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"Farewell, and may the blessing of Elves and Men and all Free Folk go with you."
Elrond in The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Ring Goes South"

The Free Peoples of the World, also known as the Free Folk of the West, Free Folk, Resistance[1], or simply the Free, were those people outside Sauron's domination.[2]

History[]

During the late Third Age, Sauron had many servants enslaved or allied under his dominion including Men of Darkness, Orcs, Trolls and other creatures. Because of this, the term "Free Peoples of the World" was generally used to unite those who opposed Sauron such as the Elves, Dwarves, Ents, Hobbits, High and Middle Men, as well as any other peoples who stood in opposition against Sauron.[2]

During the Council of Elrond, after Erestor suggested that the One Ring could be taken to Tom Bombadil, Gandalf stated that even if all of the Free Folk begged Bombadil to accept the Ring, he would not be a good guardian since the ring would then be easily lost.[3]

Shortly afterwards, Boromir suggested that the One Ring could be used against Sauron if it was given to the Free Lords of the Free,[3] a term which likely referred to the rulers of the Free Peoples of the World such as Elrond and Denethor II.[4]

After the council, Elrond choose the members of the Fellowship of the Ring not only so that they could parallel the numbers of the Nazgûl, but also so that each member represented the Free Peoples of the World in some way: Gimli represented Dwarves, Legolas represented Elves, Aragorn represented Men, and Frodo Baggins represented Hobbits. Despite this, Samwise Gamgee, Meriadoc Brandybuck, and Peregrin Took joined the company in addition to Boromir, whom Aragorn described as being valiant.[2]

Later on, after Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took encountered Treebeard in Fangorn Forest, they learned from the Long List of the Ents that Hobbits were not counted as being among the Free Peoples of the World,[5] but Treebeard rectified this error by adding two new lines.[6]

After the Battle of the Black Gate and the Downfall of Barad-dûr, a minstrel of Gondor sang a lay addressed to the Free Folk of the West.[7]

Other versions[]

In an earlier version of The Lord of the Rings, there was a scene before the council where Gandalf mentioned to the Hobbits that the meeting concerned all Free Folk of the World. During the council itself, Elrond also uses this term.[8]

In another draft, Elrond suggested sending out messengers to all Free Folk to seek representatives to aid Frodo.[9]

In adaptations[]

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring[]

In the prologue of Peter Jackson's 2001 film, the people who formed the Last Alliance of Elves and Men are described as being the Free Peoples of Middle-earth.[10]

The Lord of the Rings: War of the Ring[]

In the 2004 game, The Lord of the Rings: War of the Ring, one playable faction is called the Free Peoples, as opposed to the "Minions of Sauron" faction. The troops of the Free Peoples faction consist of Men of Rohan, Elves, Men of Gondor, Dwarves, Beornings, and Huorns.

The Lord of the Rings Online[]

In The Lord of the Rings Online, video game, there is a game mode called "Monster Play" in which a faction consisting of "good" players is referred to by the term Freeps, an abbreviation for "Free Peoples".[11]

References[]

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