The Ent Fangorn is one of the two oldest beings
in all of Middle-earth, along with Tom Bombadil. The name Fangorn in elvish translates to Treebeard. Today, we are going to look at the many forest
locations in which he dwelt during his long years in Arda. Real quick, if you are enjoying the channel,
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- and you’ll help me grow the channel at the same time! The origins of the Ents go back all the way
to the Years of the Trees and are actually tied to the creation of the dwarves. After Aule creates the dwarves in secret,
and Eru shows them mercy and allows them to remain in Middle-earth, Yavanna is concerned
for her creations - specifically she fears the dwarves will cut down all her trees in
Middle-earth. Through Manwe, she pleads with Eru, asking
if anything she made would be free from the dominion of others. Eru has pity on Yavanna, and creates the Ents,
so that they may protect the trees of Middle-earth. The Ents become known as the Shepherds of
the Trees. The males are devoted to Orome, the hunter
of the Valar, while the Entwives are devoted to Yavanna herself. It is also around this same time that the
Elves are created. The Eldar teach the trees to talk and even
more, to speak Elvish. Treebeard would later say it was a great gift
that could not be forgotten, that the elves cured the Ents of their dumbness. At this point they are not as wise or as strong
as they would become in later ages, but they begin to develop their own language - Entish. Treebeard is among these Ents created by Eru
Iluvatar, though his rightful name is Fangorn - the name a forest would one day bear in
his honor. In his early years, Treebeard, who stands
roughly 14 feet tall, lives in a vast forest that spans from Beleriand in the West throughout
Eriador and south to Calenardhon. Treebeard comes to love Fimbrethil - who becomes
his entwife even before the Dark Lord Morgoth first comes to power in the first age. One of the few recorded deeds of Ents during
the first age comes in the story of Beren and Luthien. I’ll save the in-depth dive into Sack of
Menegroth for another video, but (503FA) After the Dwarves of Nogrod kill King Thingol (Luthien’s
father), they soon after ravage his treasury, and begin their journey home to the Blue Mountains
from Doriath. En route, they are hunted down by Beren and
his army of Green-elves in the Battle of Sarn Athrad. Though most of the dwarves are killed in the
ford, some escape and flee toward the mountains. However, as they climb the slopes of Mount
Domed, ents come forth and drive the dwarves into the forest, from which none escaped. In one of his letters, Tolkien explains that
this event “would not make for love between Ents and Dwarves”. *oh that's good clip* We don’t know for
certain which ents took part in this battle, but we do have an idea of some of the locations
where Treebeard visited during his time either in or before the first age. In the Lord of the Rings, we learn that Treebeard
has memories from ancient realms such as the willow-meads of Tasarinan, the elm-woods of
Ossiriand, the pine-trees of Dorthonion, and the beeches of Neldoreth. These lands, along with all of Beleriand,
would be destroyed during the War of Wrath with Morgoth that ended the first age. Beleriand and all it’s realms would then
sink into the sea. With Beleriand destroyed by the War, we know
that Treebeard and the ents certainly now dwell in the forests of Eriador. And while this map looks correct in terms
of what we are accustomed to in the second and third ages, we actually find out from
Elrond in Fellowship of the Ring that the land even then was still a great forest. “Time was once when a squirrel could carry
a nut from tree to tree from Rivendell to the Great Sea.” So nearly all of Eriador even south as far
as Calenardhon was a huge forest and part of the Entish domain. Sometime in either the first or second age,
the Entwives begin to move further away from the Ents. While the male Ents tend to the larger trees
of the great forest, the Entwives enjoy planting and controlling small things like vegetables,
grass and flowers. The Entwives pass over the Anduin and come
to a land where they could tend their gardens. After Morgoth is overthrown at the end of
the first age, the gardens of the Entwives thrive and they teach agriculture to Men,
who in turn hold them in honor. However, as we know, the vast forest realm
of the ents would not last. A time comes in the Second Age when much of
this immense forest is either cut by Numenoreans, or destroyed in the tumultuous War of the
Elves and Sauron that lasts from 1693-1701 of the Second Age. This shrinking of the forest solidifies the
Ents separation from the Entwives, as the ents retreat to the relatively small forest
that remains of the once great realm. The Fangorn forest we see in The Lord of the
Rings, named in honor of Treebeard himself, is but a small remnant of the great forest
that once was. An equally, if not more tragic fate would
come to the gardens of the Entwives. During the War of the Last Alliance, (3429-3441),
Sauron lays waste to the entire land. He employs a scorched earth policy in an attempt
to hinder the approach of the Last Alliance as they march toward Mordor. The gardens of the entwives are completely
destroyed and the area becomes a desolate desert with arid moors. Sometime after this tragedy, the Ents cross
