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The month of September is more than half over before we reach the first dates that are specifically mentioned in The Lord of the Rings — in Appendix B, the Tale of Years:
- Gandalf escapes from Orthanc in the early hours. The Black Riders cross the Fords of Isen.
- Gandalf comes to Edoras as a beggar, and is refused admittance.
- Gandalf gains entrance to Edoras. Théoden commands him to go: ‘Take any horse, only be gone ere tomorrow is old!’
- Gandalf meets Shadowfax, but the horse will not allow him to come near. He follows Shadowfax far over the fields.
Although these descriptions are quite spare, they supply several details that we would never have known if we possessed only the brief narrative Gandalf offers at the Council of Elrond.
The great eagle Gwaihir reaches the tower of Orthanc in the moonlight to deliver news—of wolves, Orcs, and Gollum’s escape—but finds Gandalf stranded on its pinnacle, a prisoner. He carries the wizard away.
‘I will bear you to Edoras, where the Lord of Rohan sits in his halls.’
Having learned that the land called ‘Shire’ lies near the Elvish towers at the Grey Havens, the nine Nazgûl cross the river Isen—entering Eriador again for the first time since the Witch-king’s defeat at the Battle of Fornost 1,043 years ago.
Gandalf reaches the walled town of Edoras, in Rohan at the feet of the White Mountains, and tries to enter disguised as a beggar. He is denied entry.
Thanks to one specific date given in the main narrative—‘September 20th’—we do get to add one event from the Shire itself into these four days focused on Gandalf and Rohan.
Two covered carts packed full of Frodo’s belongings leave Bag End. They take the East Road towards the Brandywine Bridge and, beyond it, Frodo’s new house in Crickhollow.
We then return to events from the Tale of Years.
Gandalf is admitted to Edoras and urges King Théoden to gather his full strength, but the king fears that a muster will spur Saruman to open war. Théoden’s patience with Gandalf ends: ‘Take any horse, only be gone ere tomorrow is old!’
Gandalf visits the horse-sheds of Rohan and chooses Shadowfax: one of the Mearas, the horses descended from the horse of Eorl, that are only supposed to be ridden by the King of the Mark himself.
Shadowfax, untamed, runs away into the fields.
And, finally, we reach the evening before Frodo’s birthday, whose date is mentioned several times in the main narrative: September the 22nd. So it’s on the previous day, the 21st, that ‘Frodo became really anxious, and kept a constant look-out for Gandalf.’
As the sun sets in Hobbiton and the evening draws down on the eve of his birthday, Frodo is anxious. Gandalf had promised that ‘At the very latest I shall come back for the farewell party’—but the party is tomorrow, and the wizard has not yet returned.
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