Ramandu's daughter facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ramandu's daughter
Narnia character
Laura Brent as Liliandil in the 2010 film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.
Information
Race	Half-Star
Title	Queen of Narnia
Family	Ramandu
Spouse(s)	Caspian X
Children	Rilian
Nationality	Ramandu's Island, Narnia

Ramandu's daughter, also known as Lilliandil in the 2010 film version of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, is a fictional character from The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis. Introduced in the 1952 book The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, she aids Caspian X and the crew of Dawn Treader to break an enchantment on three of the Seven Great Lords of Narnia. Eventually she becomes Queen of Narnia, after marrying Caspian X, and bears his son, Rilian. In the 1953 novel The Silver Chair, the Lady of the Green Kirtle, in the form of a snake, kills her though she later reappears in the 1956 book The Last Battle. The character appears in multiple adaptations of the book series; the television serial The Chronicles of Narnia, where she is portrayed by Gabrielle Anwar, and The Chronicles of Narnia film series, where Laura Brent plays the role.

According to Lewis scholar Paul F. Ford, Lewis created the character of Ramandu's daughter having been inspired by J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle Earth elves, specifically Lúthien and Arwen. Ramandu's daughter has also been compared to the angelic entities known as Maiar, also featured in Tolkien's novels. Douglas Gresham, Lewis' step-son, created the name Lilliandil for the 2010 film version of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Ramandu's daughter was the subject of literary analysis by various scholars, with her goodness and her marriage with Caspian X receiving attention. The character has been associated with various Christian virtues and women in the Bible.

Role

Literature

Ramandu's daughter is introduced in C. S. Lewis's 1952 book The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. In the novel, siblings Edmund and Lucy Pevensie and their cousin Eustace Scrubb are transported to the fantasy world Narnia through a painting of a boat; they help Caspian X, the king of Narnia, sail to the edge of the world on the ship Dawn Treader in order to find the Seven Great Lords of Narnia. As part of their journey, they travel to Ramandu's Island, which is home to the "star at rest" Ramandu, and are greeted by his daughter. Lewis only references the character through titles, never by her name. Portrayed as a young and beautiful immortal woman with long blonde hair, she is first shown wearing a blue gown and holding a lit candle. The character provides hope to Caspian X and his companions, who had discovered that the Lords Mavramorn, Revilian and Argoz were cursed by a sleeping enchantment.

Caspian X talks about the fairy tale "Sleeping Beauty" with Ramandu's daughter and suggests kissing her to reverse the curse on the lords. She tells him that she will only kiss him once the enchantment is broken, and proposes to him. Caspian X makes a promise to her before departing that he will break the curse. He returns to Ramandu's Island three years after the end of his voyage, and marries Ramandu's daughter; the couple serves as the rulers of Narnia. Fifteen years into their rule, Ramandu's daughter and Caspian X have a son named Rilian. In the 1953 novel The Silver Chair, the Lady of the Green Kirtle, in the form of a snake, kills Ramandu's daughter while she is sleeping in a glade during a May ride with a twenty-year old Rilian. Her body is taken back to the city, and she is remembered as "a gracious and wise lady in whose veins flowed the blood of stars". While attempting to seek revenge for his mother's death, Rilian falls for the charms of the Lady of the Green Kirtle. In the 1956 book The Last Battle, Ramandu's daughter is present, alongside her husband and son, as one of the "faithful" during the Great Reunion, in which all the series' good characters, except Susan, are brought back together.

Television and film

Ramandu's daughter appears in the sections of the television serial The Chronicles of Narnia focusing on The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. In the miniseries, the character is portrayed in the same way as in the books, with her relationship and eventual marriage to Caspian X being the focus of her story arc. For the 2010 film version of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Ramandu's daughter is called Lilliandil. After Caspian X and his companions feast at Aslan's table a star falls from the sky and transforms into Lilliandil. She guides Caspian X and his crew to the Dark Island to find and save one of the Seven Great Lords of Narnia from a curse. Lilliandil tells Caspian X that the Lords were placed under a sleeping enchantment as they had physically threatened one another in Aslan's presence, which is strictly forbidden. After guiding the company to the island, she returns to the heavens; Caspian X says that he hopes to meet her again in the future, and she responds with a smile.

Development and casting

According to Lewis scholar Paul F. Ford, Lewis decided to not name Ramandu's daughter as "an indication of the awe in which [he] wanted to surround her". Fantasy writer Colin Duriez said that Lewis was inspired by J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle Earth elves, specifically Lúthien and Arwen, who are both married to humans, to create the character. Duriez also connected Ramandu's daughter's parentage from the heavens to Tolkien's descriptions of angelic entities known as Maiar in his novels.

For the television serial, English actress Gabrielle Anwar portrays Ramandu's daughter in one of her earliest roles; she is credited as Princess. Australian actress Laura Brent plays the character in the film version of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader; it was her first role in a feature film. Lewis' step-son Douglas Gresham created the name Lilliandil for the movie, and he said that it was intended to mimic the "imagery of the sea of lilies in the book as well as a very feminine and ethereal feel".