the Anduin in search of the Entwives. Unfortunately, they would find no trace of
them. ****flee? Treebeard is convinced that the Entwives were
not all destroyed, but instead were “lost”. But the Entwives were not there. Long we called, and long we searched; and
we asked all folk that we met which way the Entwives had gone. Some said they had never seen them; and some
said that they had seen them walking away west, and some said east, and others south. But nowhere that we went could we find them. Our sorrow was very great. Yet the wild wood called, and we returned
to it. For many years we used to go out every now
and again and look for the Entwives, walking far and wide and calling them by their beautiful
names. But as time passed we went more seldom and
wandered less far. And now the Entwives are only a memory for
us, and our beards are long and grey. In the more than 3000 years to follow, Fangorn
Forest would become the only apparent dwelling place of the Ents. Over time, as their hope begins to fade of
finding the Entwives and having future Entings (baby Ents), some of the ents grow “Tree-ish”
and cease moving or speaking altogether. We are told that later in the Third Age, after
Saruman comes to dwell in Orthanc, that the wizard would walk in Fangorn. If they met, he would talk with Treebeard
and was always eager to listen to anything the ent would tell him about the forest. However, he never repaid Treebeard in the
same manner, and instead used this knowledge of the forest’s secrets for his own advantage. In 2953, Saruman begins fortifying Isengard. Eventually, his orc armies begin harassing
the few remaining Ents and start cutting down large numbers of their trees. This foul deed of Saruman would be repaid
however. In part, thanks to the very hobbits whom his
own orcs would bring to Fangorn Forest. On Feb 29, 3019, Treebeard discovers Merry
and Pippin near Treebeard’s Hill. He welcomes them to one of his ent-houses
at Wellinghall where they spend the night, and are given the ent-draught which causes
them to grow in stature. There they speak, among other things, of Saruman’s
evil deeds. ‘Some time ago I began to wonder how Orcs
dared to pass through my woods so freely,’ he went on. ‘Only lately did I guess that Saruman was
to blame, and that long ago he had been spying out all the ways, and discovering my secrets. He and his foul folk are making havoc now. Down on the borders they are felling trees
– good trees. Some of the trees they just cut down and leave
to rot – orc-mischief that; but most are hewn up and carried off to feed the fires
of Orthanc. There is always a smoke rising from Isengard
these days. ‘Curse him, root and branch! Many of those trees were my friends, creatures
I had known from nut and acorn; many had voices of their own that are lost for ever now. And there are wastes of stump and bramble
where once there were singing groves. I have been idle. I have let things slip. It must stop!’ Treebeard raised himself from his bed with
a jerk, stood up, and thumped his hand on the table. The vessels of light trembled and sent up
two jets of flame. There was a flicker like green fire in his
eyes, and his beard stood out stiff as a great besom. ‘I will stop it!’ he boomed. ‘And you shall come with me. You may be able to help me. You will be helping your own friends that
way, too; for if Saruman is not checked Rohan and Gondor will have an enemy behind as well
as in front. Our roads go together – to Isengard!’ After his initial burst of anger, Treebeard
admits his hastiness. The following day, Feb 30, they travel to
Derndingle, a hollow in the south of the forest, where they would first hold the Entmoot, to
decide what the ents should do regarding Saruman. This meeting would last from Feb 30 to March
2. Rather than having them stand around for days,
Treebeard sends Merry and Pippin with Bregalad. This ent, also known as Quickbeam in the common
tongue, had already made up his mind about going to war. According to Treebeard, Quickbeam is the nearest
thing to a hasty Ent, having earned his nickname by answering an Elder’s question before
he finished asking it. Merry and Pippin learn that Quickbeam belonged
to Skinbark’s people, who had lived on the slopes above and to the West of Isengard. They suffered most greatly at the hands of
Saruman’s orcs. Quickbeam tells the tale of his beloved rowan-trees: ‘And these trees grew and grew, till the
shadow of each was like a green hall, and their red berries in the autumn were a burden,
and a beauty and a wonder. Birds used to flock there. I like birds, even when they chatter; and
the rowan has enough and to spare. But the birds became unfriendly and greedy
and tore at the trees, and threw the fruit down and did not eat it. Then Orcs came with axes and cut down my trees. I came and called them by their long names,
but they did not quiver, they did not hear or answer: they lay dead. Finally, Treebeard and the ents come to the
conclusion that they are facing an inevitable slow extinction and that they will attack
Isengard to avenge the damage Saruman’s orcs had done to their tree-herds. As they march to Isengard, Treebeard admits
to Merry and Pippin that it is likely enough that they march to their doom. As he speaks about their likely demise, he
laments that he would dearly have liked to see Fimbrethil again. On the night of March 2, the Ents arrive for
the Battle of Isengard, the Last March of the Ents. During the battle, an ent named Beechbone
