THORIN OAKENSHIELD
On these long cold evenings what better entertainment is there than to dip into J. R. R. Tolkien’s 1937 classic, The Hobbit, or to watch the Peter Jackson movie trilogy? So I did.
And this reminded me that, besides Bilbo Baggins, there is a very important character known as Thorin Oakenshield.
For those who don’t know I will illuminate briefly:
In The Hobbit there are many races besides men described including elves, hobbits, and dwarves.
The dwarves are known for their rich mines. One of these mines was called Erebor or The Lonely Mountain. It was ruled by King Thrór until it was lost to a dragon called Smaug who ruled over its riches for 150 years. The king was killed but his son, Thráin II, and grandson, Thorin II, escaped.
It was later in the Battle of Azanulbizar against the orcs (bad guys) that Thráin was killed and Thorin earned the title by which he is known. During this battle Thorin’s shield broke and he was forced to use an oak branch to fend off the orc blows. Thus, he earned the name Oakenshield.
On the recommendation of Gandalf (wizard) Thorin hired Bilbo Baggins (hobbit) to accompany a band of dwarves to retake the Lonely Mountain and thus reestablish his kingdom over Durin’s folk.
Of course, there were many challenges along this journey culminating in another epic battle, The Battle of the Five Armies. These armies included the elves, men, dwarves, and two of orcs.
Unfortunately, Thorin did not survive but a cousin, Dáin Ironfoot, carried on as king in his stead.
As King Thorin lay dying beside his friend Bilbo he said:
If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world. But, sad or merry, I must leave it now. Farewell.
***For further information one can, of course, go to Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorin_Oakenshield
And for the real fans there is the Tolkien Gateway: http://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Thorin
And if you are lucky you can go visit the home of the hobbits: https://www.hobbitontours.com/en/
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