Master of Lake-town

The Master of Lake-town was the prime chief. He was also known as The Master. He was smart and appealing but at the same time, selfish. He heads the village archers too. Thus, staying in Lake-town as the Lake-men survived suffering from Smaug. He was an associate of Bard the Bowman as well. Unfortunately, nobody knows his real name. Had he not chosen to do his selfish ways, he could have been one of the town's wisest. During the time that Bilbo Baggins and his fellows came, Thorin announced the come back of the king. This spread like wildfire. People then became elated and jumped for joy. The Master found this unbelievable but he played along. He offered his position to the King under the mountain. The Master housed Bilbo Baggins and the Dwarves for a fortnight. After this, they thought of leaving and going to the Lonely Mountain.

Between 2920- 2941 of the Third Age, the place was under the Master of Lake-town. This was the end of the Battle of the Five Armies. In detail, his reign was good-natured. Thus, the Men of the Long Lake's territory dealt with the elves of Mirkwood in peace. Smaug came over a century before the time of the Master of Lake-town. This was in T. A. 2770. Transactions between them continued until 2941. This time, Thorin and company arrived to seize the Lonely Mountain. They did the same to Smaug's resources. The Master of Lake-town was kind and civil in welcoming the Dwarves. He did this so the community would not worry. One day, the Master had a piece of surprising news. Thorin wanted to attack Smaug. He wondered but freely let him go.

He thought doing such was not a big deal since it was costly to keep them. Besides, commerce became stagnant since their arrival. Smaug invaded Lake-town. The people asked the Master what they needed to do. Yet, he chose to escape after seeing the fire come out from the dragon's mouth. Bard was able to manage the situation. He then killed the dragon. All these happening, Lake-town became a disaster. Because of this, people claimed that the Master was a deserter. The survivors came together on the westside of the Longlake. Here, they grieved and called the Master Moneybags.

Soon, they all agreed that Bard should be their leader. Bard became King. Bitterness took over. Being a skillful political figure, the Master made it look like it was Thorin and the Dwarves' fault. This brought about the provocation of the dragon so to speak. These taken aside, Bard spearheaded reconstruction and resource collection for the cold season. He was cautious in doing so, making sure he did not assume the Master's power. Bard was King of Dale after the Battle of Five Armies. He offered a good part of his property of the riches of the Lonely Mountain to the Master. This was from Dain II Ironfoot. One day, the Elvenking and Esgaroth's landlords go to Erebor. They were looking forward to getting their share. However, the Master did not show up. Those who did not leave started planning for the winter season instead. They started making small cabins while gathering supplies. While these were taking place, the Master started a plot to make a new and bigger village. The Master was so selfish that he left Lake-town bearing most of the gold. Later on, his fellows left him. He ended up starving to death.

Peter Jackson has Englishman Stephen Fry play the role of the Master. In his version of The Hobbit, [1] the movie shows a more aggressive portrayal. The role was a crooked and selfish political figure. His main interest focuses on staying in power. He gives very little attention to a poor Lake-town. It is an irony that he has emphasized tax and toll collections. Chaos continued because of his rule in T. A. 2941. In one of the elections, he became scared and worried.

Thus, he made use of spies in the whole city to watch Bard. This was due to his envy. Bard happened to be one of Girion's successor ( Girion is Dale's last lord). The Master used every chance to take this against Bard. This is because Bard was not able to fight Smaug when it destroyed Dale. He was also venting since he was the reason for the risks related to his ruling. Also, the Master commended the Dwarve's pursuits. He did this to somehow regain his image.

In the Lake-town arms depot, Thorin and Company get caught. The Master considers them public enemies. Thorin is a member of royalty. He has no worries in giving a piece of the Lonely Mountain treasure. People knew these facts. These motivate the Master to acknowledge the Dwarves. He sees this as an opportunity to get more riches and recover his already tainted image. The Master then gives weaponry to the Dwarves. He believes they will achieve results when they finish their mission. The Master's guards capture Bard as he tries to go to the windlace ballista over at Lake-town Town Hall. This has a fake basis. But, Bard flees. While doing so, the Master catches up, knocks him out, and imprisons him. Alfrid Lickspittle, his assistant, took care of his requests. Other things he tended to were those the Master did not do. One was cleaning up his dish. The dragon Smaug assaults Lake-town after Bard's arrest.

As usual, the Master attempts to get away by sail, trying to bring with him the village's treasures. He is with the Braga, the head of the guards, Alfrid, and other fellows. The Master, unexpectedly, pushes Alfrid out of the boat to sail quickly. Bard slain Smaug with the Black Arrow. Unfortunately, the dragon drops onto the boat where the Master is. He drowns and soon dies in Long Lake. The rest is probably dead due to the heaviness of the deceased dragon's body. Alfrid is spared since he was left out before.

The Master was proud of his authority. Additionally, he only took an interest in his success and whatever advantage he can have. Even the way he dresses exhibits his egocentricity. Since he valued the mighty importance of self, he also makes it a point to let his substitutes wear almost the same. He held a constitutional post. Yet, he blocked anyone and anything that contested his power. Besides, the Master is known to be very good at managing businesses. The movies show these through the collection of taxes and the construction of toll gates. He appears to be politically inclined as a leader. He even identifies the Dwarves' presence contributing to his fall.

One lego set includes the Master of Lake-town. This is in Lake-town 79013. There was also an appearance in LEGO The Hobbit: The Video Game. [2] Here, locking his character was not an easy task. He appears in the Lake-town bridge.

The Master has a few non-canon names in different versions. In the theater version, Edward Mast's The Hobbit names the Master, Maxwell. Othur is his name in The Lord of the Rings Online.

In the movie, the Master is suffering from gout. Most likely, this is in connection with the disease's origin. History says it means the rich man's illness. This, then, refers to the Master's financial status. The Master does not exist but Bard does and he manages the village. This is according to the Rankin/Bass version of The Hobbit.

1. ^The Hobbit Trilogy.
2. ^LEGO® The Hobbit™.