The Lord of the Rings’ Aragorn Was Isildur’s Heir, But Boromir Was His True Successor

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Aragorn was a direct descendant of Isildur, the original King of Gondor. He felt a strong sense of duty to honor Isildur’s achievements, but even more importantly, to learn from his failures. This is clearly shown in a conversation between Aragorn and Arwen in the film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

Throughout The Lord of the Rings, Aragorn accepted his destiny as a descendant of Isildur, carrying Andúril – a sword made from the broken pieces of Narsil – and calling upon the ghostly Dead Men of Dunharrow to honor their ancient oath to Isildur. However, it wasn’t Aragorn who most resembled Gondor’s original founder; that was Boromir, the son of Gondor’s Steward. The Stewards originally advised the kings, but after the royal line ended, they took over ruling the kingdom. Though not of royal blood, Boromir was the true parallel to Isildur in that age.

Boromir’s Story in The Lord of the Rings Mirrored Isildur’s

Aragorn didn’t have any siblings, but both Boromir and Isildur did: Boromir had a younger brother named Faramir, and Isildur had Anárion. Many movie fans will recognize Faramir. Anárion was crucial early in the War of the Last Alliance, defending Gondor from Sauron while Isildur prepared to fight back with his allies.

While Tolkien didn’t detail the relationship between Isildur and his brother, it appears they were close, much like Boromir and Faramir. Although Isildur is known as the founder and first king of Gondor, Anárion was also a king and ruled alongside him as a co-ruler.

Both Boromir and Isildur share a crucial connection: they both fell victim to the Ring’s corrupting power. After the War of the Last Alliance, Isildur took the One Ring from Sauron, as compensation for the deaths of his father, Elendil, and his brother, Anárion. Though Elrond advised Isildur to destroy the Ring in the fires of Mount Doom, he wouldn’t, and the Ring ultimately led to his downfall – it became known as Isildur’s Bane.

Boromir wanted the One Ring, thinking it could be used to fight Sauron instead of being destroyed. He eventually tried to take it from Frodo Baggins, which caused the Fellowship to fall apart. Unlike Boromir, Aragorn successfully resisted the Ring’s power, even rejecting it when Frodo offered it to him.

The One Ring Led to the Deaths of Boromir and Isildur

As a huge fan of the Lord of the Rings, I’ve always been struck by the parallels between Boromir and Isildur. It’s really haunting how both of their stories end the same way: they both succumbed to the Ring’s power and were ultimately killed by Orc arrows. Peter Jackson even visually linked them in the films, showing each of them struck by three arrows. What’s even more poignant is that they both died in the river Anduin – Isildur originally, and Boromir’s funeral involved sending his body down the same river. However, there’s a key difference: Isildur died while running away, but Boromir died trying to protect his friends, which felt like a really powerful act of redemption after his struggle with the Ring and his actions towards Frodo.

It’s ironic that Boromir shares similarities with Isildur, considering his disapproval of Gondor’s royal line. Having been ruled by Stewards for generations, Boromir felt a king was no longer needed. The film even depicts him showing disrespect for Isildur’s memory; in the extended edition of The Fellowship of the Ring, he dismisses Isildur’s sword as simply “no more than a broken heirloom.”

Boromir shared many similarities with Isildur, and this wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Both men were flawed, but they were also heroes whose courage was essential to Middle-earth’s survival in the fight against Sauron.

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2026-03-21 19:14