Episode 16: Rhûn: The Wainriders and Balchoth

On today, April 1, we assess the nomads of Middle Earth, the peoples who reside in far eastern Rhûn.

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Transcript

The year was 1856. The last few centuries had been rough for this fledgling kingdom, this remnant of a crown jewel that once ruled all of these lands from the far off sea. Now, after civil war and plague, this last kingdom was a shell of several former glories. 

Such notions did not deter the thoughts of Narmacil II. His predecessors, great kings like Hyarmendacil I and Rómendacil II, had dealt devastating defeats against the eastern invaders. Yes, Narmacil’s scouts warned that these new peoples were deadly and strategic. Yes, his advisors had warned him that the easterners had united into a vast confederation. Yes, the situation seemed more dire than ever.

But still, Narmacil was not deterred. Iron was his resolve. Steel was his weapon of choice. He had marched his army from the south to the north. He entered the lands of Rhovanion, he had united the scattered remnants of the northern army, and he was now stalwart against this impending enemy. 

Narmacil II, the “Fire Sword” in Quenyan, was the incendiary blade that would cut back the enemies of Rhûn once more. He would stand tall and proud and restore his kingdom beyond the plague, beyond the Kin-Strife, beyond the doom that lay against all men. 

A horn sounded in the distance. The Wainriders were approaching. 

Captains shouted orders at one another. Archers made ranks. Spearmen moved to the front. Cavalry fanned to the wings. Narmacil lowered his helm and readied his arm. Today, Gondor would strike back against the enemy and would show itself as the true heir of Númenor. 

Narmacil spotted the first of the Wainriders. They were a people who fought on chariots and one could never underestimate their speed and agility. Seconds passed and archers fired. The first wave of Wainriders crashed into the Gondorian and Rhovanion infantry. Screams ran into the air. Blood splattered all over the plain. 

Then another horn erupted, and Narmacil stood in horror. Another column of Wainriders had wheeled around and approached from a flank. Men collided into men. A minute had passed and Narmacil found himself confused. He had been on horseback and announcing orders.

He was now face to face against several warriors. An ax wielder charged. A spearman stabbed forward. A charioteer rampaged through the rearguard, lopping off the head of Marhari, prince of Rhovanion. Narmacil blinked. And then… there was darkness. 

It would be some time later before people realized what happened. It would be some time before people found themselves shackled and enslaved by the Wainriders. It would be some time before the head of Narmacil would be displayed in front of a vast army.

The “Fire Sword” of Gondor had been quenched. The Wainriders would now ride on in victory. 

And welcome back to the Nomads and Empires podcast, episode 16. Today, we have a special episode to celebrate my favorite holiday, April 1. I’m not going to explain what this holiday is, but if you know, you know. Anyhow, we’re going to ungracefully switch subjects now to the topic at hand: the peoples of Rhûn in the Third Age of Middle Earth.

You see, the nomads of Rhûn are a fascinating people with a long history. They were connected intimately to places like the Kingdom of Erebor, the settlements of Rhovanion, and the mighty power of Gondor. For thousands of years, Rhûnic cultures like that of the Wainriders had substantial influence on world history, and yet their own perspectives are often forgotten about. Indeed, the historiography of this region is dominated by Elven and Gondorian scholarship, and we are presented little in terms of indigenous perspectives. On today’s episode, we’ll try to dig deeper into the histories of the nomads of the east, but we should acknowledge the challenge here: we just don’t have primary sources from the people of this region.

We’ll do our best though.

To start things off, we should first place things in a geographic context. The term Rhûn comes from Sindarin and means “east.” Rhûn therefore can refer to the east in a broad sense, which usually means anything passed Rhovanion. For our own purposes, we’re going to place some boundaries on where Rhûn is. 

Third Age Rhûn consists of a large area. It was bordered by Mordor to the south, with the Ered Lithui Mountains acting as a demarcation line. To the north lay the Iron Hills. The western edges were dominated by the forests of Rhovanion, which in the Third Age, was better known as Mirkwood. Then, of course, there lies the east, which likely stretched for an uncountable number of miles or kilometers. Maps of Middle Earth have no eastern end point for Rhûn, though some speculation indicates that eventually one would find the East Sea. 

