Eärnur

Eärnur is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's universe of Middle-earth, the thirty-third and last King of Gondor. He was born in 1928 T.A and took the throne upon the death of his father Eärnil II in T.A 2043, and after his disappearance, the Stewards of Gondor ruled in his name for many generations.

Eärnur was a great general and his greatest victory was in T.A. 1975 in the Battle of Fornost against Angmar which he destroyed. Interested only in distinguishing himself in "the exercise of arms", Eärnur never took a wife, acting "rather [as a] champion than a captain or king." After becoming King in 2043, he was challenged twice by the Witch-king of Angmar, chief of the Ringwraiths, who now resided in Minas Morgul. The first challenge went unanswered but in T.A 2050 the second came and he accepted. After entering the gates of Minas Morgul, he was never heard from again.

No new king was elected and the rule of Gondor passed to the Stewards, beginning with Mardil Voronwë, who had tried to restrain Eärnur from going to Minas Morgul. The Stewards were to rule "until the King returns" for it was not certain at first whether Eärnur had been killed or not. In addition, Eärnur left without an heir, and while many others in Gondor could lay some sort of claim to the kingship, those claims generally had some sort of doubt, and no one wanted to risk another civil war like the Kin-strife, which had been devastating to Gondor. Eventually Aragorn would come with a proper claim to the throne, and would also in the process re-unify Gondor with Arnor to form the Reunited Kingdom.

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