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Wulf Fréawineson
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time period
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T.A. 2729 - 2759
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Gender
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Male
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Known as Betrayer of the Mark, Wulf was a Noble of both Dunlending and Rohir ancestry. He was born in Rohan's Westmarch in T.A. 2729 and was the only son of Freca and elder brother of Wyn. Hardened and cynical, he never reflected the desire for prestige that fueled his father's rise; instead, he sought physical control over those around him. Political and military strength, not social status, intrigued Wulf.
When Freca sought the hand of Hére, the second daughter of King Helm of Rohan, for Wulf, the young man yielded to his father's desires. Nevertheless, Wulf never coveted the Rohir Princess, nor did he seek her love. He remained aloof from the matter that eventually claimed his father's life. Freca's death, however, forced him to act, for the angry King declared Freca's friends and family as enemies of the Riddermark. Wulf was forced to flee from Rohan in T.A. 2754.
During the next four years, Wulf lived in Dunland and plotted with the Dunlendings, who were perpetually at war with the Rohirrim. While he attributed his father's slaying to Freca's vanity and incompetence, the death formed a fine pretext for revenge and an ideal rallying point for the Dunlendish folk in Westmarch. Wulf used his purported grief brilliantly, cementing a strong alliance with the Dunlendings and their sympathizers in western Rohan. In T.A, 2758, when Corsairs struck Gondor's southern coast and Easterlings assailed the eastern border of the Mark, Wulf seized the initiative and marched eastward through the Gap of Rohan. The fierce snows of the Long Winter slowed his army, but the conditions shrouded his advance. King Helm was caught off-guard and trapped with his son Háma in the Hornburg. Both the King and his younger son died in the harsh cold while futilely attempting to break the siege. Wulf's Dunlendings overran the West-mark and assailed Edoras. There, Wulf slew Haleth son of Helm on the steps of the Meduseld. Proclaiming himself King Wulf Fréawineson, he based his claim to the throne on his supposed descendancy from Rohan's fifth King, Fréawine (r. T.A. 2659-80). His reign lasted the Winter. With Spring's onset, Fréalaf Hildeson, Helm's nephew, came out of his refuge at Dunharrow and attacked Wulf's army as they celebrated in the capital. Fréalaf cut Wulf down, ending the brief Dunlending regime. Although primarily of Dunnish blood, Wulf enjoyed the fair features of a Rohir: blond hair, blue eyes, and an angular counte- nance. He stood 6'2", and his appearance contrasted sharply with the very corpulent and Dunlendish look associated with Freca.
References[]
- MERP:Dunland and the Southern Misty Mountains
- MERP:Lords of Middle-earth Vol II: The Mannish Races