Politically, Rhûn lies in an interesting nexus point that would lend itself to mass migratory movements. Its most obvious neighbor is that of Mordor in the south, and we know that throughout history, Sauron would engage diplomatically with the eastern peoples. To the north were a smattering of different groups who engaged in a vacillating relationship with Rhûn. There were the dwarves of the Iron Hills, the lordship of Erebor, and the Kingdom of Dale. These northern peoples at times traded with the easterlings, while at other times, the two sides waged war against one another. In Rhovanion in the west, there was the Woodland Realm of the Silvan Elves, various Beorning communities, and the domain of Dol Goldur. Just south of Rhovanion were the kingdoms of Rohan and Gondor, and the latter kingdom would have a substantial relationship to the easterlings, though we’ll get there soon. 

Within Rhûn are a number of key geographic features. The most dominant feature is that of the in-land Sea of Rhûn. Though called a “sea,” it is probably better to categorize the body of water as a lake. Two key rivers feed into the Sea of Rhûn, namely the River Carnen that emerges from the Iron Hills, and the River Running that runs out of the Lonely Mountain. The River Running, or the Celduin in some Elvish languages, is a particularly formidable river system. The river, itself, was fed by several tributaries and stretched for around 600 Númenórean miles. 

Gondorian records give us few other details about the immediate areas near the Sea of Rhûn, though the northwestern shore of the lake was known as Dorwinion. Dorwinion had a reputation for strong wines, and so we can infer that the land here was probably conducive for settled agriculture, vineyards, and wine making. The people of Dorwinion were known to trade their products with the Silvan Elves of Rhovanion and the Gondorians, so it is probable that area was steady and allowed for the safe passage of merchants and caravans.

Other notable features include a set of hills that bounded along the southwest, while on the northeast were a series of forests. In some maps, a large island can be found in the eastern front of the Sea of Rhûn. Otherwise, we can speculate that the region consisted of vast grasslands and meadows. We don’t have much more to go on than that though. 

The east has always been a prominent area within the history of Middle Earth. Though it is considered a mysterious and barbarous place by the Third Age, it should be remembered that Rhûn has been the epicenter of foundational developments. Indeed, one of the first major events in all of Arda would take place here. The first elves would find themselves awoken in a place far to the east, on an island known as Cuiviénen. The earliest humans likewise originated in the east. 

As elves moved westward at the behest of the Valar, and as humans moved westward into Beleriand, our lens shifts due to historiographical changes. Even by the First Age, we start to lose great detail on the events happening in the east. Our scholars in Beleriand focused mostly on the easterlings as agents of change and invasion, rather than writing about these peoples in any depth. What we can assume is that given the consistent movement of humans from east to west, we can imagine a number of seismic demographic events that took place in Rhûn. Groups like the Swarthy Men would come to play major roles in the events of Beleriand. The lives of great figures like Húrin and Túrin Turambar were defined by various eastern invasions. In the Second Age, we can also imagine a number of interactions between Númenor and the wider east, though again, we are given seldom details about these potential developments. 

Today we aren’t discussing these mythical developments. We really don’t have much to go on when it comes to these early eras about Rhûn. Rather, today’s episode will focus on groups of a later age, or really, the Third Age. 

In the Third Age, interactions with the east were mostly defined by relationships with Gondor. For the most part, Gondor maintained a position of belligerence against the east. Gondorian historians argue that easterling invasions occurred consistently starting in 490 TA. This first invasion occurred during the reign of the seventh Gondorian monarch, King Ostoher. Ostoher’s son, Tarostar would drive out the easterlings and take on a formidable name: Rómendacil, or “East-victor.” Tragically, Rómendacil’s name would be rather ironic, as in 541 TA, a group of easterlings would successfully kill the king of Gondor during an invasion of Ithilien. His son, Turambar would get his vengeance and defeat the easterling horde.

Since these events, Gondor and the east would wage nearly perpetual warfare. The reign of Hyarmendacil I, from 1015-1149 TA, would see Gondor conquer much of Rhûn itself. After losing control over the territory, Gondor would launch another invasion in 1248. Later down the line, the peoples of Rhûn would launch their own invasions. Easterling groups attacked Gondor in the 1800s, 2500s, and of course in 3019. We can imagine that throughout this long period of time, both Gondor and the east would launch minor raids and assaults on one another. Indeed, Gondorian records are quite clear that kings like Rómendacil II would take great pleasure in disrupting the camps of many easterling groups. 

