The Lord of the Rings: Gondor and Rohan's Complicated Relationship, Explained (2024)

In Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, the kingdoms of Gondor and Rohan had a fraught dynamic. They were once close allies, as the land of Rohan had been a gift from the Steward of Gondor to the Rohirrim's ancestors. The nations were honor bound by the Oath of Eorl to help each other in times of need, and they did so many times throughout Middle-earth's history. However, in a deviation from J. R. R. Tolkien's novel, their alliance started to crumble during the War of the Ring.

In The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Aragorn implores King Théoden to ask for Gondor's help in fighting Saruman's forces, to which Théoden angrily replies, "Gondor? Where was Gondor when the Westfold fell? Where was Gondor when our enemies closed in around us? Where was Gon..." He cut himself off before asking a third question, but he was most likely about to say something about the death of his son, Théodred. Shortly before the events of the film, Théodred had fallen victim to an ambush by Saruman's Orcs at the Fords of Isen. Gondor's failure to help Rohan at this dire time soured Théoden's opinion of his former ally, and it fell to Aragorn to mend their broken relationship.

The Fall of the Westfold Nearly Spelled Doom for Rohan

As its name implied, the Westfold was the western region of Rohan. It was a vital location in the War of the Ring, not only because it was home to many of the Rohirrim but also because it bordered the Gap of Rohan. The Gap of Rohan was one of few easy passages through the Misty Mountains; without it, any travelers from the west would either need to go far out of their way or risk traversing dangerous paths such as the Pass of Caradhras or the Mines of Moria. Saruman controlled the Gap of Rohan during The Lord of the Rings, so the Westfold was all that blocked his access to the East.

After the Rohirrim's defeat at the Fords of Isen, Saruman's forces were able to run rampant in the Westfold. Orcs and Dunlendings pillaged every settlement they could find. As Éowyn said in The Two Towers, "[The villagers] had no warning. They were unarmed. Now the Wildmen are moving through the Westfold, burning as they go: rick, cot, and tree." The surviving Rohirrim fled to their king in Edoras and later to Helm's Deep, where they endured an onslaught by Saruman's Uruk-hai. They had help from the Elves of Lothlórien -- another deviation from Tolkien's novel -- but none from Gondor. So where was Gondor when the Westfold fell?

Gondor Had Good Reasons Not to Help Rohan

• ​​​​The eastern region of Rohan was called the Eastfold, and the center was called the Folde; folde was an Old English word meaning "land."
• In the novel, there were two Battles of the Fords of Isen that occurred a week apart.
• Helm's Deep was part of the Westfold, so technically, the Westfold did not fall in its entirety.

The simple answer to Théoden's question was that Gondor had its own battles to fight. Gondor was the closest kingdom to Mordor, so it was under near-constant attack. Boromir spoke about this during the Council of Elrond in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. He proclaimed, "Long has my father, the Steward of Gondor, held the forces of Mordor at bay. By the blood of our people are your lands kept safe!" According to the novel, Sauron's forces first assaulted Osgiliath in June of the year T.A. 3018, eight months before Théodred's death. Ever since Gondor was dangerously close to total collapse, and its forces were stretched thin trying to defend the kingdom. Cair Andros, an island that provided passage over the Anduin River, was of special importance. Gondor's eventual failure to protect Cair Andros allowed Sauron to begin his siege of Minas Tirith near the end of the War of the Ring, so diverting resources away from its defense would have been devastating.

Additionally, Jackson's films did not indicate that Rohan asked for Gondor's help. The Gondorians probably knew nothing about what was happening in the Westfold. Rohan did not light the signal beacons to alert Gondor of danger, nor did it send any messengers. When the Westfold fell, Théoden was under Saruman's control, so he would not have requested aid in battling Saruman's forces. The manipulative Grima Wormtongue probably fed Théoden lies about Gondor to stoke his animosity. Further, the Westfold fell suddenly; even if Théoden had asked for help, there would not have been sufficient time for Gondor to receive a message, mobilize its forces, and reach the far end of Rohan before Saruman claimed victory. Théoden was scared, grieving the loss of his son and still reeling from the residual effects of Saruman's magic, so his frustrations came from a place of emotion rather than logic.