is caught in a burning spray sent up by Saruman from beneath the Ring of Isengard and perishes
in the blaze. His death brings his fellow ents to the peak
of their destructive anger. They surround Isengard, destroy its gates,
and crumble its walls. Saruman’s entire force that remained at
Isengard for its defence - around 1-2 thousand orcs and men, are completely destroyed. Saruman is left trapped in his tower. Soon after, Wormtongue arrives at Isengard
intending to bring a message to Saruman. Treebeard captures him and imprisons him within
Orthanc as well. He assigns Merry and Pippin the role of door-wardens
of Orthanc. That same day, Gandalf arrives in a hurry,
finding Merry and Pippin alive and well and seeking Treebeard: ‘‘Treebeard,’’ said Gandalf. ‘‘I need your help. You have done much, but I need more. I have about ten thousand Orcs to manage.’’ After Gandalf leaves, hurrying to make his
arrival at Helm’s Deep, Treebeard digests the new information which Gandalf has hastily
shared with him. Finally, he says “Well, now Treebeard must
get busy again…..Huorns will help.” Now this is the first and really only mention
of Huorns in Tolkien’s works. Their origins are unknown and it isn’t clear
if they were trees that had become entish, or ents that had become tree-ish - we know
that Merry believes the latter. Either way, they are somewhere between trees
and ents. They could speak with ents and when their
anger was aroused, they could move with great speed. One possible example of a Huorn is Old Man
Willow - the tree that Tom Bombadil saves the hobbits from in the Old Forest. That night, Merry and Pippin hear hundreds
of Huorns passing by, as they made their way south to Helm’s deep to help in the battle
against Saruman’s orcs. Around midnight that night, the Ents break
the dams of Isengard, flooding the pits where Saruman created his war machines. Two days later, the company of Gandalf, Theoden,
Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, and others arrive at Isengard after their victory at Helm’s
Deep. After Gandalf speaks with Saruman, he asks
Treebeard to pour back the water into Orthanc so that Saruman may never escape. Treebeard declares that trees would return
to Isengard and that the new forest would be called “Watchwood.” In the coming months, as the heroes of the
Fellowship go on to battles with Sauron’s forces, the ents get to work. They destroy the Ring of Isengard - the defensive
circle that protected the tower of Orthanc, and fill it with trees. In the following weeks, the ents see a great
inrush of orcs. These were many of the orcs that had attacked
Lorien, but were repelled by Galadriel. They make their way across the Wold, where
they are shocked to see Ents. The few orcs that survive are driven into
the river, where they also meet their doom. It is noted by Treebeard later that without
this action by the ents, it is likely that the Riders of Rohan would not have had a home
to return to. Thus, the land of Rohan, and those left behind
during the war, are saved from the orcs by the shepherds of the forest. Eventually, Saruman begins to appear more
withered away and Treebeard comes to pity him. On August 15, they allow him to leave Isengard
along with Grima Wormtongue. Before he is allowed to leave, Saruman is
made to lock the tower and hand over the keys of Orthanc. One week later, Treebeard welcomes Gandalf,
King Elessar, and the rest of their company to the newly named “Treegarth of Orthanc”. Treebeard presents the keys of Orthanc to
Aragorn and Aragorn declares the Treegarth of Orthanc to be an Entish realm, officially
open to their own self-governance. Then Treebeard said farewell to each of them
in turn, and he bowed three times slowly and with great reverence to Celeborn and Galadriel. 'It is long, long since we met by stock or
by stone, A vanimar, vanimalionnostari! ' he said. 'It is sad that we should meet only thus at
the ending. For the world is changing: I feel it in the
water, I feel it in the earth, and I smell it in the air. I do not think we shall meet again.' And Celeborn said: 'I do not know, Eldest.' But Galadriel said: 'Not in Middle-earth,
nor until the lands that lie under the wave are lifted up again. Then in the willow-meads of Tasarinan we may
meet in the Spring. Farewell!' Treebeard laments that there may be new trees
that come to Isengard, there will be no entings. Aragorn tells Treebeard that perhaps there
is now more hope in their search, as lands to the eastward will be open to them that
have long been closed. While this does not encourage Treebeard, there
is one story in Middle-earth that may offer us readers a small glimmer of hope. In a small moment early in The Fellowship
of the Ring, Sam is speaking with Ted Sandyman at the Green Dragon. He tells of his cousin Halfast Gamgee seeing
a “tree-man” beyond the North Moors. This tree-man was bigger than a tree and walked
seven yards each stride. He notes that it was an elm tree, despite
that fact that there were no elm trees on the North Moors. Whether this was an ent, an entwife, a huorn,
or nothing altogether remains a mystery. As for Treebeard, it is presumed that he stays
in this new Entish realm for a time as it continues to grow and thrive under the Fourth
Age rule of King Elessar. Under the care of the ents, the Treegarth
of Orthanc is made into one of the most beautiful gardens left in all of Middle-earth.
