The Quest of Erebor, toward the end of the Third Age, was launched by Thorin II Oakenshield and Gandalf's decision to retake the Lonely Mountain from the dragon Smaug. It would be recounted from the perspective of Bilbo Baggins, and occupies the plot of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit.
History[]
Background[]
Gandalf knew that Smaug would pose a serious threat if used by Sauron in war, the Dark Lord then dwelling not that far from the dragon, in Dol Guldur in Mirkwood. He was thinking about the matter when he met Thorin Oakenshield at Bree. Thorin also was concerned about Smaug, but had the different motive of revenge and the reclaiming of the Dwarves' treasure in the Lonely Mountain. Gandalf agreed to help Thorin.
Gandalf thought Bilbo, an unlikely choice, to be a suitable companion of Thorin and his Dwarves for a number of reasons. First, he had observed that Bilbo took an interest in the world at large, and was thus adventurous. Another reason is that Smaug would not recognize the scent of a hobbit, advantageous to a stealthy operation. Thorin also did not think highly of hobbits, and putting Bilbo in the expedition might prevent the proud Thorin from rash actions, such as openly challenging Smaug.
It was Thorin's objections to Bilbo that Gandalf found most difficult to overcome. Thorin believed that Bilbo was incapable of helping their adventure and that Gandalf might be simply meddling in his affairs for his own reasons. After much debate, Gandalf convinced Thorin that Bilbo would be a worthy member.[1][2]
The Quest[]
The Company started from the Shire, crossing Eriador without incident until they reached the Trollshaws. Three Stone-trolls, Tom, Bert, and William caught them. Luckily, they were saved when Gandalf tricked the trolls into arguing all-night until sunrise, thus turning them to stone. Finding the Troll's horde, the Dwarves discovered the famous swords Orcrist and Glamdring, as well as the small dagger Sting. Then they passed into the Hidden Valley and arrived in Rivendell; eventually leaving to venture over the High Pass. After being captured by goblins, Gandalf saved saved them again in Goblin-town, they were hunted by wargs. They were saved by Gwaihir and the other Great Eagles. After having a night in Beorn's house, they went to Mirkwood. Thranduil caught them and locked them in his cells. Bilbo, who was wearing the Ring, broke the Dwarves out, then put them in Barrels which floated down the Forest River. After awhile they were found by Bard, who brought them to Lake-town. They encountered the Master of Lake-town and afterwards successfully reached the Lonely Mountain.
Aftermath[]
The Quest achieved its purpose, as Durin's Folk could consequently repopulate Erebor, and reclaim their gold. The company's arrival at the mountain, however, set in motion the events that led to the Battle of Five Armies. Additionally, by virtue of Bilbo's finding of the Ring, the quest indirectly caused the War of the Ring nearly eighty years later.
Behind the scenes[]
"The Quest of Erebor" was originally written in the 1950's to be a part of The Lord of the Rings, but Tolkien decided otherwise, and only a very abridged version of the tale is given in the Appendices. There are two manuscripts extant of the work. Both are written in the first person, from the perspective of Frodo Baggins. However, nearly all of the text consists of narration by Gandalf, telling the story at the request of Frodo in Minas Tirith after the coronation of King Aragorn II Elessar in The Lord of the Rings.
In adaptations[]
The quest is the subject of Peter Jackson's The Hobbit film trilogy, which depicts both the events described by J.R.R. Tolkien as well as those created by the filmmakers. In a flashback from The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug adapted from a chapter in Unfinished Tales, Gandalf meets Thorin at The Prancing Pony and convinces Thorin to reclaim his homeland.
