Angmar was a realm of Men in the northern Middle-earth, ruled by the Witch-King, a servant of Sauron.
Geography[]
Angmar was located at the top of the Misty Mountains in a west fork. It was slightly west of Gundabad, the two strongholds serving as great strategical points for Sauron and his forces to hold in the North.
History[]
Early history[]
The Witch-king of Angmar, the Lord of the Nazgul, founded of the kingdom
The North Rangers were all that was left of Arnor after it's destruction
Weathertop was the destroyed watchtower of Amon Sul
The evil Lord of Angmar, the Witch King established the evil city of Angmar in T.A. 1300 to terrorize Arnor, the Northern Kingdom of the Men of Númenor. Orcs came down to it from the North. At length, the Northern Kingdom and many of its cities and monuments, such as the Watch-tower of Amon Sul, were destroyed. Only the Dúnedain, disguised as Rangers, were left of the Númenorians in the North.
Gundabad[]
The fortress of Gundabad, the stronghold of Angmar.
Angmar's stronghold of Gundabad terrorized the Woodland Realm
The skinchangers, also came under threat from Gundabad.
Angmar's main stronghold was the mountain range of Gundabad at the far north of the Misty Mountains. It terrorized the realms and people of Rhovanion, including the skin-changers (Beorn recalling it as a "great evil [...] powerful enough to rise the dead.") and the Woodland Realm.
Conflict with the Elves[]
The Elves of Mirkwood went to war with Angmar.
At one point, the Woodland Elves mounted an unsuccessful attack on Angmar, but they stopped when the Elven-queen was captured and killed there. Grief-striken, Thranduil withdrew from the fight against Angmar and Legolas had painful memories, for there would be no grave for her son and husband to visit.
In T.A. 2340, an Orc raid from Gundabad cost the lives of the parents to the Silvan Elf Tauriel. The Orcs were killed, but Thranduil refused to march to war against Angmar again.
Watchful Peace[]
The defeat of Angmar began the Watchful Peace.
Rivendell was one of the kingdoms that fought against Angmar.
The Dunedain Rangers took part in Angmar's downfall.
In T.A. 1975, the joint forces of Rivendell, Gondor and the Dunedain Rangers drove the forces of Angmar back, but were unable to take its mountainous strongholds of Carn Dum and Gundabad. Only by T.A. 2540 was Angmar sacked, and the Witch King and the other eight Ringwraiths (since driven from Minas Morgul) were entombed in the High Fells of Rhudaur, ushering in the Watchful Peace.
The Moria Orcs, under Azog, were the remnants of Angmar
The Trolls of the Ettenmoors were one of the remnants of Angmar
Goblins of the Misty Mountains were also the remnants of Angmar
Angmar would be the purpose of the increased guard around the Shire
Eriador would be under vacancy due to the threat of Angmar
Gandalf hatched the Quest of Erebor to halt Sauron's plan for Angmar
Azog, the chieftain of the Moria Orcs, would lead the remnants of Angmar
The remnants of Angmar were the Troll, Orc and Goblin population of Ettenmoors and the Misty Mountains, namely the Orcs that infested Moria under Azog, and the Goblins of Goblintown and Mount Gram. Its wars against Arnor are also the reason for the vacancy of Eriador, and the guarded borders of The Shire.
Quest of Erebor[]
Sauron intended to re-establish Angmar after he began gaining power
Sauron intended to restore Angmar by conquering Erebor
Bolg led an army of Gundabad Orcs to re-establish Angmar
Azog led armies of elite Guldur Orcs to conquer the Lonely Mountain
Sauron's plan was foiled in the Battle of the Five Armies
Angmar's restoration was foiled by the Dwarves' quest
The Elves of Mirkwood helped to prevent Angmar's restoration
In T.A. 2940, Sauron's initial objective was to reclaim the lands of Angmar so as to defeat the Elven kingdoms of Greenwood, Lorien and Rivendell. He tried to stop a Dwarvish quest to reclaim Erebor, which he intended to capture in order to secure Angmar's eastern flank, and sent two armies from Moria and Gundabad to take it from the Dwarves. This intention was foiled in the Battle of Five Armies. With the re-founding of the Kingdom under the Mountain and the Kingdom of Dale the Westlands gained a bastion in the North, blocking the expansion of Sauron's power westwards. Had he succeeded, it would have assured his triumph in the War of the Ring.
The Guldur Orcs would be active again in the War of the Ring
Sauron abandoned his conquest of Erebor and focused on Gondor
His plan failed and the Dark Lord focused on Mordor and conquering Gondor. There were known to be some of Sauron's forces in Angmar during the War of the Ring but he never regained complete control in that region.
Appearances[]
- The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (mentioned only)
- The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (mentioned only)
- The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (mentioned only)