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The captain of the guard, or simply captain, was a man of Lake-town who led the town's guard during the late Third Age.[1]
Biography[]
One day in TA 2941, the guards under his command were surprised by the appearance of Dwarves in their hut without any prior warning. After Thorin announced himself and his intention to see the Master of Lake-town, the captain of the guard asked to know who Fíli, Kíli, and Bilbo Baggins were. After Thorin answered, the captain demanded that they all needed to lay down any weapons they had if they came in peace, though Thorin revealed that they had none and would not be able to fight them even if they did. When the captain revealed that the Master was in a feast, Fili grew impatient and demanded to be taken for them to make haste, threatening the captain that the Master may not like waiting long.[1]
The captain obliged him and led the company with six men through the market-place and into the Great House, where Thorin announced his identity to the Master before the captain could get a word in.[1] It is unknown if the captain of the guard survived the attack by Smaug and the later Battle of Five Armies.
After the Master of Lake-town caught the dragon-sickness and fled from Lake-town with gold and some companions,[2] it is possible that one of these companions was the captain of the guard.[citation needed] These companions eventually deserted him and he starved to death in the Waste sometime between TA 2941 and TA 2949.[2]
Speculation[]
In a note to an earlier version of The Hobbit John D. Rateliff speculated that it may be possible that this captain of the guard is the same character as Bard, since Bard is the captain of a company of archers.[3]
In adaptations[]
The Hobbit (1968 radio series)[]
Ian Thompson provided the voice of the captain of the guard, who is credited as the Herald of Esgaroth.
Der Hobbit (1980 German radio series)[]
The captain of the guard is credited simply as "Man", and is portrayed by Heinz Theo Branding.
Peter Jackson's The Hobbit films[]
The captain of the guard arresting Thorin and the Dwarves
The captain of the guard was given the name Braga and is portrayed by Mark Mitchinson. He has light brown hair, green eyes, and wields a spear. Unlike in the book, he was given a slightly expanded role. In TA 2941, when Bard the Bowman was sneaking a company of Dwarves into Lake-town by smuggling them in fishing barrels, although Braga accompanied Alfrid Lickspittle, the Master's second-in-command, who became suspicious of Bard as he is not licensed to bring in shipments of fish from Mirkwood. Under Alfrid's command, Braga ordered his men to dump the barrels of fish, which carried the the Dwarves, back into the water, but Bard was able to convince Alfrid not to since the morale is low in Lake-town due to dwindling food supplies.
While Bard was leading the Dwarves through Lake-town, they were spotted by several guards, but the Dwarves managed to knock them until Braga and his men arrived. When Braga wanted to know what was going on and ordered every citizen to stay where they were, Bard approached to him and offered him a white dress, saying that it would look lovely for Braga's wife. Braga angrily takes the dress from Bard and left with his guards. After giving the dress to his wife, Braga and his men captured Thorin and the Dwarves that were stealing weapons and brought them to the Master. He was present when Thorin Oakenshield revealed his identity to him and everyone else in the town, and convinces the townfolk, including the Master, that he and his company will share the riches of the recaptured mountain if they are provided weapons and boats and allowed safe passage to the mountain.
The next night, when Bard hears the rumbling caused by Smaug's awakening and attempts to affix the last Black Arrow to the town's Wind lance, Braga and his men tried to arrest him, but Bard was able to avoid them until Alfrid and the Master were able to stop him. After arresting Bard and placing him in the cell, Braga and his men were drinking and celebrating at the time when Bard awoke and noticed Smaug flying over to Lake-town. At the sound of the bells, Braga and the guards left the prison (leaving Bard trapped in his cell) and ran to the Master's headquarters and escaped in a boat with a large quantity of gold. While trying to make their escape through the fires, Bard and his son managed to kill Smaug with the last Black Arrow and the dead body of the dragon fell in the boat, crushing and killing the Master, Braga, and the guards.
Lego Braga
LEGO The Hobbit: The Video Game[]
Braga is also a LEGO character.
Voice dubbing actors[]
| Foreign Language | Voice dubbing artist |
|---|---|
| Portuguese (Brazil) (Television/DVD) | Carlos Seidl |
| Spanish (Latin America) | Arturo Casanova (DOS) / Paco Mauri (BOFA) |
| German | Olaf Reichmann |
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 The Hobbit, Chapter X: "A Warm Welcome"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Hobbit, Chapter XIX: "The Last Stage"
- ↑ The History of The Hobbit: Mr Baggins and Return to Bag-End, The Second Phase, "Lake-Town", Note 10