Translations[]
| Foreign Language | Translated name |
| Afrikaans | Die soeke van Erebor |
| Albanian | Kërkimi për Erebor |
| Arabic | البحث عن إريبور |
| Armenian | Էրեբորի որոնումը |
| Assamese | এৰেবৰৰ অভিযান |
| Azerbaijani | Erebor Axtarışı |
| Basque | Ereborren bila |
| Belarusian Cyrillic | Пошук для Эребора |
| Bengali | এরেবরের কোয়েস্ট |
| Bosnian | Potraga na Erebor |
| Bulgarian Cyrillic | В търсене на Эрэбар |
| Catalan | El Quest d'Erèbor |
| Cebuano | Ang Pagpangita ni Erebor |
| Chinese | 孤山任務 |
| Corsican | La ricerca di Erebor |
| Croatian | Pohod na Erebor |
| Czech | Výprava k Ereboru |
| Danish | Rejsen til Det Ensomme Bjerg (Erebor) |
| Dutch | De Queeste van Erebor |
| Esperanto | La serĉo de Erebor |
| Estonian | Erebori otsimine |
| Filipino | Ang paghahanap ng Erebor |
| Finnish | Ereborin-retki |
| French | L'Expédition d’Erebor |
| Frisian | De Syktocht fan Erebor (Western) |
| Galician | A busca de Erebor |
| Georgian | მოგზაურობა ერებორში |
| German | Die Fahrt zum Erebor |
| Greek | Η αποστολή του Έρεμπορ |
| Gujarati | એરેબોરની ક્વેસ્ટ |
| Haitian Creole | Rechèch pou Erebor |
| Hebrew | ה מסע לארבור |
| Hindi | एरेबोर की खोज |
| Hmong | Kev Tshawb Nrhiav Erebor |
| Hungarian | Az erebori kutatás |
| Icelandic | Leitin að Erebor |
| Indonesian | Pencarian untuk Erebor |
| Irish Gaelic | An Cuardach de Erebor |
| Italian | La cerca di Erebor |
| Japanese | エレボールへの遠征 |
| Kannada | ಎರೆಬೋರ್ ಕ್ವೆಸ್ಟ್ |
| Kazakh | Ереборды үшін іздеу (Cyrillic) Erebordı üşin izdew (Latin) |
| Korean | 에레보르 원정 |
| Kyrgyz Cyrillic | Эрэбор үчүн издөө |
| Latvian | Erebora meklējumi |
| Lithuanian | Erebor beieškant |
| Luxembourgish | D'Sich vu Erebor |
| Macedonian Cyrillic | Потрагата по Еребор |
| Malagasy | Ny fikarohana ny Erebor |
| Malayalam | എറെബോറിന്റെ അന്വേഷണം |
| Malaysian | Cari bagi Erebor |
| Maltese | It-tfittxija ta 'Erebor |
| Marathi | इरेबोर साठी शोध |
| Mongolian Cyrillic | Эреборын эрэлд |
| Nepalese | क्वेस्ट अरेबर |
| Norwegian | Ferden til Erebor |
| Persian | جستجو برای اره بور |
| Polish | Wyprawa do Ereboru |
| Portuguese | A Busca de Erebor |
| Punjabi | ਏਰਬਰ ਲਈ ਖੋਜ |
| Romanian | În căutarea Ereborului |
| Russian | Эреборский поход |
| Samoan | Saili mo Erebor |
| Sardinian | Sa chirca de Erebor |
| Scottish Gaelic | An Rannsachadh airson Erebor |
| Serbian | Потрага за Еребором (Cyrillic) Potraga za Ereborom (Latin) |
| Sicilian | La ricerca di Erebor |
| Sinhalese | එරෙබෝර් ගවේෂණය |
| Slovak | Hľadanie Ereboru |
| Slovenian | Iskanje Erebora |
| Spanish | La búsqueda de Erebor |
| Sundanese | Milarian keur Erebor |
| Swahili | Jitihada ya Erebor |
| Swedish | Jakten på Erebor |
| Tajik Cyrillic | Ҷустуҷӯи барои Еребор |
| Tamil | எரெபோர் குவெஸ்ட் |
| Tatar | Эребор эзләү |
| Telugu | ఎరేబోర్ యొక్క క్వెస్ట్ |
| Thai | ยุทธการแห่งเอเรบอร์ |
| Turkish | Erebor'un Görevi |
| Turkmen | Erebor Gözleýşi |
| Ukrainian Cyrillic | Похід до Еребора |
| Urdu | اراباور کے لئے تلاش کریں |
| Uzbek | Еребор учун қидириш (Cyrillic) Erebor uchun qidirish (Latin) |
| Vietnamese | Nhiệm vụ của Erebor |
| Welsh | Y Chwilio am Erebor |
| Xhosa | Ukukhangela i-Erebor |
| Yiddish | די קוועסט פון ערעבאָר |
| Yoruba | Ibere ti Erebor |
References[]
- ↑ Unfinished Tales, Part Three: The Third Age, Chapter III: "The Quest of Erebor"
- ↑ The Hobbit, Chapter I: "An Unexpected Party"