The Last Battle

The Last Battle

Book information

Author

C. S. Lewis

Illustrator

Pauline Baynes

Publisher

The Bodley Head

First Edition
Published

1956

Country

England

Language

English

Pages

228

Preceded by

The Magician's
Nephew(written) The Silver
Chair(chronological)

Followed by

None

"Hes a stra

This article m

Please follow the W

"...for us this is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever
after."
C. S. Lewis[src]
Published in 1956 and awarded the Carnegie Medal, The Last Battle chronicled the end of the world
of Narnia. Jill Pole andEustace Scrubb return to Narnia to help save it from treacherous invaders and
a False Aslan.

Contents

Chapters
1.

By Caldron Pool

2.

The Rashness of the King

3.

The Ape in its Glory

4.

What Happened That Night

5.

How Help Came to the King

6.

A Good Night's Work

7.

Mainly About Dwarfs

8.

What News the Eagle Brought

9.

The Great Meeting on Stable Hill

10. Who Will Go into the Stable?

11. The Pace Quickens

12. Through the Stable Door
13. How the Dwarfs Refused to be Taken In
14. Night Falls on Narnia
15. Further Up and Further In
16. Farewell to Shadowlands

Plot Summary
The story of The Last Battle begins with a donkey, Puzzle, and an old ape, Shift, sitting on the banks
ofCaldron Pool on the Western Edge of Narnia beyond Lantern Waste. Puzzle has been convinced that he
is not a clever donkey and that Shift should make all decisions in every matter of life. As the two sit, a
strange object rolls over the falls falling into Caldron Pool. Using guilt tactics, Shift manipulates Puzzle into
jumping into the pool and retrieving the item. Puzzles struggles to bring the object back and delivers a lion
skin (a remnant from a hunting excursion beyond the edge of Narnia) to Shift. Immediately, Shift states
that Aslan has sent this skin and that Puzzle should wear it. Narnians would believe that Puzzle is Aslan
and would obey his every command (as Shift gave them). Puzzle does not like the idea but is convinced
that he is not clever enough to see the benefit of such an idea. Shift sends Puzzle to town for food and
commences working on the skin.
After minor alterations the skin is ready. Shift hides his work from prying eyes (birds overhead) and
presents his work to Puzzle when the donkey returns. Again, Puzzle protests, feeling that Aslan would be
quite upset to see him dressed in a lion's skin, but he is powerless to deny the ape his will. Puzzle dons
the skin and, though not completely convincing in daylight, he does present a satisfactory illusion in dim
firelight or moonlight. Suddenly a great thunderclap knocks both animals to the ground. Both agree that it
is a sign, but it is Shift who has his way in the end. Puzzle would pretend to be Aslan and Shift would tell
him what to say.
Three weeks later the King of Narnia, Tirian, is sitting outside of his hunting lodge to escape the formality
ofCair Paravel. His trusted friend, Jewel the unicorn, sits with him as they discuss rumors that Aslan had
come to Narnia. Their joy is great at hearing the news, though it is hard to believe that He has finally
come. A centaur,Roonwit, approaches and bows to the king. Tirian asks if there is more news of Aslan.
Roonwit declares that what he sees in the skies (for centaurs are gifted stargazers) is more terrible than
he has ever seen. The coming of Aslan is a lie. This news outrages Tirian.
Much confusion surrounds Roonwit's news. The confusion is fueled by the appearance of a dryad. She
pleads with Tirian to save the living trees in Lantern Waste, which are being felled by Narnians for sale to
theCalormenes. Tirian begins to question the dryad but is stopped when she cries out and falls over. Her
tree far away had been cut down.

