Thorin Oakenshield
| Thorin Oakenshield | |
|---|---|
| Tolkien's legendarium character | |
| Aliases |
King under the Mountain King of Durin's Folk |
| Race | Dwarf |
| Book(s) |
The Hobbit (1937) The Return of the King (1955) Unfinished Tales (1980) |
Thorin II Oakenshield, son of Thráin, son of Thrór, King under the Mountain is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's 1937 novel The Hobbit. Thorin is the leader of the Company of Dwarves who aim to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from Smaug the dragon. He is the son of Thráin II, grandson of Thrór, and becomes King of Durin's Folk during their exile from Erebor. Thorin's background is further elaborated in Appendix A of Tolkien's 1955 novel The Return of the King.
Thorin is described as haughty, stern, and officious. He sings and plays the harp, wears a gold chain, and has a long beard. He wears a distinctive sky blue hood with a long silver tassel. He refers to his home in the Blue Mountains as "poor lodgings in exile". He is a capable and a cunning warrior, if not a particularly inspiring or clever leader. While shorter than Elves or Men, Thorin is said to be quite tall for a Dwarf. Thorin was smart, proud, brave, vengeful, and stubborn. He was infamous for a high sense of his importance and rank. He shared the greed of his family, though he valued the welfare of others as well.
In the year T.A. 2746, Thorin II was born to Thráin II in the Lonely Mountain. The dwarves of the Lonely Mountain were forced to flee by the dragon Smaug in T.A. 2770 while Thorin was quite young. In exile, he became a capable warrior, and while still young participated in the Battle of Azanulbizar in T.A. 2799. During the fighting, his shield broke, and he took up an oak branch to serve as a shield; "Oakenshield" thus became his epithet. Thorin became King-in-Exile of Durin's Folk after his father presumably died in the dungeons of Dol Guldur. He led the expedition recounted in The Hobbit to win the Lonely Mountain back from Smaug, but was killed in the Battle of Five Armies described at the end of that book.
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