Théoden's Selflessness Saved Middle-earth

• Cair Andros meant "Ship of Long-foam," so called because the island was shaped like a ship.
• In the novel, there were only seven beacons between Gondor and Rohan, but in the film, there were at least 13.
• In the novel, in addition to lighting the beacons, Gondor sent a messenger with a ceremonial Red Arrow to request Rohan's aid.

In The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, after the Battle of Helm's Deep, Aragorn asks Théoden to help Gondor defend Minas Tirith against the forces of Sauron. Unsurprisingly, Théoden was resistant. He said, "Tell me. Why should we ride to the aid of those who did not come to ours? What do we owe Gondor?" The deterioration of the alliance between Gondor and Rohan did not fall solely on Théoden's shoulders, however. Denethor had no faith that the Rohirrim would help him, nor did he want them to, as he knew that Aragorn was with them and might supplant him as the ruler of Gondor. He refused to order the lighting of the beacons, prompting Pippin to light them against his wishes. When Théoden saw the beacons, they reminded him of the ancient Oath of Eorl, and he set aside his grievances to aid his old ally. Together, Gondor and Rohan defeated Sauron's forces, reforging their bond.

In the novel version of The Lord of the Rings, there was no such animosity between Gondor and Rohan. Théoden did not question where Gondor was when the Westfold fell, nor did he hesitate to lend his aid during the Siege of Minas Tirith. Likewise, Denethor was willing to light the beacons, and though he still believed that the Rohirrim would not come, it was only because he was a pessimist who saw the war as a lost cause. Jackson added the tension between Gondor and Rohan to inject more drama into the story and make Théoden's decision to help in the end more impactful. This change also made Aragorn more important, as he played a part in uniting Middle-earth's two greatest kingdoms of Men before he even ascended to the throne.

The Lord of the Rings

The Lord of the Rings is a series of epic fantasy adventure films and television series based on J. R. R. Tolkien's novels. The films follow the adventures of humans, elves, dwarves, hobbits and more in Middle-earth.

Created by

J.R.R. Tolkien

First Film

The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring

Latest Film

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Upcoming Films

The Lord of The Rings: The War of The Rohirrim

First TV Show

The Lord of the Rings The Rings of Power

Latest TV Show

The Lord of the Rings The Rings of Power

First Episode Air Date

September 1, 2022

Cast

Elijah Wood , Viggo Mortensen , Orlando Bloom , Sean Astin , Billy Boyd , Dominic Monaghan , Sean Bean , Ian McKellen , Andy Serkis , Hugo Weaving , Liv Tyler , Miranda Otto , Cate Blanchett , John Rhys-Davies , Martin Freeman , Morfydd Clark , Ismael Cruz Cordova , Charlie Vickers , Richard Armitage

Character(s)

Gollum , Sauron

Video Game(s)

LEGO Lord of the Rings , Lord of the Rings Online , The Lord Of The Rings: Gollum , The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age , The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers , The Lord of the Rings: War in the North , The Lord Of The Rings: Battle For Middle-Earth , The Lord of The Rings: Battle For Middle-Earth 2 , The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Genre

Fantasy , Action-Adventure

Where to Stream

Max , Prime Video , Hulu

Summary

The Lord of the Rings is a long-running fantasy franchise created by J.R.R. Tolkien. The core series consists of four primary books: The Hobbit, The Fellowship of the Ring, the Two Towers, and The Return of the King, all of which have been adapted into films. The Lord of the Rings core franchise centers around Frodo Baggins, a living being known as a hobbit, and a group of heroes from the various kingdoms such as the kingdom of man, the kingdom of dwarves, and the kingdom of elves. Together with the great wizard Gandalf, the group will embark on a perilous quest across Middle Earth to take The One Ring to Mount Doom to destroy it, before it can corrupt anyone and return to the hands of the evil entity known as Sauron, hellbent on conquering all of Middle Earth. The original novel/prequel films, The Hobbit, stars Frodo's uncle Bilbo Baggins as he embarks on a quest from the comfort of his home and seeks the treasure of a dragon known as Smaug. Bilbo stumbles upon The One Ring on his quest, and finds himself amidst a great war. The most recent media for the franchise is the currently airing The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, airing exclusively on Prime Video.