Tirian immediately sets off with Jewel toward Lantern Waste. He discharges Roonwit to gather troops and
for him to hasten towards battle. As they travel along the river, they sight a rat, riding a raft on the river. He
confirms that the logs are being taken to the Calormenes and that "Aslan Himself" ordered the felling of
the trees. When Tirian arrives at the scene, he comes into the presence of two Calormenes who are
driving a Narnian horse which is dragging a log. When the log became jammed in the mud, the
Calormenes began beating the horse, which immediately spoke in its own defense. Outraged at the abuse
of a Narnian talking horse, Tirian draws his sword and kills one of the Calormenes while Jewel runs the
other through with his horn.
Other Calormenes shortly discovered the slayings of their countrymen and pursue Tirian into the forest.
Tirian runs a short distance but stops, feeling guilty of some treachery for killing the two soldiers. He
returns to the Calormene camp and gives himself up. He requests an audience with Aslan but was taken
before the ape. The ape, Shift, is completely adorned with all sorts of riches and clothing that server to
give him a fairly ridiculous air. He commands the squirrels to deliver more nuts (Aslan wants them) and
they must do it immediately. The squirrels ask to see Aslan and have Him tell them but the ape rejects
them. Aslan may come out this evening, he tells them.
The ape then goes into a long dissertation that Aslan has been to soft on them and He now is "licking
them into shape". Shift also claims to be a very old man, and not an ape, and it is his age (and wisdom)
that makes him worthy of being in Aslan's confidence. Additionally, all animals are going to be sent to
Calormen where they will work for a living. Their pay will be put into Aslan's treasury and used for the
common good. The final, most painful report that he delivers is that Aslan and the Calormene
god Tash are one and the same, and henceforth Shift refers to him as 'Tashlan'. Ginger the Cat asks if
Aslan is no more than Tash and it is confirmed by the Calormene soldier. Tirian is outraged by Shift's
dialogue and calls him a liar. For this Tirian is taken and tied to a tree.
During the night, many small animals come and attend to Tirian, feeding him and giving him water, but not
untying him, fearful of Aslan's wrath. They confirm Aslan's presence as they saw him the prior evening.
The animals leave him alone. Shortly, Tirian sees a bonfire being lit in the distance near the shack where
the ape gave his speech. A creature on four legs came out of the stable and stood before the crowd who
cried loudly for Aslan's mercy. Shift leaned toward the mouth of the creature and turned, speaking
something to the crowd. They moaned terribly and the creature, which looked somewhat, though
awkwardly like a lion, turned and went back into the stable.
Knowing that the creature was not Aslan, Tirian reflects on the times when Aslan appeared to kings in the
past - Peter and Caspian X - and begins praying for Narnia. He asks nothing for himself but to let Narnia
be saved. He asks for help from the kings of old and help from the outer world. As he begins to cry out to
the children, he falls into a deep dreamlike state. In the dream, he sees several people seated around a
table preparing for a meal. They can apparently see him as well, as several of them rise from their seats
and one of the girls screams. The one man who stood identifies the group as the seven friends of Narnia

