The Tragedy of Ganondorf: the Burden of the King

by WearinOTheGreen

The story we know of as the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was actually a much simplified version of the actual events surrounding the time. I try to unpack what actually happened, starting with the fact that Ganondorf was not the evil character we know him to be. There is no villain in this version of the story, only events, reactions, and historical trajectories.

25. Epilogue

The first versions of the legend that circulated two or three generations after the founders of the Council of Sages had passed was that the Royal Family left to preserve what could be salvaged from high civilization, but empowered Princess Zelda to stay behind and bravely maintain support for the beleaguered people of Hyrule. The Council rallied around her to maintain the Royal Family lineage, and it paid off. When it was partially rebuilt, the Royal Family returned to Hyrule to take back their rightful place as the rulers, never really having abandoned Hyrule.

But that version didn't really exculpate the Royal Family like they would have hoped. Why did the Royal Family leave in the first place? Shouldn't they have left a contingent to continue the work and sent others off to bring back help from the other lands? Public sentiment was that the Royal Family had abandoned Hyrule during the catastrophe. Although the Council of Sages did a poor job tracking the history of the events as they unfolded, enough children of those alive during the catastrophe were still around to share an honest account.

As time wore on, a second set of versions of the legend developed. The Royal Family was actually forced out of Hyrule by a group trying to take power. In some versions this was said to be the Gorons, who had brought about the eruption through their irresponsible rock mining practices. In others it was the Gerudo, who were envious of the Hylians for their power and greatness. The Royal Family had effectively reestablished itself and many took this as a sign that the Royal Family indeed had meant to stay but had been forced out, returning triumphantly after doing much to better the peoples of Hyrule after their return.

But if one of the races forced out the Royal Family to seize power, why then were the ties of the various races still so strong after the Council of Sages brought them all together? If all of the races suffered after the calamity, as common knowledge said, how could any one race have had the resources to oust the Royal Family? Unless it was by popular force, and if so why was it desirable to have the Royal Family back in power again?

So again, a third set of versions developed. With sufficient time having passed, few could remember the actual details their parents' grandparents had said many different ways and likely written down very infrequently. What was remembered was how the Gerudo had isolated themselves from the calamity and shut out any outsiders. People also remembered how a group had been led by the disgraced King, Ganondorf, whose actual deeds, failed or otherwise, were completely erased. Only the name remained, and the association with the Abandoners, the disgraced group of Hylians and Gerudo who attempted to take Castle Town away from those who had been living there. In this version, a villain was finally identified. Ganondorf, the Gerudo leader who was banished for his evil deeds. He brought disgrace on Castle Town with his group of Gerudo and Hylians seeking to pillage the former Royal Family's land. And only the Council of Sages was able to put a stop to him and reestablish Castle Town and the Royal Family to their former glory, of course with the aid of the Royal Family itself.

But why did Ganondorf lead his ragtag band to Castle Town during the calamity, when it clearly suffered the most? Was he actually responsible for everything that befell Castle Town? If it was doing so well with the Royal Family beforehand, how could it have declined so much worse than the Goron, Zoron, and Kokiri realms? How was it that one lone man could cause so much strife? Was he truly that powerful?

As more time led to more recovery and development, the version that lasted as we know it took shape. Ganondorf, an evil King of the Gerudo seeking power, was banished after trying to steal it from the other races. He finally assaulted Castle Town with a legion of Gerudo and Hylian traitors, and the Royal Family fell to his onslaught. One lone brave Royal Family member, Princess Zelda, with her trusted advisor Impa, found a guardian knight who could take on Ganondorf. He was a destined child, a Hylian abandoned with the Kokiri and raised to be one of them. As Ganondorf went throughout the land of Hyrule taking from all others, Link followed in his footsteps righting his wrongs. When time came for the final showdown, he and Princess Zelda slew Ganondorf and banished his spirit away. This is why the Royal Family could not help; they were vanquished by a stronger enemy. However, the lineage of the Royal Family through Princess Zelda was indeed strong enough to overcome evil, and allowed the Royal Family to re-engage in Hyrule once the Council of Sages had done their work to cleanse Hyrule of the terror and sin brought about by Ganondorf's search for power.

This version was the one handed to Nintendo story writers to develop into the Ocarina of Time. But the truth as I understand it and have laid it out to you was much less exciting, much less comfortable, and much more enlightening a story than what we have come to know. As John Michael Greer, the former Archdruid of the Ancient Order of Druids in America has said, we are only as wise as the diversity of stories we can tell. I am honored that you took the time with me to reflect on these events as we have learned them, injected some skepticism and curiosity in the search for a more complete truth, and come out with a better understanding of the different potential histories of the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.