The Blackroot Vale, or the Morthond Vale[1], was a grassland valley in the Outlands of Gondor which lay at the feet of the White Mountains. The Morthond flowed through it[2] from a spring in a smaller valley within the White Mountains.[3]
History[]
The Blackroot Vale was inhabited by a people renowned for archery.[4] Five hundred of these archers participated in Battle of the Pelennor Fields[4] in which Derufin and Duilin, the sons of their lord Duinhir, were trampled upon by the Mûmakil.[5]
Through the valley flowed the river Blackroot or Morthond. Above the source of the river lay the exit of the Paths of the Dead, which was used by Aragorn, Gimli, Legolas and the Grey Company.[6] From there they rode to the Stone of Erech at the mouth of the Blackroot Vale where Aragorn summoned the Dead Men of Dunharrow.[2]
In adaptations[]
The Lord of the Rings Online[]
The Blackroot Vale makes an appearance in The Lord of the Rings Online as part of Western Gondor, being accessible through the Paths of the Dead from "Kingstead" in Western Rohan. The Blackroot Vale was also connected to Lamedon by Tarlang's Neck and to the Havens of Belfalas by a road through "Tarlang's Crown" near "Tarlang's Peaks". "Morlad" was the main city of the area, being built on a hill on the western shore of the Morthond. There were also the villages of "Alagrant", "Sardol", "Tingobel", and "Lancrath". In March of T.A. 3019, Orcs of the White Mountains took over Tingobel; Umbarrim Corsairs and sorcerors took over Tarlang's Crown; the Ruthless Dead rejected Aragorn's offer at the Stone of Erech, causing their fear to drive the local fauna to madness and death. In Duinhir's absence, "Malthellam", as the Steward of the Vale, acted as the ruler. However, Duinhir's wife, Lady Rosfin, blamed him for the takeover of Tingobel. The emblem of the Blackroot Vale was a black circle on a white field.
Translations[]
| Foreign language | Translated title |
| Dutch | Zwartworteldal |
| Finnish | Mustanalan laakso |
| German | Schwarzerdental |
| Hebrew | (Morthond Vale) עמק מורתונד |
| Spanish | Valle de la raíz negra |
References[]
- ↑ Vinyar Tengwar, Number 42, "The Rivers and Beacon-hills of Gondor", pg. 14
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, Book Five, Chapter II: "The Passing of the Grey Company"
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, "Map of Rohan, Gondor, and Mordor"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, Book Five, Chapter I: "Minas Tirith"
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, Book Five, Chapter VI: "The Battle of the Pelennor Fields"
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B: The Tale of Years (Chronology of the Westlands), " The Third Age"