Archmaesterjimmie: LOTR character article, book-canon (Corvus) + portrait (Wren)

2026-06-13T15:57:30Z

LOTR character article, book-canon (Corvus) + portrait (Wren)

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{{Infobox character
| image = https://archmaester.site/portraits/lotr/meriadoc-brandybuck.jpg
| name = Meriadoc Brandybuck
| title = Merry; Esquire of Rohan; Holdwine of the Mark; Master of Buckland; Magnificent
| house = The Fellowship; the Brandybucks of Buckland
| race = Hobbit
| status = Departed
| region = Brandy Hall, Buckland, the Shire
| born = T.A. 2982
| died = Fourth Age, in Gondor (by tradition, with Pippin)
| weapon = A barrow-blade of Westernesse (the dagger that wounded the Witch-king)
| fate = Helped slay the Witch-king; became Master of Buckland; in old age rode to Gondor to die
| actor = Dominic Monaghan
| quote = We are your friends, Frodo... You can trust us to stick to you through thick and thin.
}}

'''Meriadoc Brandybuck''', called '''Merry''', was a [[Hobbit]] of the [[Shire]], cousin and close friend of [[Frodo Baggins]], and one of the four hobbits of the [[Fellowship of the Ring]]. Of the great Brandybuck family of [[Buckland]], he was the most practical and clear-headed of the hobbits, and rose to deeds far beyond the measure of his small folk.

His greatest moment came upon the [[Pelennor Fields]], where with [[Éowyn]] he brought down the [[Witch-king of Angmar]], the Lord of the [[Nazgûl]]. Sworn into the service of [[Théoden]] of [[Rohan]], Merry became a hero of two realms — '''Holdwine of the Mark''' in Rohan and, in the Shire, the renowned Master of Buckland.

== Origins ==
Merry was born in T.A. 2982, son of [[Saradoc Brandybuck]], the Master of Buckland, and [[Esmeralda Took]]. As heir to [[Brandy Hall]] he came of a clannish, river-dwelling family unusual among hobbits for their boldness with boats and the [[Old Forest]]. He was older and shrewder than his cousin [[Peregrin Took|Pippin]], with whom he was inseparable, and was among the chief organisers of the "conspiracy" of Frodo's friends who learned his secret and resolved to go with him rather than let him slip away alone.

== Biography ==
=== Out of the Shire ===
Merry helped plan Frodo's escape from [[Bag End]] and led the hobbits through the [[Old Forest]], where he had some knowledge of the paths. There they were nearly slain by [[Old Man Willow]] and a barrow-wight, and rescued by [[Tom Bombadil]]; from the barrow Merry took an ancient blade of [[Westernesse]], forged long ago against the realm of [[Angmar]] — a weapon that would prove fateful. He went on with the company through [[Bree]] and [[Rivendell]] and was named one of the [[Fellowship of the Ring]].

=== Captured and the Ents ===
After the [[breaking of the Fellowship]], Merry and [[Pippin]] were seized by the [[Uruk-hai]] and carried across [[Rohan]], escaping into [[Fangorn]] forest during the Riders' attack. There they met [[Treebeard]] the [[Ent]], and it was in no small part their account of [[Saruman]]'s ravaging of the forests that roused the Ents to the [[Entmoot]] and the march on [[Isengard]] that destroyed Saruman's power.

=== Esquire of Rohan ===
Separated from Pippin, Merry came to [[Edoras]] and offered his service to King [[Théoden]], who took him gladly as his esquire and grew to love him as a son. Commanded to remain behind when the host rode to war, Merry was instead borne secretly to the battle by the disguised [[Éowyn]] ("Dernhelm"). On the [[Pelennor Fields]], when the [[Witch-king of Angmar|Witch-king]] struck down Théoden, Merry alone stood with Éowyn and stabbed the wraith behind the knee with his barrow-blade of [[Westernesse]] — a blow that broke the spell binding his undead sinews and let Éowyn's stroke destroy him. The deed cost Merry a withering of the arm from the [[Black Breath]], healed by [[Aragorn]] in the [[Houses of Healing]].

=== Master of Buckland ===
Returning home, Merry and Pippin — grown tall and lordly in their war-gear — were leaders of the [[Scouring of the Shire]], rallying the hobbits to throw off [[Saruman]]'s ruffians at the [[Battle of Bywater]]. Merry succeeded his father as Master of [[Buckland]], became a noted scholar of the Shire's history and herblore (writing learned works including a treatise on pipe-weed), and kept ties with [[Rohan]] and [[Gondor]]. In his old age, after the death of [[King Elessar]], Merry and Pippin rode south together to die in Gondor and were laid among its great.

== Character ==
Merry is sensible, observant, and loyal, the planner among the hobbits and the one most apt to grasp the larger shape of events. He bears the small folk's gift for friendship and good cheer, but also a deep and growing seriousness; his love for [[Théoden]] and his service to Rohan mark his maturing from a Shire prankster into a hero and a lord. Of the four hobbits, he is the one who most consciously takes up the duties of the wider world while never ceasing to love his home.

== Relationships ==
* '''[[Peregrin Took|Pippin]]''' — his inseparable cousin and companion in every adventure.
* '''[[Frodo Baggins]]''' — his cousin and friend, for whom he joined the Quest.
* '''[[Théoden]]''' — the King of Rohan he served and loved as a father.
* '''[[Éowyn]]''' — with whom he slew the [[Witch-king of Angmar]].
* '''[[Treebeard]]''' — the Ent he and Pippin roused against Isengard.
* '''[[Samwise Gamgee|Sam]]''' — his fellow hobbit of the Fellowship.

== Appearances ==
* ''[[The Fellowship of the Ring]]''
* ''[[The Two Towers]]''
* ''[[The Return of the King]]''

In Peter Jackson's film trilogy (2001–2003), Merry was portrayed by '''Dominic Monaghan'''. The films cut the [[Old Forest]], [[Tom Bombadil]], the barrow-blade's origin, and the [[Scouring of the Shire]]; they also have Merry and Pippin manipulate Treebeard toward Isengard rather than the Ents deciding in full Entmoot.

== Quotes ==
<blockquote>''You can trust us to stick to you through thick and thin — to the bitter end. And you can trust us to keep any secret of yours — closer than you keep it yourself. But you cannot trust us to let you face trouble alone, and go off without a word.''</blockquote>
<blockquote>''But it is not your own Shire... Your fathers planted it and tended it. I want it to go on.''</blockquote>

[[Category:Characters]]
[[Category:Lord of the Rings]]
[[Category:The Fellowship]]
[[Category:Hobbits]]

Meriadoc Brandybuck - Revision history

Archmaesterjimmie: LOTR character article, book-canon (Corvus) + portrait (Wren)