Rhosgobel
the dwelling of Radagast the Brown, on the eaves of Mirkwood
Names and Etymology
Rhosgobel is the name of the dwelling of Radagast the Brown. No gloss of the name is given in the published texts.
Geography
Rhosgobel lay on the western borders of Mirkwood, in the wild country between the Carrock and the Old Forest Road, not far above the river Anduin — a lonely house of wood at the forest’s edge, where the Wild Men and the beasts were near at hand.
History
It was the home of Radagast, one of the Istari, who dwelt there among the birds and beasts and knew the ways of the wild things of the great wood. In the years of the Ring-war Gandalf came there seeking Radagast’s aid; it was from Rhosgobel that Radagast sent his tidings and set his bird-friends to watch, and so the friendship of the two Wizards served the last hunt against the Enemy.
In the Texts
In The Lord of the Rings the house is named in the Council of Elrond, where Gandalf tells of meeting Radagast at Rhosgobel; the essay “The Istari” in Unfinished Tales likewise places Radagast’s dwelling on the borders of Mirkwood. Together these make Rhosgobel the fixed seat of the Brown Wizard among the trees of the North.