56 pages • 1 hour read
J. R. R. TolkienReturn of the King
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 1955A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Book 5, Chapters 4-7Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Book 5, Chapter 4 Summary: “The Siege of Gondor”
Pippin awakens and sees that it is still dark outside. Gandalf informs him that this is not a natural weather condition, but that the storm is part of Sauron’s plan. Pippin goes to meet with Denethor again. Denethor asks Pippin to sing for him, but Pippin does not want to sing one of his traditional Hobbit songs to such a great lord. Denethor instead interrogates Gandalf about Rohan, indicating that he knows a lot about foreign lands and politics.
Faramir returns from Ithilien, pursued by Nazgûl on flying steeds. Gandalf goes out to banish them with a light and rescues Faramir. When Faramir comes to inform Denethor of the battle, he reacts with amazement when seeing Pippin, telling them that he met another halfling very recently. Pippin notices that Gandalf seems afraid for the first time. Faramir mentions that Frodo and Sam went to Cirith Ungol with Gollum. Denethor is furious with his son, having guessed that Frodo was carrying Isildur’s Bane, the Ring. He accuses Faramir of disloyalty, saying that Boromir would have brought him the Enemy’s weapon rather than seeking to please a wizard. Denethor tells Gandalf that he would not be foolish enough to try to use Sauron’s weapon against him, but he would have hidden it so that it could never fall into Sauron’s hands again. Gandalf replies that the Ring would still have been able to corrupt him if he locked it up.
Vengefully, Denethor commands Faramir to return to the frontlines of the war and try to defend the bridge over the Anduin river in Osgiliath to buy time. Faramir agrees, but Gandalf warns him to be careful, telling him that his father will eventually remember his love for his son. Pippin watches from the walls as people begin retreating to Minas Tirith from the Pelennor fields. However, Faramir does not return, having stayed behind to lead an organized retreat and prevent a rout. Eventually, they see a more organized company of soldiers riding back over the fields, with Nazgûl once again attacking them. Gandalf drives them back once more, but when the soldiers reach the city gates, Pippin sees that Faramir has been injured by a poisoned dart from one of the Haradrim soldiers. He is carried back to the Tower to be treated, but his serious injury makes Denethor feel remorseful.
Sauron’s army advances across the Pelennor fields. They are able to set up siege weapons unhindered and dig defensive trenches. The siege weapons begin hurling burning projectiles over the walls, setting fires in the lower circle of the city. Then, the siege weapons also begin to throw the defaced heads of soldiers who died defending Osgiliath, further weakening the morale of the defenders. The Nazgûl continue to scream overhead, causing those who hear them to descend into despair and terror.
Denethor begins to lose his mind with grief and Gandalf takes command of the city’s defenses in his stead. Pippin remains with Denethor, who claims that since Rohan will not arrive in time, all is lost. He decides that he and Faramir should be burned on a pyre together and he commands Pippin to leave his side and die in whatever way he thinks is the best. Pippin remains by his side but is unable to dissuade the servants from following Denethor’s order to bring wood and oil for a funeral pyre. He rushes to find Gandalf, hoping that he can prevent Denethor and Faramir’s deaths.
Before Pippin can reach Gandalf, Sauron’s army breaks through the main gate of the city using a giant battering ram named Grond in the shape of a wolf’s head. The commander of Sauron’s forces and the Lord of the Nazgûl confronts Gandalf at the gate, preparing to kill Gandalf with a flaming sword. However, before they can fight, a cock crows, and then a horn is heard blowing in the distance. The army of Rohan arrives exactly at dawn.
Book 5, Chapter 5 Summary: “The Ride of the Rohirrim”
Merry has been riding with Dernhelm several days when the army of Rohan encounters a problem—the path ahead is blocked by Orcs who have made defensive fortifications to prevent them from reaching Gondor. Merry feels anxious, worrying that he made a mistake by joining the army since he will not be much help in the battle. Dernhelm does not speak to him very much and the other soldiers do not acknowledge his presence.
Merry learns that Théoden is negotiating with some of the Wild Men who inhabit the region they are passing through, and he sneaks over to watch the conversation. The leader of the Wild Men looks similar to the Pukél-men statues that he noticed near Dunharrow and Merry suspects that these might be the descendants of that ancient culture. The leader is named Ghân-buri-Ghân and he speaks the common language well enough to communicate with Théoden. He tells Théoden that his people know of an unblocked road through the mountains that was made by the men of Gondor so long ago that it has now been forgotten. He offers to guide them to this road and asks that in exchange, they kill the Orcs and drive away the unnatural darkness that has fallen upon the region. Théoden agrees to trust Ghân-buri-Ghân, and the army follows the Wild Men through the woods, eventually coming to an old stone road that is overgrown with grass and fallen leaves.
