[MOC] Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Lasse · September 3, 2023

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a fantasy novel by C. S. Lewis, published in 1950. It is the first published and best known of seven novels in The Chronicles of Narnia.

I have built this LEGO layout together with my mother Anne Mette:

Link to photos on Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/66344850@N06/albums/72177720310755649

It will be exhibited at Skærbæk Fan Weekend 23. - 24. of September 2023.

Lasse · September 3, 2023

The story begins in England in 1940. It was the beginning of World War II and London was subjected to many air attacks. Many children from London were therefore sent out into the countryside, where they were safe from the air attacks. The story is about the four siblings Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy. They were evacuated from London, and sent to live with Professor Digory Kirke at a large house in the English countryside.

The professor lived in a very big house.

In the professor's house there was a room where there was an old wardrobe. Lucy was the youngest of the four siblings. One day she opened the wardrobe door to see what was inside.

Inside the wardrobe was a forest. It was winter and the forest was covered in snow. In the middle of the forest there was a lamp post. Here Lucy met the faun named Tumnus. They were both very surprised to meet each other. Lucy had never met a faun before. And Tumnus had never met a human before.

Tumnus invited Lucy home to his cave for tea. Tumnus told Lucy that she had come to Narnia. And he told her about the White Witch, who had cursed the land so that it was always winter but never Christmas.

After visiting the faun, Lucy went home the same way she had come. When she came out through the wardrobe, she rushed to her three siblings to tell them what she had experienced. But they didn't believe her. She discovered that although she had been in Narnia for several hours, only a few seconds had passed in England. So, her siblings hadn't had time to discover that she had been gone. Together they looked into the wardrobe. But the portal to Narnia was gone, and there was nothing in the wardrobe but old coats.

Lucy was very upset that her siblings did not believe that she had been to Narnia.

A few days later, Lucy tried to go into the wardrobe again. And this time she managed to get to Narnia. Edmund saw her go into the wardrobe and followed her. Suddenly Edmund was in Narnia.

Edmund couldn't spot Lucy. Instead, he met the White Witch.

The White Witch said that she was the Queen of Narnia. She invited him into her sleigh and offered him Turkish delight. The Turkish delights were enchanted so that anyone who ate them would become obsessed with eating more of them. After Edmund had eaten all the Turkish delights, the witch asked him to come back with his siblings. Then she would give him more Turkish delights and make him Prince of Narnia.

When the Witch was gone, Edmund met Lucy, who had been visiting Tumnus. Together they traveled home through the wardrobe.

Lucy was delighted to tell Susan and Peter that Edmund had now also been to Narnia and that he could confirm that she was telling the truth. But Edmund was mean and lied. He denied Narnia's existence to Peter and Susan. This made Lucy very sad.

Susan and Peter couldn't understand why Lucy kept claiming that she had visited a magical world inside the wardrobe. So, they decided to talk to the professor about Lucy. The professor encouraged them to think logically. There are only three options. Either Lucy is lying. Otherwise, she's gone crazy. Otherwise, she is telling the truth. She didn't usually lie and there were no signs that she had gone crazy. Therefore, it was most logical to conclude that she was telling the truth. Susan and Peter were very surprised by the professor's answer. But the professor told that he lived in a very strange house with many secrets. So he wasn't averse to the idea that Lucy was telling the truth.

Mrs. Macready was the housekeeper at Professor Kirke's House. She had a dislike for children, and the four siblings were always sure to keep out of her way.

A few days later, Mrs. Macready was giving some tourists a tour of the professor's house. To avoid being in the way, they chose to hide. And by chance they ended up hiding inside the wardrobe.

Suddenly all four of them were in Narnia. Peter and Susan apologized to Lucy for not believing her. And they got angry at Edmund because he had lied. In Narnia it was winter and very cold. So, they borrowed some of the coats in the wardrobe to avoid freezing.

Lucy showed them the way to the cave where Tumnus lived. The door was open, but Tumnus was not at home. On the floor they found a letter nailed to the floor. They took it out into the sunlight to read what it said. It was a message from the Secret Police. It said that Tumnus the faun was under arrest and awaiting trial on charges of high treason against Her Majesty Jadis, Queen of Narnia.

The four siblings did not know what to do. Lucy felt that it was her fault that Tumnus had been arrested. But she didn't know how to help him. But then they met a talking beaver. He wanted to help them and invited them to dinner at his house. Here they met his wife Mrs. Beaver. After they had eaten, they talked about what had happened to Tumnus. The beavers told them of a prophecy that claim the White Witch's rule will end when "two Sons of Adam and two Daughters of Eve" sit on the four thrones of Cair Paravel. Therefore, the witch was very afraid that the four children reached the castle of Cair Paravel. And she would do anything to capture and kill them. The beavers also told them that Narnia's true ruler, a great lion named Aslan, was returning after several years of absence.

While Lucy, Susan and Peter were talking to the two beavers, Edmund ran away to find the Witch. He was so busy that he forgot to put on his coat. Obsessed with the idea of getting more Turkish delights from the Witch, he was willing to betray his siblings.

The witch lived in a large castle with many towers.

Inside the Witch's castle there were a lot of statues of fauns, centaurs, dwarves and animals. It was the inhabitants of Narnia that the Witch had turned to stone. Edmund saw the statues as he entered the gate of the castle. But that didn't make him change his mind. He only thought about getting Turkish delights.

