one after Willowbottom) and a marsh. Did Khamûl and E come cross-country, or through Waymeet?
• Best of all for Frodo, Saruman’s spies had not mapped Buckland, so that created some difficulty for the Nazgûl: not only were they unaware of it (G probably figured it out once he reached the Bridge, but had no way of exploring it himself without leaving his post, and no good means of alerting the others at such a distance), they were at something of a loss to make their way through it.

As for Khamûl and the visit to Hobbiton, I don’t know why only one of the Nazgûl went. I do know that, according to RC, 176 (I: 178) (elisions and bracket are not mine, but from the text in this citation), the Witch-king was

elated to learn that the Ring really was in the Shire, but is alarmed and angry at its escape; and also by the fact that the Bearer must know that he is being hunted. (If he is a person of power and knowledge he may find out how to use it, and compel a Nazgûl to leave him unmolested at he least. But [he is told that Khamûl] ahs discovered that the Bearer is a v[ery]small spiritless creature with no pride or willpower, and is filled with terror at the approach of a Nazgûl.)

Here are several clues to the purposes of the hunters. First, if the Bearer “is a person of power and knowledge he may find out how to use it, and compel a Nazgûl to leave him unmolested at he least.â€� Which brings up the possibility that he might be able to do more than “the least,â€� and actually compel a Nazgûl to help him. One can imagine the result had Aragorn, CÃ*rdan, Elrond, Gandalf, or Saruman (who had spent centuries studying the Rings) come into confrontation with two Nazgûl, “recruitedâ€� them into service; learned from them the plans, locations, and devices of the others; and one by one or two by two picked them off. For the Witch-king and his fellows, things could hardly have turned out worse than that: no doubt several of them might have been destroyed, or at least damaged, while their new master and their old (who still held their Nine Rings) quarreled over original claims versus possession of the property. One Nazgûl at a time, and if one met a new Master, perhaps another could warn the rest of them, so that they would at least not be caught unprepared.

Another is that the Nazgûl were hunting: they wanted most to prevent the Bearer’s escape, and to that end they laid a net around the Shire, which they slowly drew and tightened, with Khamûl going right into the heart of the Shire. If the Bearer fled along any of the main roads and egresses from the little country, they would catch him: Khamûl was like a hunting hound, and if he could catch the Ringbearer himself, then excellent; otherwise, he would chase the Bearer into the waiting arms of another Nazgûl.

[Gordis]

Originally Posted by jammi567

One thing that I don't get about the Nazgul movements is why I made that massive round trip all on his own? If they had the maps, then they had to have known that there was no chance that Baggins would be up there. Unless it was a conginsency thing, just in case Baggins had changed location since Gollum had last encountered him.

As to your question, maybe it was because they realized that if they traveled in pairs or more, then they would have made themselves practically unapprachable by any sane person, even when they are fully covered up. I don't have the book on me at the moment, but I'm sure it mentioned something like that in Unfinished Tales.

Great you have joined the discussion, Jammi!
I think Alcuin's answer to your first question is very good. They had to check all exits from the Shire and cover more ground. The move of the Ring towards Lindon was quite possible.

As to the nazgul separating to make themselves more "approachable", I think it was not the real reason. Two nazgul together could make inquiries in Bree without causing much fear. I believe they separated at nightfall just to be able to check more roads.
It would have been more profitable to separate from the start, but seemingly with these half-blind in daylight guys (DE and HI) it was simply impossible. It is about 100 miles from Sarn Ford to the Great Road that passes through the Shire: it must have taken them all day to get there. Nightfall of Sept 23 must have occurred just as they came to the Road. And it was exactly where they broke their pairs.

[Gordis]

Alcuin - thank you for your great input and corrections. Indeed I should have paid more attention to the course of the Shire roads. I have modified my map accordingly. Great job!
Here is the modified map THE MODIFIED SHIRE MAP 1
The map I used is Fonstad's map of the Shire[/URL]

Originally Posted by Alcuin

The Nazgûl had the maps of the Isengarder spy. (Their vision could not have been so bad that they could not read the maps in any event.)

The way they moved makes it pretty evident (even without Tolkien telling us) that the nazgul planned the invasion beforehand quite carefully, using maps of the area. I wonder whose was the plan: the Captain's or Khamul's? I am sure every nazgul had studied the maps and knew them well. (Maybe they could only read at night, at least the day-blind ones, like Khamul). The difference in nazgul activities by day and by night is striking, especially when one tries to map their movements. At night they are self-sufficient, active and bold. By day they either hide, or move along roads tightly sticking to their pairs.

