- "Beneath the mountain's arm within the Wizard's Vale through years uncounted had stood that ancient place that Men called Isengard. Partly it was shaped in the making of the mountains, but mighty works the Men of Westernesse had wrought there of old; and Saruman had dwelt there long and had not been idle."
- —The Two Towers, "The Road to Isengard"
Isengard, also known as Angrenost ('Iron Fortress') in Sindarin, was one of the three major fortresses of Gondor, and held within it one of the realm's palantíri.
However, in the latter half of the Third Age, the stronghold came into the possession of the Wizard Saruman, becoming his home and seat of power until his defeat in the War of the Ring.
Description[]
Isengard before Saruman's treason
Isengard was built in the Second Age around the tower of Orthanc by the Númenóreans in exile, in the days of their power, in Nan Curunír (The Wizard's Vale) in the Misty Mountains. Its location was at the northwestern corner of the Kingdom of Gondor, guarding the Fords of Isen from enemy incursions into Calenardhon and, together with the fortress of Aglarond to its south, protecting the Gap of Calenardhon.[1]
Isengard lay southwest of Fangorn and northwest of Rohan
Isengard was comprised of a black, circular, stone-wall surrounding a broad plain, in the center of which was the Tower of Orthanc. Isengard had only one gate, which faced south.
The River Angren (or Isen) began at Methedras behind Isengard, which also formed its northern wall. The other three sides were guarded by a large wall, known as the Ring of Isengard, which was only breached by the inflow of the River Angren at the northeast through a portcullis, and the gate of Isengard at the south, at both shores of the river. The Gate was said to be able to open without a sound.[2]
Isengard was, at first, a green and beautiful tower complex, with many large trees and grass fields, fed by the river until it was dammed by Saruman. During his tenure as an opportunistic servant of Sauron, Saruman turned Isengard into "a child's model or a slave's flattery" of Mordor. Its gardens destroyed, the valley was covered in pits filled with forges and machinery needed for war. After the Wizard's defeat, however, Treebeard and the rest of the Ents made it a vivid green area again, after destroying the walls and dam, renaming it the Treegarth of Orthanc.[3]
History[]
In the centuries following the Great Plague the land of Calenardhon became depopulated, and the last Warden of Orthanc was recalled to Minas Tirith. Isengard remained garrisoned by a small company, led by a hereditary captain, much as happened at Aglarond at the time. At first messengers were still sent to the fortress by the Stewards, although these dwindled and then eventually ceased entirely.
In TA 2510, after Calenardhon was given to the Éothéod by Cirion, Steward of Gondor, and became Rohan, Isengard remained part of Gondor, and the company of Aglarond removed to the northern fortress, although the rest of Gondor had virtually forgotten it. The small guard intermarried much with the Dunlendings, until the place became a Dunlending fortress in all but name. Orthanc, however, remained closed, as the Steward of Gondor held the keys. Isengard soon became all but deserted.[4]
Saruman, outside Orthanc
During the rule of Rohan's King Déor, in TA 2710, the line of hereditary captains commanding the fortress garrison died out and Isengard became openly hostile to the Rohirrim. Using Isengard as their base, the Dunlendings continued to raid Rohan during the reign of Déor's son Gram, until during the rule of Gram's son Helm Hammerhand a Dunlending lord, Freca and his son Wulf nearly managed to destroy the Rohirrim. The Rohirrim led by Helm's nephew, Fréaláf Hildeson, eventually won, taking Isengard by starving out the Dunlendings in TA 2759 and guarding it for Gondor.[5]
At this time, the Wizard Saruman the White suddenly reappeared from the East, and offered to guard Isengard. The Steward of Gondor, Beren, gladly gave him the keys to Orthanc, and Saruman settled there. After him the valley became known as Nan Curunír, "Wizard's Vale". At first, the White Wizard was merely Warden of the Tower on behalf of Gondor, but as his ambitions grew and fall began, he took the fortress for his own in TA 2953. Saruman fortified Isengard and secretly troubled Rohan by aiding its enemies during Thengel's reign. Having become Sauron's servant by TA 3000, Saruman began building an army to "deliver" the Rohirrim to his "dark master",[6] though his true goal was to try claim the One Ring for himself.[7] Uruk-hai bred at Isengard soon began making sorties with Orcs from the Misty Mountains and Mordor into Rohirrim territory. Saruman also tasked his agents in the Shire with procuring pipe-weed and other provisions and shipping them to Isengard in preparation for war.
Isengard at full military power
In TA 3018, Gandalf came to Isengard to take counsel with Saruman. It was then that the Grey Pilgrim discovered his intentions and defection to the Dark Lord's side. With Gandalf refusing to either submit to Sauron or reveal the Ring's whereabouts, Saruman imprisoned him on the pinnacle of Orthanc. From there, the Grey Pilgrim saw Isengard's host amass. In the War of the Ring, the Isengarders now defiled Nan Curunír, cutting down its tree gardens and damming and diverting the Isen river. The valley was filled with deep caverns, housing forgeries and breeding pits for Orcs. After Gandalf's escape from Orthanc, Saruman sent both Uglúk's warband to hunt for the Fellowship of the Ring and raiding parties to ravage Rohan's Westfold. Failing to attain the Ring, Saruman turned to seeking Sauron's clemency by marshalling his army of Uruk-hai and Half-orcs at Isengard for a final attack against Théoden's Rohirrim at Helm's Deep. While the Battle of the Hornburg unfurled, a host of Ents and Huorns led by Treebeard of Fangorn attacked Isengard, wrecking all of Saruman's industry, though unable to force entry into or damage Orthanc. His servants and allies destroyed or scattered, Saruman remained hidden in his tower.
