Prince of Dol Amroth

Quick Facts

Timeline:
Dates:	Established III 2076; the title continued into the Fourth Age
Race:	Men (though with a trace of Elven-blood)
Division:	Dúnedain
Settlements:	Dol Amroth, a headland to the west of Belfalas
Meaning:	Dol Amroth means 'Headland of Amroth'
Other names:	Lord of Dol Amroth
Title of:	At least twenty-two Princesto the time of Imrahil; Imrahil's heirs appear to have inherited the title in turn

Lord of a fiefdom of Gondor

	Adrahil
Finduilas		Imrahil

The title granted at the beginning of the last millennium of the Third Age, and maintained until the time of Imrahil, who fought in the War of the Ring, and almost certainly beyond.

According to ancient traditions, the Princes of Dol Amroth were descended from a noble family of the Faithful, who had fled from Númenor independently before the Downfall and settled in lands that would later be part of Gondor. Those lands lay between the Rivers Ringló and Gilrain, in the region known as Belfalas, and there they made a stronghold on a rocky promontory that overlooked the Bay of the same name. When Elendil became High King, he recognised these nobles of Belfalas by granting them the title 'Prince', (though at that time they were known as the Princes of Belfalas rather than Dol Amroth).

In the year III 1980, during the reign of Eärnil II in Gondor, a calamity occurred far to the north. The Dwarves of Khazad-dûm unleashed a Balrog from the depths of their domain, and the demon set about spreading destruction and death among the Mountains of Moria. Many fled from this horror, including Amroth of Lórien and Nimrodel. Among Nimrodel's companions was an Elf-maiden who became lost on the journey to the havens in the south. She was discovered by the Prince, and the two wed. It was their son who became the first Prince of Dol Amroth.

The Princes of Dol Amroth inherited a doubly noble bloodline: The original Princes of Belfalas had been of pure Númenórean descent, but through Nimrodel's companion, they were also descended from the Silvan Elves of Lórien. Princes of this line - which continued unbroken throughout the remaining Third Age - were noted for their tall bearing, and their grey eyes.

After the Kings and the Ruling Stewards, the Princes of Dol Amroth were the most important nobles in the land of Gondor (even the Prince of Ithilien was considered of lesser rank). In times when the King of Gondor was indisposed or at war, and his Steward was prevented from acting in his place, the Prince would take the role of leader of the realm. This situation actually arose during the War of the Ring, which saw Imrahil take on these duties for a brief time.

The emblem of the Princes of Dol Amroth was a silver swan-ship on a field of blue. The origins of this symbol are never spelled out in any detail, but it must surely represent the Elven-ship of Amroth, from whom the line of Princes took their title.