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One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them.

RULERS OF THE SHIRE. (MAYOR, THAIN, MASTER, WARDEN).

HOBBITS FAMILIES


MAYOR OF MICHEL DELVING

Mayor of Michel Delving

Mayor of the Shire

Also Mayor of the Shire.

The mayor was the only real official in the Shire. He was elected every seven years at the Free Fair.

The Mayor seems to haven been chosen from among popular and responsible members of the working class. Head of the Watch and the Bounders. Head of the Messenger Service and the Quick Post. His most important duty was to preside at banquets.

Will Whitfoot was the Mayor from 3A3012 (or earlier) until 4A006.

Samwise Gamgee was the Mayor from 4A0006 until 4A0055. He was several times elected.

3A3019-20: Frodo Baggins was Deputy Mayor.

In Samwise Gamgee's poem Perry -the-Winkle there is a mayor Old Pott.

Elected official in the Shire. The Mayor was the only real government official in the Shire, though his duties were fairly limited. The Mayor was the Postmaster of the Messenger Service and the First Shirriff of the Watch. Otherwise, his main duty was to attend official banquets on holidays.

The Mayor was elected every seven years at the Free Fair at Lithe in Midsummer. His office was in the Town Hole in Michel Delving in the Westfarthing.

Will Whitfoot was the Mayor at the time of the War of the Ring. When Lotho Sackville-Baggins named himself Chief Shirriff, he had the Mayor arrested and put in the Lockholes. When Will Whitfoot was released on November 4, 3019 of the Third Age, he was in no condition to return to his duties, so Frodo Baggins agreed to serve as Deputy Mayor. Frodo's only act while in office was to reduce the Shirriffs to their normal number and functions. Frodo resigned on Mid-year's Day in 3020 and Will Whitfoot returned to the office of Mayor for another seven years.

In the year 6 of the Fourth Age, Sam Gamgee was elected Mayor. He served seven seven-year terms. Aragorn, King Elessar, made the Mayor a Counsellor of the North-kingdom in the year 13. Tom Cotton briefly served as deputy Mayor when Sam traveled to Gondor in the year 21. The year 55 was Sam's last as Mayor.

-COUNSELLOR OF THE NORTH-KINGDOM.

In 4A0013, the Mayor was made a Counsellor of the North-Kingdom (Arnor).

Samwise Gamgee was the first Mayor of Michel Delving as a Counsellor of the North-Kingdom.

-COUNSELLORS of the North-kingdom. Members of the Council of Arnor.

Samwise Gamgee (mmd), Peregrin Took (tsh), Meriadoc Brandybuck (mbu).

See also COUNCIL OF ARNOR in COUNCILS

Counsellor of the North-kingdom

BOUNDERS. (of the Shire-borders). Shire border-guard, a branch of the Watch. They turned back undesirable persons and animals. Their numbers varied with need.

See SHIRRIFFS.

Bounders

FIRST EASTFARTHING TROOP. See The Watch. Increased during the WR. During Lotho Sackville-Baggins' control of the Shire the headquarters of the First Eastfarthing Troop of the Watch were located in Frogmorton.

First Eastfarthing Troop The Shirriffs of Frogmorton.

FIRST SHIRRIFF. An office and title of the Mayor in his capacity of Head of the Watch and the Eastfarthing Troop.

CHIEF SHIRRIFF, CHIEF THE = LOTHO SACKVILLE-BAGGINS. See HOBBITS

FREE FAIR. This Fair was held by the Hobbits of the Shire once every seven years on the Lithe on the White Downs in the Shire. At the Free Fair the Mayor of Michel Delving was elected.

Midsummer fair in the Shire. The Free Fair was held on the White Downs as part of the holiday called the Lithe, or Midsummer.

The Lithe was between Forelithe (June) and Afterlithe (July) and included Mid-year's Day and a day before and a day after. In Leap-years there was a fourth Litheday called Overlithe after Mid-year's day.

The Free Fair was held during the daytime. Anyone who wanted to could set up a booth at the fair free of charge. Every seven years at the Free Fair, an election was held for the position of Mayor of Michel Delving.

The Free Fair was so called because there was no charge for setting up a booth.

Free Fair
A Midsummer festival in the Shire.

