P
- Parth Galen
- (S: 'Green Sward') A green lawn above the Falls of Rauros at the feet of Amon Hen. It is on the western shore of Nen Hithoel near the southern end — a fair, green sward, watered by a small spring. Sward means a large open expanse of lawn: parth means "field, enclosed grassland", related to "path", meaning "level space, sward"; galen (or calen) means "green." It was here that the breaking of the Fellowship of the Ring took place.
- The Prancing Pony
- An inn at the centre of the village of Bree.
- It was situated at the base of the Bree-hill, at the spot where the East Road made a bend and a side road ran towards the Greenway and Fornost. The building is described in The Lord of the Rings:
- Inside there was a large common room, several private parlours, and a number of bedrooms, including a few rooms in the north wing designed for Hobbits, that were low to the ground and had round windows. The inn also had stables.
- The Prancing Pony was a meeting place for both Bree-folk and travellers, and was frequented by Men, Hobbits and Dwarves. Some of the Bucklanders from the Shire are known to have travelled to the inn occasionally. The art of smoking pipe-weed was said to have begun in Bree and from The Prancing Pony it spread among the races of Middle-earth. The inn was also noted for its fine beer, enchanted at an occasion by Gandalf. At the time of the War of the Ring, the proprietor was Barliman Butterbur, whose family kept the inn "from time beyond record". Two Hobbits worked for Butterbur: Nob, a servant in the inn, and Bob, who worked in the stables.
- Two important events leading up to the War of the Ring took place at The Prancing Pony. The first was "a chance-meeting" of Gandalf and Thorin Oakenshield, which eventually led to the destruction of Smaug and far lighter casualties during the war in the northern theatre. The second event occurred during the journey of Frodo Baggins to Rivendell, when he and his companions stayed at The Prancing Pony for a night. After singing "The Man in the Moon Stayed Up Too Late", Frodo accidentally put the One Ring on and became invisible, which led to an attack on the inn by the Black Riders. Frodo also met Aragorn at that time, who saved him and led the party away.
- Business at The Prancing Pony declined during the war because of an influx of rough Men from the South who terrorized Bree and the surrounding countryside. However, when Gandalf stopped with the Hobbits at the inn on their way home, he prophesied that "better days" were coming as the Kingdom was restored and "some fair folk" would be staying at The Prancing Pony.
- In Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring movie the hobbits only briefly reside in the common room, without Frodo singing, after which Frodo is taken away by Aragorn.
- The Inn also features in Lord of the Rings Online and features in the development of the game's storyline for individual adventurers.
Read more about this topic: Minor Places In Middle-earth