Aragorn

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Template:Infobox Tolkien In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Aragorn II was the 16th Chieftain of the Dúnedain of the North (T.A. 2931 – F.A. 120) who was later crowned King Elessar Telcontar, 26th King of Arnor, 34th King of Gondor and First High King of the Reunited Kingdom.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

1 Biography
2 Portrayal in adaptations
3 Trivia
4 See also
5 External link

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Biography

Aragorn, who was named after his ancestor, Aragorn I, was born on March 1 in 2931 of the Third Age, the son of Arathorn II and his wife Gilraen. Through his ancestor Elendil whom he had an astonishing resemblance to Template:Fact, Aragorn was a descendant of Elros Tar-Minyatur, Elrond's twin brother and the first king of Númenor.

When Aragorn was only two years old, his father was slain when an arrow pierced him in the eye, while hunting Orcs. Like many of his ancestors, Aragorn was fostered in Rivendell by the elf-lord Elrond Halfelven. At the request of his mother, his identity was kept secret, as she feared he would be slain like his father and grandfather if his true identity as the Heir of Isildur became known. Aragorn was named Estel (Sindarin for "Hope") instead, and was not told about his heritage until he came of age in 2951.

At that time, Elrond revealed to "Estel" his true name and ancestry, and delivered to him the shards of Narsil and the Ring of Barahir. He withheld the Sceptre of Annuminas from him till he "came of the right" to possess them. It was also around this time that, in the woods of Imladris (the Elvish name of Rivendell), Aragorn met and fell in love with Arwen, daughter of Elrond, who had newly returned from her mother's homeland of Lórien.

From then on, Aragorn assumed his proper role as the sixteenth Chieftain of the Dúnedain, the Rangers of the North, and went into the Wild, where dwelt the remnants of his people, whose kingdom had been destroyed through civil and regional wars centuries before.

In 2953, he was not present in Rivendell for the last meeting of the White Council. Aragorn met Gandalf the Grey in 2956, and they became close friends. At Gandalf's advice he and his followers began to guard a small land known as the Shire, inhabited by the diminutive and agrarian Hobbits, and he became known among the peoples just outside the Shire's borders as Strider.

From 2957 to 2980, Aragorn took great journeys, serving in the armies of King Thengel of Rohan, and Steward Ecthelion II of Gondor. Many of his tasks helped to raise morale in the West and counter the growing threat of Sauron and his allies, and he earned invaluable experience which he would later put to use in the War of the Ring. Aragorn served his lords in disguise and his name in Gondor and Rohan during that time was Thorongil (Eagle of the Star). With a small Gondorian squadron of ships, he led an assault on the long-standing rebel province of Umbar in 2980, burning many of the Corsairs' ships and personally slaying their lord during the battle on the Havens. After the victory at Umbar, "Thorongil" left the field and to the dismay of his men, went East.

Later in 2980, he visited Lórien, and there once again met Arwen. He gave her the heirloom of his House, the Ring of Barahir, and Arwen pledged her hand to him in marriage, renouncing her Elvish lineage and accepting the Gift of Men: death.

Elrond withheld from Aragorn permission to marry his daughter until such time as his foster son should be king of both Gondor and Arnor. To Elrond's as well as Aragorn's knowledge, to marry a mortal his daughter would be required to herself choose mortality, and thus deprive the deathless Elrond of his daughter while the world lasted. Elrond was also concerned for Arwen's own happiness, fearing that in the end she might find death, both her own and that of her beloved, difficult to bear.

In 3009, Aragorn went at Gandalf's request into Rhovanion in search of Gollum. He finally caught the creature in the Dead Marshes in sight of Mordor, and brought him as a captive to Thranduil's halls in Mirkwood, where Gandalf questioned him.

On September 30, 3018, Aragorn was waiting in the Inn of the Prancing Pony in Bree, near the northeastern borders of the Shire, where he introduced himself to Frodo Baggins, and began his role in the War of the Ring. Aragorn was aged 87 at that time, nearing the prime of life for one of royal Númenórean descent.

The restoration of the line of Elendil to the throne of Gondor is a subplot of The Lord of the Rings; Aragorn's adventures not only aid Frodo in his Quest, but also bring him closer to his own kingship — which, although his by lineage, has due to historical and legal circumstances been left open for centuries, with the people of Gondor under the rule of Stewards, while it was widely doubted whether any of the royal line still lived. Shortly after Isildur's departure, Meneldil had severed Gondor from Arnor, although the formal title of High King remained with the northern line. This had been reinforced by the Steward Pelendur in T.A. 1945 when he rejected Arvedui's claim to the Throne of Gondor during a succession crisis (Eärnil, a member of the House of Anárion, was eventually chosen as King instead). By the time of the War, many in Gondor were used to the rule of the Stewards, and felt in any case that the Line of Isildur no longer had enough dignity to claim kingship over Gondor. The Steward Denethor, for instance, declared that he would not bow to a descendant of Isildur. Thus, Aragorn had to convince the people of Gondor that he "deserved" to be king, which he managed to do by his achievements and qualities of character, especially during and immediately after the Battle of the Pelennor Fields (see below).

Aragorn was the founder of the West's endgame strategy in the War of the Ring. Prior to the downfall of Isengard, there was no clear plan which recommended itself to Gondor and Rohan, but when Aragorn recovered the Palantír of Orthanc, a stone which allowed direct communication with Sauron, he was determined to show himself as the Heir of Isildur. In wresting the Stone from Sauron's will, he drew the Dark Lord's Eye from Mordor, thereby giving Frodo a better chance to fulfill his Quest. It is also possible that in doing this he fooled Sauron into believing that he possessed the One Ring. Certainly he and Gandalf believed it was the catalyst for Sauron's invasion of Gondor.

