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The Dunlendings, or Wildmen of Dunland, were Men from the west of the Misty Mountains in Middle-earth, who lived in Dunland. As enemies of the Rohirrim, they were also infrequent minions of Sauron.
The Dunlendings' ancestors had once occupied parts of Calenardhon, which were granted by the Gondorians to the Rohirrim; the Wildmen were driven out by the Horse-lords resulting in a feud between the two peoples. Governed by the renegade Wulf, the Dunlendings allied with Easterlings and Haradrim to reclaim their lands from the Rohirrim, forcing Helm Hammerhand out of Edoras and into the Hornburg. The army of Wildmen was ultimately defeated. Following a bloodpact between Freca and Saruman, the Dunlendings rallied to Sauron's side for revenge against the Rohirrim. Joining raiding parties from Isengard, the Hordes of Dunland ravaged the Westfold while heading towards Edoras. The Wildmen were vanquished by the Horse-lords before they reached the capital.
History[]
The Dunlendings were descended from the hillmen who, in the Second Age, had lived west and south of the Misty Mountains, even as far as near the White Mountains, until the arrival of the Númenóreans. The ancestors of the Wildmen fled from these Men, who came to hunt and persecute them. Though some fled westwards, where Bree was founded, many congregated in Calenardhon and Dunland, becoming known as the Dunlendings.[1]
During the Third Age, the Dunlendings were driven out from Calenardhon and from valleys near the White Mountains by Eorl's Rohirrim, to whom the Gondorians had granted the province. The Wildmen grew to hate the Horse-lords, whom they called "strawheads", for this and frequently attacked the region.[1]
After the death of his sire, Freca, Wulf was banished by Helm Hammerhand and fled to the Dunlendings, seeking revenge.[2] Under this renegade lord, the Wildmen prepared to strike against the perceived usurpers. Allying with the Haradrim,[3] as well the Easterlings, the Dunlendings made a surprise attack on the Rohirrim and invaded Rohan, resulting in an assault upon Edoras. The army of Dunland and its allies drove the Rohirrim forces out of the capital and towards the Hornburg. Wulf took over Edoras, while the Dunlendings pursued the Rohirrim to their new refuge. Throughout the Long Winter the Wildmen besieged the Horse-lords; the Rohirrim barely held out against the Dunlendings, for they were simultaneously attacked by the nearby Orcs of the White Mountains.[3] Ultimately, the Hordes of Dunland were defeated and driven out by fresh forces of Rohan led by Helm's nephew, Fréaláf.[1]
Around the time of the War of the Ring, the new leader of the Dunlendings, another Wulf, was entreatied by Sauron's puppet, Saruman, to an alliance against the weakened Théoden. Incited by the corrupted White Wizard to seek vengeance for the wrongs done to them,[1] the Wildmen joined the Enemy's forces to take back the lands stolen from them. Dunlending warbands banded together with Isengard Orc raiding parties and laid waste to the Westfold,[4] left defenseless by Saruman's agent, Gríma Wormtongue. As Théoden retreated with his people to Helm's Deep, the Dunlendings headed towards Edoras. The Wildmen never reached the capital, however; the Dunlending hordes were either scattered by patrolling éoreds or vanquished by Éomer's forces. The Dunlendings' raiding of the Westfold would constitute their last concerted attack against the Rohirrim.[1]