Originally Posted by Alcuin

Gordis, this seems pretty solid to me. At least it is reasonable, and it fits the texts you have cited. My observations are these:
Both the inset map in Fonstad’s atlas and the map of the Shire in the front of The Fellowship of the Ringwould seem to indicate that the main road from Sarn Ford passed through Sackville, Whitwell, and joined the Great East Road at Waymeet (hence its name, no doubt).
It was fortunate for Frodo and his companions that there were no main road (maybe backroads) directly from San Ford to Hobbiton. It looks as if the road north from Longbottom stopped at Pincup, so I would assume that what was available through the hills were smaller, winding, less travelled ways. Did Khamûl and E come cross-country, or through Waymeet?

Yes, it is evident that the nazgul had been following the roads, at least by day, using the map they had. I have not paid it enough attention, thank you, Alcuin for the suggestions! DE (Khamul and his buddy) obviously took the road to Pincup where it branched from the main road from Sarn Ford to Waymeet and then made it across country to the Great Road. It was the only way they could hit it near Three Farthing Stone, as we know they did. It was a direct and shortest way to Hobbiton. No, they didn't pass Waymeet, or it would have been mentioned.

Now as for HI, we are not told that they made it cross-country to Michel Delving - my other mistake. They followed the road, and that makes them pass through Hardbottle, follow this road north, then turn west along the Great road. That was where they separated at nightfall. It would have made a lot of sense for one of them to take the road to Waymeet, then turn west and meet his pal at Michel Delving. But no, neither of them was fit to travel alone while the day lasted. Our Frick and Frack were likely the weakest of the Nine.

I just see Rule No 1 in the nazgul's job description: "DON'T operate alone by daylight!" BTW, had the WK followed this rule at the Pelennor, he would have been still alive.

Originally Posted by Alcuin

There appears to be no direct main route to the Marish from Sarn Ford at all, and there are two streams cutting the way (only one after Willowbottom) and a marsh. … G moved to cut off the only escape to the east from the Shire, at least, the only one he could know about. Remember, Buckland wasn’t marked on any maps, and unless he noticed the side road to the Buckleberry Ferry, he would have missed the ferry altogether. I imagine it was something of a surprise for Khamûl to find his prey poling off across the “Elvish Baranduin”.
Best of all for Frodo, Saruman’s spies had not mapped Buckland, so that created some difficulty for the Nazgûl: not only were they unaware of it (G probably figured it out once he reached the Bridge, but had no way of exploring it himself without leaving his post, and no good means of alerting the others at such a distance), they were at something of a loss to make their way through it.

It makes a lot of sense that as Buckland was not marked on the Isengarder's map, the Ferry connecting to Brandy Hall wasn't either. I am sure, had the nazgul known about the Ferry, one of them would have remained guarding it.
They did guard all the ways out of the Shire but this one: H was at the West exit, G at the East exit via the Bridge and F at Sarn Ford.
Mapping things made me wonder again about G. He is exceptional: operating alone in the middle of the day, he crossed two small rivers, found the end of the Marish road unerringly, followed it, found the Bridge. He must be a Numenorean, or at least a Northman with good day vision and not much fear of water. I give A+ to G.

Originally Posted by Alcuin

As for Khamûl and the visit to Hobbiton, I don’t know why only one of the Nazgûl went. I do know that, according to RC, 176 (I: 178) (elisions and bracket are not mine, but from the text in this citation), the Witch-king was ....
Here are several clues to the purposes of the hunters. First, if the Bearer “is a person of power and knowledge he may find out how to use it, and compel a Nazgûl to leave him unmolested at he least.” Which brings up the possibility that he might be able to do more than “the least,” and actually compel a Nazgûl to help him. One can imagine the result had Aragorn, CÃ*rdan, Elrond, Gandalf, or Saruman (who had spent centuries studying the Rings) come into confrontation with two Nazgûl, “recruited” them into service; learned from them the plans, locations, and devices of the others; and one by one or two by two picked them off. For the Witch-king and his fellows, things could hardly have turned out worse than that: no doubt several of them might have been destroyed, or at least damaged, while their new master and their old (who still held their Nine Rings) quarreled over original claims versus possession of the property. One Nazgûl at a time, and if one met a new Master, perhaps another could warn the rest of them, so that they would at least not be caught unprepared.

Very good point. That aspect of the Hunt constantly gets overlooked or glossed over. Yet it contributes a lot to nazgul's fear to attack Frodo wearing the Ring, the necessity to wound him with the Morgul blade to break his will -and not grab and carry him off unmolested, as well as all their trouble to not let Gandalf approach the Ring-Company.

