Arnor

Arnor comprised of a lot of Eriador from the Gulf of Lune to the river Greyflood and river Loudwater. The men of Arnor lived in several places, though much of the population was based around Lake Evendim (Nenuial) where the capital city of Annúminas was located. Other cities were Fornost, located on the southwest end of the North Downs, and Tharbad in the south by the Greyflood (Gwathló) River. There were smaller settlements along the road that was built from the Gulf of Lune eastward bridging the Brandywine (Baranduin) River and the River Hoarwell (Mitheithel). The road continued east to the River Loudwater (Bruinen) where it was crossed by fords. This river was considered the eastern reach of Arnor.​

When Arnor was founded, there was a Numenorean population dwelling here. The Numenoreans first arrived in Middle Earth to harvest timber from the great forests that grew there. This led to the immigration of Numenoreans coming to live in Middle-earth permanently. A great influx came during the rule of Tar-Aldarion who loved the land, and later under the rule of Tar-Meneldur. Some of the early colonists started mingling with the men of Eriador, and the population grew as the forests were decimated. The region was more favored over the southern areas of Gondor as the Elves of Lindon had lived there under the king Gil-galad. On the other hand, the King’s men chose the south for settlement. As a result, Elendil came to a region with people who were friends with the Elves and much of the knowledge of the Elder Days still existed. Elendil, along with his men, reached Eriador by sailing through the river Lune. They were supported by the King of the Noldor, Gil-galad. Elendil founded Arnor in the Second Age 3320 and established the city of Annúminas as the capital. His sons went on the find the realm of Gondor in the south. Both these kingdoms were known as the Realms in Exile [1].​

Arnor had allied with Gil-galad at the end of the Second Age in an alliance opposing Sauron. They were called the Last Alliance of Elves and Men and they defeated Sauron’s forces in the War of the Last Alliance with the help of armies of Gondor. The war lasted for years and Elendil and his son Anarion were killed in the battle. Arnor suffered much loss during the war and its population would never really recover. Isildur, Arnor’s second king, was slain by Orcs in the disastrous battle of the Gladden Fields. His three sons were also slain, which made his youngest son Valandil, who was still a child and remained in Arnor, the king. Valandil and his successors did not claim the seat of Gondor, for Isildur had left his brother's son Meneldil to rule Gondor, and the kingdom was split along these family lines. Arnor’s king if the line of Isildur continued to carry the title of High King as Elendil and Isildur had, but it was in name only. Meneldil and the line of Anarion would rule Gondor under the title of ‘king’.​

Though still strong in the arts and crafts of Numenor, Arnor never recovered from the great losses of the War of the Last Alliance. For the next 700 years, the lands were sparsely populated, and the tendency of the Northern Dúnedain to not mingle with the lesser men of the lands led to a further waning of their numbers. The great City of Annúminas seemed deserted, and in King Elendur's time, he ordered the fortress of Fornost Erain be built around the town of Fornost. Upon completion, it would replace Annúminas as the capital of Arnor. Annúminas then was steadily abandoned over the next years and the decay with the passing of time took its toll, and the city slowly fell into ruin.

When King Elendur died in TA 777, his son Eärendur became the tenth and last king of Arnor. He was not a strong ruler as he was easily swayed by counsel, and many factions vied for the king's ear. At home, he was not a good father. He doted on his eldest son, while his younger sons were mostly left in the care of servants. Even though Fornost Erain was completed during his reign and the kingdom's seat of power moved, Arnor continued in its decline. As Eärendur's reign grew long and he grew weary, his sons' differences became even more profound. Amliath was Eärendur's named heir, but he was much like his father in demeanor. His younger sons were strong of mind and skill, and each had nurtured a following in the far regions of the kingdom.

When Eärendur died in TA 861, Arnor suffered greatly because of this animosity between his three sons over the succession to the throne, and a civil war loomed. For the sake of the kingdom, Amliath agreed to his brothers' demands, and the kingdom divided into three parts. Amlaith, the eldest son and rightful heir of Arnor, would rule over Arthedain, the northwest part of the kingdom. The middle brother would rule over the land of Cardolan in southern Arnor, and the youngest brother would rule the land of Rhudaur in eastern Arnor.

