Q: Was Tharbad Ever An Independent City-state?
ANSWER: There has been far more speculation published than “fact” about the history of Tharbad. In fact, you could say that the history of Tharbad with which most people are familiar is probably more contrived from fan fiction and role-playing game materials than from J.R.R. Tolkien’s own writings. Although I have tried to write about the history of Tharbad here on this Website there is hardly anything canonical about its history. Most of the information Tolkien himself provided was included in various notes and essays that Christopher Tolkien published in Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-earth.
For example, we know from one partially published note that Aldarion supposedly met Galadriel at Tharbad — possibly in the 800s, perhaps in the 900s but early in Aldarion’s reign as King of Numenor. Christopher Tolkien notes that Galadriel was (according to one source) at that time dwelling in Eregion, which must have been connected to Eriador (and Lindon) by the crossroad at Tharbad. Is it possible that Tharbad was an outpost of the Eldar of Eregion?
Tharbad was seized by Sauron early in the War of the Elves and Sauron, but later on the Numneoreans took control of Tharbad and Sauron barely managed to escape with a small force to Calenardhon, and from there he only returned to Mordor with his bodyguard. Sauron’s remaining forces in Eriador were destroyed but, according to the text, “(Eriador) lay largely in ruins”. Eregion had been destroyed so there was no further need for Tharbad, which may at best have been fortified as part of the defense of the Gwathlo.
When Elendil founded the realm of Arnor near the end of the Second Age he seems to have claimed Tharbad as part of his kingdom, but we don’t know whether Tharbad (like Bree) had been continually inhabited prior to that time. In “Akallabeth” Tolkien writes that while Sauron was held captive in Numenor (Second Age 3262-3319) Gil-galad was able to extend his power eastward from Lindon to the Vales of Anduin. It could be that Bree and Tharbad were established or re-established at this time under Gil-galad’s protection, even if they were only Mannish communities.
Hence, it is conceivable though not provable that Tharbad existed as an independent town prior to Elendil’s arrival in Middle-earth in S.A. 3319. What we can be sure of, however, is that the authority of the High King of the Dunedain-in-Exile from Elendil to Eärendur (S.A. 3320 – Third Age 861) extended to Tharbad, which was jointly held by both Arnor and Gondor. Gondor continued to maintain a garrison at Tharbad to control Enedwaith from T.A. 861 to 1636, when the Great Plague swept across Middle-earth and forced Gondor to abandon its outlying fortresses in Mordor and Enedwaith.
Cardolan, which might have inherited Arnor’s control of and responsibility for Tharbad, lost its regnal authority by T.A. 1356 and ceased to exist as a separate realm after 1409. Hence, from 1409 to 1973 the Kings of Arthedain/Arnor must have ruled Tharbad, for Tolkien does not say that Tharbad became independent at any point during these years.
The years 1356 to 1636 may actually have been quite industrius for Tharbad, for many Stoors had migrated from the Angle between the Mitheithel and Hoarwell rivers (near Rivendell) to Dunland (near Tharbad). These Stoors may have enjoyed the protection and friendship of the Dunedain of Eriador and Gondor, even though they were obviously influenced by the language of the Dunlendings (meaning they must have developed some sort of trading relationship and possibly a mutual defense relationship) with the Dunlendings.
The years from 1630 to 1636 may have seen a decline in Tharbad’s fortune after many Stoors left Dunland to settle in the recently colonized Shire in Arthedain. After 1636, according to various sources, many parts of Eriador became desolate and deserted. And though Gondor’s garrison was withdrawn or died off, Tharbad seems to have been inhabited afterward. It is conceivable, though, that Tharbad was deserted at this time and only recolonized later on.
For example, according to an early entry in the “Tale of Years” published in The Peoples of Middle-earth, King Araval won a great victory over Angmar in 1851 and he subsequently “sought to reoccupy Cardolan” although the wights prevented people from settling in or near Tyrn Gorthad. Arthedain was overrun in 1973 and Angmar was defeated in 1974. Tharbad might have survived the onslought or it could have succumbed just as had Fornost, Bree, and the Shire.
The only further mention of Tharbad occurs in Third Age year 2912, when the town is abandoned in the wake of devastating floods. At the very least we can say that Tharbad was inhabited at some time between 1974 and 2912, perhaps continuously. It seems reasonable to infer that Tharbad became an autonomous community at this time, much like Bree and the Shire, because there was no longer a King at Fornost.
If J.R.R. Tolkien ever imagined Tharbad to be an independent or semi-independent city-state, it would probably have been in this timeframe — from Third Age 1974 to 2912 (a period of 938 years). That is about the best we can say without being too speculative.
For further reading, please see:
- Who Lived in Tharbad?
- What Is the History of Tharbad?
- Do You Have a Map of Tharbad?
- What Was the Capital of Cardolan?
- Who Ruled Cardolan, Land of Red Hills?
- Razing Arnor: How Real Were the Dunadan Conspiracies?
- Charting the Shire Lines
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