Folcwine's Twin Heir

[Gwaihir the Windlord]

You suggest that they were sent to Gondor in the hope that they'd be killed? I very much doubt it. The Rohirrim were not the sort of people prone to such disputes. They were, in such matters, fairly sensible. I should think that one of the sons would -- sensibly -- leave the throne to the other if it was thought that civil war was likely to ensue.

This would only happen if the brothers decided to actually fight it out, making the Rohirrim take sides with them, which somehow is not something I can envisage the Rohirrim really doing. Interesting thought, but I think it very unlikely.

Folcwine... when, therefore, he heard that the Haradrim were assailing Gondor with great strength, he sent many men to the help of the Steward. He wished to lead them himself, but was dissuaded, and his twin sons Folcred and Fastred went in his stead. They fell side by side in battle in Ithilien.

The brothers seemed to be on better terms with each other than that, and with the king. I seem to remember from somewhere that it was the brothers themselves that persuaded their father to let them take his place.

An evil governor? Rohan didn't have them until Grima. The king probably did have a Witan-like council, but matters such as this were decided in the end by him -- and thus for reasons that he himself could see. I somehow doubt he himself came up with a scheme to get his own sons killed; he sent his sons away himself, on their wishes, and not for such dark espionagish reasons as this. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

[ September 25, 2003: Message edited by: Gwaihir the Windlord ]