and himself as Peter the High King. Tirian tries to speak but finds that he cannot. The image of the seven
fades and Tirian awakes exhausted in the forest, still tied to the tree.
He is not alone long, however as the woods seem to open and two of the children he had seen in his
dream appear before him. They quickly untie him and give him food. The two children turn out to
be Jill and Eustace(see The Silver Chair). They are dismayed to find that Tirian is seventh in descent
from Rilian, whom the two had saved. When all things are explained to Tirian, the three start toward some
battlements that are visible in the distance, which belong to one of many supply towers scattered
throughout the northern land. Tirian unlocks the tower and once inside they search the lockers and find
assorted supplies, including: oiled bow strings, swords, spears, Narnian mail, and Calormene arms. They
also find a bottle containing dark dye, dried biscuits, and firewood. To complete the disguise, Tirian
decides that they will dress like Calormenes in order to breach their camp and expose the phony goingson. This is done with the aid of the Calormene equipment and skin dye.
After some sleep (and brief training with the weapons they had found in the case of Jill and Eustace), the
three begin their journey toward the Calormene camp. Their first order of business would be to rescue
Jewel, who had been hobbled with the other horses in the stables. They would then retreat to join the
army which Roonwit would be bringing from Cair Paravel. Jill leads the party silently and effortlessly (one
of her skills from Girl Guides) through the woods until they arrived at the stable. Tirian sneaks forward and
grabs the lone Calormene guard who offers Jewel's location and leads Tirian to his old friend. When Jewel
is freed, Tirian ties the sentry and leaves him in the stable. Tirian and Jewel return to the place where Jill
and Eustace were supposed to be. They find that Jill is not where she should have been. After some brief
moments of concern, Jill silently returns to Eustace's side, giggling under her breath. When asked what
was funny, she presents the false Aslan to the men. Tirian draws his sword to kill Puzzle, who had been
forced to play Aslan by Shift, but is stopped by Jill who defends Puzzle's ignorance of his situation. Puzzle
tells Tirian that Shift told him that Aslan wanted him to dress up. Tirian is forgiving and he leads them all to
meet a band of dwarfs. They meet the group, led by two Calormenes, and stop the dwarfs' procession.
The Calormenes tell the disguised Tirian that they are leading the dwarfs to Calormene to work in the
Tisroc's mines. Tirian adresses the dwarfs and challenges the Tisroc's orders. The soldiers are astounded
when Tirian pulls Puzzle into the torch light and reveals the deception to the dwarfs. The dwarfs stare in
amazement but the Calormene soldiers challenge Tirian, who attacks them, and, with some help from
Eustace, kill the two. The dwarfs settle the remaining Calormenes who were bringing up the rear of the
procession. Cheers for Aslan are hailed but are less than accepted by the dwarfs. They are tired of the
name Aslan and refuse to be taken in. After much discussion, they proceed on their own away from Tirian
and his people.
One dwarf, Poggin, returns to Tirian and announces his loyalty. The party then trooped back to the tower
to spend the night. After victuals are done the next morning, Poggin tells of the fanciful tale concocted to
cover the disappearance of Tirian. Ginger said he had seen and heard Tirian cursing the name of Aslan
when suddenly in a flash, Aslan appeared and swallowed Tirian whole. It is surmised that Ginger and
Rishda Tarkaan are actually pulling Shift's strings. Poggin relates an episode in which he overheard the
cat and Tarkaan discussing the use of Shift until their victory is complete. They will let some of the

Narnians in on the secret as they deem them worthy, but in all the plan is to hand Narnia over to the
Tisroc.
During the discussion, the sky clouds over and a great darkness falls upon Tirian's group. A great cloudy
figure shaped like a man with a bird's head and huge curved beak soars overhead and northwards, toward
Shift and his band. The grass withered beneath it, its claws outstretched, appearing to take all of Narnia
into its grasp. When the thing is gone, Poggin suggests that demons should not be summoned unless one
wants to see them. The thing was Tash.
The group continues their discussion, gaining whatever information possible from Jewel during his
imprisonment. Though the Calormenes tried to force him to admit that the false Aslan is real, which Jewel
refused to do, he really learned very little about the enemy's plans. The companions are faced with a
choice to either to go back to Stable Hill and reveal the false Aslan to the Narnians, or to join Roonwit and
the army coming from Cair Paravel. They decide to meet Roonwit.
Tirian and the children remove the Calormene disguises and pack some biscuits before locking the tower
and leaving. All felt lighter knowing that war was about to be waged against Shift and the Calormenes.
The conversation is lighthearted, Jill talking about how she wished Narnia could go on forever, the history
of Narnia, and various other topics. The mood changes when Tirian stops and
greets Farsight the Eagle who brings news. Cair Paravel has fallen to the Calormenes. Worse yet, Roonwit
is dead from a Calormene arrow and the army they seek does not exist. Narnia is no more.
It is decided that they will fall upon the ape and expose his deception to the Narnians. Tirian begs the
children to return to their own world rather than meet death in battle. The children refuse to go, pointing
out that even if they wanted to they didn't know the way. Tirian thought of sending them to Archenland, but
Calormen would almost certainly take it next and presumably the rest of her empire afterwards. They
proceed towards Stable Hill together.
Jill and Eustace chat on the way, trying to decide what would happen if they died in Narnia. Would they be
dead in their own world, too? Eustace surmised that it would be better than getting bashed up in a British
Railways accident. Jill finds this a rather odd statement. Eustace describes the sudden jerking movement
that pulled them into Narnia as being in an accident. While the children discuss trains, the others discuss
the future. Several options were discussed, including living in solitude.
Once they reach the stable, they watch while Ginger the cat passes through the doorway. After a few
moments pass Ginger, now rendered a dumb beast, shoots out in a fit of terror. He climbs up a tree and is
never seen again. A Calormene solider, Emeth, passes in next and after a pause, a figure in Calormene
armour falls out, clearly dead.
At this point, Tirian and the children move into the firelight and attempt to rally the Narnians to them. Shift
is caught and hurled through the doorway, at which point a "blinding greenish-blue light shone out from the
inside of the stable, the earth shook, and there was a strange noise."

