The King's Witch

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J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The Númenorean Kings", "Eriador, Arnor, and the Heirs of Isildur", The North-kingdom and the Dúnedain, entry for King Araphor, p. 1040 He could sense the presence of the One Ring, such as when Frodo brought it near him as he marched to war, though he could be distracted and so led to focus on other things. [6] He could inspire a fighting-madness in his own soldiers, while simultaneously causing his enemies to rout in terror. He was held in such dread awe that it was believed in Gondor that his minions would end their own lives if he prompted them to. [3] The forging of the Rings of Power began some 1500 years into the Second Age. In SA 1600 Sauron created and first donned the One Ring, and in SA 1693 began the War of the Elves and Sauron during which the Dark Lord recovered the Nine Rings and gave them to mighty lords and rulers of Men. The mightiest of all of them was likely a king and a powerful sorcerer, possibly of Númenórean heritage, but little is known of his (or the others') earthly life except that over the coming centuries they prospered as their power, wealth and mortal lifespans extended under the corrupting influence of their rings. The only certainty is that eventually he and all the others slipped into the Shadow-world and became one of the Nazgûl, or Ringwraiths, who were enslaved wholly to Sauron's will.

The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth: Witch-King is a "Hero" unit for Mordor faction. He is an airborne unit riding on a Fell Beast and one of the strongest units in the game. He was stronger at nighttime. It was claimed that he could create or thaw ice at his whim. [ citation needed] He could send forth and control wights. [4] His power fluctuated greatly over his existence, as his strength was bound up with Sauron's own; the more powerful Sauron became, the more powerful the Nazgûl were. Due to this, he was, in the White Wizard's and the other Nazgûls' estimation, possibly equal to Gandalf in magic and might during the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. [3] Roots in mythology J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, " The Battle of the Pelennor Fields", pp. 839-40

In TA 2043, King Eärnil II of Gondor passed away and his son Eärnur, the Witch-king's old foe, inherited the throne. Upon his coronation, the Lord of the Nazgûl challenged the new king to single combat, but Eärnur refused. However, seven years later in TA 2050 he challenged Eärnur again, and Eärnur accepted. Gondor's king rode out of Minas Tirith to meet his enemy in combat at Minas Morgul. He entered and was never seen again. Thus ended the reign of the Kings of Gondor and the rule of the Stewards of Gondor began. In TA 2063 the Watchful Peace began when Sauron fled Dol Guldur to avoid the investigations of Gandalf and hid in the East, and the Nazgûl remained quiet in Minas Morgul for the next 400 years. Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull (eds), The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, citing from The Hunt for the Ring, p. 195-6

By now the northern Dúnedain realm of Arnor, sister-kingdom to the southerly Gondor, had already become split into three warring successor states – Rhudaur, Cardolan and Arthedain. It was into this febrile situation that the Lord of the Nazgûl reappeared in TA 1300 and began to fulfil Sauron's plan to bring down the North-kingdom altogether. Adjacent to its territories he founded the dark domain of Angmar – where, from his capital of Carn Dûm, he began his campaign of open war against the Dúnedain of Arnor. It was during this series of conflicts that they labelled their new enemy's undead sorcerer-chieftain with the title of "Witch-king, Lord of Angmar". That is absolutely not the case here. For the Witch-king, there is only one being in charge – and it’s not the horse! The Nazgûl is dominating the beast and it’s rearing up in a slightly less natural position to show this. It looks like one unhappy horse, and was a very different challenge to every other mounted model I’ve done so far. We announced that a new plastic Witch-king of Angmar was on his way at Ardacon 2021 . With the Lord of the Nazgûl primed to make his long-awaited arrival, it’s time for the man behind the design to tell all. Jay Clare, one of the Middle-earth team’s resident scribes, sat down with Gavin Newton to find out what went into sculpting one of the most terrifying characters in all of Middle-earth. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (video game): The Witch-king is shown without distinction of the other Nazgûl.The Witch-king also appears in the The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, briefly fighting Radagast. The Witch-king's portrayal in the film is also different from in the book. In the film he is said to have been killed after the fall of Angmar and buried, prior to his revival by the Necromancer; in the books, however, the Witch-king does not die following the fall of Angmar, and instead goes to Mordor. The Witch-king does not in fact appear in The Hobbit at all.

J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The Númenorean Kings", "Gondor and the Heirs of Anárion", "The Stewards", entry for Steward Boromir, p. 1053 After this the Witch-king bided his time. He and the Nazgûl built up their armies, including the terrible new orc-race of Uruks. In 2475 he sent them out to capture Osgiliath, which they did successfully. They were driven out by Boromir, Steward of Gondor, who led campaigns to recapture Ithilien, but Osgiliath now lay completely in ruins and the region was left devastated and depopulated. Boromir was a great captain, and even the Witch-king feared him, but he was felled by a Morgul-wound and his rule was but twelve years. [21] Hunt for the Ring [ edit | edit source ] Andy Serkis provided the voice of the Witch-king in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

The Two Towers · The Return of the King · The Third Age · Tactics · Conquest · Aragorn's Quest · Lego The Lord of the Rings With the mounted model, it was all about making him look as though he’s driving his armies into battle. The Witch-king is a character that’s more likely to use fear to force the legions of Orcs to charge ahead of him, rather than to inspire them by leading from the front. The rearing horse and the Witch-king’s outstretched sword arm gives the impression of command. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, " The Battle of the Pelennor Fields"

They arrived at Isengard too late to prevent the escape of the captured wizard Gandalf; Saruman realized he had been revealed as a traitor to both sides due to his transparent lust for the Ring, and having no chance of deceiving Sauron any further, fortified himself in Isengard. The Witch-king did not have enough power with him to assault Saruman in his great fortress. He demanded the Wizard come forth, but received only the voice of Saruman. Nonetheless cunning and wary, Saruman convinced the Witch-king that Gandalf alone knew where the Shire and the Ring were, and so the Nine went out in search of him. [22] J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, " The Battle of the Pelennor Fields", p. 841The Lord of the Nazgûl's true name is never given, and therefore he is known only by a host of epithets. Brent McIntyre is officially credited as the Witch-king in The Fellowship of the Ring. He stabbed Frodo. Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull (eds), The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, citing from a manuscript of The Hunt for the Ring, p. 262 Gavin: The horse. Usually when sculpting mounted models, we try to design them so that both rider and mount are in sync with each other, each part working together as they ride into battle – a kind of symbiosis, if you will.