He proved beyond any doubt his right to kingship when he commanded the Dead Men of Dunharrow. This could only be done by a descendant of Isildur, and was the fulfilment of two prophesies: one by Isildur when he cursed the Dead Men, and another by Malbeth the Seer two thousand years later.

Aragorn's unexpected arrival at the Battle of Pelennor Fields leading Gondor's Southern Army turned the tide of the battle and brought about the decisive victory over Mordor's armies. On his approach to the landings, Aragorn notably flew, not the white banner of Gondor under the Stewards, but the royal banner of the House of Elendil.

Essential to Aragorn's personal popularity in Gondor were his abilities as a healer, which he exercised most notably on the evening following the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. Aragorn healed Faramir, Denethor's heir, who had been expected to die; this won him the immediate recognition of the Steward as the rightful heir to the throne, and his humility and self-sacrifice gained him the hearts of the inhabitants of Gondor's capital city. The people hailed him as King that same evening.

Despite his immediate success and popularity, however, and despite his claim to the throne through raising the royal banner, Aragorn decided not to pursue the matter for the time being. He knew that if he aggressively promoted his claim, rival claimants or debates as to his legitimacy were not out of the question, and this could be a fatal distraction for Gondor at a time when the West needed to be united against Sauron. So, to avoid conflict, after he had healed people during the night of March 15/16, he left Minas Tirith and symbolically refused to enter it again until he was crowned King on May 1.

In order to ensure safe passage across Mordor for Frodo to fulfill his quest, Aragorn then led the Army of the West out from Minas Tirith to make a diversionary feint on the Black Gate of Mordor itself in the Battle of the Morannon. Gandalf had been given supreme command of the war effort after the Pelennor Fields, and acted as chief spokesman in the parley with the Mouth of Sauron; but Aragorn commanded the Allied troops during the battle and its aftermath. His role, along with the battle as a whole, was necessarily overshadowed by the collapse of Barad-Dûr and of Sauron's empire, though there is every reason to believe he commanded skilfully throughout the day. Shortly afterwards, he took part in victory celebrations at the Field of Cormallen, and then proceeded to his crowning at Minas Tirith.

Upon Sauron's defeat, in late 3019, Aragorn was crowned as King Elessar (Sindarin, translated as Elfstone), a name given to him by Galadriel. He married Arwen shortly afterwards, and ruled the Reunited Kingdom of Gondor and Arnor until 120 of the Fourth Age. His reign was marked by great harmony and prosperity within Gondor and Arnor, and by a great renewal of cooperation and communication between Men, Elves, and Dwarves, fostered by his vigorous rebuilding campaign following the war. He died at the age of 210, after 120 years of reign. He was succeeded on the throne by his son, Eldarion. Arwen, gravely saddened by the loss of her husband, gave up her now-mortal life shortly afterwards.

Aragorn and Arwen also had a number of daughters, whose names are not included in Tolkien's legendarium.

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Portrayal in adaptations

Image:BakshiAragorn.jpg

Image:ROTKTVAragorn.jpg

Aragorn was voiced by John Hurt in Ralph Bakshi's 1978 animated film version of The Lord of the Rings.

He was voiced by Theodore Bikel in the 1980 Rankin/Bass animated version of The Return of the King, made for television.

Robert Stephens voiced the character in the 1981 BBC Radio serial of The Lord of the Rings.

In the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy (2001–2003) by Peter Jackson, Aragorn is played by Danish-American actor Viggo Mortensen, who took over the role from Stuart Townsend after a month of rehearsals. In the movie Aragorn must overcome his self-doubt to choose the kingship. This element of self-doubt is not present in Tolkien's novel, where Aragorn intends to claim the throne at an appropriate time, ever since Elrond revealed his heritage to him. Appearance-wise, he is arguably the closest to Tolkien's brief but detailed description: lean, dark and tall, with grey eyes and a stern pale face. Mortensen's portrayal is slightly younger than the novel's character, despite the fact that he was specifically hired because he was 41 at the time, as his 'shaggy dark hair' is 'flecked with grey', whereas in the film his hair is completely brown. He is also shorter, as Tolkien afterwards said him to be 6'6", and Mortensen is only 5'11".

Daniel Day-Lewis, who stands over 6'1", was offered the role of Aragorn but declined.

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Trivia

Aragorn was called the Dúnadan ("Man of the West" Númenorean, given by Bilbo in Rivendell), Longshanks (given by Bill Ferny in Bree), and Wingfoot (given by Éomer). He was the founder of the House of Telcontar (Telcontar is "Strider" in Sindarin, after the mistrustful nickname given him by the rustics of the North), which ruled Gondor well into the Fourth Age of Middle-Earth; in records, his full ruling name is given as Elessar Telcontar ("Elfstone Strider").
In the earliest unpublished versions of The Lord of the Rings (see: The History of The Lord of the Rings), the character that later became Aragorn was called Trotter instead of Strider, and was a hobbit instead of a Man. He had wooden feet, because he had once been tortured in Mordor or Moria.
In the film trilogy, Aragorn acquires a horse previously ridden by Théodred. The horse is named Brego, presumably after the early King of Rohan.