Gondor was the greatest kingdom of Men in Middle-earth, bordered by Rohan to the north, Belegaer (the Sea) to the west, Harad to the south, and Mordor to the east. Its first capital was Osgiliath, moved to Minas Tirith in TA 1640. The city of Minas Tirith remained the capital of Gondor for the rest of the Third Age and into years of the Fourth Age; other major fortresses include Dol Amroth in Belfalas and Osgiliath, which was a city on the Anduin.
Gondor was founded by brothers Isildur and Anárion, exiles from Númenor. Gondor was an allied kingdom with Arnor, whose line of kings chieftains came from Isildur, while the Line of the Kings of Gondor was from Anarion. Gondor was at the height of its power in the early years due to the ship kings and the military might that their armies possessed. However multiple devastations caused it to gradually decline in course of the Third Age, being continually weakened by the allies of Sauron, and was only restored in dominance after Sauron's final defeat and the crowning of Aragorn II Elessar.
In all, there were thirty-one kings of Gondor after Anárion, who was slain before the Barad-dur.
Before the Downfall of Númenor, Gondor was home to many Númenórean colonists, who either mixed blood with the indigenous Middle Men if they were friendly, or dispersed them into Ras Morthil, Dunland, and Drúadan Forest. Gondor, at a latitude comparable to Venice, was a more fertile region than Arnor to the north, and therefore it already had a larger population before the ships of Elendil's sons arrived, including a well-established city, Pelargir.
The Faithful or Elendili from Númenor proper were given a warm reception upon their arrival by those that had already colonized Middle-earth, including a colonial branch of Númenorean royalty at Dor-en-Ernil. The colonists north of Anduin accepted Elendil's claim to kingship over them. South of the Great River, however, the newly exiled Númenoreans did not recognize Elendil's claim.
Gondor was being founded after Númenor's population had already split between The Faithful and King's Men, and all of the more southern colonies (such as Umbar) remained enemies of The Faithful.
After the war, Gondor's power and wealth grew steadily (only interrupted by an Easterling invasion in TA 492). Its power would continue to grow into the 9th century Third Age. While the power of Gondor's sister kingdom Arnor peaked during the 9th century, when it broke into various successor states, Gondor's greatest glory was yet to come. Gondor's great cities Minas Anor, Minas Ithil, Osgiliath and Pelargir only grew and the Dunedain of Gondor started to rule over more and more of the lesser people.
Hyarmendacil I (Ciryaher) r. TA 1015 - TA 1149. Last of the Ship-Kings. In the reign of the powerful king, Hyarmendacil I (c. 12th century TA) Gondor reached the height of its power. During Hyarmendacil's reign, Gondor's borders reached their furthest extent. The Kingdom extended east to the Sea of Rhûn, south to the nearest lands of the Haradrim, as far north as Mirkwood, and west towards the borders of Arnor.
Such was Gondor's wealth during the period that men from other lands would say in envy: "In Gondor precious stones are but pebbles for the children to play with." Gondor would also enjoy several centuries of peace due to its military might.
However, after decadence spread under the Kings of Gondor and a long period of decline began (although Gondor experienced several revivals). Three great calamities struck Gondor during the second millennium of the Third Age, which are held to be the chief reasons for its decline: the Kin-strife, the Great Plague, and the invasion of the Wainriders (a tribe of Easterlings).
In the 15th century, TA a great civil war named the Kin-strife tore the nation apart. The current King Eldacar was of mixed blood: his mother was of the Northmen. Popular displeasure at this led to the overthrow of King Eldacar by Castamir, the admiral of all of Gondor's naval forces who possessed some royal blood. Eldacar's son was slain, and he fled north. Castamir was afterwards known as Castamir the Usurper. During his ten-year rule, he proved to be very cruel, and because of his love of his old fleet, he lavished attention on the coastal regions while the interior provinces were ignored and left to rot. Eldacar then returned with an army of his Northman kinsmen, and the armies of the Men of Gondor joined them from interior provinces such as Anórien. Osgiliath was devastated during this conflict, its great bridge destroyed and its Palantír lost. Eldacar slew Castamir and reclaimed his throne, but Castamir's sons and their forces were besieged in Pelargir, the great port of Gondor. They eventually retreated to Umbar, where they joined with the Corsairs, and troubled Gondor for many years, until their descendants died out.
Later, the Great Plague struck and the White Tree died. This Plague was no localized event: the Plague swept through all of Middle-earth, reaching the successor states of Arnor and the Hobbits of the Shire in the North. King Tarondor found a sapling of the White Tree, and moved the capital from Osgiliath to Minas Anor, the City of Anárion. During this time, Gondor was so depopulated that the fortifications guarding against the re-entry of evil into Mordor were abandoned. It is believed that had the Haradrim or Easterlings been capable of attacking Gondor at this time, it would have fallen. However, the Plague left Gondor's enemies in no better condition than Gondor itself, and neither side was capable of mounting new offensives.
