The eldest son, Amlaith, claimed Kingship over all Arnor but was reduced to only ruling the region of Arthedain as his kingdom, while the other sons founded the kingdoms of Cardolan and Rhudaur.

The three kingdoms had frequent border skirmishes over boundary disputes, but the relationship of Arthedain and Cardolan remained relatively peaceful.

Under their rule the land became a vassal of Angmar, and thus enemies of Cardolan and Arthedain.

Constant battle with Angmar began to wear down the forces of Arthedain, while Cardolan as a political entity came to an end shortly after 1409.

In theory Arthedain became Arnor with the end of Cardolan and Rhudaur, but this Kingdom was only a small rump of the large and powerful realm of Arnor before its division.

When this new threat came Cardolan placed itself under the suzerainty of Arthedain, which then began to call itself Arnor again.

Cardolan repeatedly sent aid to Arthedain when needed but in T. A.

1409 Cardolan and Rhudaur were conquered by Angmar and Arthedain only survived with the help of Elvish reinforcements from Lórien and the Havens.

For this reason the Weather Hills were claimed by all three kingdoms — Arthedain, Cardolan and Rhudaur.

When the kingdom of Angmar arose in northern Eriador, Cardolan became the most important ally of Arthedain.

For a while Cardolan and Arthedain held back Angmar, and in its last years the people became entrenched in their capital region, Tyrn Gorthad, but in 1409 a large Army from Angmar broke into Cardolan and devastated the country.

While Arthedain recovered something of her power, Cardolan did not and the region of the Barrow-downs entered hobbit legend as a place of mystery and danger.

Until the end of the Third Age, the Dúnedain of Cardolan were only a memory, their tombs and barrows haunted by evil wights sent from Angmar ; for the Rangers that wandered over the lands were descended from the people of Arthedain.

It shared a long border with Cardolan along the Great East Road, and with Arthedain along the line of the Weather Hills.

Much of it was encompassed in the early Third Age by the kingdom of Arnor, which later split into the rival kingdoms of Rhudaur, Arthedain and Cardolan.

The Shire occupies part of the former kingdom of Arthedain, while Bree and its neighbouring villages lie on the border with the former Cardolan.

Soon after Angmar was founded it waged war against the divided Dúnedain realms of Arthedain, Cardolan and Rhudaur.

However, with the aid of the armies of Cardolan, Arthedain managed to maintain a line of defence along the Weather Hills.

When Arnor was divided into three kingdoms in 861 of the Third Age, the Tower of Amon Sûl was claimed by Arthedain and commanded the east road into Rhudaur from Cardolan.

* 861-Following Eärendur's death, the kingdom of Arnor breaks up into Arthedain, Cardolan and Rhudaur.

It includes all Northern Dúnedain, especially Kings of Arnor ; rulers of the kingdoms of Arthedain, Cardolan, and Rhudaur, which were founded when Arnor was divided between the three sons of Eärendur ; and Chieftains of the Dúnedain and the Rangers of the North.

During his father's reign, he had led the forces of Gondor to the aid of Arthedain in the north and was offended there by the Witch-king of Angmar.

The Kingdom of Arthedain had included the Shire ; in T. A.

In 1356, King Argeleb I of Arthedain was slain defending the Weather Hills against an assault from Rhudaur, which was then ruled by an evil lord of the Hillmen who had secretly joined forces with the Witch-king of Angmar.

Shortly afterwards, a Gondorian army under Eärnur managed to destroy Angmar with help of Círdan, but Arthedain and all of Arnor were no more, and the kingship had ended.

Eärnil won the crown, being highly popular because he had destroyed the Wainriders, and much of the populace of Gondor thought little of Arthedain as it was weak despite the lineage of its lords.

In 1356 Argeleb I of Arthedain was slain in battle with Rhudaur, now allied with Angmar.

At this time, Rhudaur disappeared, leaving Arthedain as the last remaining Dúnedain kingdom in Arnor.

* 1356-King Argeleb I of Arthedain is killed during an invasion by Rhudaur, now controlled by Angmar ; his son, Arveleg I, ascends the throne

Arthedain was finally destroyed in, when the Witch-king captured Fornost.

1940, Arthedain, then under Araval's son Araphant ( r. 1891 – 1964 ), formed an alliance with Gondor, but in the end neither Kingdom was able to provide military assistance to the other ; the Witch-king began to attack Arthedain even more vigorously, while Gondor barely survived a massive Wainrider invasion ( T. A.

1974, the Witch-king captured Fornost and overran Arthedain, and the King's sons and most of the other Dúnedain fled across the Lune.

And at last in the autumn of 1973 Third Age, messages came to Gondor that Arthedain was in great trouble, and that the Witch-king of Angmar was preparing a final stroke against it.

Surprisingly, Eärnil did not share the views of most of his subjects and he attempted to renew contact between the estranged kingdoms, even sending a great force led by his son Eärnur to try to defend Arthedain when the Witch-king was preparing a final assault against it.

A year later, Prince Eärnur of Gondor arrived to aid Arthedain, but he was too late.

He effectively ruled the kingdom for one year while observing the claims of the two claimants, Prince Arvedui of Arthedain, and the general Eärnil who was victorious in battle against the Wainriders ( Easterlings ).

The bloodlines of Anárion and Isildur were reunited by the marriage of Anárion's descendant, Princess Fíriel of Gondor, with Isildur's descendant, Prince Arvedui of Arthedain.

This was the first renewal of contact between Arnor and Gondor, after a long estrangement, when both realized that both kingdoms were coming under simultaneous attack from the regrouping forces of Sauron ( Angmar against Arthedain, the Wainriders against Gondor ).

Berg was also a knowledgeable and highly regarded founding member of the Norwegian Tolkien society, Arthedain, and he translated Tolkien's books Tree and Leaf ( containing the stories Leaf by Niggle and On Fairy-Stories ) and Smith of Wootton Major into Norwegian ; both were published in 1995.

Arvedui of Arthedain suggested that cognatic primogeniture was abandoned due to the frequent wars in which the Realms in Exile were embroiled.

Arvedui, heir of the King of Arthedain in the north, claimed the throne of Gondor as a descendant of Isildur and as the husband of Ondoher's daughter, but was denied by the Council of Gondor.

Of other Gondor posts, in Tolkien's writings appear " ministers of the Crown concerned with ' intelligence '" who surveyed the palantíri ( see below ); Captain of the Hosts, borne by future King Falastur during the reign of his father ; and Captain of Gondor and Captain-General of Gondor applied to Faramir and Boromir respectively, with the former title also given to Eärnur when he commanded the Gondor army in Arthedain prior to his crowning.

Arthedain was bounded upon the north by Forochel and the west by the Lune ; upon the east by the Weather Hills and the south by the Baranduin.

Arthedain was not badly affected by the Great Plague and it can be guessed that warfare with Angmar resumed in earnest sometime after 1800, with mention being made of a victory gained in 1851 by King Araval ( r. 1813 – 1891 ), although sources for the Kingdom's history are sketchy until the beginning of the 20th century of the Third Age.

1974, Arthedain was overrun by the forces of Angmar ; they captured Fornost, and King Arvedui fled into the northern wastes and was lost in the Ice Bay of Forochel.

The stone ( palantír ) of Amon Sûl was rescued by the forces of Arthedain, but it was later lost at sea.

Arvedui, last King of Arthedain, fled to the Ice-bay of Forochel after his realm was destroyed by Angmar.

When Arthedain was destroyed by Angmar she probably fled with her son Aranarth to Lindon.

* 1974-The kingdom of Arthedain is conquered by Angmar.