Literature Review
Peer to Peer Journal: Knowledge Based Article
Chapter 1.1
The Silmarillion is a composite work, a compilation of Tolkien’s unpublished and draft materials put together and published posthumously by his son Christopher Tolkien with the assistance of fantasy writer Guy Gavriel Kay. These narratives collectively tell the history of Eä, Tolkien’s mythological universe, from its creation through song by Ilúvatar (a lightly obscured Christian God figure) through three ages of immensely detailed and complicated history. As a result, this book is a corpus rather than a single text, consisting of representative materials offering a more or less complete picture of the web of legend J. R. R. Tolkien created and which serves as the backdrop to The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The Silmarillion begins with Ilúvatar’s creation of the universe through song. His demiurges (divine figures responsible for the creation of the world), a collective of beings known as the Valar, and their lesser servants, the Maiar, join his song and assist him in creating various aspects of the world. One of the Valar, Melkor, wants to create his own melody, one not sanctioned by Ilúvatar, to increase his own glory and power, and as a result he turns away from Ilúvatar and falls into evil. Melkor corrupts many of the Maiar, creating fire demons called Balrogs and turning one of them, Sauron, into his trusted lieutenant.
The Valar establish a realm in Eä called Valinor, where they plant two trees that shine with the light of the sun and moon. In the realm of Middle-earth, meanwhile, the firstborn Children of Ilúvatar – Elves – emerge for the first time. Many of the elves journey to Valinor to live with the Valar in the light of the Trees, but others stay in the twilight of Middle-earth. When Fëanor, the greatest elf-smith, captures the light of the Trees in jewels called the Silmarils, Melkor feigns repentance and enters Valinor.
He creates a rift between Fëanor and his brothers, kills the High King of the Elves, destroys the Trees, steals the Silmarils, and flees to Middle-earth. Fëanor and his sons swear vengeance on any who withhold the Silmarils from them and pursue Melkor, whom they name Morgoth (‘dark enemy’), to Middle-earth against the will of the Valar.
Along the way, they commit the world’s first kin-murder, when they slay other Elves for their ships. Many Elves (the Noldor) go with Fëanor to Middle-earth, and they battle against Morgoth, with the tide constantly turning in favour of one side or the other. The Valar refuse to intervene on the Elves’ behalf, and the way back to Valinor is barred to them because of the sins of Fëanor. Men, the second-born Children of Ilúvatar, awake in Middle-earth during this time, and some side with the Noldor, while others favour Morgoth.
The royal House of Bëor of Dorthonion, great men and heroes, side with the Elves, and their kingdom is destroyed in a great battle with Morgoth. Barahir of the House of Bëor saves the life of the elf-king Finrod Felagund, lord of Nargothrond. Barahir’s son Beren, who was a youth when the House of Bëor loses its lands to Morgoth, is the protagonist of ‘The Tale of Beren and Lúthien’, which describes his love for the Elf princess Lúthien, their mutual quest to recapture a Silmaril from Morgoth to prove Beren’s worthiness to marry her, and Beren’s resurrection through Lúthien’s love and sacrifice. Eventually the conflict between the Noldor (and their human allies) and Morgoth reaches a horrifying climax in the Nírnaeth Arnoediad, the Battle of Unnumbered Tears.
Morgoth attacks the Noldor with a vast army, and the Elves are in turn betrayed by Men whose minds have been turned by Morgoth. The King of the Noldor, Fingon, is slain by a Balrog, and the great hero of Men Húrin is captured by Morgoth and his family cursed – a curse which falls heavily on his son Túrin, whose tragic life (including the accidental murder of his closest friend, multiple encounters with the dragon Glaurung, and unwitting marriage to his sister) is detailed in ‘Túrin Turambar’. Only the Elvish city of Gondolin remains hidden from Morgoth, but the city is betrayed by a treacherous Elf. Eärendil, a survivor of Gondolin, sails to Valinor and entreats the Valar to come to the aid of Middle-earth. The Valar listen to Eärendil’s plea, take a great host to Middle-earth, and defeat and bind Morgoth. Elros, son of Eärendil, then becomes the king of Númenor, an island kingdom of Men in the sea between Valinor and Middle-earth. Morgoth’s servant Sauron eventually corrupts the royal house of Númenor, persuading their last king to make war on Valinor itself, and the Valar destroy the island, sinking it into the sea. Survivors of Númenor who were not tempted by Sauron, including Elendil and his sons Isildur and Anarion, sail to Middle-earth and establish the kingdoms of Gondor and Arnor, setting into motion a war with Sauron leading to the forging of the Rings of Power and the events of The Lord of the Rings.
1.2 Of the Beginning of Days
The Quenta Silmarillion forms the bulk of The Silmarillion and contains most of the familiar characters and stories. In this first chapter, we learn more about the struggles of the Valar with the fallen Melkor in their preparation of Arda for the Children of Ilúvatar: Elves and Men.
Before Arda was completely shaped, the First War between the Valar and Melkor began. At this time, the Vala Tulkas came to Arda to lend his strength in the fight against Melkor, and he has remained since. Melkor fled from the laughter and wrath of Tulkas, and in the peace that followed, order was established in the world and many things began to grow.