Many creatures rally to the defence of Narnia, including all the Talking Dogs, many smaller creatures
including mice, moles and squirrels, and finally a large boar and the bear. However, very few of the beasts
have moved - most are petrified by the wrath of 'Tashlan' within the stable - and so the Calormene soldiers
force the loyal Narnians step by step closer to the stable. As Tirian siezes Rishda Tarkaan, he cries in
desperation to Tash and Tash appears. Tash pounces on Rishda and is about to murder the remaining
Narnians when Peter appears and banishes him. Peter is just one of the Seven Kings and Queens who
came to aid them, including: Lord Digory, Lady Polly, High King Peter, King Edmund, Queen Lucy,
Eustace, and Jill.
They discover that they are in a wide green field, with a grove of trees close by. Peter suggests that they
eat of the fruit of the trees and Tirian realizes at last where he is.
After eating as much as they wanted, Tirian asks how the others came to Narnia, then asks why Susan is
not present. Each one of the seven explains that Susan had lost her belief in Narnia. Then Peter and
Edmund explain that they had been standing on the railway platform when the train came around the bend
a bit too fast. There was a loud roar and something had hit them hard but it didn't hurt and they found
themselves in Narnia. Old aches had disappeared. Digory tells about being on the train with Polly and not
feeling old and stiff any more. Peter says that they just stood there until the door opened. Tirian turned and
saw a door just standing in the middle of a field. He looks through a crack in the door to see the glow of
the fire, stars, and sky. The inside of the stable is bigger than the outside. Lucy tells how in our world once
a stable held something that was bigger than the stable.
Tirian, very much thrilled at the sound of Lucy's voice, asks her to tell how she came into Narnia. She tells
of the shock and the noise and just showing up. She told how a Calormene had come through the door
and stood with his sword upraised as if waiting for someone to come in. He appeared not to notice the
blue sky and trees all around. She tells how Ginger came in then dashed off at the sudden appearance of
Tash, and the first Calormene kneels to Tash. When the second Calormene entered, the first seemed very
surprised but the second killed the first and threw him out of the door. Then she mentions Shift's fate, but
Edmund finishes explaining it. They tell one by one of those who were tossed in and Tash's dealing with
them. The dwarfs are there and are as unfriendly as ever, as Lucy points out. However, they acted
strangely, sitting in a tight circle, not looking around or noticing anyone around them. As it turns out, they
believe they are in a dark stable and act accordingly. After many attempts to show the dwarfs that they
were, in fact, in the great outdoors with flowers and grass and birds had failed. Without warning, Aslan
suddenly appears before them. Lucy begs Aslan to do something about the dwarfs, but even Aslan is
unable to bring their vision to them. He says that their prison is in their own minds and that their fear of
being "taken in" keeps them from being taken out.
Aslan walks to the door leading to "nowhere" and shouts thrice with a great voice, "TIME!"

