The Encyclopedia of Arda - Ladybarrow (original) (raw)
The green grave of Haleth
The Haladin were one of the three peoples of Men who first crossed the Blue Mountains into Beleriand. They did not at first have a single leader, dwelling in scattered encampments in the southern parts of Dor Caranthir, but in the face of a dangerous Orc-raid they were gathered together by a Man named Haldad. They fought bravely against the invading Orcs, but Haldad and many of his people were slain. Haldad's daughter Haleth then took up his mantle, and led her people far away from the eastern mountains, eventually to settle in the Forest of Brethil, westward beyond Doriath.
Haleth's people were granted leave to dwell in the forest by King Thingol, and there they enjoyed a peaceful existence, at least during Haleth's lifetime. Haleth herself lived until the age of seventy-nine, dying in the year I 420. Her people then made a green mound as her tomb in the highlands of Brethil, which they called Tûr Haretha in their own tongue, a name translated as the 'Ladybarrow'.
Haleth left no direct heir, and her father and brother had been slain long beforehand fighting with the Orcs. Her slain brother Haldar, however, had a son who still survived, Haleth's nephew Haldan. On his aunt's death, Haldan took her place to become the first of the Lords of Brethil.
Notes
| 1 | We're not told precisely where the Ladybarrow was raised within Brethil, except that it was '...in the heights of the forest' (Quenta Silmarillion 17, Of the Coming of Men into the West). This is presumably a reference to the hill of Amon Obel, which appears to have been the only significant height within Brethil, though the 'heights' on which the barrow stood are not identified outright. |
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- Updated 22 July 2024
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