Erech

Erech is a hill in the ancient realm of Gondor, upon which stands a black stone brought from Númenor by Isildur. It is the site where the King of the Mountains swore an oath of allegiance to Isildur, an oath later broken, leading to a curse that turned his people into the Dead Men of Dunharrow. In the War of the Ring, Aragorn summoned these Oathbreakers to the Stone of Erech, compelling them to fulfill their pledge and thereby gaining an army of shadows that helped secure victory at Pelargir.

Location and Origin

Erech is a hill in the southern part of the ancient realm of Gondor, a name of forgotten origin that predates the arrival of the Númenórean ships. Upon its summit stands a black stone, round as a great globe and the height of a man, though half its bulk is buried in the ground. Unearthly in appearance, it was believed by some to have fallen from the sky, but those who remembered the lore of Westernesse knew it had been brought out of the ruin of Númenor and set there by Isildur at his landing. None of the people of the valley dared approach it, nor would they dwell near, for they said it was a trysting-place of the Shadow-men, where they would gather in times of fear, thronging round the Stone and whispering.

The Oath and the Curse

At the beginning of the realm of Gondor, the King of the Mountains swore allegiance to Isildur upon the Stone of Erech. But when Sauron returned and grew in might again, Isildur summoned the Men of the Mountains to fulfil their oath, and they would not, for they had worshipped Sauron in the Dark Years. Isildur then laid a curse upon their king and his folk: to rest never until their oath was fulfilled, for the war would last through years uncounted, and they would be summoned once again ere the end. They fled before the wrath of Isildur, hiding in secret places in the mountains, slowly dwindling in the barren hills, and the terror of the Sleepless Dead lay about the Hill of Erech and all places where that people lingered.

Aragorn's Summons

In the War of the Ring, Aragorn, as the heir of Isildur, took the Paths of the Dead to summon the Oathbreakers. He came to the Stone of Erech just ere midnight, in a darkness as black as the caverns in the mountains. There he blew a silver horn, and though no other sound was heard, the company was aware of a great host gathered all about the hill, and a chill wind like the breath of ghosts came down from the mountains. Aragorn dismounted and cried in a great voice: "Oathbreakers, why have ye come?" A voice answered from the night: "To fulfil our oath and have peace." Aragorn declared himself Elessar, Isildur's heir of Gondor, and commanded them to come after him to Pelargir upon Anduin, promising that when all the land was clean of the servants of Sauron, he would hold the oath fulfilled and they should have peace and depart for ever. The Grey Company camped beside the Stone that night, but slept little because of the dread of the Shadows that hedged them round.

Consequences and Significance

The Shadow Host followed Aragorn, and the fear of them went before the Grey Company, causing all folk to flee. At Pelargir, Aragorn called upon the Dead, and they swept like a grey tide over the fleet of Umbar, filling the mariners with a madness of terror. The Dead Men were thus released from their curse, having fulfilled their oath. The Stone of Erech itself remained, a silent monument to the broken oath and its terrible consequences, and a testament to the power of Isildur's heir to command even the dead.