House of the Wolfings: The William Morris Book that Inspired J. R. R. Tolkiena *s The Lord of the Rings Read Free Page A

of me the House shall
live; or else for thy sake I shall bear it and live, and the House
shall live or die as may be, but I not helping, nay I no longer of
the House nor in it.”
    Like Tolkien, Morris set his story within a
larger history. Although there is no exact parallel between what
happens in The House of the Wolfings and any particular
historical event, the great struggle between Rome’s drive to
civilize and enslave their way into Central Europe and the Gothic
(Germanic) tribes willingness to fight for their independence is a
fact of history.
    Perhaps the most important battle in that
struggle between Romans and Germans was one in A.D. 9 between the
Roman general Varus and Gothic soldiers led by Arminius, a German
whose talent had been recognized the Romans, who attempted to buy
his allegiance by giving him Roman citizenship and military
training. He would use that training against them.
    Knowing that troop strength and military
skill gave the advantage to Rome, in September Arminius lured Varus
out of his Westphalian fortress to put down what the Romans thought
was a minor revolt. They were tricked into entering a wooded and
hilly region, where heavy rains made movement difficult. Arminius
then launched a series of lightning attacks on the Roman army,
using every advantage imaginable. (Much as in Morris’ tale, one key
battle took place on a forested ridge.) In the end, Varus committed
suicide to avoid capture and most of his army was either killed in
battle or sacrificed to blood-thirsty pagan gods. Rome was left
angry and bitter by the defeat, but in the end both sides were
forced to come to an uneasy truce with the Rhine River as a
boundary line. Later, barbarian tribes coming out of Central Europe
would weaken and then destroy the Roman empire. Morris tells that
history from a Gothic perspective in The Roots of The
Mountains , where the Huns are the Wolfings’ new foes.
    Why would an Englishman like Morris take
pride in a long-ago victory by a distant tribe when his own
homeland, England, had been successfully occupied and colonized by
Rome? The reason is simple. In his day, many educated Englishmen
believed that their racial (‘blood’) roots lay in the Germanic
tribes of this era. In his often-reprinted 1851 Fifteen Decisive
Battles of the World , Edward S. Creasy made the bold claim
that, “an Englishman is entitled to claim a closer degree of
relationship with Arminius than can be claimed by any German of
modern Germany.” Strange as it may sound today, the Englishmen of
Morris’ day had no problem imagining themselves as brave and fierce
Wolfing warriors, even as a heavily industrialized Great Britain
ruled a Rome-like empire that bore little resemblance to a Gothic
village.
    Those who have read Tolkien’s The Lord of
the Rings will notice similarities. There is a forest named
Mirkwood in Morris, although it is not as dark and mysterious as
Tolkien’s. (Both have as their source the Nordic Elder Edda saga.) In Chapter 2, a messenger brings to the Wolfings (as to
Rohan) a “war-arrow ragged and burnt and bloody” that is a call to
war. And, much like Bilbo and Frodo, Thiodolf acquires a protective
coat of mail (hauberk) made by dwarves and having, in addition,
dangerous and hidden powers much like the Ring that both Hobbits
bear. But while the Ring can bestow an unimaginably dangerous power
on its possessor, the hauberk has a far different effect. In both
tales, however, the plot hinges on the hero making the right choice
about the use of the powerful weapon he has been given.
    With that, I leave you to enjoy Morris’
marvelous tale.

The Roots of the Mountains
by William Morris

    Whiles in the early Winter eve
    We pass amid the gathering night
    Some homestead that we had to leave
    Years past; and see its candles bright
    Shine in the room beside the door
    Where we were merry years agone
    But now must never enter more,
    As still the dark road drives us on.
    E’en so the world of men may turn
    At