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Welcome to The Encyclopedia of ArdaThe Encyclopedia of Arda is a personal project - a tribute to and a celebration of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. The site is evolving into an illustrated hypertext encyclopedia of Tolkien's realms and peoples. It already contains about four thousand entries, and we're constantly adding new entries and expanding existing ones. Inside the encyclopediaThe Encyclopedia of Arda contains thousands of articles covering topics from J.R.R. Tolkien's world, some brief, some lengthy and some containing detailed essays and discussions. You'll also find a selection of interactive tools, including a chronicle to help you explore Tolkien's fictional history, and calendar to translate dates and events, a lexicon of names, a glossary of old and rare words, and much more. Context and approachThe content of the Encyclopedia is written in the same context as Tolkien himself used; he presented himself simply as a translator, rather than originator of the tales. Hence, we try to describe his world from a 'historical' rather than a literary perspective, though sometimes it's useful to explore ideas in their wider context. Where relevant, therefore, you'll also find a few references to Tolkien's life or opinions, or to real historical or mythological parallels to events in his universe. About the name ArdaArda was the name given by the Elves to their world and all it contained, and so 'Encyclopedia of Arda' seemed a peculiarly apt title for this project. Special thanksThanks to all those who've e-mailed us over the years with their suggestions, corrections, ideas and just general support. But the real Special Thanks, though, belong to the memory of J.R.R. Tolkien for his extraordinary and unparalleled creation. For acknowledgements and references, see the Disclaimer & Bibliography page. Original content © copyright Mark Fisher 1997-2024. All rights reserved. For conditions of reuse, see the Site FAQ. Website services kindly sponsored by Discus from Axiom Software Ltd.Discus is a powerful, flexible DISC profile solution - find out much more in our free guide. |
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Featured EntryBelecthor IThe fifteenth Ruling Steward of GondorThe son of Húrin II, born soon after the settlement of Rohan (the Golden Hall of Meduseld was completed when Belecthor was twenty-four years old, so he may even have been a guest at the feast to mark its founding). He succeeded his father at the age of eighty-three to become Gondor's fifteenth Ruling Steward. His twenty-seven year rule was free of incident, or at least no annals of any significant events during his Stewardship have come down to us. Belecthor was the ancestor of two lines of Ruling Stewards. He himself was succeeded by his son Orodreth, and Orodreth by his own son Ecthelion I, but Ecthelion produced no heir. Hence the line of the Stewards was reckoned back to Belecthor I, and passed to the descendants of his daughter Morwen. Egalmoth, Morwen's grandson, was the first Steward of this new line to take office. |