Now, throughout this time, I’ve used the term “easterling.” This is likely a Gondorian term and is quite denigrating if one thinks on it. It paints an entire peoples in a single light, as a mass horde of evil warriors, and such propaganda would be especially potent during the War of the Ring. To avoid following such problematic language, I think we should finally start talking about the peoples of Rhûn directly. Of course, the term “easterling” is useful because we have so few records about the specific groups here. For much of the history we’ve mentioned, our Gondorian and Elven historians told us nothing about the names or cultures of these eastern peoples.

We are thus left with only two major players to consider: the Wainriders and the Balchoth. While we are limited to these two cultures, they can provide us with a number of details that likely applied to many other eastern groups. Keep this in mind as we dissect further.

So, starting off we have the formidable Wainriders. The Wainriders emerged on the scene when in 1851 TA, they invaded the lands of Rhovanion. We are told that the Wainriders were probably a confederation of different Rhûnic peoples. The Wainriders, as evidenced by their name, utilized horse-drawn wagons known as wains. We aren’t exactly sure if they were a fully nomadic people, but we do know that many Wainriders camped in large wagon communities. All individuals, regardless of gender or age, were trained to defend their clan or tribal unit. However, gender differences certainly existed. Though armed and trained, women remained with the elderly and children in these camped fortifications while men participated in military operations. In battle, we are told that the chiefs of the Wainriders would fight on chariots. Now, I’m not exactly sure if this means only a small subset of Wainriders fought on chariots, or if most of the army did. In any case, we do know that the Wainriders excelled in martial skills, and I’d estimate that their forces consisted of chariot warriors, light cavalry, and an infantry core. 

As we move back to the year 1851, we should note some important context. By this point in time, Gondor had been weakened substantially, having faced a disastrous war in Umbar, having been beset by a terrible civil war known as the Kin-Strife, and having been devastated by a great plague. The Wainriders therefore emerged in a particularly fortunate period of time for them. 

Their invasion of Rhovanion was seemingly ferocious and quick, as Gondorian historians note that this group was stronger than any other eastern group that had appeared prior. In addition, the Wainriders appeared to be supported by Mordor. The Wainriders initially invaded the lands of Rhovanion. The various kingdoms here, already devastated by prior war and plague, were easily defeated and sundered. In many cases, they enslaved the peoples they defeated.

Gondor appears to have been slow to respond. King Narmacil, who we met in our introduction, would take to the field in 1856, a whole five years after the initial invasion of the Wainriders. We know that Narmacil spent some time scouring and uniting the now scattered Northmen, so perhaps that’s what he was doing in those five years.  Now, with a combined Gondorian and Rhovanion army, Narmacil confronted the Wainriders in a great plain to the south of Mirkwood. 

The battlefield is curious to me, as a level plain would have chariot movements rather effective. Sure, Gondor would have their own cavalry, but one would think that a more elevated or difficult terrain would have suited them better. I have to imagine that this advantage played a key role in what would transpire.

The combined army of Gondor and Rhovanion, led by Narmacil and a Rhovanion prince named Marhari, engaged the Wainriders. It seems that the Wainriders had split into columns. One came from the north, while another from the northeast. The attack, known as the Battle of the Plains, would be an absolute disaster for Gondor and its northern allies. Narmacil and Marhari were slain, much of the army routed, and those who survived would need to flee into Ithilien. In consequence, Gondor was forced to abandon Rhovanion and much of its lands to the east of the Anduin River. We are told that many in Rhovanion were enslaved now, and the sudden collapse of Gondor’s armed forces may have allowed the Nazgul to reassert themselves in Mordor.

Many Rhovanions fled rather than be enslaved, and the Battle of the Plains would have a very interesting consequence in this regard. Marhwini, a son of the slain Marhari, led a contingent of Northmen across the Anduin and into the “vales of Anduin between the Carrock and Gladden.” Such peoples, related to the Beornings, would eventually develop a new culture based on horsemanship. Such peoples would become known as the Éothéod, and they would eventually form the Kingdom of Rohan. This was an important development, as Rohan would play a key role in supporting Gondor against eastern invasions. 