Éomer is pleased that Sauron’s battle strategy has accidentally helped them. The darkness has provided cover for them to sneak through the blockade undetected and the Orcs attacking Minas Tirith are not defending the outer walls because they do not suspect that Rohan will be able to arrive in time. However, they find the bodies of the scout from Gondor who brought Théoden the red arrow, suggesting that Denethor does not know that they are coming and may have despaired. Théoden has the army sneak forward and then from ranks to attack the Orcs. Merry notices that he looks old and unsure, and he wonders if Théoden will order a retreat instead of an attack. However, the wind changes directions and the Rohirrim see dawn breaking in the South as the wind pushes away the clouds. Théoden orders the army to charge and they take the Orcs by surprise, killing many of them in a successful attack.
Book 5, Chapter 6 Summary: “The Battle of the Pelennor Fields”
The leader of the Nazgûl, also known as the Witch King, sees Théoden’s forces trying to steal away his victory, but he remains a powerful threat. Riding a featherless foul beast, he flies to intercept Théoden. His flying steed kills Théoden’s horse, Snowmane, and Théoden is mortally wounded when the animal falls on top of him. Merry and Dernhelm, riding nearby, are also knocked off of their horse.
Dernhelm defends Théoden’s fallen body, telling the Nazgûl Lord to leave. The Nazgûl mockingly warns Dernhelm that anyone who intervenes between him and his prey will be captured and tortured by Sauron. The Witch King vows that no living man can hinder him. Dernhelm reveals that he is not a living man, but instead a woman. Merry recognizes that Dernhelm has been Éowyn in disguise. She removes her helmet and kills the Nazgûl’s flying mount. When the Nazgûl strikes her with his mace, breaking her arm, Merry saves her by stabbing the Nazgûl in the back of the leg. Éowyn manages to stab the Nazgûl in the face with her sword, causing the creature’s physical body to vanish and leave behind only robes. Éowyn collapses and does not move.
Merry crawls over to Théoden, who asks to speak with Éomer in his final moments and wishes to send a final word to Éowyn, who he believes to be safe at home. Éomer comes and mourns the death of Théoden, but he is more distraught and horrified when he finds Éowyn’s body as well. He orders the Rohirrim to charge and take revenge against Sauron’s army, attacking the Haradrim troops.
Merry notices that his sword has dissolved after it made contact with the Nazgûl’s undead body. He accompanies Éowyn’s body back to Minas Tirith, where Prince Imrahil of Gondor notices that she is wounded but still alive and orders her to be taken to healers. Meanwhile, Éomer’s riders struggle in battle against the Haradrim, having difficulty because the horses spook around the enemy’s elephant mounts. All seems to be lost when the Corsair ships arrive on the river, seeming to provide Sauron’s army with more reinforcements. However, Éomer is surprised to see Aragorn’s banner flying on the ships. Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, and the Dúnedain disembark from the ships and join the battle. Sauron’s army is destroyed and all who do not flee are killed.
Book 5, Chapter 7 Summary: “The Pyre of Denethor”
The narration resumes with Pippin after the leader of the Nazgûl departs from the gate of Minas Tirith. Pippin warns Gandalf that Denethor has started behaving erratically and is planning to burn himself and his son Faramir alive. Gandalf is distressed by this news, realizing that he is the only one who can save Faramir, but if he abandons his fight with the Nazgûl then it will be able to harm his allies on the battlefield. He rides with Pippin up to the tower.
They find the porter of the door dead and the key gone. When they enter the tower and descend to the tombs, they find that Beregond is defending the door into the tombs from the other servants who have brought torches for the funeral pyre. He has been forced to kill several of his own people in order to prevent Denethor from killing himself. Gandalf enters the room and attempts to persuade Denethor to stop. Denethor reveals that he has been using a Palantír seeing-stone to learn of Sauron’s plans, but the knowledge he learned from the stone has driven him to despair. He believes that Gandalf is seeking to become the shadow-ruler of Gondor by setting up Aragorn to replace him and he thinks that Pippin was sent to him on purpose as a spy. While Gandalf tries to convince him that there is no dishonor in a steward surrendering his duties to a rightful king, Denethor feels paranoia. Denethor grabs one of the torches and sets himself on fire, burning to death with the Palantír in his hands.
