The Shire

By Shayalyn

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Imagine a peaceful, idyllic
place--a pastoral haven, simple and serene--and you could well be
imagining the Shire, country home to the Hobbits of Middle-earth. The
Shire occupies a space of about 18,000 square miles between the Far
Downs and the Brandywine Bridge.  The Shire was originally divided
into four farthings: the Northfarthing, Westfarthing, Southfarthing and
Eastfarthing. Hobbiton, home to Bilbo and, later, Frodo Baggins, is
located in Westfarthing, as is Michel Delving, the central city of the
Shire, and home to the Shire’s only elected official, the mayor of
Michel Delving.



The Brandywine (Baranduin) river serves as a boundary to the Shire from
the east. (Hobbits also live in Buckland, which lies east of the river;
however, Buckland was not formally recognized as part of The Shire
until after the War of the Ring.) From the north and the west The Shire
the ancient south and east roads, and other geographical features such
as the Tower Hills, serve as boundaries.



href="http://lotro.tentonhammer.com/modules.php?set_albumName=LotRO_Screenshots&id=Michel_Delving&op=modload&name=Gallery&file=index&include=view_photo.php"> alt="Michel Delving"
src="http://lotro.tentonhammer.com/files/gallery/albums/LotRO_Screenshots/Michel_Delving.thumb.jpg"
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 150px; height: 105px;" align="left"
hspace="2" vspace="4">The Hobbits live a simple life in their
rural homeland, which is how
they prefer it. Essentially the Hobbits live as farmers, tradesman, and
laborers, although a few are well enough off not to have to work at
all. There are some poor folk, but their poverty is not extreme. In
general, the Shire is agricultural, home to lands that produce
mushrooms and pipe-weed. There has not been war in the Shire since the
Battle of the Greenfields long ago, and Northfarthing is now better
known for its hunting and beer than Goblins and Wolves.



Indeed, the Hobbits have managed to distance themselves enough from the
outside world that they have almost been able to forget it exists, even
though the Great East Road runs through the middle of The Shire. In
part, their isolation is due to the tireless protection of the Rangers,
who patrol the boundaries of Eriador. (Strider, who later became known
as Aragorn, a member of the Fellowship of the Ring, was one such
Ranger.) The Shire’s small size and relative lack of importance have
also kept it from becoming a target for conquest. Prior to the War of
the Ring, few strangers visited the Shire, with the exception of the
occasional traveling dwarf or elf.



Of Interest:



After the War of the Ring, Sarumon, calling himself “Sharkey,” set his
sites on the Shire, where he forced the industrialization of the once
peaceful land during a struggle known as the Scourging of the Shire. He
was evicted by the brave and resourceful Hobbits, including Merry,
Pippin, Samwise, and Frodo (although Frodo did not actually fight in
the resulting war). The Shire was restored with soil from
Lórien, given to Sam by the elf, Galadriel.



The Scourging of the Shire was Tolkien’s commentary on witnessing the
industrialization of his own simple homeland, rural Warwickshire,
England, during the Industrial Revolution. By showing the resilient
country Hobbits victorious over Saruman and his industry, Tolkien in
essence prescribed a return to simplicity as a cure for the ailments of
modern society.