Dates

The first Warden, Fastred of Greenholm, was appointed in IV 41, and the title was passed down to his descendants through the Fourth Age

Location

The Westmarch lay westward of the Shire, between the Far Downs and the Tower Hills

Origins

The Westmarch was added to the Shire in IV 31, and its first Warden was appointed ten years later

Race

Culture

Family

Settlements

The seat of the Wardens was at Undertowers on the Tower Hills

Important peaks

The Westmarch was bordered by the Far Downs in the east and the Tower Hills in the west

Meaning

Westmarch means 'western borderland'

Title of

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Warden of Westmarch

The hereditary title of the Fairbairns of the Tower Hills

Fastred of
Greenholm

Elfstan
Fairbairn

At least one
other daughter

Further generations of
Wardens of
Westmarch

The first generations of the Wardens of Westmarch. Those who held the title of Warden are highlighted in bold text.

The Westmarch, the land between the Tower Hills and the Far Downs, was added to the Shire some years after the War of the Ring. Fastred of Greenholm was appointed as Warden by Thain Peregrin in IV 41, ten years after the Westmarch was founded. The title was hereditary, passed by Fastred to his son Elfstan Fairbairn, and associated from then on with the Fairbairns of the Towers.

I	Fastred of Greenholm	From IV 41 At the request of Mayor Sam Gamgee, Thain Peregrin appointed Fastred of Greenholm as the first Warden of the newly settled Westmarch of the Shire. There he established Undertowers in the Tower Hills, and dwelt there with his wife, Sam Gamgee's daughter Elanor.
II	Elfstan Fairbairn	Fastred was succeeded as Warden by his son Elfstan, who took his personal surname of Fairbairn (or 'fair child') as the name of his family. Elfstan thus founded the family that became known as the Fairbairns of Undertowers, hereditary Wardens of Westmarch and one of the most important families of the Shire-hobbits. Elfstan was himself succeeded by his son, and the Wardens continued to dwell at Undertowers for many generations afterward.