[Alcuin]

This brings up an interesting point that we should probably discuss in another thread:

What did the Nazgûl and Sauron make of it that the Ringbearer was “a v[ery]small spiritless creature with no pride or willpower, and is filled with terror at the approach of a Nazgûl.�

Sauron and any of his adherents would have seized any desirable good from another, weaker creature in a heartbeat. Could Sauron or the Nazgûl even imagine that any of the Wise or Aragorn (once Sauron knew of him) pass up an opportunity to take the Ring for his own? Sauron knew that Saruman had already fallen to the temptation of the Ring. He must have assumed that in the Company of the Ring, the One Ring was in the possession of one of the other members – Gandalf or Aragorn, most likely – and not with any of the halflings, which explains the sarcastic abuse heaped upon Gandalf and all Hobbitry by the Mouth of Sauron at the Morannon: “What use you find in [these imps] I cannot guess; but to send them as spies into Mordor is beyond even your accustomed folly.�

Allowing Gandalf to approach the Bearer surely meant, to the Nazgûl, that the wizard would claim the Ring for his own. They would be caught in conflicting allegiances and subject to his commands. It explains the perplexity of the Witch-king at Weathertop cited from “The Hunt for the Ring� MSS in RC 196 (I:208), where Tolkien says the Witch-king “now knows who is the Bearer, and is greatly puzzled that it should be a small creature and not Aragorn, who seems to be a great power though apparently ‘only a Ranger’.�

[Gordis]

Alcuin, I have opened a new thread for your last question in LOTR forum HERE. I guess this discussion would be of general interest. As for me, I have little to say on the matter, as I agree with you 100%.

Now back to our maps and timelines.

I guess the main problem for the nazgul was the absence of Buckland and the Ferry on their maps. (It were not the nazgul, but Saruman's spies who were at fault!) That led to the nazgul's failure to guard the Ferry and, which was quite important, the lack of attention to the Stock road, the one the hobbits took.
Indeed, this road led nowhere - starting at Tuckburrow and ending at Woodhall. It was entirely by chance that Khamul happened to be there, it seems - or maybe he was led by the lingering ring-scent? After all, later at Crickhollow Khamul was able to tell that the Ring had been there...

[On 24 September he D] picks up the Stock Road, and overtakes Frodo at approaches to Woody End - probably by accident; he becomes uneasily aware of the Ring, but is hesitant and uncertain because of the bright sun. He turns into the woods and waits for night.-RC p.98

Why didn't he call his buddy E? Perhaps because E fared not much better by daylight? But then again, E's job was messenger from Dol-Guldur to Mordor. Likely he was used to travel alone and by day as well as by night. So was Khamul simply wanting to be the one to get the Ring for the Master? Or, as Alcuin had suggested, was he trying to keep his buddy out of harm's way if the Bearer claimed the Ring? At the moment they had no idea what kind of creature Frodo was.

Well, let us read further about the night of September 24-25.

After dark, becoming acutely aware of the Ring, [Khamûl D] goes in pursuit; but is daunted by the sudden appearance of the Elves and the song of Elbereth. While Frodo is surrounded by the Elves he cannot perceive the Ring clearly.- RC, p.99

This Ring-sense is a bit puzzling to me. First of all, these guys haven't "smelled" the Ring for 3000 years. And before the Last Alliance Sauron hardly played games with his nazgul hiding the Ring an asking them to find it, did he? So how did they know in the first place which nazgul would be more Ring-sensitive?

[Alcuin]

If E was posted between the Stock Road and the Great East Road near Whitwell, he was a good 25 miles away from Khamûl in Hobbiton. Khamûl had no idea where Frodo was going, and he followed as best he could, all the way to Gildor’s way-station near the village of Woodhall. (Which could be how “Woodhall� got its name, although it is a perfectly good name for a big wooden house, too.) Only after he lost them because he could not go down the slope and then heard the hobbits singing did he start calling out for his companion.

I don’t think it was to keep another Nazgûl from harm’s way: Khamûl had already sensed that Frodo was afraid of him, I think: he probably overheard the hobbits’ discussion with the Eldar in the woods. They certainly knew that Frodo was a halfling. What the reaction of a typical hobbit of the Shire to these monsters was we can only guess: The Gaffer was deaf and exasperated; Farmer Maggot was obstinate as well, but frightened, too, though he carried himself well. These characters were exceptional: Maggot was honest and brave, and the Gaffer was an honest but difficult old codger. Surely most hobbits were thoroughly terrified of the Black Riders!