LOCKHOLES. Located in Michel Delving. The Shire's prison. In normal times the Lockholes seems to have been used more to store goods, than people. During Lotho's and Saruman's control of the Shire many dissident Hobbits were kept here. In more normal times the Lockholes seems to have been used more to store goods, then criminals.

Prison in the Shire during the War of the Ring. The Lockholes were created out of old storage tunnels in Michel Delving after Lotho Sackville-Baggins and his Chief's Men took over the Shire around the time of the New Year of 3019 of the Third Age. Any Hobbits who stood up to the Chief's Men were imprisoned in the Lockholes. Mayor Will Whitfoot was the first prisoner. Fatty Bolger was imprisoned for leading a band of rebels in the Hills of Scary. When Saruman took over as Chief, Lotho's mother Lobelia Sackville-Baggins was jailed after attacking one of the Chief's Men with her umbrella.

The prisoners who were sent to the Lockholes were not well-fed, and after Saruman took over they were even beaten. The cells were dark and narrow. On November 4, 3019, Frodo Baggins released the prisoners.

Lockholes

MATHOM-HOUSE. Also called Michel Delving Mathom-house. The museum in Michel Delving, a repository of arms and other mathoms. Bilbo Baggins lent his mithril-coat to the museum, but took it with him when he left the Shire. (3001).

The Mathom-house was so called because it was full of mathoms, items that Hobbits had no particular use for but could not bear to throw away. Many of the weapons in the Shire were displayed in the Mathom-house since Hobbits had no need for them in their peaceful land.

The most precious item in the museum's collection was the mithril shirt belonging to Bilbo Baggins. Bilbo loaned the coat of mail to the Mathom-house sometime after returning from the Lonely Mountain in 2942 of the Third Age. He reclaimed the mithril shirt in 3001 when he left the Shire.

The word mathom is from the Old English máðm meaning "precious thing, treasure."

Mathom-house

MESSENGER SERVICE. The mail system of the Shire. Run by the Mayor in his capacity of Postmaster. The Messenger Service also included the Quick Post.

Postal service in the Shire. The Messengers were numerous because Hobbits enjoyed writing to their friends and relations. At the time of Bilbo Baggins' 111th birthday party, even more Messengers had to be called in to handle the huge volume of invitations and responses going in and out of Bag End. Both the Hobbiton and Bywater post-offices were deluged with mail.

During the War of the Ring, the Messenger Service was taken over by the Chief's Men. Ordinary Hobbits were not allowed to use it. The Chief's Men used the old Quick Post service, which may have been a particularly speedy method of sending messages.

Messenger Service

MICHEL DELVING. Michel is from the Old English meaning "great" and delving means "digging."

The Town Burrow .The Museum, Mathom-house A major town in the Shire. In the Westfarthing on the White Downs. The name is Middle English "great digging".

Chief township of the Shire. Michel Delving was located in the Westfarthing of the Shire on the White Downs. The Mayor of Michel Delving was the Shire's only real government official. His office was in the Town Hole in Michel Delving. The museum known as the Mathom-house was also located in Michel Delving.

During the War of the Ring, some of the old storage tunnels in Michel Delving were made into a prison called the Lockholes where Hobbits who stood up to the Chief's Men were imprisoned. After the war, the prisoners were released by Frodo Baggins. Stores of food, beer, and goods that had been left by the Men were found in other storage tunnels in Michel Delving, and these were used by the Hobbits to celebrate the Yule holiday.

Michel Delving

-DELVING. -MUCH HEMLOCK. Replaced by Michek Delving.

POSTMASTER. An office and title of the Mayor of Michel Delving in his capacity of head of the Messenger Service.

See MESSENGER SERVICE.

POST-OFFICE.

See MESSENGER SERVICE.

QUICK POST. Some sort of fast-delivery mail and message system in the Shire. A part of the Messenger Service. During Lotho Sackville's control of the Shire he used the Quick Post system for his own purposes.

See MESSENGER SERVICE.

Quick Post

RULES THE. The laws of the Shire. Originally set down by the Kings of Arthedain. They were kept volontarily because of their heritage and their justness. During Lotho Sackville's control of the Shire the Rules were greatly increased and became a system of oppression.

SHIRRIFF-HOUSE. Any of the buildings built for the expanded Watch during the WR. The barracks of the First Eastfarthing Troop were located at the west end of Frogmorton. This Shirriff-house was a poorly constructed one-story brick building with narrow windows. All the Shirriff-houses were torn down before the end of 3A3019.

