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The Battle of Dale is fictional battle in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.

The Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain and the Men of Dale refused to aknowledge the Overlordship and alliance of Sauron. While his southern armies menaced Gondor, he sent an army north to extend his dominion to prevent the armies of his enemies joining together under one banner, which could have proved disasterous for Mordor.

In March of the year 3019 in the Third Age, Sauron sent a large contingent of Easterlings to attack Dale. The combined forces of the Men of Dale under King Brand and the Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain under King Dáin Ironfoot marched out to meet the Easterlings in battle. Sauron's forces were probably more numerous, though the army of Dale would have possesed an advantage due to thier superior Dwarven-made weaponry. They were forced to retreat to the Lonely Mountain.

A few sturdy warriors led by Brand and Dáin fought bravely before the Gate of Erebor, which was not taken. In the end Dáin, was killed as he stood defending the body of his ally Brand. Meanwhile, the defenders of the Mountain were able to withstand the siege.

However, to the misfortune of the Easterlings, the forces of Gondor and Rohan defeated the main power of Sauron in the southern theatre, causing the northern army to lose heart. Seeing the morale of their foes being sapped by news of victory in the south, the Army of Dale under the new Kings — Bard II and Thorin III Stonehelm — managed to lift the seige and drove the Easterlings out of Dale.

The Battle of Dale would have further reduced the already low numbers of Dwarves and paved way for the dominion of Men in the Fourth AgeThe Fourth Age is a fictional time period from J. Tolkien's universe of Middle-earth. The Fourth Age began after Sauron was finally defeated, when his Ruling Ring was destroyed, and the Elves left Middle-earth for the Uttermost West. Tolkien's writing doe.