I think Khamûl and E went right into the middle of the Shire to shake the Ringbearer loose from whatever place he was ensconced. That Frodo was already on the move rather upset their plans.

The one weak part of their plan was weak was that Frodo might move west, and quickly, crossing over into Lindon. Only Khamûl and H were in position to intercept him if that happened. (In one of the early drafts, they chase Gandalf into one of the Elf Towers on Tower Hills. These were actually all that remained of the ancient towers of Arnor, but that had been built by Gil-galad for Elendil. Because the last of the Northern palantÃ*ri was in one of them, the Elves guarded them; whether the guard could have held off the Nazgûl, I don’t know, nor whether they would have admitted Frodo to the towers if he were pursued by the Ringwraiths.)

As for sudden Ring-sensitivity, it makes sense. Sauron sent them out to find the Ring. We have already discussed the ability of even one of the weaker Nazgûl to cause the Ring to try to reveal itself in Bree: the Ringwraith was across the street from the Prancing Pony when that happened. If Sauron equipped his servants to ping the Ring, then it only stands to reason that he made them as sensitive as he could to its location. After all, he wants them to find the thing! If they can “feel� for it and ping it, that’s tremendously better than just blundering about. It seems that Khamûl was quite good at the “feeling� for the Ring, but not so competent pinging it: Frodo did not put on the Ring in the Woody End.

[Gordis]

Originally Posted by Alcuin

If E was posted between the Stock Road and the Great East Road near Whitwell, he was a good 25 miles away from Khamûl in Hobbiton. [..] Only after he lost them because he could not go down the slope and then heard the hobbits singing did he start calling out for his companion.

Yes, when Khamul became desperate, when he felt he couldn't find the way down from the ridge without his guide E, he summoned him by the cry. E was quite far from Khamul even then: about 12 miles.
We should note that this was likely the first and the last nazgul cry in the Shire. It seems shrieking was the last resort, it interfered with secrecy imposed by Sauron and with the nature of their business. (Compare to it PJ's movie, when nazgul shriek all the time like deranged hamsters without any apparent reason.)

Originally Posted by Alcuin

Surely most hobbits were thoroughly terrified of the Black Riders!

I am not so sure. Pippin and Sam didn't seem much impressed by the near-meetings with Khamul. Gaffer and Maggot were plainly rude, instead of groveling. Butterbur also slammed the door in the nazgul's faces. I imagine what Lobelia would have said, had the hapless Khamul met her

I think Khamûl and E went right into the middle of the Shire to shake the Ringbearer loose from whatever place he was ensconced. That Frodo was already on the move rather upset their plans.

I have got a definite impression that the nazgul expected the Ring to be already on the move. Maybe, much like Saruman, they believed Faramir's dream that Isildur's bane would be shown in Imladris?

[Saruman] believed also (knowing of the oracular dream-words and of Boromir's mission) that the Ring had gone and was already on the way on Rivendell.-UT

Note that the Witch-King went to muster the Wights before he knew that the Ring had left the Shire and was moving eastwards. He anticipated this move.

Originally Posted by Alcuin

The one weak part of their plan was that Frodo might move west, and quickly, crossing over into Lindon. Only Khamûl and H were in position to intercept him if that happened.

Two nazgul were already enough, IMO. Note that only one G was guarding the opposite exit. In hindsight it would have been better to send H and I east as well, to watch the bank of Baranduin, but it is to their credit that they had foreseen all the possibilities.

If Sauron equipped his servants to ping the Ring, then it only stands to reason that he made them as sensitive as he could to its location. After all, he wants them to find the thing! If they can “feel” for it and ping it, that’s tremendously better than just blundering about. It seems that Khamûl was quite good at the “feeling” for the Ring, but not so competent pinging it: Frodo did not put on the Ring in the Woody End.

Yes, "ping" might have been a spell taught by Sauron to the nazgul (You see, in days long-past Sauron used Ping-spell every morning when he was searching for the Ring in his messy bedroom ). But the response must have been something the Ring itself did. Maybe its "Presence" intensified, was becoming more detectable, maybe it only could make its bearer put it on. Then likely in the Shire the Ring itself hasn't yet found the proper response to "ping", or had not enough hold on Frodo's mind - yet.

[Alcuin]

Originally Posted by Gordis

Exactly, when Khamul felt he couldn't find a way down from the ridge without his guide E, he summoned him by cry. E was quite far from Khamul even then: about 12 miles.

