Fourth Age

The Fourth Age is one of the divisions of history in J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional world of Middle-earth. Because most of his fiction deals with earlier ages, there is relatively little material on the ages that followed the Third Age. The Fourth Age is one of the divisions of history in J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional world of Middle-earth. Because most of his fiction deals with earlier ages, there is relatively little material on the ages that followed the Third Age. The Fourth Age followed the defeat of Sauron and the destruction of his One Ring, but did not officially begin until after the Bearers of the Three Rings left Middle-earth for Valinor, the 'Uttermost West'. Some events of the first centuries of the Fourth Age can be gleaned from the Appendices in The Lord of the Rings, and follow below. 'The Third Age was held to have ended when the Three Rings passed away in September 3021, but for the purposes of records in Gondor F.A. 1 began on March 25, 3021.' Realms of Men prospered, as the reunited Númenórean kingdoms in exile (as the Reunited Kingdom of Gondor and Arnor) under King Elessar and later his son Eldarion. Elessar (who reigned until year 120 of the Fourth Age) rebuilt the once-ruined northern city of Annúminas and often dwelt there although his throne remained in Gondor. Allied realms such as Rohan and Dale also prospered, as did the protected enclaves of the Shire and the Woses of Ghân-buri-Ghân. Despite the fall of Sauron, there were significant kingdoms of evil Men that had to be dealt with before the White Tree could grow in peace. In the appendices Tolkien states that Éomer fulfilled the oath of Eorl by riding with Elessar to war on the plains of Harad and beyond the Sea of Rhûn, so it is clear that fighting continued with at least some of the Men who had allied with Sauron in the past. It has been suggested that ultimately these campaigns were successful, as the Easterlings and Haradrim were at least subdued, or even became part of the Reunited Kingdom. Many former slaves of Sauron were freed and were given land in Mordor, around the Sea of Núrnen, for their own. The end of the Third Age was marked by the departure of many prominent Elves from Middle-earth, including Elrond, Galadriel and Gildor. However some remained in the Fourth Age. After repulsing assaults from Dol Guldur and destroying it with the power of Galadriel's ring during the end of the War of the Ring, the elves of Lothlórien and Mirkwood subsequently managed to rid the great forest of all the forces of evil. Thranduil and Celeborn then met in the midst of the forest and renamed it Eryn Lasgalen, or Wood of Greenleaves, and divided it among several parties. Thranduil's kingdom remained in the northern part of Mirkwood, from the northern edge to the Mountains of Mirkwood while Celeborn expanded Lothlórien into the southern portion of Mirkwood and named it East Lorien. The forest between the two elven kingdoms were given to men, although this area probably expanded as the elven realms diminished with their populations gradually departing to the West. For at least a while, an Elven colony led by Legolas was founded in Ithilien, and the land once again became the 'fairest country in all the westlands.'