East Road

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East Road
Road
Matěj Čadil - Great East Road.jpg
"Great East Road" by Matěj Čadil
General Information
Other namesGreat Road, East-West Road
LocationRunning from Blue Mountains through central Eriador to the Misty Mountains
TypeRoad
InhabitantsHobbits, Men, Dwarves, Elves

The East Road, Great Road or East-West Road,[1] was the long road that ran east to west through Eriador, and crossed the Greenway at Bree.

History

The East Road was originally laid by the Dwarves probably during the First Age[source?], and ran from the Iron Hills through Rhovanion to Khazad-dûm, from which it continued across Eriador to the Blue Mountains, and then on to the Kingdom of Doriath in Beleriand.

The western parts were built to facilitate the passage of companies of Dwarf craftsmen (and later, their armed escort) across eastern Beleriand, before the Battle of the Thousand Caves by the dwarves of Nogrod ended their trade.[source?]

After the ruination of Nogrod and neighbouring Belegost, focus shifted to the eastern part of the ancient road, which had been built by the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm from the Misty Mountains. Khazad-dûm's inhabitants, the Longbeard Dwarves, continued to grow in power and influence, and their trading needs meant that the road from the Iron Hills that travelled through Mirkwood to their gates, known as the Dwarf-road, became widely known. On the western side of the Misty Mountains, after traversing the High Pass, the road continued to the Blue Mountains.

When the Númenórean realm-in-exile of Arnor was founded, the Dúnedain of Arnor took over the maintenance of the East Road, and built several fortresses on or near it (including Weathertop), and expanded or created bridges over the rivers Brandywine (Bridge of Stonebows) and Hoarwell (Last Bridge). After Arnor was divided in T.A. 861, the East Road formed the boundary between two of its successor states, Cardolan and Rhudaur. During the Angmar Wars, Arthedain and Cardolan tried to mantain a frontier along the Weather Hils, the East Road, and the lower Hoarwell against Angmar and Rhudaur.[2]

By the late Third Age the most notable users of the road were the Dwarves who traveled to and from the mines of the Blue Mountains.[2] Those often stopped at Bree, and when they traversed the Shire they brought scarce news from the outside world; actually being the main link with the wide world for the Shire-hobbits.[3][4]

Course

The western end of the Road was the Grey Havens, and that portion gave access to the Blue Mountains.[4]

West of the crossroads the Hobbits had colonized the Shire, and their most important towns lay athwart the East Road; (Hobbiton and Michel Delving to name two).

Where the East Road met the Greenway lay the ancient village of Bree. A days ride east lay The Forsaken Inn, beyond which lay Rivendell.

Other versions

Originally, the Road made two great curves: a great loop south of Weathertop to the North-east and then made a great bend southwards, round the feet of the Trollshaws; the text of the First Edition reflects this by saying "the Road bent back again southward towards the River". Because of Christopher Tolkien's "carelessness" in the 1954 published map, the Road has only a small northward curve between Weathertop and the Last Bridge, and then runs in a straight line to the Ford of Bruinen. In the Second Edition onwards, in order to agree with the map, the portion of the text was corrected to "the Road behind held on its way to the River Bruinen".[5]

The relevant map in Barbara Strachey's atlas Journeys of Frodo reflects the earlier descriptions.

References