Following the sapping of Gondor's strength by the plague, it did recover but then the Wainrider (Easterlings) invaded and devastated Gondor, and the conflict lasted for almost a century. The Wainriders destroyed the Northern Army of Gondor, but survivors linked up with the victorious Southern Army of Gondor which destroyed the Haradrim as they crossed the river Poros, led by a general named Eärnil, and they destroyed the Wainriders as they celebrated their victory, during the Battle of the Camp.
In TA 1944 Gondor faced a succession crisis when King Ondoher was slain in battle with both his sons. Arvedui, Prince of Arthedain, Ondoher's son-in-law, and the victorious general Eärnil, who was a distant blood-relative of Ondoher, claimed the throne. Arvedui's claim lay mainly in the reintroduction of the old Nùmenorean law of accession, which stated the eldest (remaining) child should succeed the king. If the law was reintroduced, then Arvedui's wife Fíriel, Ondoher's daughter and last remaining child, would become Ruling-Queen, making their descendants Kings of both Arnor and Gondor. Arvedui also tried to put weight behind his claim, as he was Isildur's heir. The council of Gondor recognised that the name of Isildur was held in honour in Gondor, but they dictated that the South-Kingdom must be ruled by an Heir of Anarion. Due to his ancestry from Fíriel and Arvedui, more than a millennium later, Aragorn Elessar put forward his claim as the heir of both Isildur and Anarion.
Eärnil laid his claim as being a direct descendant of King Telumehtar Umbardacil. His claim was also greatly bolstered by the popularity he had gained as the victorious general who saved Gondor from the Wainriders after winning the southern theatre of the war. Steward Pelendur who was temporarily ruling Gondor as serving as arbiter of succession, intervened in favour of Gondor's victorious general who would rule as Eärnil II.
During the Battle of Fornost, Eärnil II's heir Eärnur led Gondor's forces to victory over the Witch-king of Angmar, who was actually the Lord of the Nazgûl. Although Eärnur wished to fight him, Eärnur's horse was terrified and fled the battle against his wishes. By the time, he mastered his horse and returned the Witch-king had fled. Glorfindel the Elf then prophesied to him that it was better that he not fight the Lord of the Nazgûl because "never by the hand of man shall he fall".
Eärnur later ascended to the throne, ruling from Minas Anor (Tower of the Sun). During this time, the Ringwraiths captured Minas Anor's sister city, Minas Ithil (Tower of the Moon), renaming it Minas Morgul (Tower of Sorcery) and taking it as their lair. Minas Anor was renamed Minas Tirith (Tower of Guard) as a result. The Lord of the Nazgûl repeatedly sent messengers to Minas Tirith challenging Eärnur to single combat, taunting him that he had fled out of cowardice from facing him during the Battle of Fornost. Eventually, King Eärnur was overcome by wrath and rode with a small company of knights to Minas Morgul, to accept the challenge. They were never heard from again and so ended the Line of Anárion.
A long line of hereditary Stewards governed the realm after the disappearance of Eärnur, son of Eärnil, since there was no proof that the last king was dead, and no claimant had enough support to be accepted as his successor. The line of Anárion was held to have failed, and Gondor was not willing to risk to another Kin-strife, which would surely have destroyed it. Whenever there was a new Steward, he would swear an oath to yield rule of Gondor back to the King, in essence only an heir of Isildur, if he should ever return. In Gondor, there was no one who could claim descent from Isildur in direct line, and the northern line of Arnor had effectively disappeared, so this oath was not considered seriously. The line of Stewards ruled as Kings, without having the title. During the War of the Ring, the ruling Steward of Gondor was Denethor II, and his two sons were Boromir and younger Faramir.
In TA 2510 when Steward Cirion ruled over Gondor, the nation faced one of its greatest perils: an Easterling tribe named the Balchoth invaded Gondor with mass force. Gondor's army marched to fight the Balchoth but were cut off from Minas Tirith and pushed back in the direction of the Limlight.
Messengers were sent to get help from the Éothéod, a tribe, which lived in the northern vales of the Anduin, but nobody expected the messengers to reach their destination. When certain peril came upon Gondor, however, the Éothéod turned the tide of the Battle of the Field of Celebrant. After the victory the Éothéod were awarded the fields of Calenardhon north of the White Mountains (Ered Nimrais) from the Gap of Rohan at the southern end of the Hithaeglir, Fangorn forest, rivers Limlight to Anduin, western Emyn Muil, and the Mering Stream, where they established the kingdom of Rohan with Eorl the Young as their first king. A permanent alliance between Gondor and Rohan was established by the oath Eorl swore to Cirion.
Several decades later, Sauron had prepared for the final conquest, and in TA 3018 his forces overran Ithilien. The attack was stopped at Osgiliath with the destruction of the bridge across the Anduin. The following year Minas Tirith faced a larger attack from Mordor, with additional threat from the Corsairs of Umbar. Aragorn summoned the Dead Men of Dunharrow to destroy the forces from Umbar, freeing forces in the south of Gondor to come to the aid of Minas Tirith. Gondor then defeated the army of Mordor with the aid of the Rohirrim in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, though with heavy losses. The combined army of the West then carried the battle to Sauron at the Battle of the Morannon, a feint to distract Sauron's attention from Frodo Baggins's quest to destroy the One Ring in Mount Doom, thus causing Sauron's destruction and the allies' ultimate victory.
