The Treason of Isengard

Volume Seven of the History of Middle-earth continues the manuscript history of The Lord of the Rings, covering the drafts from the breaking of the Fellowship at Amon Hen through to the drafting of The King of the Golden Hall.

Christopher Tolkien presents facsimiles and transcriptions of his father's working manuscripts, showing how Saruman's treachery, the Ents of Fangorn, and the story's expansion into multiple parallel narrative strands were developed.

The volume also documents the crucial period when many of the most recognisable elements of The Two Towers took shape, including the emerging character of Treebeard and the complexity of the Rohirrim.