SHIRRIFFS. Not a Westron word. Used only by Hobbits. Shire-police. Part of the Watch. The Mayor was Head of the Shirriffs.

Shirriffs

CHIEF SHIRRIFF, CHIEF THE = LOTHO SACKVILLE-BAGGINS. See HOBBITS

-SHIRE-REEVE = SHIRRIFF.

The Shirriffs was the name that the Hobbits gave to their police, or the nearest equivalent that they possessed. They had, of course, no uniforms (such things being quite unknown), only a feather in their caps; and they were in practice rather haywards than policemen, more concerned with the strayings of beasts than of people. There were in all the Shire only twelve of them, three in each Farthing, for Inside Work. A rather larger body, varying at need, was employed to 'beat the bounds', and to see that Outsiders of any kind, great or small, did not make themselves a nuisance.

Police force of the Shire. The Mayor of Michel Delving oversaw the Shirriffs, and in this capacity he was called First Shirriff. There were three Shirriffs in each of the four farthings of the Shire for Inside Work. Their job was to keep the peace among Hobbits, but since any sort of trouble was rare in the Shire, their job mainly entailed rounding up stray farm animals. The Shirriffs did not wear uniforms but had a feather in their caps.

The Shirriffs who patrolled the borders of the Shire to ensure that Outsiders did not cause trouble were called Bounders. They varied in number according to need. In the years leading up to the War of the Ring, the number of Bounders grew due to an increase in traffic through the Shire. The Bounders had never been so busy, turning strange folk away at the borders and dealing with trouble caused by those that came through.

After Frodo Baggins and his companions left the Shire in 3018 of the Third Age, Lotho Sackville-Baggins began to take over the Shire with the help of rough Men. Lotho had Mayor Will Whitfoot arrested and he set himself up as Chief Shirriff in early 3019. The number of Shirriffs was increased to hundreds and they were divided into troops such as the First Eastfarthing Troop based in Frogmorton. The troops were quartered in Shirriff-houses and their leaders were distinguished by two feathers in their caps.

The job of the Shirriffs became to enforce the Rules, which were designed mainly to keep Hobbits in their place and allow Lotho and his cohorts to increase their power and profits. When Saruman came to the Shire in September of 3019 and became the new Chief, matters got even worse. Hobbits were arrested and jailed in the Lockholes for standing up to the Chief's Men and often they were beaten. Many of the Shirriffs were forced to remain in their jobs, though some enjoyed the power and willingly spied on their fellow Hobbits.

Frodo and his friends returned to the Shire in late 3019. On November 1, they were arrested in Frogmorton by the First Eastfarthing Troop for Gate-breaking, Tearing up of Rules, Assaulting Gate-keepers, Trespassing, Sleeping in Shire-buildings without Leave, and Bribing Guards with Food. Sam Gamgee noticed that Robin Smallburrow, a Shirriff from Hobbiton, was part of the troop and from him Sam learned what had happened to the Shirriffs in their absence.

The four Hobbits spent the night in the Shirriff-house in Frogmorton and continued on their way to Hobbiton with an escort of a dozen Shirriffs. But the Hobbit adventurers soon outpaced their guards and left them behind at the Three-Farthing Stone. By the time the Shirriffs arrived in Bywater, they found that their prisoners had rallied the Hobbits to defy the Chief and his Men. Most of the Shirriffs took the feathers out of their caps and joined the rebellion, though a few ran away. The Men were defeated in the Battle of Bywater on November 3.

After the Scouring of the Shire, Frodo, acting as Deputy Mayor, returned the Shirriffs to their proper number and functions.

Also called the Watch. The word Shirriff is an obsolete form of sheriff meaning "shire officer." The Shirriffs who patrolled the borders of the Shire were called Bounders because they watched the bounds or boundaries.

TOWN HOLE. Building in Michel Delving. The Mayor’s residence.

Government office in Michel Delving in the Shire. The Town Hole was where the Mayor of Michel Delving presided. It was built into the chalky hills of the White Downs. At the Prancing Pony in Bree, Peregrin Took amused the crowd in the Common Room with a story about the roof of the Town Hole collapsing and covering Mayor Will Whitfoot in chalk, earning him the nickname Flourdumpling.