Though the agreement stated that Arthedain and the line of Amliath would retain the high kingship, in practice it was not the case. His brothers soon proclaimed they were kings of equal standing as their brother, and each ruled their kingdoms as they saw fit. Rhudaur was populated heavily by the Hillmen of the Ettenmoors, and the line of Eärendur soon failed. With a Hillman clan claiming the kingship, the remaining Dúnedain were persecuted and most were either killed or fled west to Arthedain and Cardolan. The line of Eärendur fared somewhat better in Cardolan, but there too, it soon would come into question. Younger sons of the line were many, and as they spread across Cardolan, they proclaimed themselves Lords of this land and that land which led to much infighting among them. They also fought with Rhudaur over some of the lands in the northeast. Eventually, there came a time when no verifiable eldest male heir of the line of Eärendur could be found. The princes would vie for the title of Ruling Prince, and some allied themselves with Arthedain in hopes the stronger kingdom would help their cause.

By TA 1349, wars, famine, and pestilence had taken its toll on Cardolan, and the name of Arnor was again proclaimed by King Argeleb I of Arthedain, for the royal lines of Elendil had now ended in both Rhudaur and Cardolan. The claim was of course rejected by the Hillman ruler of Rhudaur, who had long been aligned with the Witch King of Angmar. A series of wars and skirmishes would continue to take place over the next six centuries between Arthedain and the Witch-king backed Rhudaur. This attrition slowly weakened Arthedain, and its downfall came suddenly in the winter if 1974-75. A massive army came against Fornost Erain from Amgmar, and the city was sacked with much loss. King Arvedui and his army was driven away north, and his sons fled west with all who could escape.

Though the utter destruction of Fornost Erain was done, the Witch-king's victory was short-lived. Later in TA 1975 he was driven out of Arthedain with the aid of the elves of Lindon and an great army from Gondor that came to their aid. But few Dúnedain of Arnor remained, and some few had scattered among the kingdom's former lands and Amliach, the eldest son of King Arvedui and heir to the throne, proclaimed himself the Chieftain of the Dúnedain of Arnor and the kingdom of Arthedain was not reestablished. The Dúnedain of the North then became a secretive, wandering folk among the former lands of Arnor. Their rangers quietly watched over the hobbits in the Shire and the hobbits and men of the small town of Bree, and both survived and even thrived in the years that followed. In the south, the city of Tharbad, being a major crossing of the Greyflood River, survived for years even as it slowly fell into ruin. Despite falling into disrepair, the great Numenorean-built bridge that spanned the river stood nearly a thousand years after the fall of Arthedain. It wasn't until the great floods of the spring of TA 2912 that the bridge fell into ruin. [2].​

After the war of the ring and downfall of Sauron, Arnor was again proclaimed by Aragorn II as a part of the Reunited Kingdom. Annúminas, which had been abandoned and fell into decay, was reclaimed and again became the northern kingdom's capital city. Aragorn married Arwen, the daughter of Elrond, and they would spend part of the time of Aragorn's reign in Arnor. The land was again made safe for men and the population soon started to grow. Many men from many lands would come to settle in Arnor, but it would always have less population than Gondor. This reunited kingdom existed into the Fourth Age and Eldarion succeeded his father to the throne in FO 120 when King Aragorn II lay down his life.​

Arnor was a name used for the ‘Northern Dúnedain Kingdom’. In Sindarin, it was called Arannor resembling the Quenya name Arandore. The meaning is ‘Land of the King’ coming from Ara (kingly) and dor (land).​

The theatrical films by Peter Jackson does not have any mention of Arnor; simplifying the Dúnedain kingdom to being Gondor only. Without Aragorn's royal bloodline of the lost Dúnedain kingdom of the north, the reasons why Aragorn was not king of Gondor became problematic, and the simplified screenplay merely mentions that Aragorn 'chose exile'. With this change in backstory, Aragorn's character was completely altered by it, and the core of the story of the Return of the King as presented in the book is completely abandoned.

There is a reference made in a scene from the Extended Edition of ‘The Lord of the Rings – The Two Towers’ where Aragorn and Eowyn are talking, and he tells her that his age is 87 years old. She remembers stories of Thorongil and the Dúnedain of old, and he admits that he is one of the Dúnedain, saying that few of his people remain after the Northern Kingdom was destroyed long ago.​