No, not when he couldn’t get down the slope. He cried for E after the hobbits got loud singing Ho! Ho! Ho! to the bottle I go. Several hours had passed since they had seem the Black Rider at the top of the hill, and they’d had lunch and a little too much of whatever the Elves put in their bottles. I think Khamûl was alerting E to the sound of the singing and directing him to intercept it.

Originally Posted by Gordis

I imagine what Lobelia would have said, had the hapless Khamul met her

She’d have whacked him with her umbrella, no doubt. But then, the Nazgûl were probably trying not to scare the dickens out of the locals: rumor of their approach would run before them, and it would flush the bird too soon if he was still in the Shire.

Originally Posted by Gordis

I have got a definite impression that the nazgul expected the Ring to be already on the move. Maybe, much like Saruman, they believed Faramir's dream that Isildur's bane would be shown in Imladris?

Note that the Witch-King went to muster the Wights before he knew that the Ring had left the Shire and was moving eastwards. He anticipated this move.

Nice catch. I concede the point.

Originally Posted by Gordis

Two nazgul were already enough, IMO. Note that only one G was guarding the opposite exit.

That was E’s job as well. There was one Nazgûl between Hobbiton and the Bridge, another on the other side of the Bridge, one west of Hobbiton, and one north. The only way out should have been south, and Khamûl was coming from that direction.

The Ringwraith Expeditionary Force almost captured Frodo. Before Frodo got to the other side of the Baranduin, he had five near-missed with Khamûl: at Bag End, near Woody End in the evening, below Woody End the next morning, near Maggot’s farm, and at the Ferry: had it not been for the Ferry, about which the Nazgûl were clueless until Khamûl followed him there, he’d have been caught. Once he got to the other side, he was literally off their map.

[Gordis]

Originally Posted by Alcuin

No, not when he couldn’t get down the slope. He cried for E after the hobbits got loud singing Ho! Ho! Ho! to the bottle I go. Several hours had passed since they had seem the Black Rider at the top of the hill, and they’d had lunch and a little too much of whatever the Elves put in their bottles. I think Khamûl was alerting E to the sound of the singing and directing him to intercept it.

But the hobbits naturally stopped singing when they heard Khamul's shriek. Instead of interrupting the song, the nazgul could have used the sound to approach the Hobbits. To me it shows that Khamul got stranded somewhere - likely on top of the ridge over Woody End and, being blind, couldn't go further - so he called to his buddy to search for the way down.

Originally Posted by Alcuin

She’d have whacked him with her umbrella, no doubt.

Do all umbrellas perish that whack the dreadful Khamul?

I wonder, what would have happened had Khamul arrived one day later. Here is Bag End, here is Mr. Lotho Baggins, the owner. "Now, Bagginsss, where is the Ring? - To Mordor we shall take you..."

Originally Posted by Alcuin

The Ringwraith Expeditionary Force almost captured Frodo. Before Frodo got to the other side of the Baranduin, he had five near-missed with Khamûl: at Bag End, near Woody End in the evening, below Woody End the next morning, near Maggot’s farm, and at the Ferry: had it not been for the Ferry, about which the Nazgûl were clueless until Khamûl followed him there, he’d have been caught. Once he got to the other side, he was literally off their map.

Nice summary. So, do the nazgul get A for the actions in the Shire? (Not A+ for the missing of the Ferry).

[Alcuin]

Originally Posted by Gordis

it shows that Khamul got stranded somewhere - likely on top of the ridge over Woody End and, being blind, couldn't go further - so he called to his buddy to search for the way down.

Not to hunt for a way down or around: he had the horse for that. He had to direct E to their quarry, since he could not immediately reach them himself. Until then, it is not clear that Khamûl had “told” any of the others that he had found the Ring: he had only hunted it himself.

Originally Posted by Gordis

do the nazgul get A for the actions in the Shire?

I think so.

[Gordis]

Originally Posted by Alcuin

Not to hunt for a way down or around: he had the horse for that. He had to direct E to their quarry, since he could not immediately reach them himself. Until then, it is not clear that Khamûl had “told� any of the others that he had found the Ring: he had only hunted it himself.

But E was much further from the Hobbits than Khamul. Why call him at this point then? Why interrupt their merry song?

EDIT: It has been brought to my attention that the time-scemes I have linked to in the first post are not easy to visualize in html format - one has to scroll to see them.
I am offering to send the .pdf or .doc files to everyone who asks for them. Just send me a PM with your e-mail address.