The Lord of the Rings: Théoden Was King of Rohan, But He Was Actually From a Different Middle-earth Kingdom (2024)

King Théoden, as portrayed by the late Bernard Hill in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings films, was the ruler of Rohan throughout the War of the Ring. When he first appeared in The Lord of the Rings, he was under the thrall of Grima Wormtongue and Saruman. Through a combination of magic, poison, and deceit, they decayed his body and mind so that he could not resist Saruman's conquest of the kingdom. But this decrepit, apathetic figure was not the true Théoden. Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers showed Gandalf purging Théoden of Saruman's evil influence. As his strength returned, he transformed both physically and mentally. Once Théoden was in full control of his faculties, he proved to be an excellent leader.

Théoden was a brave warrior who always fought alongside his soldiers, such as at the Battle of Helm's Deep and the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, the latter of which claimed his life. Théoden embodied the virtues and culture of the Rohirrim: he was a skilled equestrian, he always honored his word, and he ultimately met an honorable death. In his final moments from The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, he said, "I go to my fathers, in whose mighty company I shall not now feel ashamed." Alongside Éomer and Éowyn, Théoden was one of the most well-known characters from Rohan. Yet J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings novel revealed that he was not a Rohirrim by birth; surprisingly, he was originally from Gondor, a kingdom with which Rohan had a complicated history.

Théoden's Father Had a Falling Out With His Family

Théoden's grandfather, Fengel, was the 15th King of Rohan. His reign began in the year T.A. 2903, a little over 100 years before the events of The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien did not write much about Fengel, but the few details that he did provide made it clear that he was an unpopular figure. In Appendix A of the novel, Tolkien described him as "greedy of food and gold, and at strife with his marshals, and with his children." Fengel's time on the throne was therefore an era of conflict for Rohan. His poor leadership may have stemmed from the fact that he was not prepared to be the King of Rohan when he was young; he had two older brothers who were in line for the throne before him, but they both died helping Gondor fend off a Haradrim invasion in T.A. 2885.

Fengel had two daughters and a son. As Tolkien's quote indicated, he often got into bitter arguments with his family. His son, Thengel, eventually reached a breaking point and left Rohan, refusing to return while his father was alive. Tolkien did not indicate exactly how old Thengel was at the time, but he had just come of age, meaning he was in his late teens or early 20s. He headed south to live in the neighboring kingdom of Gondor. There, he pledged loyalty to Turgon, the Steward of Gondor and grandfather of Denethor from The Lord of the Rings. It was in service to Turgon's father that Thengel's uncles had died, but he was undeterred. Thengel's time in Gondor was far more peaceful, though not uneventful.

Théoden Came From Two Royal Bloodlines

• Hill appeared in both Titanic and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, two of the only three films that have received 11 Academy Awards.
• Tolkien did not name any of Thengel's sisters.
• The names Fengel, Thengel, and Théoden all came from Old English terms for royalty.

While serving Turgon, Thengel met a Gondorian woman named Morwen. She was one of the Dúnedain and a descendant of the Prince of Dol Amroth, making her a distant relative of Boromir and Faramir from The Lord of the Rings. Her Númenórean ancestry made her particularly tall, a trait that she passed down to most of her descendants. Thengel fell in love with Morwen, and they married in T.A. 2943. Like Fengel, they had two daughters and a son. The son, Théoden, lived in Gondor for the first 5 years of his life. In T.A. 2953, Fengel died, leaving Rohan without a king. Thengel had grown accustomed to life in Gondor and did not want to leave, but he knew that his people needed him, so he and his family returned to Rohan.

The story of Thengel's family paralleled that of King Valacar's family from the Kin-strife, but thankfully, relations between the Gondorians and the Northmen were much better in Théoden's lifetime. The Rohirrim even gave their new Queen Morwen the beautiful nickname Steelsheen. That did not mean that there was no controversy surrounding Thengel's reign. Though he spoke Rohanese, he preferred to use the Gondorian language of Westron, which many Rohirrim saw as a rejection of their culture. However, he was such "a good and wise king," especially in comparison to his father, that the people came to love him. By the time of The Lord of the Rings, he was known as Thengel the Thrice-renowned, an epithet that indicated his popularity as a ruler.

Théoden's History Made Him a Great Ruler

• After breaking free from Saruman's control, Théoden became known as Théoden Ednew, meaning "Théoden Renewed."
• Théoden's wife was named Elfhild; Tolkien wrote little about her.
• In an early draft of The Lord of the Rings, Théoden had a daughter named Idis, but Tolkien later combined her role in the story with that of Éowyn.

Aragorn -- assuming the name Thorongil to hide his identity -- served Thengel during his reign, so Théoden knew him long before their meeting in The Lord of the Rings. The novel did not indicate that Théoden recognized Aragorn so many years later, but Jackson's film did. In the extended edition of The Two Towers, Éowyn said that Théoden had told her about Aragorn fighting alongside her grandfather. Thengel and Morwen had two more daughters in Rohan, and the younger, Théodwyn, formed a close bond with Théoden. In T.A. 2978, Théoden had a son, Théodred. Just two years later, Théoden became the King of Rohan, and two years after that, Théodwyn died, so he took in her children, Éomer and Éowyn. In T.A. 3014, Wormtongue began corrupting Théoden, leading to the events of The Two Towers.

Théoden's upbringing informed his character in The Lord of the Rings. During the Siege of Minas Tirith, he ultimately chose to aid Gondor despite the risk that it posed to himself and his kingdom. His connection to Gondor influenced this decision, along with the advice that Aragorn gave him and his desire to uphold the Oath of Eorl. Further, the memory of his father and grandfather must have been one of the reasons that Théoden was such a compassionate parent and uncle. He did not want to have a falling out with Théodred, Éomer, or Éowyn the way that Fengel did with Thengel. Tolkien did not explicitly state these points, but that was one of his novel's strengths; the vast amount of lore and background that he provided allowed fans of The Lord of the Rings to glean new insight into the story's many characters.

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.