The Encyclopedia of Arda - an interactive guide to the world of J.R.R. Tolkien
Dates
Constructed in the last years of the Second Age; began to fall into decay from the seventeenth century of the Third Age
Location
Running north to south between the ancient kingdoms of Arnor and Gondor
Origins
Built by Elendil and his sons
Race
Division
Settlements
Uncertain, the road may originally have started at Annúminas, but it was known to have run between Fornost and Osgiliath;1 settlements on the road included Tharbad and Bree
Other names
The Great Road, The North Road, The Royal Road; especially along its southern course it was known as the Great West Road or simply the West Road; in its later ruined state it was known (especially along its northern stretches) as the Greenway or Old South Road

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About this entry:

  • Updated 14 August 2021
  • This entry is complete

North-South Road

The ancient road that linked the North- and South-kingdoms

Map of the North-South Road

The road dating from the Second Age that linked the North-kingdom of Arnor with the South-kingdom of Gondor. It originally ran from Fornost2 in the far north, southward for hundreds of leagues through Eriador, then through the Gap of Calenardhon and across the lands that would later be Rohan. Most of this road had fallen into ruins by the time of the War of the Ring, though it was still usable in places as the 'Greenway'.


Notes

1

In the early centuries of Gondor, Osgiliath was the royal city, and would have been the natural southern terminus of the road. However, our maps of the region (relating to a much later time, at the end Third Age) instead show the North-South Road actually running to Minas Tirith, with an eastward branch then carrying on to Osgiliath (and a southern branch proceeding to Pelargir). This would make sense in the later part of the Third Age, when Osgiliath had been abandoned and Minas Tirith had become the chief city of Gondor. At the time the road was made, however, Osgiliath would have been the main city, and Minas Tirith (then Minas Anor) a lesser fortress tower. Indeed, it is conceivable that the course of the North-South Road was different in earlier times, and that it originally ran directly to Osgiliath.

2

The original capital of the North-kingdom was at Annúminas, somewhat to the west of Fornost, and it seems inevitable that the two cities would have been linked by a road. This would have formed an extension at the northern end of the North-South Road running westwards for about one hundred miles, though we do not have any direct evidence for its existence.

Indexes:

About this entry:

  • Updated 14 August 2021
  • This entry is complete

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