Notice! Spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim ahead!The Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim subtly hints at where Gandalf the White got his battle plan in Peter Jackson's film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. Both films revolve around conflicts involving Rohan and the Dunlendings, even though they are separated by about 200 years from each other. Despite the time difference, there are several commonalities between the battles presented in each film. Both take place in Hornburg (or Helm's Deep), and both make Rohan's chance of victory seem quite small. Furthermore, both of these Lord of the Rings battles involve a surprise ambush.
Set just under 200 years before Frodo destroyed Sauron's One Ring, The War of the Rohirrim tells a revamped version of the legend of Tolkien's Helm Hammerhand. This king of Rohan died in Helm's Deep while fighting alone against a Dunlending army in Middle-earth's famous Long Winter. In War of the RohirrimIn Helm's version of the story, Helm's daughter Héra took command after her father's death and was ultimately responsible for saving the kingdom. Of course, she couldn't have done it without the help of his cousin Fréaláf, who appeared with an army at the right time.
Fréaláf's sudden appearance in Helm's Deep is equal to the surprise of Gandalf's two great towers
Gandalf copied Fréaláf's plan
In The Lord of the Rings: War of the RohirrimFréaláf appeared with his army on top of a steep hill east of the Hornburg. This gave him an advantage over the Dunlendings, as his pupil trapped them between the army and the fortress. It was a clever ambush that quickly ended the prolonged siege. Of course, this whole scenario was familiar from That's exactly what Gandalf did to the Knights of Rohan in Peter Jackson's film THE Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
In The Two TowersGandalf left before Saruman's Orcs laid siege to Helm's Deep. He told Aragorn to “Ilook at my arrival at first light on the 5th. At dawn, look to the East.“ As promised, Gandalf appeared in the Shadowfax atop the same hill as Fréaláf. He was accompanied by Éomer and the Knights of Rohan, who had previously been banished from the kingdom while Théoden was under Saruman's control. Gandalf found the knights and led them to Helm's Deep to position them perfectly to ambush Saruman's Orcs and allied Dunlendings, bringing a swift end to the siege.
Héra probably told Gandalf about Fréaláf's ambush at Hornburg
Héra and Gandalf met at the end of the Rohirrim war
War of the Rohirrim It may be an animated film, but it is heavily influenced by Jackson's story Lord of the Rings trilogy. The art representing Rohan, his people and the Hornburg is cohesive with the Two Towersand the hill that Fréaláf appeared on before saving Rohan was clearly the same one that Gandalf appeared on 200 years later. With Jackson involved in both projects, this certainly wasn't a coincidence. War of the Rohirrim it even came with an answer about how Gandalf would have known about Fréaláf's ambush, suggesting that he actually took inspiration from the man's battle plan.
Gandalf would like to know the details of Helm Hammerhand's death and Fréaláf's victory.
At the end of War of the RohirrimHéra leaves Rohan to find Gandalf. At some point after the siege at Hornburg, the old wizard requested that they meet to discuss the Orcs of Mordor that Héra encountered in Helm's Deep. Although Héra and Gandalf's meeting is never shown on screen, it can be assumed that they talked about more than just Orcs and rings. Gandalf would like to know the details of Helm Hammerhand's death and Fréaláf's victory. Hearing about this eastern advantage is This is probably exactly what inspired the wizard to adopt this approach 200 years later.
How These Lord of the Rings Ambushes Differ From Tolkien's Canon
These Lord of the Rings movies took creative liberties
Gandalf and Fréaláf's ambushes beingso similar in The Two Towers and War of the Rohirrim It's certainly a fun Easter egg. This creates even more cohesion between these two installments in Jackson's version of Middle-earth while also retroactively providing additional context for future events. However, this connection is certainly an invention of the creative minds behind these films and not something Tolkien himself intended. Both battles were quite different in the legendary author's version of events, so there isn't much room for crossover.
Node Two Towers book, Gandalf does not tell Aragorn to look for him in the East on the fifth day. Instead, he said he had a task to do and would return when he could (in classic Gandalf fashion). When he returned, it was not with Éomer and the Knights of Rohan (they were already taking part in the battle), but with Erkenbrand, Lord of Westfold, and his people. So, in Tolkien's version of the siege that took place during Hammerhand's time, Fréaláf did not appear in person at Hornburg. Regardless, this is a circumstance where War of the RorhirrimThe changes to the canon were for the better.