Needing light upon the world for growing things, Aulë made two lamps at Yavanna’s request—Illuin and Ormal—set at the north and south of the world, leaving the world always in daylight. During this time, the first plants and animals grew upon the earth.
The Valar then dwelled upon an island called Almaren, and while the Valar feasted and rested from their labors, Melkor came forth once more and began building an underground fortress in northern Middle-earth called Utumno, and he gathered into service many of the Maiar whom he had corrupted. Sickness and violence was set upon the earth with Melkor’s arrival, but the Valar could not find where he hid. Melkor, trusting the unassailable strength of Utumno and his servants, then came forth and toppled the lamps, disrupting the lands and seas and pouring flame over the earth. In their efforts to restrain the chaos of the earth, the Valar could not attack Melkor at that time.
In the tumult following the toppling of the lamps, Almaren was destroyed, and the Valar then moved their dwelling to Aman at the far western edge of the world, raising the mountains of Pelóri against invasion by Melkor and building their realm, Valinor, behind their defense.
At this time, Yavanna called forth with song the Two Trees of Valinor. The first to arise was Telperion, and he gave cool, silver light. The second was Laurelin, and she blazed forth in golden brilliance. The trees alternated in waxing and waning, and each day included an hour where both trees shone dimly and their lights mingled.
Middle-earth was not wholly forgotten during this time. Yavanna returned often to heal the hurts brought against her creatures by Melkor, and she often asked the other Valar to make war against him. Oromë would also ride in Middle-earth, and the servants of Melkor shrunk from him but quickly returned at his leaving.
The world was prepared for the arrival of the Children of Ilúvatar—Elves and Men—whom the Valar are supposed to guide. Elves dwell upon Arda until its ending, and of them, great beauty and joy will come. They die only by being slain or wasted by grief, and their spirits go to the halls of Mandos, from which they may be reborn. The lengths of the Elves’ lives, however, leave them weary and sorrowed. Men, on the other hand, are mortal and are destined to seek beyond the world and find no rest within it. They possess greater control over their fates and, as a result, are often a grief to Manwë, as they choose the paths of evil. Ilúvatar, however, emphasizes once more that all actions taken—no matter how evil they may seem—only serve his purposes in the end.
Early in the history of the world, Aulë made the Dwarves beneath the mountains of Middle-earth, desiring greatly the company of the Children of Ilúvatar, to whom he hoped to teach his knowledge and skills. The Dwarves were made steadfast and hardy in hopes that they would withstand the evil of Melkor that plagued that land.
Aulë—sensing that the other Valar would not approve—wrought the Seven Fathers of the Dwarves in secret, but as soon as they were made, Ilúvatar spoke to him of his disapproval that Aulë should exceed his authority by attempting something that by rights belonged to Ilúvatar alone. Rebuked, Aulë made to smite the Dwarves, but they lifted their hands and begged for mercy, and Ilúvatar stopped him, as the Dwarves now had life and voices of their own.
It was told by Ilúvatar, though, that the Dwarves could not awaken before the Elves, and so the Seven Fathers of the Dwarves were put into a sleep beneath the mountain.
Aulë revealed to his wife Yavanna what he had done, and she was grieved because—without her influence—she feared that the Dwarves would ever be at odds with her own creations, the olvar (plants) and kelvar (animals).
Yavanna sought the counsel of Manwë, asking if her creations would ever be free of dominion by others. She feared most for the trees, which could not fight and escape, as could animals, and the wood of which would lead the other creatures to cut them down without regard. Yavanna recalled the Music of the Ainur, then, and a strain of music in which some of the trees lifted their branches and sang to Ilúvatar.
It was then said that, when the Firstborn (Elves) awoke, spirits also would come down into certain of the plants and animals in the form of the great Eagles and the Shepherds of the Trees (Ents). Aulë and Yavanna, however, and the “children” of each, would often be in conflict in the ages to come.
1.3 Of the Coming of the Elves and the Captivity of Melkor
Middle-earth remained under the evil influence of Melkor while the Valar stay safe in Aman. Melkor gathered to him other corrupted creatures in Utumno and built a stronghold in northern Beleriand called Angband, where Sauron was made commander. During this time, however, all was not forsaken, and Yavanna and Oromë continued to visit Middle-earth, and they encouraged their peers to make war against Melkor, in preparation for the arrival of the Elves.
It was told by Mandos, though, that the Elves would awaken under the stars, and so Varda made new and brighter formations of stars in the sky to give light to Middle-earth and serve as warning to Melkor. Shortly after she finished her task, the Elves awakened by Cuiviénen and beheld first the light of the stars.
Sometime after, Oromë rode into the eastern realms of Middle-earth and heard the sound of singing and came upon the Elves. He went to them and many fled, afraid, but the most noble among them took courage and—seeing the light of Aman in his face—approached him and discovered him to be benevolent.
