Warning! Spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim ahead!
Éowyn states that there is no record of Héra’s story inThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim—so how does she know it then? One of the significant surprises of this animatedLord of the Ringsmovie is that rather than focusing on Helm Hammerhand, the Rohan king’s daughter, Héra took center stage. In Tolkien’s works, Helm’s daughter is an unnamed character and certainly isn’t regarded as a heroic figure.War of the Rohirrimexpands on this woman’s story, making her a forgotten hero solely responsible for saving her kingdom from the Dunlendings.
Despite everything Héra did for Rohan,Éowyn explains at the film’s beginning that there is no record of this heroic princessin the kingdom’s texts or songs. This explains whyTolkien’s works, which are approached as “found manuscripts” that the author is meant to have found and translated (rather than conceived himself), didn’t even mention the daughter of Helm Hammerhand’s name. While this providedWar of the Rohirrimwith some room to take creative liberties, it’s unclear how Éowyn came to know of Héra’s story. However, the ending ofthisLord of the Ringsmoviemay provide a clue.
War Of The Rohirrim’s Ending Reveals That Gandalf Met With Héra
Héra Rode Out To Meet With Gandalf The Grey
At theend ofThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, Héra sets out from Rohan to meet with a wizard called Gandalf. Of course, this is the very same Gandalf fromThe Lord of the Rings, and he has taken an interest in Héra since she saw Orcs of Mordor searching for rings at Helm’s Deep. Clearly, the wizard is interested in any news related to Sauron’s search for his One Ring, buthe surely would have been interested in more than just Héra’s confrontation with the Orcs. Gandalf liked to know just about everything going on in Middle-earth, so he likely would have asked Héra to describe her full story.
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimwas released to theaters on July 17, 2025.
Gandalf Likely Told Éowyn Héra’s Story
This Connection Kept Héra’s Story Alive (Even Though Rohan Forgot Her)
The fact that Gandalf and Héra knew each other inWar of the Rohirrimexplains why this Rohan princess' story lived on to be told—even if it wasn’t known by many. Éowyn is very similar to her distant relative, and after her victory over the Witch-king of Angmar at the Battle of Pelennor Fields,Gandalf might have thought this Rohirrim Shieldmaiden would take interest in Héra’s story. A couple of centuries later, Gandalf might very well have been the only one to remember the significance of Helm Hammerhand’s daughter. Before retiring to Valinor, he could have seen fit to pass it on.
It’s fun to imagine the wizard taking the time to continue Héra’s legacy, knowing that a heroic warrior like Éowyn would be the perfect person to hear and pass on the story.
Éowyn’s similarities to Héra made her the perfectnarrator forThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim. The idea thatshe heard this story in the first place from Gandalf the Whitemakes it even more impactful. It’s fun to imagine the wizard taking the time to continue Héra’s legacy, knowing that a heroic warrior like Éowyn would be the perfect person to hear and pass on the story. Though Héra’s role in the story of Helm Hammerhand is a creative liberty taken byThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, the film found the perfect way to make it beautifully cohesive with Tolkien’s works.
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim
Cast
Set before the events of the original Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim is an animated action-adventure fantasy film that follows a King of Rohan named Helm Hammerhand. When his home comes under siege by Dunlendings, Hammerhand prepares himself and his allies to fight back against them, with the war leading to the eventual establishment of Helm’s Deep.
