The Lord of the Rings · Character
Hirgon
- Minor
- First seen · Book 3 · Ch. 3
Hirgon first appears with the unmistakable gravity of a rider carrying an urgent message: tall, mail-clad, and marked by a small silver star on his helm. The red-tipped arrow in his hand gives his presence a stark, ceremonial force, as though the fate of a whole city has narrowed to one vivid sign.
- Gender
- male
- First appears
- Book 3 · Ch. 3
- Books
- 1
Hirgon rides from Gondor bearing the Red Arrow, a summons that calls Rohan to Gondor’s aid. He is later found dead on the road westward, his hand still clasping the arrow and his head hewn off; another dead man and two dead horses lie with him. His brief role makes him the bearer of a desperate appeal whose journey ends before he can carry it farther.
Description
Hirgon is a tall man whose stature is compared to Boromir’s, dressed as a Gondorian rider in fine mail beneath a dark-green cloak. A small silver star is wrought on the front of his helm, and his most distinctive object is the Red Arrow: black-feathered, barbed with steel, and painted red at its point. The text gives no details of his hair, eyes, complexion, or facial features. In the account of his death, his hand still clasps the arrow, while his head has been hewn off.
Connections
Family & partnersFriends & mentorsRivals
Théodenrecipient of envoy
Hirgon is Denethor’s errand-rider and delivers the Red Arrow and Gondor’s urgent request for aid to Théoden.
Story so far
BOOK 3The Return of the King: Being the Third Part of the Lord of the Rings
Appearances
Meet Hirgon in Bookworm
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