Aslan wakes Father Time, who rises into the sky like a giant among giants. Father Time raises a great
horn to his mouth and sounds the call. The sky immediately fills with shooting stars and a great starless
patch forms as the stars fall to the ground around them. The stars in Narnia are people and they land,
falling behind Aslan and the humans. Their light shines into the darkness, enabling the onlookers to see
all of what was happening. As the children watch, all the vegetations are eaten by the lizards, dragons,
and salamanders. (Jill and Eustace had previously seen them sleeping in The Silver Chair and were told
they would awaken at the end of the world, which is now.) Then all the people and animals (including
those who had previously died) gather outside the door, either to join Aslan or not join him (talking beasts
became ordinary animals if they do not join). The ones who do not join fade into Aslan's shadow, never to
be seen again, to fate unknown even to C.S. Lewis (but it may be Tash's realm). Then the great dragons,
salamanders and giant lizards grow old, die and rot into skeleton structures. Then the whole world
(presumably as far as Bism) is consumed by a great flood from theUtter East, to the Utter West. Then the
mountains in every location, crumble and fall into the new body of water. The water then reaches and hits
the stable door, but does not pass. The sun rises, and it has become a dying red giant like the sun in
the World of Charn. The moon rises and is consumed by the sun. Aslan orders Father Time to crush the
sun like an orange, and almost immediately, the great body of water starts to become solid ice. Peter
closes the freezing door and locks it, thus bringing an end to the World of Narnia.
However, Aslan leads them away from their dead world and into his own country. As Aslan leads the
humans into the Garden within the Western Wild of the true Narnia, he explains to them the jolt they felt
upon entering Narnia. He tells them that there was a railway accident and that they died in the
accident. Susan Pevensie, however, did not die because she did not go on the train with the others. Her
final fate remains a mystery.

Adaptations

Focus on the Family Radio Theater produced a dramatised audio version.

Locations

Narnia

Western March

Stable Hill

Aslan Country

Lantern Waste

Controversy
"It is as if the sun rose one day and were a black sun."
"Or if you drank water and it was dry water."
Tirian and Jewel, on disappointment
As you may know Eustace, the Pevensie family, Digory Kirke and Polly Plumber were killed in a train
accident .

Controversy has arisen over the fact that in the final book, Susan Pevensie does not get to re-enter Narnia
or the Narnian version of paradise, because she now loves many things of the world--such as dating and
clothes--and has come to believe that Narnia was just a child's game that she once played with her
siblings.
Some feel that Lewis was too harsh with one of the main characters in the stories, particularly condemning
of her for liking worldly things. Some fans went as far as expressing their strong opinion in fan-written
stories and plays to attempt to "correct" this "issue" and allow Susan to rejoin her siblings. Others,
however, believe that Lewis realistically portrayed the "falling away" from their faith that many people
experience. They also feel that Susan was not condemned for liking clothes and boys, only putting
emphasis on these things above all else.
Another controversy arises over the character of Emeth, a character from Calormen who
worships Tash(Aslan's opposite), but nonetheless gets to enter Aslan's country because he lived a good
and noble life, and Aslan counted that as work done unto him and not Tash.
Some Christians feel that this scene undermines the Christian correlation to Narnia, as it seems to be
Emeth's works and not true faith in Aslan (read: Christ) that gets him into heaven. Others, though, feel that
this scene attests to Aslan's goodness, as Emeth never got a chance to know Aslan and simply did the
best with the knowledge that he had. Also, some would say that this scene effectively argues against
charges of racism in the Narnian books, as the "whitebread" Susan does not get into Aslan's country while
the outsider Emeth does.
It is also important to note that Emeth, while clearly not a servant of Aslan, does not claim to have been
satisfied with what he knew of Tash. Aslan tells him that all the good he did for Tash was impossible for
Tash to accept because Tash cannot receive good service. He goes on to tell him that if he had truly been
serving Tash, he would have not continued to be seeking for Tash. Since his service is of nobility and
undying faith and Tash is of evilness and deceit, Tash cannot be the one who receives it.