Gandalf leaves Beregond in charge of the tower and orders that Faramir’s body be brought to the Houses of Healing in the ring of the city so that his wounds can be treated. As they transport him, everyone hears a terrible scream and then silence. The silence brings with it a feeling of hope and relief, but Gandalf seems worried, knowing that the destruction of the Nazgûl has likely come at a terrible cost.
Book 5, Chapters 4-7 Analysis
The battle between Mordor and Gondor shows both Pippin and Merry helping to turn the tide of the war, despite their assumed limitations. Pippin’s heroic act helps to save the life of Faramir, who Tolkien depicts as more worthy and wise than his father, Denethor. Faramir is described as more like Aragorn than Denethor, denoting his superiority: “Here was one with an air of high nobility such as Aragorn at times revealed, less high perhaps, yet also less incalculable and remote: one of the Kings of Men born into a later time, but touched with the wisdom and sadness of the Elder Race” (792). Faramir would be a better steward for Gondor than his father, and so Pippin’s actions to save his life are critical to ensuring a peaceful transition of power to the rightful king at the end of the novel. Denethor is shown to be unwilling to give up control of Gondor to Aragorn, driven by despair and grief for his sons. When Faramir appears to be mortally wounded, Pippin notices that “Denethor grew old before his eyes, as if something had snapped in his proud will, and his stern mind was overthrown. Grief maybe had wrought it, and remorse. He saw tears on that once tearless face, more unbearable than wrath” (805). Denethor dismisses Pippin from his post as a guard, saying “go now, and die in what way seems best to you,” (807) which Pippin recognizes as a dangerous sign suggesting Denethor will attempt to die by suicide. By rushing to get Gandalf before Denethor can burn Faramir alive, Pippin averts a tragedy.
Denethor’s fate indicates that even a person of great ability and awareness can still be overthrown by evil. Gandalf concludes that the problem with Denethor’s leadership is that he was intelligent, but intellectually arrogant and therefore easily misled by misinformation. Gandalf claims that “he was too great to be subdued to the will of the Dark Power, he saw nonetheless only those things which that Power permitted him to see […] the vision of the great might of Mordor that was shown to him fed the despair of his heart until it overthrew his mind” (838). Denethor’s fate helps to explain The Need for Sacrifice, showing that dying without hope to avoid a miserable end is different than being willing to die because it might enable a better future.
The climax of the Battle of the Pelennor fields involves Merry helping to destroy one of Sauron’s most powerful servants: the leader of the Nazgûl. Like Pippin, Merry cannot save his liege lord, but he does save the life of their child and therefore ensures the future of the royal line. Also like Pippin, Merry plays a small but pivotal role in the battle, demonstrating his courage rather than physical strength. The leader of the Nazgûl is destroyed by a woman and a hobbit, two individuals who were instructed by Théoden to stay behind since they were not meant to be warriors. Tolkien therefore suggests that having a will to do good can defeat greater evils than physical strength. This is underscored by the Nazgûl’s threat to Éowyn. Rather than threatening to kill her, the Nazgûl says that “he will not slay thee in thy turn. He will bear thee away to the houses of lamentation, beyond all darkness, where thy flesh shall be devoured, and thy shrivelled mind be left naked to the Lidless Eye” (823). The threat of mental torment and terror are the Nazgûls’ main weapons, but Éowyn and Merry can overcome these due to their willpower, courage, and love for Théoden, rather than their athleticism or might.
The Nazgûls’ defeat comes at the same time that Aragorn arrives, having destroyed the threat of the Corsair ships. This signals that the army of Mordor has fully lost the battle. Tolkien foreshadows that Aragorn’s arrival will cement the victory of Gondor earlier when the men of Rohan hesitate before charging into battle. When Théoden seems to pause before joining the fight, Merry worries that he will turn away until “Merry felt it at last, beyond doubt: a change. Wind was in his face! Light was glimmering. Far, far away, in the South the clouds could be dimly seen as remote grey shapes, rolling up, drifting: morning lay beyond them” (819). Tolkien uses the distant sun as a symbol of hope and goodness coming from the same direction where Aragorn is. This suggests that Aragorn’s leadership indirectly inspires Rohan to join the fight and help to save Gondor. The chapters end with a renewed sense of hope and with both Merry and Pippin having become stronger and more heroic because they helped to protect the leaders of Rohan and Gondor respectively.
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By J. R. R. Tolkien