The witch had some big wolves as servants. It was the wolves who had arrested Tumnus and brought him to her. After the Witch questioned Tumnus about what he knew, she decided that she would turn him to stone.

When Edmund went to see the Witch, she was very angry that he had come without his three siblings. He told that his siblings were in Narnia at the beavers’ house and that they would soon travel to the Stone Table to meet Aslan. The witch was very frightened when Edmund told them that there were rumors that Aslan had arrived in Narnia. Edmund didn't get any Turkish delights. Instead, he was forced to accompany the witch out to capture his three siblings. The witch had a dwarf as a servant. He prepared the sleigh so they could ride in it. But after a while, the snow began to melt and the sleigh got stuck. After that they had to walk. The witch, the dwarf and Edmund walked for a very long time as they watched the snow melting. It started to be spring. It was a sign that the White Witch's magic was fading.

Meanwhile, Peter, Susan, Lucy and the two beavers had begun their long journey towards the Stone Table. On their journey they met Father Christmas. In all the time that the witch had ruled Narnia, it had always been winter, but never Christmas. But now Aslan had arrived in Narnia. And that had weakened the Witch's magic.

Father Christmas gave the three children gifts. Peter was given a sword and a shield. Susan was given a bow, some arrows and a small ivory horn. Lucy was given a small dagger and a small bottle which looked like a diamond. It contained a magical cordial that could cure illness.

The snow was melting. It started to be spring. It was a sign that the White Witch's magic was fading.

Peter, Susan, Lucy, and the two beavers crossed a river.

Peter, Susan, Lucy, and the two beavers arrived at the tent at the Stone Table. Here they met the lion Aslan for the first time. They also met the many inhabitants of Narnia who had come to meet Aslan. There were many talking animals, fauns and four large centaurs. Aslan was the the son of the Emperor-Over-the-Sea. And it was Aslan who had created Narnia in the dawn of time. Aslan welcomed them all.

Aslan sent some centaurs out to free Edmund from the Witch. The mission went well and Edmund was freed and taken to Aslan. Edmund had a serious conversation with Aslan. Afterwards, Edmund was reunited with his siblings, to whom he apologized.

The White Witch arrived and spoke to Aslan about the "Deep Magic from the Dawn of Time" which gives her the right to kill Edmund for his treason. Aslan then spoke to the Witch alone, and on his return he announced that the Witch had renounced her claim on Edmund's life.

Aslan made a deal with the Witch that she was allowed to kill him instead of Edmund. In the evening Aslan met the Witch on the Stone Table. All the many evil creatures who supported the Witch had come to see Aslan killed. Lucy and Susan had followed Aslan. They hid behind a bush from where they could see what was happening.

The Witch killed Aslan.

After the Witch killed Aslan, she and her followers left the place. Lucy and Susan went up to the Stone Table to see Aslan. But he was dead and there was nothing they could do.

Lucy and Susan stayed with the dead lion all night. But when the sun rose, something unusual happened. They heard a loud sound. When they turned around, they saw that the Stone Table was broken in two. And suddenly Aslan stood before them. He had risen from the dead. He said that although the Witch knew the deep magic, there was an even deeper magic that she did not know about. When a willing victim who has not committed treason is killed in place of a traitor, the Stone Table cracks and Death itself is defeated. Therefore, Aslan had come back to life.

After Aslan had died, Peter and Edmund had become the leaders of Aslan's army. They were now fighting a major battle against the Witch and her followers.

Edmund had shown great courage and had gone to attack directly at the Witch. He had destroyed her magic staff so she could no longer turn people to stone. But he had been badly injured and was now lying unconscious on the ground. Peter had run to save his brother, and was now fighting the Witch.

Peter, Edmund and their army were close to losing the battle. But at the last moment Aslan came and saved them.

All the many inhabitants of Narnia whom the Witch had turned to stone, Aslan had brought back to life. He now came running to the rescue accompanied by a large army.

Aslan roared.

Aslan killed the Witch. A few minutes later the battle was over and all of the Witch's followers had either been killed or fled. Lucy used the magical cordinal given to her by Father Christmas to heal the wounded. She also healed Edmund, who had been badly injured.

Together they all went to the castle of Cair Paravel.

Edmund, Peter, Susan and Lucy were proclaimed kings and queens of Narnia. Inside the castle, there were four thrones on which they sat. A big celebration was held. The next day Aslan was gone, and many years passed before he appeared again in Narnia. But Edmund, Peter, Susan and Lucy ruled as kings and queens of Narnia for the next several years.

Some mermaids came up from the sea and sang at the coronation of Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy.

Many years later, the four siblings had all grown up. They had gone on a hunt for the White Stag who is said to grant the wishes of those who catch it. Suddenly they came to the place where the lamppost stood. They had not been here for many years, and they only remembered the place in a distant memory.

Suddenly they came out through the wardrobe. They were now all children again and were dressed in the same clothes they were wearing when they had entered the wardrobe. Although they had been in Narnia for many years, no time had passed in England. It was the same day and the same hour as when they had gone into the wardrobe.

They told the professor about everything they had experienced in Narnia. And he believed them. He himself had been to Narnia when he was a child. They asked him if they would ever come back to Narnia again. He thought they would probably do that one day. But they should not try to get there. It would happen at a time when they least expected it. This is how the story about the wardrobe ended. But if the professor was right, it was only the beginning of more adventures in Narnia.

Edited September 3, 2023 by Lasse