Chris asks “What instruments exist in Middle-earth by, say, LotR times?”

This episode’s topic is musical instruments, specifically during the War of the Ring.

Sources:

- The Lord of the Rings

- The Fellowship of the Ring, Book 1, Chapter 1 "A Long-Expected Party"

- The Fellowship of the Ring, Book 2, Chapter 1 "Many Meetings"

- The Two Towers, Book 3, Chapter 4 "Treebeard"

- The Hobbit

- The Music of The Lord of the Rings Films, Appendix B "Instruments" by Doug Adams

- https://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Musical_instruments

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Today is March 25th and it is Tolkien Reading Day! The theme for this year is Fellowship and Community.Today's passages will be about the two communities that are recorded where to races of Middle-earth lived alongside one another and worked together.The first passage is about Bree and the second is about the Drúedain, specifically how they lived with the People of Haleth.Sources:-The Fellowship of the Ring, Book 1, Chapter 9, “At the Sign of the Prancing Pony”- Unfinished Tales of Númenor & Middle-earth, Part 4, I, "The Drúedain"- TolkienSociety.org (https://www.tolkiensociety.org/events/tolkien-reading-day-2025/)Join the Shadowfacts Discord to ask a question you would like answered on the podcast!Find us on Instagram, IG Threads, YouTube, X, and BlueSky

Today's question: What are the recorded recreational activities in Arda?

Sources:

-Return of the King, Book 5, Chapter 1 “Minas Tirith”

-The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion

- Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth, "A Description of Númenor"

-The Fellowship of the Ring, “Prologue Concerning Hobbits and Other Matters”

-The Fellowship of the Ring, Book 1, Chapter 1, “A Long-Expected Party”

-The Two Towers, Book 3, Chapter 3 "The Uruk-hai"

- The Silmarillion, "Valaquenta"

-The Silmarillion: "Of The Rings of Power And The Third Age"

-The Return of the King : "Appendix A - Annals of the Kings and Rulers"

-The Hobbit, “Over Hill and Under Hill”

-Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth, “History of Galadriel and Celeborn”

-The Return of the King, Book 6, Chapter 6, "Many Partings"

-The Two Towers, Book 3, Chapter 6 “The King of the Golden Hall”

-The Hobbit, “An Unexpected Party”

-The Hobbit, “Flies and Spiders”

Join the Shadowfacts Discord to ask a question you would like answered on the podcast!

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On the Shadowfacts discord, Kristina asks:

"In rings of power season 2, episode 1, Adar kills Sauron. Did Sauron really think they would have bowed down so easily/quickly? Could Sauron have suspected anything?"

Sources:

- Amazon's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2, Episode 1

- The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion: "Of the Coming of the Elves and the Captivity of Melkor"

- The Silmarillion: "Of The Rings of Power And The Third Age"

- Morgoth's Ring, Part Five: "Myths Transformed", X, pg. 415-422

- The Return of the King : "Appendix B - The Tale of Years"

Join the Shadowfacts Discord to ask a question you would like answered on the podcast!

Find us on Instagram, IG Threads, YouTube, and possibly soon X and BlueSky

I give a (spoiler!) review of the new movie "The Lord of the RIngs: The War of the Rohirrim!"

Resources:

The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim; The Return of the King; Why We Love Middle-earth: An Enthusiast's Book About Tolkien, Middle-earth, and the LotR Fandom

Submit your question on the Shadowfacts Discord server ( ⁠⁠⁠discord.com/invite/wgPqvchDaG⁠⁠⁠ ) or by emailing shadowfacts32@gmail.com!

What do I need to read to get ready for the new movie The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim?

The War of the Rohirrim comes out on Dec. 13 and today's podcast reads all the passages likely relating towards the new movie.

You can read along or at your own pace and time:

Main passage: 

Return of the King - Appendix A - ii - “The House of Eorl - paragraph 6 - Starts with “‘Of the Kings of the Mark between Eorl and Théoden most is said of Helm Hammerhand.”

Other Passages:

https://www.warnerbros.com/movies/lord-rings-war-rohirrim

The Peoples of Middle-earth - III “The House of Eorl”

The Return of the King - Appendix A - IV - "The Stewards" - section 3 - "In the days of Beren”

The Return of the King -  Appendix B “The Tale of Years”

The Two Towers - Ch. 7 “Helm's Deep”

Accounts:

https://youtube.com/@nerdoftherings?si=vC3MTWalSQ5QR_g4

https://youtube.com/@makersofmiddleearth?si=SVVqjyDKJNUtsnjA

Submit your question on the Shadowfacts Discord server ( ⁠⁠⁠discord.com/invite/wgPqvchDaG⁠⁠⁠ ) or by emailing shadowfacts32@gmail.com!

Kristina asks: “Where did the jewels for the elven rings come from? Did the jewels add any power to the rings?"

This episode looks at the 3 elven rings of power. We will look at their construction, make-up, specifically their jewels, and briefly their power and influence.

Resources:

The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion; The Silmarillion; The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien; The Fellowship of the Ring; The Return of the King

Submit your question on the Shadowfacts Discord server ( ⁠⁠discord.com/invite/wgPqvchDaG⁠⁠ ) or by emailing shadowfacts32@gmail.com!

Lochnessmumster asks: I just read this for the first time yesterday so am really keen to see what you think. I couldn’t decide whether he left his ‘butterfly’ to die or not….?

This episode looks at the marriage relationship in "Errantry" and if the abandonment of the messenger caused the death of his butterfly wife. To answer this, we looked at the poem carefully and looked at the different versions of the poem as it became what it is published in The Adventures of Tom Bombadil.

References:

The Adventures of Tom Bombadil

The Treason of Isengard

A group discussion with Kaley, Susanna, and some other friends brought about this topic. This episode delves into Tolkien's poem "Errantry." The poem is read, and then we look at the history of the poem and some definitions.

Resources:

Tales from the Perilous Realm; The Treason of Isengard; The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien; The Adventures of Tom Bombadil

Submit your question on the Shadowfacts Discord server ( ⁠discord.com/invite/wgPqvchDaG⁠ ) or by emailing shadowfacts32@gmail.com!

Bradley asks “Is there any backstory on the meaning of the symbols of Durin? Like what the stars, crown, and anvil all mean?”

Resources:

The Fellowship of the Ring; The Lord Of The Rings: A Reader's Companion; The Silmarillion; andThe Return of the Shadow: The History of The Lord of the Rings, Part One (The History of Middle-Earth, Vol. 6)

Submit your question on the Shadowfacts Discord server ( discord.com/invite/wgPqvchDaG ) or by emailing shadowfacts32@gmail.com!