Tolkien's Unfinished LotR Sequel Could Reveal Middle-Earth's Very Dark Fate After Aragorn's Death

In 2019, for the benefit of one of the hospices, a John R. R. Tolkien letter was sold for £4,800 at an auction in England.

The letter was given to the hospice by a local chemistry professor, who in turn received it from Professor Gilmour. In 1961, after reading The Lord of the Rings for the first time, Gilmour wrote to Tolkien.

After telling him what a tremendous impression the adventures of Middle-earth had made on his young mind, he asked if the author planned to continue the story.

The Professor's reply was that he had no intention of writing a chronological continuation of what was, in his opinion, a logically complete story.

This letter was written on July 3, 1961. Three years later, Tolkien was no longer so categorical about the sequel and made an attempt to write about the events after the War of the Ring.

Tolkien wrote thirteen pages of the sequel to The Lord of the Rings. John R. R. Tolkien's son, Christopher Tolkien, included this passage in the twelfth volume of The History of Middle-earth. He called the sequel The New Shadow.

The plot should have told us about the events 100 years after the fall of Sauron. The Fourth Age has begun and Middle-earth is mostly ruled by men.

Gondor and Arnor are ruled by Eldarion, son of the once mighty Aragorn. But strange things are beginning to happen – the air once again smells of darkness.

In the far south, ships of the Royal Navy suddenly disappear, but that is just one of the dark events. A new mysterious cult begins to develop throughout the kingdom, led by Herumor, who seems to be planning a coup.

This could be an excellent political fantasy thriller, with intrigue, conspiracy, and abrupt endings. As Christopher Tolkien argued, the work could be truly spectacular.

Christopher was upset by the fact that his father could not complete this particular draft.

Tolkien himself said that he had completely lost interest in the Fourth Age. He often thought about continuing The New Shadow, but then abandoned it because the story turned out to be too dark.

And so it went on until the death of the Professor.

John R.R. Tolkien did not become George R. R. Martin, and he did not create endless sequels to please the fans.

However, Tolkien worked extensively to expand the world of Middle-earth and describe the events leading up to the War of the Ring.

All of these unfinished prequels were edited and published by Christopher.