Long Winter

The Long Winter was an extremely cold and long-lasting winter that occurred in Middle-earth during the twenty-eight century of the Third Age. It greatly depopulated the lands of Eriador and Rohan.

History

The Long Winter began in November, 2758, and snow soon covered all of Eriador and Rhovanion all the way south to the White Mountains. Sauron used the winter to his advantage, staging an attack on Gondor by five great fleets of the Corsairs of Umbar and Haradrim, while at the same time Easterlings and Dunlendings backed by Corsairs attacked Rohan. King Helm Hammerhand was trapped in the Hornburg, where he was forced to make desperate raids on the Dunlendings led by Wulf in order to get food. Edoras was occupied by the Dunlendings, with Wulf declaring himself king. Gondor was unable to send help as its coasts and east flank were under attack. In the north, the people of Eriador including The Shire also suffered greatly, with many dying of hunger.

The winter ended in March, 2759, when great floods of meltwater allowed Helm's nephew Fréaláf Hildeson to oust the Dunlendings from Edoras, and with aid from Gondor now arriving led by Beregond, Rohan was soon cleared of invaders. The harsh winter also brought on a great famine in the Shire known as the Days of Dearth that took the lives of many Hobbits up until the year TA 2760.

See also

• The Fell Winter of TA 2911 - TA 2912

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References