13 iconic The Lord of the Rings moments fans still cherish
By Bryce Olin
2. Aragorn’s speech at the Black Gate in The Return of the King
"Aragorn: “Sons of Gondor, of Rohan, my brothers, I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends, and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. An hour of wolves and shattered shields, when the age of men comes crashing down, but it is not this day! This day we fight! By all that you hold dear on this good earth, I bid you stand, Men of the West!”"
The top two iconic moments from The Lord of the Rings trilogy are both speeches by Aragorn. While I love Sam’s great moments with Frodo, their friendship and their bond, Aragorn delivers two of the biggest and best scenes of the entire series.
Aragorn’s speech at the Black Gate of Mordor is one of his best moments in the story as a leader. After defeating Sauron’s forces at Minas Tirith, Aragorn and Gandalf lead the remaining soldiers to the edge of Mordor to buy Frodo and Sam time to accomplish their mission and destroy the Ring.
Aragorn’s speech is made even better because of what happened directly before, although we only see this in the extended version: Aragorn, Gandalf, Merry, Pippin, Legolas, and Gimli approach the Black Gate and converse with the Mouth of Sauron, a foul creature who speaks for Sauron. It tosses Frodo’s Mithril shirt to them, meaning that they have captured him, but Aragorn knows it’s a bluff meant to intimidate them or possibly gather information, so he cuts off the Mouth of Sauron’s head.
Then he delivers the rousing speech to give Frodo just a little more time, and it makes all the difference. The “For Frodo” cry at the end of the speech as he turns and charges Mordor’s army is incredible!