The base of Orthanc, after Isengard's fall, by Ivan Cavini
The Hobbits Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took, as the new "doorwardens", received Théoden, Aragorn, and Gandalf at the gates. Saruman was confronted but refused to beg for pardon, and he was kept under Treebeard's guard together with his footman, Gríma Wormtongue. It was planned by Sauron that Isengard would be given to his ambassador, the Mouth of Sauron, a far more trustworthy servant than Saruman.[8] The Wizard nonetheless abandoned the stronghold after the downfall of his "dark master", playing off Treebeard's hatred of caging any living thing in order to manipulate him into letting him leave.
After the War of the Ring[]
Early in the Fourth Age, Isengard was restored and Treebeard replanted many trees. Orthanc again became a tower of the Reunited Kingdom of King Aragorn II Elessar.
Under the Ent dominion, the ring-wall was torn down and the Ents planted the Watchwood there, naming the new forest the "Treegarth of Orthanc". Saruman's pits and caverns were filled, and the land was healed. The Valley was now filled with trees, and a small lake was constructed near Orthanc. Nan Curunír was given to the Ents by Aragorn, to do with as they wished, granted that they keep watch upon Orthanc and prevent anyone without permission from entering.[citation needed]
Translations[]
| Foreign Language | Translated name |
| Amharic | ዒሰንጋርድ |
| Arabic | ايسينجارد |
| Armenian | Իսենգարդ |
| Assamese | আইচেনগাৰ্ড |
| Belarusian Cyrillic | Ізенгард |
| Bengali | ঈসেঙার্দ |
| Bulgarian Cyrillic | Исенгард |
| Catalan | Ísengard |
| Czech | Železný Pas |
| Chinese (Hong Kong) | 艾辛格 |
| Danish | Isengard |
| Estonian | Raudlinn |
| Finnish | Rautapiha |
| French | Isengard |
| Georgian | იზენგარდი |
| German | Isengart |
| Greek | Άιζενγκαρντ |
| Gujarati | ઈસેઙર્દ |
| Hebrew | אייזנגארד |
| Hindi | आइसेंगार्ड |
| Hungarian | Vasudvard |
| Japanese | アイゼンガルド |
| Kannada | ಇಸೆನ್ಗಾರ್ಡ್ನಲ್ಲಿ |
| Kazakh | Ысенгард (Cyrillic) Isengard (Latin) |
| Konkani | आयझनगार्ड |
| Korean | 아이센가드 |
| Kyrgyz Cyrillic | Исэнгард |
| Macedonian Cyrillic | Исенгард |
| Marathi | ईसेङ्गर्द |
| Mongolian Cyrillic | Исенгард |
| Nepalese | ईसेङर्द |
| Norwegian | Jarnagard |
| Pashto | یسېنګارد |
| Persian | آیزنگارد |
| Punjabi | ਈਸੇਨ੍ਗਰ੍ਦ |
| Russian | Изенгард |
| Sanskrit | ईसेङर्द् |
| Serbian | Изенгард (Cyrillic) Izengard (Latin) |
| Sindhi | ايسنگارڊ |
| Sinhalese | අයිසන්ගාර්ඩ් |
| Slovak | Isengard |
| Swedish | Isengård |
| Tajik Cyrillic | Исенгард |
| Tamil | ஈஸெஙர்த் |
| Tatar | Исенгард |
| Telugu | ఇసెంగార్డ్ |
| Ukrainian Cyrillic | Ізенгард |
| Urdu | اسانگآرد |
| Uzbek | Исенгард (Cyrillic) Isengard (Latin) |
| Yiddish | איסענהױף |
|
Middle-earth Locations:
Provinces/Regions: Arnor | Dunland | Ettenmoors | Forochel | Forodwaith | Gondor | Harad | Ithilien | Khand | Lindon | Minhiriath | Mordor | Rhovanion | Rhûn | Rivendell | Rohan | The Shire Forests & Mountains: Amon Dîn | Amon Hen | Amon Lhaw | Caradhras | Emyn Muil | Erebor | Fangorn Forest | High Pass | Iron Hills | Lórien | Mirkwood | Mount Doom | Mount Gundabad | Old Forest | Orod-na-Thôn | Tower Hills | Weathertop Hill City/Fortifications: Angband | Barad-dûr | Bree | Caras Galadhon | Dol Guldur | Fornost Erain | Hornburg | Isengard | Khazad-dûm (Moria) | Minas Morgul | Minas Tirith | Last Homely House | Tower of Amon Sûl | Tower of Orthanc | Osgiliath | Umbar | Utumno Miscellaneous: Argonath | Astulat | Buckland | Cair Andros | Dagorlad | Dead Marshes | Enedwaith | Fords of Isen | Gap of Rohan | Grey Havens The rest of Arda:
Aman | Burnt Land of the Sun | Dark Land | Empty Lands | Neldoreth | New lands | Númenor | Tol Eressëa |
References[]
- ↑ The Silmarillion, "Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age"
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers, Book Three, Ch. VII: "The Road to Isengard"
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, Book Six, Ch. VI: "Many Partings"
- ↑ Unfinished Tales, Part Three: The Third Age, Chapter V: "The Battles of the Fords of Isen", Appendix
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, Annals of the Kings and Rulers, II. "The House of Eorl"
- ↑ The Two Towers, "The Voice of Saruman"
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, Book Two, Chapter II: "The Council of Elrond"
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, Book Five, Ch. X: "The Black Gate Opens"