Edoras

Edoras
General information
Location	On a hill in southern Rohan
People
Inhabitants	Rohirrim
Spoken languages	Rohanese/Westron
History
Founded/built	Late Third Age ?

"I see a white stream that comes down from the snows", he said. "Where it issues from the shadow of the vale a green hill rises upon the east. A dike and mighty wall and thorny fence encircle it. Within there rise the roofs of houses; and in the midst, set upon a green terrace, there stands aloft a great hall of Men. And it seems to my eyes that it is thatched with gold. The light of it shines far over the land. Golden, too, are the posts of its doors."

—Legolas, seeing Edoras from afar

Edoras (Rohanese for 'the courts') was the capital of Rohan. Built principally of wood, Edoras was also where Rohan's kings were buried, in two lines of Barrows just outside the main gate.

History

Edoras was built on a hill in a valley of the White Mountains by Rohan's second King, Brego son of Eorl the Young. Before this, Rohan's capital was at Aldburg in the Eastfold. In Edoras' center was the Golden Hall of Meduseld, where the ruler sat. The royal territory that Edoras formed the core of was named the Folde.

Edoras, by Ralph Damiani

In TA 2758, Edoras was overtaken by Dunlendings led by Wulf, who ruled the city until the following year, when he was slain and the Dunlendings driven out by Fréaláf Hildeson.

It was at Edoras that Aragorn, Gimli, Legolas, and Gandalf met with King Théoden in the year TA 3019, after the breaking of the Fellowship of the Ring. Whilst the Battle of the Hornburg was being fought, a mustering of Rohan began at Edoras, before it was moved to Dunharrow after Gandalf spotted one of the Nazgûl flying near the settlement.

Several months later, Elrond and Arwen parted for the first time at Edoras, after a great feast in memory of Théoden.

Geography

The main gate, as seen at Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli's arrival

Edoras was built at the end of the valley of Harrowdale, which lay under the great mountain Starkhorn. The River Snowbourn flowed past Edoras on its way west towards the Entwash and was joined by a small stream with its source near the top of the hill. As Rohan consisted of mostly small villages and farmsteads, Edoras was the largest settlement and held the Golden Hall of Meduseld, the seat and residence of Rohan's kings. The Barrowfield, where Rohan's kings were entombed, lay outside the main gate.

In adaptations

For Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, a fully realized set for Edoras was built on Mount Sunday in the upper reaches of the Rangitata Valley, near Erewhon.

Edoras in The Lord of the Rings Online

In The Lord of the Rings Online, Edoras, unlike many in-game settlements much smaller in size and prominence, is not considered a "capital" of its region. This is because early in the story Edoras is evacuated, with all inhabitants moving to Dunharrow, and for the majority of the game, the city of Edoras sits empty. Instead, Aldburg functions as the "capital settlement" of western Rohan, hosting the hub for swift travel and various player facilities.

Gallery

Edoras as it appears in BFME

Edoras as drawn by Alan Lee

Edoras' location on a map of Middle-earth

Translations

Foreign Language	Translated name
Amharic	ዐዶራስ
Arabic	إيدورس
Armenian	Եդորաս
Belarusian Cyrillic	Едорас
Bengali	এদরাস
Bulgarian Cyrillic	Едорас
Catalan	Édoras
Georgian	ედორასი
Greek	Εδορασ
Gujarati	ઍદોરસ
Hebrew	אדוראס
Hindi	एदोरस
Japanese	エドラス
Kazakh	Едорас (Cyrillic) Edoras (Latin)
Korean	에도라스
Kyrgyz Cyrillic	Эдорас
Macedonian Cyrillic	Едорас
Marathi	एदोरस
Mongolian Cyrillic	Едорас
Nepalese	एदोरस
Pashto	ېدوراس
Persian	ادوراس
Russian	Эдорас
Serbian	Едорас (Cyrillic) Edoras (Latin)
Sinhalese	ඒදොරස්
Tajik Cyrillic	Едорас
Tamil	ஏதொரஸ்
Telugu	ఏదొరస
Thai	เอโดรัส
Ukrainian Cyrillic	Едорас
Urdu	ادوراس
Uzbek	Едорас (Cyrillic) Edoras (Latin)
Yiddish	עדאָראַס