#meneldur

[eri-pl]

HC/speculation: Meneldur was the first King's Heir to marry within the line of Elros.

So, a quick reminder: Tar-Meneldur is the 5th king of Numenor, and his son is Tar-Aldarion who famously did not marry within the line of Elros, which caused a lot of trouble, and he later made marrying-within-the-line a legal requirement for further kings.

Why do I think Meneldur did marry within the line? First, with how Aldarion and the narrative speak about it, marrying like that seems to be a thing that happened before. Also, Aldarion's mother is present in his story for quite long and doesn't seem to get old significantly earlier than her husband. And the line of Elros lived significantly longer than average Numenorians (about 400 compared to about 200).

Why do I think Meneldur was the first one? It's clearly either him or Tar-Elendil (his father), because before it would mean first-cousins, which was not done. And even for Tar-Elendil, "line of Elros" means marrying his second cousin, which is legal but probably seen as weird. Also, assuming that everyone had 4 children (which seems a good estimate), he would have 12 second cousins, so about 6 of them female, which is not a big pool to chose from.

Meneldur, on the other hand, would have about 12 ladies to chose from, and third-cousins are much more normal kind of people to marry.

Also, more importantly, Meneldur's position as King's Heir was... odd. He was the first one to not be the eldest child. He had two elder sisters, and so there must have been a lot of discussions whether the eldest child should inherit (the descendants of the people of Haleth would prefer it, I think) or the eldest son (the two other groups would prefer this probably). Marrying a descendant of Elros could also have been a way to strengthen Meneldur's position.

Numenor was peaceful, so it's not like there would be a rebellion, but peoiple would complain. (They were right. I love Meneldur but Silmarien should have been the Queen. Later history proves it.)

*checks Tolkien Gateway*

Tar-Meneldur's wife, Almarian had her first son in SA 700 and lived at least until SA900, so yes, definitely sounds like the line of Elros.

Oh wait, this would mean that Veantur (or his wife) was from the line of Elros. Which... why not. It makes sense.

[spruceneedles]

A sketch of Meneldur

[eglerieth]

Help Aldarion make up his mind, since he seems to have some trouble.

Erendis, and Númenor, and his daughter, and his promises to his father and wife

the Sea, his Venturers, and the downtrodden in Middle Earth

Voting ended onOct 23, 2023

[arofili]

the line of elros ♚ royalty of númenor ♚ headcanon disclaimer

          Tar-Elendil was the fourth King of Númenor. He received the scepter after his father, Tar-Amandil, passed the kingship onto him a few years before his death. He was a scholar like his grandfather Vardamir Nóliman, and loved to make books from the legends and lore Vardamir had recorded, earning him the name Parmaitë.           Tar-Elendil’s sister Mairen was also a student of lore, though her interest lay in the mystical, and through her forays into magic she met another sage known as Ingólmë. As her friend was interested in the legends of elven magic her brother was collecting, Mairen introduced Ingólmë to Elendil, and the two had an instant connection. Within a year, they were wed, and in time she became his queen.           Tári-Ingólmë bore Tar-Elendil three children: two daughters, Silmariën and Isilmë, both of whom inherited their grandmother Tári-Telemnë’s silver hair; and a son, Írimon. Silmariën was fascinated by gemcraft and metalwork, and with the aid of her cousin Ardamir she devised a mithril fillet that would become a symbol of her house. Isilmë was a scholar like her father, focusing on linguistics and dedicating herself to preserving the language of the dwindling Drúedain. Írimon was a student of the stars, and built a tower in Forostar to watch their movements.           When it came time for Tar-Elendil to pass his mantle onto his heir, he was pressured by the male-dominated Council of the Scepter to name Írimon as his successor rather than Silmariën. Still wishing to honor his eldest how he could, Tar-Elendil created the royal House of Andúnië and gave its leadership to his daughter and her husband Elatan, and passed on the Ring of Barahir to her rather than the newly-crowned Írimon Tar-Meneldur.

[wolvesdevour]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

War of Winter will have several perspectives.

This is Meneldur's story.

He is of the Race of Men. His wife is Almarian and she is pregnant. He travels North with his wife, concerned for what grows inside her.

[gurguliare]

If it's still in the window of opportunity for the meme (how long should it last?) could you do erendis + history (either her place in history or her opinion on history, or both)

ERENDIS + HISTORY I mean, I think we know how she was viewed by history, to a large extent: alternately vilified, pitied, ignored. blamed or pardoned for Ancalimë. I don’t think the King’s Men would have adopted her as a spiritual/philosophical forebear despite her arguable usefulness to them. In Gondor I guess people must have arrived at the presentist version of “The Mariner’s Wife” from Unfinished Tales, bitterly regretting the seeds of later conquests but also unable to really take seriously or engage withErendis’s conservatism, attached as it was to this doomedpast. I think her attitude toward history was… selective, lol. I feel like Meneldur probably tried to bond with her over the mutual interest in the early Edain but that they had kind of awkwardly incompatible Takes.

[befanini]

Tower of Tar-Meneldur by MatejCadil

[heckofabecca]

5/25: Meneldur at his tower in Forostar, watching a party of riders approaching