For nearly forty years, Rhovanion was held by the Wainriders. But, in the 1890s, Gondorian King Calimehtar began plans for his vengeance. Sometime in 1899, the Éothéod warned Calimhetar that the Wainriders were planning an invasion of Calenardhon. At the same time, a revolt erupted in Rhovanion. Calimhetar became keenly aware of his opportunity, and in 1899, he launched an invasion against the Wainriders. The Éothéod, under Marhwini, came to Gondor’s aid, and the two forces attacked the Wainriders in Ithilien. Meanwhile, Rhovanion rebels attacked Wainrider forces from the Mirkwood forests. At the plain of Dagolad, Calimhetar scored a major victory against the Wainriders and pushed them back into Rhûn.

This would not be the end of the Wainriders however. The confederation remained stable despite the loss of Rhovanion. From 1899 to around the 1940s, the Wainriders rebuilt their strength and developed new international alliances. Wainrider emissaries moved south and established ties with the Khand and Harad. In the 1940s, the Wainriders would invade Gondor once more.

This time, it would be a two-pronged assault. The Wainriders attacked from the north, while Khand and Harad attacked from the south. Gondorian King Ondoher and his sons Artamir and Faramir would mobilize an army and move north to head off the Wainriders. Gondorian strategists had expected the Wainriders to repeat their strategy at the Battle of the Plain, and therefore to split their army into two groups. This proved disastrous. The Wainriders instead rode at mighty speeds and crossed over the Ered Lithui mountains.

The Gondorian army hoped to deploy its men at Dagorlad and repeat their own successes in 1899. Instead, this adaptation by the Wainriders allowed them to attack Gondorian forces with surprise. Near the Black Gate of Mordor, the Gondorian army met disaster. Gondorian soldiers had no time to establish a defensive position. King Ondoher and his sons were quickly overwhelmed by enemy chariots and slain. The battle would last several more days, but it became clear that the Wainriders had gained a major victory. All seemed well and soon Gondor would fall to Rhûn.

This would be hubris from the part of the Wainriders. Although Gondor had faltered in the north, the southern front proved completely different. Under a captain named Eärnil, Gondor’s southern armies were successful in defeating the forces of Khand and Harad. Like Narmacil a century earlier, Eärnil would unite the scattered northern army and attack the Wainriders. This time, though, Gondor would find success. Eärnil had found the Wainriders’ main camp. At the time, the chiefs were feasting, and Eärnil made the decision to launch a surprise attack. At the Battle of the Camp in 1944, Eärnil’s forces ran into the camp, set it ablaze, and pushed the Wainriders firmly back to Rhûn. 

This battle would have major consequences. The Wainriders were firmly defeated and the confederation likely splintered. It would be some centuries before another major eastern invasion occurred. At the same time, the loss of Ondoher and much of his family had placed Gondor’s succession under threat. To stave off a succession crisis, the Council of Gondor awarded the kingship to Eärnil. Importantly, Eärnil would be the penultimate king of Gondor, and the death of his son Eärnur in 2050 TA would lead to the end of the monarchy. As we can see, the incursions and movements of Rhûn would continue to influence the politics and history of Arda.

As previously mentioned, it would take some time before the eastern peoples would make their presence known. We can imagine a period of anarchy that followed the collapse of the Wainrider confederation. Tribal units splintered, clans divided, and the region would become sundered into a number of squabbling factions. Sauron’s influence likely continued to push through the region, and a number of eastern groups would worship Morgoth. At the same time, though the timeline’s a little fuzzier, the Blue Wizards are known to have entered the east and perhaps created anti-Sauron elements and magical cults. 

From the death of Eärnur to the 2400s, Gondor would be ruled by a series of stewards. We are told that in such time, Gondor would face the slow encroachment of enemies on its borders. We can imagine that Rhûnic groups would test Gondor’s frontier forces, launching small raids and skirmishes. After some time though, the east would once more unite under a major confederation. These would be the Balchoth. 

