Samwise Gamgee
| House / Order | The Fellowship |
|---|---|
| Race / Culture | Hobbit |
| Status | Survived |
| Origin | Number 3 Bagshot Row, Hobbiton, the Shire |
| Born | 6 April T.A. 2980 |
| Died | Sailed over Sea (after F.A. 61, by tradition) |
| Weapon | Sting (briefly); the Phial of Galadriel |
| Fate | Returned home, wed Rosie Cotton, became Mayor; last of the Ring-bearers to sail West |
| Portrayed by | Sean Astin |
Samwise Gamgee, called Sam, was the gardener of Bag End and the faithful companion of Frodo Baggins upon the Quest of the Ring. Of all the Fellowship he alone walked every mile of Frodo's road into Mordor and out again, and he is held by many — and by the author himself — to be the true hero of The Lord of the Rings.
A plain working Hobbit with a love of gardens, Elves, and old tales, Sam rose to deeds beyond all his expectation: he bore the One Ring for a time, faced the spider Shelob, stormed the tower of Cirith Ungol, and carried his master up the slopes of Mount Doom when Frodo could walk no more.
Origins
Sam was born in T.A. 2980, son of Hamfast Gamgee — the "Gaffer" — who tended the garden of Bag End before him. He grew up in Bagshot Row beneath the Hill, was taught his letters by Bilbo Baggins, and conceived a deep and unhobbitlike longing to see Elves and walking trees. He entered Frodo's service as gardener, and it was his eavesdropping on Gandalf's warning about the Ring that earned him his place as Frodo's first companion on the journey.
Biography
Out of the Shire
Gandalf set Sam to go with Frodo as a punishment that was really a reward — "Don't you lose him, Samwise Gamgee." Sam never did. He crossed the Old Forest, the barrow-downs, and Bree at Frodo's side, and at Rivendell refused to be parted from him, so that Elrond named him one of the Fellowship of the Ring.
The road to Mordor
- Main article: Quest of Mount Doom
When the Fellowship broke at Amon Hen, Sam guessed Frodo's plan to slip away to Mordor alone and nearly drowned forcing his way into the boat after him. From there the two went on together. Sam led where Frodo faltered: he wrestled Gollum and won a wary truce, and in the pass of Cirith Ungol he wounded the great spider Shelob with Sting and the light of the Phial of Galadriel, driving her off — a deed no warrior of the West had matched.
Believing Frodo dead, Sam took the Ring to finish the Quest himself, becoming for a few days the humblest of all Ring-bearers. When he learned Frodo lived and was a captive, he fought his way into the orc-tower and bore him out. Across the burning plain of Gorgoroth, when Frodo's strength failed utterly, Sam carried him bodily up Mount Doom: "I can't carry it for you, but I can carry you."
Mayor of the Shire
After the Ring's destruction Sam returned home and was among the leaders of the Scouring of the Shire. He used Galadriel's gift — a box of earth from Lothlórien and a single mallorn-seed — to heal the ravaged land, planting trees the length of the Shire. He wed Rosie Cotton, raised a large family at Bag End (which Frodo gave to him), and was elected Mayor of the Shire seven times. By long tradition, as the last living Ring-bearer, Sam himself sailed over Sea from the Grey Havens after Rosie's death.
Character
Sam is loyal, stout-hearted, and unfailingly practical, with a homely wisdom and a poet's love of the old stories. His devotion to Frodo is the moral centre of the tale, and his brief ownership of the Ring is telling: where greater beings imagined dominion, Sam dreamed only of turning Mordor into a garden — and the modesty of that desire let him give the Ring up freely, as almost none other could. Tolkien wrote that Sam was "the chief hero" of the book.
Relationships
- Frodo Baggins — his master, whom he served, carried, and saved.
- Rosie Cotton — his sweetheart and wife, his anchor in the Shire.
- Hamfast Gamgee — the Gaffer, his father, source of his proverbs.
- Gollum — whom he distrusted utterly, and rightly.
- Galadriel — whose gifts let him heal the Shire.
- Merry and Pippin — his fellow hobbits of the Fellowship.
Appearances
In Peter Jackson's film trilogy (2001–2003), Sam was portrayed by Sean Astin.
Quotes
It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were... Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't.
Come, Mr. Frodo!' he cried. 'I can't carry it for you, but I can carry you and it as well.
Well, I'm back.