Kin-Strife

The Kings of Gondor – Part Six – The Kin Strife

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Hail and Well Met Friends!

I know it’s been a while since our lest episode in the Kings of Gondor series and I do apologize for the long wait.  My schedule has been insanely busy lately, but I’m back on schedule with everything and you can expect regular episodes again.

When we left off last episode, we had just concluded the reign of Valacar and with his age came the rebellion of the coastal lands.  When he passed it brought a blood bath of a civil war called the Kin Strife among the people.

OverthrownThe Kin Strife

This week we pick up with his son Eldacar which was born as Vinitharya in the Kingdom of Rhovanion.  In 1260 of the Third Age he was brought to Gondor by his father. His reign saw the breaking of his people and the start of a civil war.  He was the son of princess Vidumavi, a daughter of the Northmen, King Vidugavia. After ascending the throne in 1432, he reigned for five years when he was deposed and driven from Osgiliath into exile to Rhovanion by a distant vile relative.  While Eldacar was exiled he slowly gathered support from the Northmen and the Dunedain from the northern parts of Gondor.  This army that Eldacar had gathered had a mass hate for the one who overturned the throne, and exiled Eldacar.  They hated this man because he executed Eldacar’s firstborn son, and they wanted revenge.

The great-grandson of King Calmacil, Castamir was not in line for the throne, but his royal background had made him the Lord of Ships under the previous king, Valacar. His lineage and influence left him in a position to challenge the current king, Eldacar, who was only half Numenorean.  As King Valacar’s only son, Eldacar was the legitimate heir to the throne, but his half Rhovanion lineage angered citizens who believed that pure Numenorean blood must be maintained. Capitalizing on the protest of the people against the the current king, Castamir was able to incite rebellion and surrounded Eldacar within the city Osgiliath 1437 of the Third Age. The city was set on fire by Castamir’s troops, destroying the famed Dome of Stars. Shortly thereafter, Eldacar fled the city and into exile in Rhovanion, to the north.

osgiliathThe Taking of a Kingship

With the defeat of the king, Castamir seized the throne.  For ten years Castamir ruled Gondor with an iron fist, while Eldacar quietly regained power. Castamir ruled cruelly, and committed many foul deeds, including executing Eldacar’s own son, Ornendil. At first the people of Gondor tolerated Castamir because of his pure Numenorean blood. Then, in 1447, Castamir, now called “The Usurper” by his people was overthrown after a decade of wicked rule with the people now rallying around the true king, Eldacar. He was slain by Eldacar’s forces at the Battle of Erui, the battle of the Kin-strife as which it came to be known for the rest of time.

Castamir’s influence did not end there though. Some of his forces, and surviving sons, retreated from the Battle of Erui to the port of Pelargir and escaped by ship to Umbar, far to the south. These descendants of Castamir became the so-called “Corsairs of Umbar”, the great pirates who terrorized the ports of Gondor. They were perhaps the greatest threat to Gondor for nearly 400 years, commanding massive fleets of ships. Their most infamous exploit was the Raid of Pelargir in 1634, in which a Corsair fleet led by Castamir’s great grandsons Angamaite and Sangahyando‎ sailed up the river Anduin to the port of Pelargir. This raid coincided with King Minardil’s visit in which he was slain by the attacking Corsairs.

The Corsairs remained a significant threat until 1810, when King Telumehtar retook Umbar for Gondor. After the victory Telumehtar was known as Umbardacil, which literally means “victor over Umbar”. In this battle the last descendants of Castamir were finally killed.

Until next weeks episode, I’m your host Iogro Merrybelly and I bid you a fine farewell!

scr.ee tags:

#KinStrife #KingsofGondor #LOTRlore

The Kings of Gondor – Part Five – The Breaking of Lines

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Hail Readers!

It’s been a few weeks since my last post, and that’s due to some PC and Blog issues, but I’m back up and running.

When we last left off I had just wrapped up things with the Ship Kings and the prosperous age of Gondor.  We kick things off this week with what I would call the breaking in the lines of Kings.

75177-the2bstewards2bscepterWe start off with Narmacil which was the son of Atanatar II and he was known as a very lazy king and soon after taking the throne grew tired of his duties. He reigned as king for fourteen years but after growing tired of his duties as king, he decided to pursue his own personal pleasures so he created the noble title of Regent, and surrendered rule to his nephew Minalcar (who would eventually become King in his own right).

During his reign, the Easterlings became a threat again and his regent’s main concern was making alliance with the tribes of the Northmen to help fight against them.  It is unknown if Narmacil retained any power but he died without any children in the year 1294 of the third age and was succeeded by his brother.

Calmacil took reign from his brother Narmacil and became the eighteenth King of Gondor in the year 1294.  His reign lasted for ten years, in which his son Minalcar (known later as Romendacil II) continued his role as Regent, a role he held during Narmacil’s reign as well. It seemed he had absolutely no desire to rule Gondor and probably had no power to do so anyways.

Minalcar was born in 1126, the last year of the long reign of Hyarmendacil I as Minalcar and he rose to a powerful position early because his uncle Narmacil I chose to leave his kingship.  He was Regent of Gondor from TA 1240 and struck a decisive blow against the Easterlings whom he defeated near the Sea of Rhun. He also fortified Gondor and made pacts with the Northmen of Rhovanion, all before he took the throne.  After Narmacil’s death, he remained Regent for ten years under his father Calmacil.

argonath brown imageWhen he finally ascended to the throne after the death of his father, he immediately took the name Romendacil, the East-victor. He was responsible for creating the Argonath, the pillars of the Kings. They were known to stand above Nen Hithoel far into the Fourth Age.

Romendacil sent his son Valacar as an ambassador to secure the alliance with the Northmen.  While Valacar was on his mission he married Vidumavi, the daughter of Vidugavia, the King of Rhovanion. In the year 1260, he summoned him and his Northmen family back to Gondor, to take part in the duties of the realm. This was controversial and ultimately lead to the disastrous Kin-strife.  Romendacil died in 1366 and his son Valacar took the reign of Gondor.

tyler-realms-in-exile-01Valacar became the twentieth King of Gondor but his ascension brought disorder and disturbances to Gondor.  He was sent by his father as an ambassador to Rhovanion to acquaint himself with the Northmen. On this mission he married Vidumavi, the daughter of Vidugavia, the King of Rhovanion. Because the Northmen were Middle Men, the Dunedain in Gondor were afraid that this marriage would taint the Numenorean bloodline of its kings.

As Valacar grew old, the coastal provinces rebelled against the land and capital city.  Valacar died in 1432 and his death caused a bloody civil war among the people called the Kin-strife.  The war lasted for fifteen years until Valacar’s only son Eldacar took the throne.

 

I leave you at a fork in the road as we have a breaking point in the family line!  Until next week I’m your host Iogro Merrybelly and I bid you a fine farewell.