Throughout the kingdom of Middle Earth, there are many who come to respect and admire Aragorn, in part because he is the heir and eventual king of Gondor, but also because he proves himself time and time again to be a noble warrior, with a brave and loving heart, who will fiercely defend his friends, and always do what is right.
Even those who should oppose him, like Boromir, who stands to lose his rule of the kingdom if Aragorn returns to the throne, departs the world with a bond to the son of Arathorn, saying ‘I would have gone with you to the end, my brother, my king.’ When Gandalf falls to the Balrog in the Mines of Moria, the broken fellowship turns to Aragorn for leadership, not because he has more authority or wisdom than the rest, but because they trust him to always have their best interests at heart and to prioritize the quest to destroy the One Ring and the safety of the peoples of Middle Earth above all else.
He is admired by all, from the Hobbits who first meet him as Strider in the Prancing Pony, to Eowyn of Rohan, who falls in love with him from the moment she sees him, and of course Arwen, his true love who sits beside him on the throne. But one character, in particular, shows a remarkable amount of reverence towards him, and that is Eowyn’s brother Eomer, who later becomes the king of Rohan. The two men first meet when Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli are pursuing a band of orcs across the plains of Rohan because the orcs have taken Merry and Pippin captive.
Although Eomer is wary of the strangers in his lands, and fears that they may be spies for the enemy, he is quickly won over by Aragorn’s honesty and heroism. Aragorn informs the riders that he and his companions have been traveling on foot for days trying to rescue their friends, much to the astonishment of all. ‘Wide wonder came into Eomer’s eyes’ and he states ‘Strider is too poor a name. Wingfoot I call you.’ This act of both valor and extreme loyalty in the face of all odds against them is what first inspires Eomer’s great respect for Aragorn.
He then discovers, much to his chagrin, that he may have slaughtered their friends, the hobbits, alongside the orcs that they killed in the night. Although Eomer isn’t particularly keen on Gimli, offering him many insults, which are quickly returned, he has enough admiration for Aragorn to offer them some horses. Not only are horses particularly precious to Rohan, making this quite an astounding gift, according to the film adaptation of The Two Towers, but the horse he gives to Aragorn is also that of his cousin Theodred, who has recently been killed. It is almost unheard of to give away a steed of the royal family to an outsider, which shows the esteem that Eomer already holds for Aragorn.
This kinship between the two men is only made firmer when they are forced to fight beside one another at the Battle of Helm’s Deep. During this long and grave conflict, the men stay side by side, protecting one another from many perils. ‘Together Eomer and Aragorn sprang through the door, their men close behind. The swords flashed from the sheath as one.’ When two people fight for each other's lives amidst such death and destruction, it creates a bond that is pure and forever, despite the futility and madness of the war around them. And when Eowyn is harmed in the Battle of Pelennor fields, when she defeats the Witch-king and receives a mortal wound similar to that of a Morgul blade, Eomer is devastated. He finds her on the battlefield and screams in pain as he believes her to be dead, but Aragorn is able to save her using the ancient healing techniques of the Athelas flower. In this sense, Eomer is once again indebted to Aragorn as he has not only saved the heir of Rohan’s life, but his sister’s also.
Although the audience doesn’t see so much of the development of their relationship in Peter Jackson’s film adaptations, it is demonstrated clearly in the scene of Aragorn’s Coronation. Despite the fact that Eomer is also a king at the time after the death of his uncle Theoden, he bows at Aragorn as he passes, the utmost sign of regard. In the book Eomer says 'since the days when you rose before me out of the green grass of the Downs, I have loved you, and that love shall not fail.' It is clear that the two will maintain a lifelong friendship in the Fourth Age of the world, when their kingdoms are united and enter into never before seen days of peace.