men of middle-earth ♞ house of éorl ♞ headcanon disclaimer
Fréa was the son of Aldor the Old, and the fourth King of Rohan. He came to the throne already aged, for his father’s rule was long, and reigned for fourteen years of peace and prosperity. His wife was Burnhild, a shieldmaiden who in her youth had traveled south to Gondor hunting orcs. She bore him only one child, a son, Fréawine. Fréawine likewise ruled in a time of plenty. His wife Bledswith was a keen politician, using her sweet nature to win the loyalty of any of Fréawine’s lords who stirred up rumbles of dissent. She passed this skill to Goldwine, the elder of her sons, but the younger, Grimwine, was less adept. Grimwine did not envy his brother’s status as the King’s heir, glad of the freedom he had to embark on long hunts with only a few of his closest friends. Unlike the other Rohirrim, Grimwine earned the respect of the Dunlendings, who aided him in his journeys, and his descendants would eventually mingle with the folk of Dunland.
