Éomund
Father of Éomer and Éowyn, husband of Théodwyn.
Éomund is a character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, known as the father of Éomer and Éowyn. He was married to Théodwyn, and after their deaths, their children were adopted by Théoden, king of the Rohirrim.
Quick Facts
- Spouse
- Théodwyn
- Children
- Éomer, Éowyn
- Adoptive parent of children
- Théoden
Facts from the source article.
Fictional account
Éomund was the father of Éomer and Éowyn, and the husband of Théodwyn. After both parents died, their children were adopted by their uncle Théoden, king of the Rohirrim. Éomer later became the leader of the Riders of Rohan, fighting against Mordor. He led the forces that attacked and killed the Uruk-hai who had kidnapped the hobbits Merry Brandybuck and Pippin Took. Against orders, Éomer helped Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas by lending them horses and guiding them to the site of the attack. Upon returning to Edoras, Éomer reported this meeting to Théoden and was imprisoned on the orders of Gríma Wormtongue. He fought at the Battle of Helm's Deep, where the forces of Rohan drove Saruman's army from the walls of the Hornburg. Éomer played a major role in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, leading a cavalry charge. After Théoden was mortally wounded, he appointed Éomer king with his dying breath. Éomer later accompanied Aragorn to the Gates of Mordor for the final stand against Sauron. After the war, Éomer became King of the Mark. He married Lothíriel, daughter of Imrahil, and they had a son, Elfwine the Fair.
Analysis
The name Éomer, meaning 'Horse-famous' in Old English, appears in Beowulf as the name of a king descended from Offa of Mercia. Tolkien had studied Beowulf extensively and drew material from it. Critic Paul Kocher notes that in his first meeting with Aragorn, Éomer is moved by affection more than policy, risking his command and life by assisting Aragorn contrary to orders. Tom Shippey contrasts Éomer with Faramir, finding Éomer 'compulsively truculent' while Faramir is courteous and urbane, reflecting the characters of their nations: Gondor as a kind of Rome, Rohan as a simple but vigorous Anglo-Saxon society. Shippey notes that at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, the decisive charge of the Riders of Rohan displays panache, meaning both the white horsetail on Éomer's helm and the virtue of sudden onset. This allows Tolkien to show Rohan both as English and as alien.
Adaptations
In the 1978 animated adaptation by Ralph Bakshi, Éomer has no lines and is not fully animated. In Peter Jackson's film trilogy, Éomer was played by Karl Urban. Michael Drout states that Jackson's film version of Éomer's helmet is based on the Sutton Hoo helmet, an iconic image of Anglo-Saxon culture. Tolkien had denied that the Riders of Rohan were actually Anglo-Saxons, though he made them speak the Mercian dialect. Drout notes that a book allows ambiguity about visual images, but a film reduces that ambiguity. Éomer's crest of horsetail and the riders' flaxen hair give an impression of 'continental Gothic' rather than Anglo-Saxons, but the film collapses that ambiguity. Drout contrasts Jackson's close-up of Éomer in his elaborate helmet with a later scene of an Easterling soldier whose helmet covers his face, suggesting veiling and Orientalism, whereas Éomer's visible face makes him seem more open and less threatening.
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