King of Rhovanion

King of Rhovanion was a title claimed by Vidugavia, a prince of the Northmen, in the 13th century of the Third Age. However, even if he was the most powerful of the many Northern princes, as far as we know he never truly unified all the Northmen under his claimed kingship. Vidugavia's own realm, the "Kingdom of Rhovanion", was between Greenwood and the River Running.

During the reign of Narmacil I in Gondor, certain of the lesser rulers in this region began to stir against his kingdom, joining with Easterling raiders against the South-kingdom. Vidugavia himself remained loyal to Gondor, and allied himself with Narmacil's regent Minalcar. Together these two allies won a great victory against the Easterlings and rebellious Northmen westward of the Sea of Rhûn, and ranged eastward beyond the Sea, destroying enemy encampments and settlements. Thus Gondor secured itself against the raiders out of the East, while Vidugavia entrenched his position as King of Rhovanion. In the year TA 1304, Minalcar succeeded to the throne of Gondor, ruling as King Rómendacil II (that is, 'East-victor') in recollection of his exploits in the East. He maintained strong ties with Vidugavia, sending his son Valacar as ambassador to the court of the King of Rhovanion. Valacar's mission was to build closer ties with Vidugavia's Northmen, but he went further than his father had intended when he wedded Vidugavia's daughter Vidumavi. Valacar and Vidumavi had a son - the grandson of both the King of Gondor and the King of Rhovanion - whom they named Vinitharya. Indeed he was the direct heir of Rómendacil II of Gondor through his father, though not of Vidugavia. This fact would cause great dissension in the future: after Valacar's own reign, Vinitharya succeeded to the throne of Gondor. He took the Kingship under the name of Eldacar, but many of the people of Gondor were resistant to a King with non-Númenórean blood. This led to the civil war of the Kin-strife, in which Eldacar was temporarily deposed before re-establishing himself as King.

It's also rather unclear whether the title 'King of Rhovanion' was claimed by any of Vidugavia's descendants. This question is complicated by the fact that there are no records of the potential royal line for the period between Vidugavia himself and his descendant Marhari, spanning a period of about six centuries. It is thus quite possible that Vidugavia's immediate descendants were also self-styled 'Kings of Rhovanion', but that the title later fell out of use. Marhari himself is not recorded as claiming the title, and though this is circumstantial, it certainly cannot have continued after his time. Marhari fell in the Battle of the Plains, and the loss of that battle saw the conquest of his lands by the Wainriders. The remnant of his people were driven out of their ancestral lands into the Vales of Anduin, and thus any surviving realm of Rhovanion must have come to an end at this time.