The Balchoth are considered to be related to the Wainriders, perhaps even descendants. They were a people who had migrated from the eastern edges of Rhûn to Rhovanion. Like the Wainriders, the Balchoth also lived in caravan communities, though they appear to have used their wagons significantly less in war. They were also not really known for cavalry, as their horses were mostly reserved for pulling those very wagons they lived in. It’s also quite possible that the Balchoth had dwelt in the forests of Rhûn, given that they would eventually become quite at home in the trees of Mirkwood.

Once more, it is hard to determine what triggered mass migratory movements in Rhûn, but what we do know is that in 2489 TA, Gondor became aware of Balchoth movements near the Anduin river. Over a thirty year period, more of the easterlings congregated in the area, likely supported by forces in Dol Guldur. As more and more easterling groups entered the area, their actions evidently became bolder. Gondorian records indicate that Balchoth raiders routinely attacked the vale of Anduin, effectively depopulating it. 

By 2509, it became clear that the Balchoth were going to launch an invasion of Gondor itself. In 2510, the Steward Cirion sent assistance and military forces to the north. However, the situation seemed dire. The Balchoth had built boats and successfully crossed the Anduin. Somewhere near Calenardhon, a Gondorian army met the Balchoth in the field of battle. By chance or design, however, the unexpected occurred. An army of orcs had descended from the nearby mountains. The Gondorians were forced away and pushed to a small river known as the Limlight. A combined orc and Balchoth attack nearly decimated the Gondorian force.

And then, the riders of Éothéod emerged. Prior to Cirion’s counteroffensive, the Steward had sent six riders to request aid from King Eorl. Only a single rider, a man named Borondir, succeeded in his quest. Upon hearing the message, Eorl mustered his forces and rallied his riders. At the Field of Celebrant, Eorl came upon a great battle between Gondor, the Balchoth, and the orcs. As our Gondorian historians tell us:

“All hope was lost when, unlooked for, the Riders came out of the North and broke upon the rear of the enemy. Then the fortunes of battle were reversed and the enemy was driven with slaughter over Limlight. Eorl led his men in pursuit, and so great was the fear that went before the horsemen of the North that the invaders of the Wold were also thrown into panic, and the Riders hunted them over the plains of Calenardhon.”

Gondor had been saved. In the aftermath of the battle, Cirion met with Eorl on the hill of Amon Anwar. There, the Steward of Gondor agreed to a pact with the Éothéod. From this point on, the riders of Eorl would be allocated the lands of Calenardhon. It would be here, in this confluence between the west and east, between Gondor and Rhûn, that the riders of Rohan would emerge as a power unto themselves.

As for the Balchoth, we can assume that this defeat had broken their spirits and forced them back across the Anduin and into Rhûn. We aren’t given many details as to what happened to them next, but the story would’ve been similar to what happened with the Wainriders. The Balchoth would have splintered and sundered into a thousand pieces, and the east would once more find itself disunited. It would be some time before the power of Rhûn would reconstitute itself. But… that’s a story for a different day, one that can be found in a very famous trilogy. 

For us, I think we’ll leave our story at that. 

Today, we examined the eastern polities that made up the land of Rhûn. As I mentioned, our narrative was marred by a lack of sources; we were forced to rely on Gondorian and Elven records, and so our perspective is likely biased and lacking. We, for instance, talked little about political developments in Rhûn. We talked little about sociocultural and demographic changes in Rhûn. We talked little about the lives of average and ordinary peoples in Rhûn. Our narrative today was focused solely on warfare, and the martial interplay of Rhûn and the west. 

But, that didn’t mean we tried. We examined the cultural practices of the Wainriders and the Balchoth. We discussed their connections to the wider world, and we summarized their own histories to the best of our ability. 

The land of Arda is beset by a sheer multitude of peoples and cultures. It is a world with an amazing history, rich in detail and narrative. Even the mysterious land of Rhûn is filled with complexity and possibility, and hopefully, with the modern wave of post-colonial studies and anti-Orientalism, we can one day fully understand the peoples that resided here. 

And now, that’s it. Thank you again for listening to this episode of the Nomads and Empires podcast. Next time, we talk about the religion of the Scythians, a group that may have some commonalities with both the Wainriders and Balchoth. I wonder why…

Anyway, see you all next time on the windy plains of far eastern Rhûn. 

Music: 
Epidemic Sound, Dark Side of the Oud - Yinon Muallem