The Lord of the Rings series: How Aragorn from the movies is related to Isildur from The Rings of Power

The new Amazon Prime series “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” starts on September 2nd. This tells of the fateful demise of Númenor. It was thanks to Isildur and his father, Elendil, that the island’s population continued to exist even after its destruction. The founders of Gondor and Arnor were the direct ancestors of High King Aragorn.

Aragorn II Elessar was a human of the Dúnedain tribe and their 16th chief. He was the last Lord of the Dúnedain and the first High King of Arnor and Gondor since Isildur’s brief reign thousands of years ago. As a Dúnedain, Aragorn was blessed with an unusually long life.

When Aragorn was two years old, his father Arathorn was killed by an orc arrow. His mother Gilraen then brought him to Rivendell to meet the half-Elf Elrond. This was related to Earendil, a distant ancestor of Isildur and thus also of Aragorn. For his own protection, the boy was raised under the name Estel. With the knowledge that the enemy would seek Isildur’s heir, Aragorn’s origins were veiled. As a young adult, Aragorn learned of his true parentage, whereupon he received the heirlooms of his house. Among them was the broken sword Narsil, with which Isildur cut the One Ring from Sauron’s finger.

During his stay in Rivendell, Aragorn met Arwen, daughter of Elrond. He fell in love with the elf, but her father was not enthusiastic about this relationship. Aragorn needed to prove his love, which is why Elrond sent him to rebuild the united realms of Gondor and Arnor. Aragorn then set off.

It was through Gandalf that Aragorn learned that the One Ring had been found. Under his alias Strider, he met the ring-bearer Frodo Baggins and his companion at the Prancing Pony inn. From then on, he accompanied the group on a mission to destroy the One Ring.

After leading his troops to victory at the Battle of the Black Gate of Mordor and Sauron defeated, Aragorn was crowned King of Gondor and Arnor, taking the name of Elessar. As High King, he ruled the reunited kingdom and was allowed to marry Arwen. She gave him a son and several daughters.

Who was Isildur?

Isildur was the eldest son of Elendil and co-founder of both Gondor and Arnor. Together with his father Elendil he managed to save the Dúnedain from the destruction of Númenor. Isildur was the one who was able to get hold of the One Ring at the Battle of the Last Alliance.

This is how Aragorn and Isildur are related

Aragorn was the 39th direct descendant of Isildur. He was descended from the Dúnedain of the north, brought to the mainland by Isildur and Elendil. Isildur was the last king of all Dúnedain before Aragorn and king of the reunited kingdom before the dynasty broke up for the time being.

In Rohan, Aragorn played an important role in the battle against Saruman, who wanted to take over the kingdom. In battle, Aragron unfurled the king’s banner, not shown since the days of Elendil. Aragorn also wore the Star of the Dúnedain on his forehead. Of all the descendants, Aragorn is said to have most closely resembled Isildur’s father, Elendil.

In the first season of the new Lord of the Rings series, we get a deeper look into the life of Isildur before he became the hero of Middle-earth.