Cair Andros

Cair Andros, or the Isle of Cair Andros,The Return of the King, "The Land of Shadow" was an island on the river Anduin nearly forty miles north of Osgiliath. It was of paramount importance to Gondor in its long war with Mordor, usually preventing the enemy from crossing the river and entering Anórien.The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A: Annals of the Kings and Rulers, I: The Númenórean Kings, (iv): "Gondor and the Heirs of Anárion": The Stewards, Footnote 1The Atlas of Middle-earth, The Third Age, "The Brown Lands, the Wold, The Downs, and the Emyn Muil"
==History==
The name of this island was derived from the long shape of the isle, which was boat-like in nature, and the effects of the water breaking upon what was seen as the prow of the ship. The island was around ten miles in length, and narrowed toward its northern end, creating the prow.The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A: Annals of the Kings and Rulers, I: The Númenórean Kings, (iv): "Gondor and the Heirs of Anárion": The Stewards, Footnote 1 Cair Andros was one of the main sites used to cross the river Anduin, along with Osgiliath to the south. As the northern parts of the river were nearly impassable marshland, and the south of the river near Lebennin became too wide to ford safely, these two locations were critical to both Gondor and Mordor during the war.The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, Book Five, Ch. IV: "The Siege of Gondor"
The island was fortified by Túrin II following the loss of Ithilien in TA 2901, and was further strengthened during the rule of Ecthelion II.
Cair Andros had a steady garrison, well-maintained until the outbreak of the War of the Ring; military incursions were expected both here and at Osgiliath, but the southern crossing was considered by Denethor II to be of more importance, and therefore was more heavily guarded. Being a vital point in the defenses of Gondor, a crucial river junction, and due to the fact that it was less manned than was Osgiliath, shortly before the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, Sauron sent a force of Orcs and Easterlings from the Black Gate to lay siege to the fort, and the island was overrun. Around the time of the fall of Osgiliath, fugitives began arriving at Minas Tirith from Cair Andros.The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B: "The Great Years"
Aragorn, during his march toward the Black Gate, sent soldiers to reclaim the island for Gondor. These soldiers were young men of Rohan and Lossarnach too afraid to proceed further at first, but eventually successful. After the fall of Sauron and conclusion of the war, Cair Andros continued to serve as a vital place of crossing, and the Captains of the West set sail from it on their way down the Anduin to Osgiliath.The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, Book V, Ch.X: "The Black Gate Opens"  
==Etymology==
Cair Andros means "Ship of the Long-Foam," and is pronounced cyre an-dros.
==In adaptations==
In The Lord of the Rings Online, the Lord of Cair Andros Gilgír and two of his sons were killed when the island was overrun, but his wife Dúneth and his youngest son Tolwin escaped to the west and survived. After the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, they join with the faint-hearted men led by Lord Duinhir and assist in the liberation of their home.
==Translations==
Foreign Language 	Translated name
Amharic 	ካኢር ኣንድሮስ
Arabic 	كير أندروس
Armenian 	Քեյր Անդրոս
Assamese 	কেয়াৰ এণ্ড্ৰছ
Belarusian Cyrillic	Каір Андрос
Bengali 	কেয়ার আন্দ্রোস
Bulgarian Cyrillic 	Каир Андрос
Chinese 	凱爾安卓斯島
Danish 	Cair Andros (ø i Anduinfloden)
Georgian 	კირ ანდროსი
Greek 	Κάιρ Άνδρος
Gujarati 	કેર એન્ડ્રોસ
Hindi 	केयर एंड्रोस
Japanese 	ケア・アンドロス
Kannada 	ಕೈರ್ ಆಂಡ್ರೋಸ್
Kazakh 	Каир Андрос (Cyrillic) Kaïr Andros (Latin)
Konkani 	कैर अँड्रोस
Korean 	카일 안드로스
Kyrgyz Cyrillic 	Каир Андрос
Macedonian Cyrillic	Каир Андрос
Malayalam 	കെയർ ആൻഡ്രോസ്
Marathi 	कॅअर अॅन्ड्रोस
Mongolian Cyrillic 	Каир Андрос
Nepalese 	केयर एन्ड्रोस
Punjabi 	ਕੇਅਰ ਐਂਡਰੋਸ
Russian 	Каир Андрос
Sanskrit 	कैर् अण्ड्रोस्
Serbian 	Каир Андрос (Cyrillic) Kair Andros (Latin)
Sinhalese 	කෙයාර් ඇන්ඩ්‍රොස්
Tamil 	கெய்ர் ஆண்ட்ரோஸ்
Telugu 	కైర్ ఆండ్రోస్
Thai 	ไคร์อันดรอส
Ukrainian Cyrillic 	Каір-Андрос
Urdu 	کیئر اندراوس
Yiddish 	קאַיר אַנדראָס
==References==
de:Cair Andros
fr:Cair Andros
es:Cair Andros
it:Cair Andros
pl:Cair Andros
ru:Каир Андрос
Category:Sindarin names & words
Category:River islands
Category:Gondor
Category:Fortresses