The Hobbit: What Happens Next?

I can say with confidence that I loved The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.  The story, the characters, the action, the visuals – I loved it all.  I felt that it lacked only in its resolution.  The book was detailed in describing what happened after the battle, but much of it was generally left out of the movie.  What happened to the Arkenstone?  The Lonely Mountain?  The men of Lake-Town?  Who knows what the extended edition will reveal, but until then…

WHAT HAPPENED TO…

…THE ARKENSTONE ?

The Arkenstone is called, “The King’s Jewel,” and symbolized Thorin’s right to rule and authority to unite the Dwarves.  The jewel is buried with Thorin, placed on his chest, beneath the Lonely Mountain.

…THE DWARVES ?

Most of the dwarves of Thorin’s Company settled down in Erebor.  Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Dwalin, Nori, and Dori all stayed in Erebor.  Balin was the only Dwarf to visit Bilbo at Bag End.  Balin eventually led an expedition to reclaim Moria and find the last of the Seven Rings of the Dwarves, with Oin and Ori, but was ultimately unsuccessful.  We see Balin’s tomb in The Fellowship of the Ring.  Gloin accompanied his son, Gimli, to the Council of Elrond during the War of the Ring.  Bombur became so large that it took six Dwarves to move him.

…THE MEN OF LAKE-TOWN ?

Bard used part of the great wealth of Erebor to rebuild both Esgaroth and Dale, and both cities were restored to their former glory.  He became the first in a long line of kings in Dale.  Bilbo actually imported goods from Dale and Erebor for his 111^th birthday party in The Fellowship of the Ring.  Allied with the Dwarves of Erebor, they would later fight and defeat the Easterlings, servants of Sauron, during the War of the Ring.  They became closely allied with Aragorn’s Reunited Kingdom.

…THE ELVES OF MIRKWOOD ?

Thranduil remained the king of the Woodland Realm throughout the War of the Ring and afterwards, although the Elves’ influence over the forest continued to shrink with the growing evil of Sauron.  Legolas went with a host of Elves to the Council of Elrond on behalf of Thranduil.  During the War of the Ring, the Elves fought Sauron’s forces from Dol Guldur.  Afterwards, Mirkwood was renamed “The Wood of Greenleaves,” and the southern part became East Lorien.  Tauriel…well she wasn’t in the books, so I guess she helped in fighting.

…THE SKIN-CHANGER, BEORN ?

After slaying scores of Orcs in the Battle of Five Armies, Beorn accompanied Gandalf and Bilbo back to his home.  He continued to guard the Ford of Carrock and the High Pass.  In the books, he had a son and other followers (known as Beornings) who passed on the skill of skin-changing.

…THE LONELY MOUNTAIN, EREBOR ?

With the deaths of Thorin, Fili, and Kili, Dain Ironfoot became the king of Erebor, and re-established the wealth and fame of the Kingdom under the Mountain.  He eventually died defending the King of Dale during the War of the Ring after refusing to join Sauron’s forces, and his son Thorin became the next king of Erebor.  The Dwarves of Erebor were closely allied with the Reunited Kingdom of Aragorn.

…THE WHITE COUNCIL ?

The White Council met one last time before the War of the Ring, during which Saruman falsely claimed that the One Ring had been swept out to the sea.  This was untrue, however, as he himself was searching for the One Ring, hoping to use its power for himself.  Galadriel, Elrond, and Gandalf continued to obtain information about the reemergence of Sauron.  Radagast unwittingly helped Saruman capture Gandalf in The Fellowship of the Ring, but also helped him escape.  Elrond eventually sent messengers to his home to ask for aid against Sauron, but Radagast was nowhere to be found.  His fate is unknown.

…THE NECROMANCER, SAURON ?

Sauron’s spirit escaped to Barad-dur, his tower in Mordor.  From there, he summoned the nine Ring-wraiths, whom he brought back from the dead.  Saruman was not serving him at this time, believing that he could overcome the power of the One Ring himself.  Eventually, as we see in Lord of the Rings, this does not work and Saruman inadvertently becomes Sauron’s servant.

…THE FORTRESS OF DOL GULDUR ?

The Elves of Lothlorien kept a close watch on the fortress, but Sauron’s forces eventually took it over and used it as a base to attack Lothlorien and the Woodland Realm.  Sauron’s forces were defeated, the walls were torn down, the pits were opened up, and it was forever cleansed of all evil.

…THE RING OF POWER ?

Bilbo kept the One Ring with him all the years he remained in the Shire.  He became attached to it, yet the Ring’s hold on him was overall relatively weak because he acquired it innocently.  Eventually, he passed the Ring to Frodo, being one of only a handful of people in the history of Middle-Earth to willingly give up the Ring of Power.  Eventually the One Ring was destroyed…but you can watch The Lord of the Rings for that one.