Rohan Questions

[Yodaman]

I started an Elvish questions thread so now I'm starting a Rohan Questions thread since I have a Rohan question . Okay, here it is:

Would Eomer keep Theoden's armor once he became king, or would he get a new one/keep his old one?

[Wayfarer]

Well, since armor is something that often has to be custom-built, or at least severly modified for each wearer, I would assume he would simply keep whatever armor he was already using.

[Nurvingiel]

And out of respect for Theoden, he wouldn't wear his armour. It might even be a custom of Rohan for Theoden to be buried with his armour.

[Wayfarer]

Also it's quite likely that the armor Theoden wouldn't have had any real longevity, and thus would have little importance attached to it. After all, what rohirric armor are shown (in the books) was often made of leather or wood, which would fit with their tendency to use light cavalry. It is also known that they didn't have the industrial capacity to forge suits of platemail, so the most that Eomer could inherit would be a chainmail shirt. Not something that he would have any particular reason to wear.

I believe it is stated that Theoden's sword was buried with him, so I would imagine his armor was as well. Full military dress for burial and all that.

[Yodaman]

K. Thanks

[Forkbeard]

Originally posted by Wayfarer
Also it's quite likely that the armor Theoden wouldn't have had any real longevity, and thus would have little importance attached to it. After all, what rohirric armor are shown (in the books) was often made of leather or wood, which would fit with their tendency to use light cavalry. It is also known that they didn't have the industrial capacity to forge suits of platemail, so the most that Eomer could inherit would be a chainmail shirt. Not something that he would have any particular reason to wear.

I believe it is stated that Theoden's sword was buried with him, so I would imagine his armor was as well. Full military dress for burial and all that.

On the other hand, armor and weapons are expensive and it was not unusual for armor and weapons to be left to the next generation if they were serviceable. In Beowulf, one of the words for sword is "leaving", a remnant from one's forbears.

Forkbeard

[Lady Ravyn]

also think about it: Eomer fought in the battle of the Pelanor fields and several others; wouldn't he already have his own?

[Twista]

when does someone ask a new question? or have i got this wrong? lol

[Yodaman]

You can ask a new question whenever you want.

[Twista]

"Name 5 cities within the Rohan Realm" if there is 5 lol...

[Forkbeard]

Originally posted by Twista
"Name 5 cities within the Rohan Realm" if there is 5 lol...

Few are mentioned, and only those explicitly mentioned are included on the map. The cities mentioned are Edoras and Dun Harrow. Helm's Deep is a fortress and not a city.

This shouldn't be taken as an assumption that no other "cities" or towns existed in Rohan. Probably though TOlkien conceived Rohan as largely agrarian meaning that sizeable towns would be few, and small villages of 5-10 households frequent.

Forkbeard

[Twista]

Yeh thats what i was thinking, but ithough someone might have knew more from Tolkeins letters or not what?

[Tuor of Gondolin]

A Rohan question:

Why was the Rohannic policy vis-a-vis Enedwaith so seemingly shortsighted?
1) Since it was deforested, but not desert, it would seem to have been in the western region a land suitable for Rohan expansion, especially since it was practically unruled and unpopulated in the west. Why not make peace with the Dunlendings and have them rule East Enedwaith as their own independent realm, recognized by Rohan and Gondor as such?
2) The policy of hostile containment of the Dunlendings (after essentially expropriating their land via a grant by Gondor), somewhat in the manner of American and Australian colonists taking over native lands as a British policy over those lands. Let's face it, in an objective court of appeals, the Dunlendings could make a good case for their lands in Calenardhon being expropriated and then their being further harassed in Dunland. This left a large, resentful group (reminiscent of the French attitude towards Alsace-Lorraine between the Franco-Prussian War and World War I) which hurt Rohan several times, with Deor and then with Saruman. And while it makes a good tale, It seems to me Helm's handling of Freca was quite foolish and "unkingly".

'If Helm dislikes a crooked staff that is thrust upon him, he breaks it. So!' With that he smote Freca such a blow with his fist that he fell back stunned, and died soon after. Helm then proclaimed Freca's son and near kin the king's enemies; and they fled, for at once Helm sent many men riding to the west marches.

[Valandil]

As much as we'd like to be consistently humanitarian, it's difficult to judge ancient societies (which Tolkien was representing with Rohan, among others) by 21st century standards.

As for Freca, read more closely the narration that describes how Freca spoke to the king in his court (it says that he 'reviled him' and the quote you give is just the tail end of it). For a king in a warrior society to have tolerated this would have been taken as a sign of weakness - and an invitation for someone else to assassinate and supplant him.

Besides, in a story, it's nice to have clear-cut 'good guys' and 'bad guys'. But don't worry about it, nobody actually got hurt, since it was only fiction.