Overview
Merry begins as one of Frodo’s conspirators and ends as a knight of Rohan. His small stature is no barrier: with Éowyn he strikes the blow that brings down the Witch-king.
Biography
Conspirator of the Shire
Merry helped organise Frodo’s escape from the Shire and followed him through the Old Forest and to Bucklebury Ferry.
Captured and knighted
At Parth Galen he and Pippin were captured by Orcs and, after the Rohirrim slew the Orc-band, he entered the service of Théoden as a squire. He was knighted at Dunharrow and rode to the Pelennor in secret.
The Pelennor and after
Wounded by the Witch-king, he survived and later helped rouse the Shire against Saruman’s ruffians. He became Master of Buckland.
Character
Personality
- Brave
- Sharp-witted
- Loyal
- Organised
Deeds
- Helped plan Frodo’s departure
- Stabbed the Witch-king with a Númenórean blade
- Led the Scouring of the Shire with Pippin
Relationships
Places
LocationThe Shire
The green homeland of the Hobbits in the west of Eriador, sheltered and largely overlooked by the great powers.
LocationEdoras
The capital of Rohan, its golden hall Meduseld standing on a green hill below the White Mountains.
LocationThe Pelennor Fields
The fertile plain before Minas Tirith, site of the great battle that broke Sauron’s western army.
LocationMoria
The greatest Dwarven city, delved beneath the Misty Mountains, abandoned after the awakening of a Balrog.
In the histories
Artifacts
Appearances
The Fellowship of the RingPresent from the Shire
The Two TowersCaptivity, Fangorn, Edoras
The Return of the KingPelennor Fields and the Scouring of the Shire
Sources
The Lord of the Rings · 1954–55
Three volumes: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King.
Related entries
CharacterPeregrin Took
The youngest hobbit of the Fellowship, who became a knight and guard of Gondor and saved Faramir from Denethor’s pyre.
CharacterFrodo Baggins
The hobbit of the Shire who carried the One Ring across Middle-earth to Mount Doom and destroyed it.
Éowyn
Théoden’s niece, who defied the prohibition on women going to war and slew the Witch-king at the Pelennor.
CharacterThéoden
King of Rohan, aged prematurely by Gríma’s counsel, later restored and killed at the Pelennor Fields.