What Kind of Army did the Beornings Maintain?

Q: What Kind of Army did the Beornings Maintain?

ANSWER: J.R.R. Tolkien did not describe the military tactics and forces of the Beornings. The reader is free to infer almost anything about how the Beornings may have lived and defended their lands but if you are writing fan fiction or a role-playing adventure then I think you may want to set some limitations on their military capacity. For example, you should consider their probable lifestyle (most likely living in scattered farms and small villages) and their need to patrol a large, mostly uninhabited territory on both sides of Anduin. Let’s look at what we know about the lifestyles of the Northmen in general.

Isolated Farms Our first example is Beorn’s own estate, which Gandalf, the Dwarves, and Bilbo visited. When Beorn, Gandalf, and Bilbo returned there after the Battle of Five Armies Beorn summoned many men to a feast. Where did those men come from? They may have been living on scattered farms in the nearby lands, but they could also have been dwelling in the villages west of the river.

Tolkien mentions isolated farms among other northern peoples. For example, the Men of Brethil in the First Age preferred to live in relatively isolated farms. They even raised defensive hedges around their homes similar to that described for Beorn’s home. This is probably the lifestyle preferred by the Men of Eryn Vorn, who were related to the Men of Bree and the Dunlendings.

Villages Tolkien mentions villages of men located south of the Eagles’ Eyrie in The Hobbit and he also depicts some villages in the western eaves of Mirkwood, south of the Old Forest Road, on the Map of Wilderland. The Woodmen of Mirkwood are mentioned in The Lord of the Rings but Tolkien really does not say much about their lifestyle. We know that Gollum (or some evil creatures stirred up by Gollum as he traveled through Mirkwood) may have crept into some Woodmen’s homes to attack their children.

In The Hobbit the Orcs and Wargs were planning to raid some of the villages of men on the west side of the river. These men had migrated from the south, although Tolkien never provides an origin story for them. We cannot even be sure they were eventually included among the Beornings.

Trade The Dwarves who crossed the Misty Mountains relied upon the Beornings to keep the High Pass free from Orcs. This situation implies two things: first, that there was at least one trade route passing through the lands of the Beornings; second, that the Beornings maintained a sufficient force to patrol and perhaps defend the High Pass against Orc raids. Another plausible implication is that the Beornings escorted travelers through the mountains rather than maintaining a regular force near the High Pass.

Boats Aragorn tells his companions that the Northmen of the Upper Vales of Anduin used boats to travel the river; and that sometimes the more adventurous of these boat-using Northmen might travel as far south as Gondor. After all, there was a portage way for small boats at Sarn Gebir, by which travelers carried their boats and goods past the rapids on the river. This portage way would have been used by anyone traveling from north to south or south to north, but most of the travelers near the end of the Third Age would have been Elves, Men, or Orcs. The use of boats by the Northmen living along Anduin implies they were accustomed to traveling great distances.

Horses And Beorn’s keeping of horses and ponies also implies that other Northmen kept them. Although Beorn’s animals were under some form of enchantment, they had no problem carrying Gandalf and his companions to the edge of Mirkwood. It seems reasonable to assume that most of the Northmen living near Beorn would have used horses as well, if only for draft-work and travel.

Weapons The eagles mentioned the “great bows of yew” wielded by the men in the villages on the west side of Anduin. Beorn also gave Thorin’s party some bows and arrows for their journey through Mirkwood. And at least some of the Dwarves had knives during their battle with the spiders, which presumably also came from Beorn.

Archetype Finally, although many readers compare Beorn to a Viking berserker, his name and homestead appear to be an homage to Anglo-Saxon tradition rather than Viking tradition. Tolkien’s Viking influences are most evident among the men of Lake-town and Dale and among the Riders of Rohan. Beorn’s people may be more like the Mercians of old, a border-folk made up of allied clans and small tribes.

They would have used swords for major battles, and probably also spears and shields. There is plenty of evidence for these kinds of weapons among Elves and Men in the lands all around them. But the Beornings may also have relied on archery to a considerable extent. I doubt Tolkien envisioned much of an army among Beorn’s people. Beorn and his heirs would have used their skin-changing abilities to protect their people from Orcs and Wargs as much as possible.

If you are writing fan fiction or a role-playing adventure, then, I suggest you limit your Beorning forces to isolated companies mustered from local families. Beorn and his successors could have had a small bodyguard similar to huscarls. I doubt Tolkien envisioned anything like the Muster of Rohan or the army of Dale. But Beorn’s warriors could have traveled far by horseback and maybe like the Rohirrim they may have been deadly archers.

See also:

• How Much Land did the Beornings Control?
• Who Are Beorn’s Followers?
• How Many Tribes of Northmen are There?
• Beorning Questions

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