After the second and final defeat of Sauron, the Kingship was restored, with Aragorn crowned as King Elessar of the Reunited Kingdom of Arnor and Gondor. Faramir, last heir of the Ruling Stewards, retained his office as the Steward to the King. The oaths between Gondor and Rohan were renewed, and several joint campaigns were fought in the east and south;[7] all former territories of the South-kingdom were won back during the following centuries, and its power and wealth were restored. Several Tolkien's writings state that "of Eldarion son of Elessar it was foretold that he should rule a great realm, and that it should endure for a hundred generations of men after him, that is until a new age brought in again new things; and from him should come the kings of many realms in long days after".[5][8][1][2][3]
The military training men of Gondor during the Second Age instilled within their soldiers a martial spirit and ardor, goading them to fight to the death against the hordes of Mordor, Rhûn, and of Harad. Every man was very tall being over six feet tall, very broad and strong as well. Every single soldier was in peak fighting condition and ready to fight against Sauron's hordes (especially during the War of the Last Alliance). The three major weapons they used were spears, longswords and longbows. They also knew how to form well cohesive box-formations, which were very sturdy enough for both offenses and defenses. The soldiers were protected by a heavy-plate armour and shields, which were made out of multilayered wood and edged in metal.
Gondor's armies prevented Mordor and its allies from overwhelming the rest of Middle-earth. Because of Gondor's proximity to Mordor, its military forces had to be proficiently trained and vigilantly on guard. Because of this, they were arguably the strongest country that opposed Sauron. During the Third Age, most of Minas Tirith's armies were trained and fought in infantry formations, supported by archers and cavalry. Their armament consisted of a chained undercoat with either a black tabard or plate armor over it. Their standard weapons were spears, swords, and longbows, complimented by wooden tower shields.
Minas Tirith's immediate defenses composed of thousands of infantrymen stationed throughout Osgiliath, Cair Andros, and the Rammas Echor. These units were most likely temporary detachments from the city. Minas Tirith also had at least three companies of the elite Guards of the Citadel, tasked to defend the upper levels of the city. They wore black robes, surcoats and winged silver crowns. Additionally, Sixth Level of the city housed stables for a small force of horsemen. Beyond the defenses of Minas Tirith operated a secretive group of soldiers called the Rangers of Ithilien. Armed with longbows, swords, and spears, these men watched and harassed the enemy throughout Ithilien much akin to guerilla warfare.
The defense of Gondor's fiefdoms were the responsibility of the respective lords of these territories. Their training, strength in numbers, and armaments varied from each fief (Lossarnach brought axemen to the aid of Minas Tirith while the men of Morthond Vale consisted of archers). The greatest of these fiefs was Dol Amroth, which brought forth the largest force to Minas Tirith made up of men-at-arms and knights.
Gondor's fleet at the time of the War of the Ring was docked at Pelargir. This port and the Anduin River was essential in the defense of Minas Tirith. As made evident by the fiefdom's dire need to defend their coasts and many rivers of Gondor, a majority of the fleet was concentrated at Pelargir. This fleet was destroyed when the Black Ships of Umbar attacked, enslaving many of Gondor's sailors into the service of Mordor.
Its name means 'Land of Stone', from Sindaringond (stone) + (n)dor (land), most likely given to it because of the White Mountains (Ered Nimrais) and other mountain chains in the land (hypothetical Quenya name Ondonórë).
The long cape of Andrast was not populated (by the descendants of Númenóreans, but evidence from the Unfinished Tales suggests that a small group of Pukel-men inhabited it.)
Additionally, Gondor held or had held the following regions at certain points in its history:
Harondor or South Gondor, an arid region which was contested between Gondor and Harad,
Minas Tirith (originally Minas Anor), City of the Kings, the capital (Third Age) and largest city of Gondor.
Osgiliath, a city and former capital of Gondor on the river Anduin, largely destroyed and abandoned by the end of the Third Age, but King Elessar had it rebuilt after Sauron's downfall.
Pelargir, the great southern harbour, which was captured by the Corsairs during the War of the Ring
Gondor draws heavy influence from the real medieval Byzantine Empire; both had numerous enemies (Gondor faced the Haradrim, Easterlings and Sauron's forces, the Byzantine Empire faced the Persians, Turks, and on occasion the Catholic West) and both were in a state of decline on the eve of a final, dramatic siege from the East, though Minas Tirith survived and Constantinople did not. Tolkien wrote a letter in 1951 describing the "Byzantine City of Minas Tirith".
This influence is echoed in Peter Jackson's film adaptation - Byzantine domes were incorporated into the architecture of Minas Tirith, the civilians wore Byzantine attire, and Minas Tirith's soldiers were based on pre-11th century Byzantine infantry.
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