Girion

Biography: Girion
Birth - Death	Third Age Cira 2720 - 2770
Race:	Man
Gender:	Male
Ancestor(s):	Bródda ⁞
	Girion
Child(ren):	Brandjarn
Descendant(s):	⁞ Bain of Lake-town ⁞ Bard the Bowman ⁞ King Bain ⁞ Brand ⁞ Bard II
Info:	Last Lord of Dale. Originally named "Geirjarn III".

Girion (originally Geirjarn III) was the last Lord of Dale before the coming of the dragon Smaug. Slain during the destruction of Dale and the fall of Erebor, he became in later years a figure of both tragedy and legend among the Men of the North. Through his line, the last Black Arrow was preserved, and from him descended Bard the Bowman, who at last avenged Dale and restored its kingship.

In his lifetime Girion was known in the tongue of the North-men as Geirjarn, meaning "Ironbolt." The Elves rendered his name as they heard it, and over time Geirjarn became Girion. Long before Girion's time, a simple archer named Bródda saved the life of the Dwarf-king Thrór from Orcs. In gratitude, Thrór raised him to lordship over Dale and gifted him a thrice-forged Black Arrow, hard enough to pierce stone. Bródda was given the name Geirjarn Ironbolt, and Thrór promised that each succeeding Lord of Dale would receive such a gift.

For seven more lords, seven more Black Arrows were forged, marking the strong alliance between the Men of Dale and the Dwarves of Erebor. When Smaug descended upon Dale and Erebor, the Lord of Dale was Geirjarn, third of his name — the man later remembered as Girion. As the dragon brought fire and ruin upon the vale, Girion loosed seven Black Arrows at the beast, but each shot failed to find its mark; the final arrow struck but scratched only a scale, and Girion perished amid the flames as Dale fell.

With Girion's death, Smaug's Desolation fell over the lands about the Lonely Mountain. The Men of Dale fled south to Lake-town, and the Dwarves were scattered. In the years that followed, Girion's name became synonymous with tragic failure, and his defeat was widely remembered. Yet unknown to most, a single Black Arrow survived the ruin. Girion's son Brandjarn escaped the burning city bearing the final arrow. Ashamed of his father's fate, he concealed his lineage and took the shorter name "Brand", a name that would return in their line several times. And from father to son, secretly and in exile, the last Black Arrow was preserved through the generations.

Many years later, Bain of Lake-town, grandson of Brand, entered the service of Lake-town as an archer. The arrow continued to pass quietly from father to son in Lake-town until it came into the hands of Bard. When Smaug awoke and descended upon Lake-town, Bard stood beneath the dragon as Girion once had. Where Girion's arrows failed, Bard's aim proved true. The single Black Arrow struck Smaug in his weak place and brought him down. After the slaying of the dragon, Bard's descent from Girion was revealed, and he was hailed as king of a rebuilt Dale. In this way, Girion's line was restored to honour, and the shame of the past was transformed into redemption.

The Gweriamir

Girion's name was also remembered in connection with a famed emerald necklace known among the Elves as the Gweriamir. The necklace, ancient and originally wrought by Dwarves, had in elder days belonged to the Elven-king's people before passing through many hands. In later years it came into the possession of the Dwarves of Erebor and was seen upon the breast of Thrór, causing anger and strife with the Elves of the Woodland Realm. After Smaug's death and the Battle of Five Armies, the necklace passed to Bard. In a gesture of wisdom, Bard broke it apart, giving the gold to the Dwarves and the emeralds to the Elves, thus mending strained bonds between the peoples of the North.