It is believed, however, that by Melkor’s watchfulness, he was the first of the Ainur to become aware of the Elves, and many of them he captured and took to his prisons, where they were made into the first Orcs. He also spread rumors of Oromë, telling the Elves that they should fear him, and for this reason, many fled from him and were also captured by Melkor.
When Oromë brought news of the Elves’ arrival to the other Valar, they rejoiced and decided to make war against Melkor. The siege of Utumno was terrible, and many of the lands were damaged and reshaped, and even the Elves perceived the shaking of the earth and the light of fires to the north. At last, Melkor was wrestled to the ground by Tulkas and bound in chains and taken to judgment in Valinor, where it was decided that he would abide in the halls of Mandos for three ages.
The Valar did not discover all of the depths of Angband and Utumno, and many foul creatures remained there or fled from the siege; nor did they find Sauron, and so evil—while lessened—remained in Middle-earth.
The Valar then sat in council again, deciding what to do about the Elves. Many of the Valar desired the fellowship of the Elves and to keep them safe and wished to bring them to Valinor; others opposed. At last, the final decision was made to summon the Elves to Valinor, and of this decision, much grief would arise.
The Elves, though, having seen nothing of the Valar save their aggression, were reluctant to heed the summons, and so Oromë invited three ambassadors—Ingwë, Finwë, and Elwë—to come with him to Valinor. Enamored by the light of Valinor and the splendor of those lands, the three ambassadors convinced many of the Elves to follow them to Aman.
Nonetheless, all could not be convinced, and some remained behind or forsook the journey along the way. Those who did journey to Valinor were then sundered into three groups: the Vanyar, under the guidance of Ingwë, King of all the Eldar; the Noldor, behind Finwë their king; and the Teleri, the largest and most reluctant host, who followed Elwë. These Elves are called the Eldar or the Calaquendi (Elves of light), while those who remained behind are the Moriquendi (Elves of darkness).
The journey of the Elves to Valinor was long and tedious, for there was no road and many of the Elves remained fearful and reluctant, and when Oromë on occasion had to leave them, they would stop until he returned to guide them. Eventually, the host reached the Anduin and the Misty Mountains—lifted to terrible heights by Melkor to hinder the riding of Oromë—and the Teleri dallied long on the shores of the Anduin and became separated from the Noldor and Vanyar, who were more eager to follow Oromë. Some of the Teleri remained at the Anduin and became the Nandor, but Elwë eventually led the majority of his people over the Misty Mountains and, from there, northward into Beleriand.
1.4 Of Thingol and Melian
Melian was a Maia, one of the Ainur, and her singing was renowned in Valinor. She went to Middle-earth to fill the silence with her voice and the songs of birds.
At this time, the hosts of the Noldor and the Teleri were separated by forests, and Elwë went often through the forests to visit his friend Finwë. It was during this time that he heard the singing of Melian, and—enchanted and forgetful of his purpose—he followed the sound until he came upon her in a clearing in Nan Elmoth. Enamored by her, he took her hand, and a spell was set upon him that they stood together for many years, during which he forgot his people and abided with her.
The people of Elwë sought him but did not find him, and Olwë his brother then took the kingship of the Teleri and led them to Aman. Elwë never made it to Valinor, and he and Melian became king and queen of Doriath. His people were the Sindar—the Grey Elves—and they were known for Melian’s power and the fact that, of all the Sindar, Elwë alone had seen the light of the Trees. In later years, he became known by the Sindarin name Elu Thingol.
1.5 Of Eldamar and the Princes of the Edalië
At last, the Noldor and the Vanyar arrive at the shores of Middle-earth, where they first meet Ulmo and develop their love for the sea. It is also Ulmo who devices the means to transport them: He uproots and island and draws it across the sea to Aman with the Eldar upon it.
Unfortunately, though, the Teleri had dawdled too long in eastern Beleriand, searching for Elwë. When they heard that Finwë and Ingwë had departed, many continued to the shore, where they befriended Ossë and Uinen and learned sea-music and sea-lore and fell in love with the sea. Others of the Teleri, however, remained in eastern Beleriand, searching still for Elwë.
To the grief of Ossë, Ulmo returned to bear the Teleri over the sea, also on an island. Some of the Teleri were persuaded to remain behind: the Falathrim, of whom Círdan was lord. Those left searching for Elwë also wished to travel to Valinor, but Ulmo and Olwë would not wait, and they were left behind as the Eglath—the Forsaken People—and when Elwë awoke from his long trance, they settled in the forests as his people.
Ossë, meanwhile, followed Olwë’s people upon their island, and he begged Ulmo to stay their passage. Having believed from the beginning that the Elves should remain in Middle-earth and also knowing the hearts of the Teleri and their love of the sea, Ulmo heeded the request, and anchored the island off the shores of Valinor, much to the displeasure of the other Valar and the dismay of Finwë. This island came to be known as Tol Eressëa, the Lonely Isle.
The Valar shaped the land of Valinor for the Noldor and Vanyar, breaking a gap in the Pelóri mountains to form the Calacirya, the Pass of Light, through which the Light of the Trees reached the shores of Aman and the western shore of Tol Eressëa. They raised a green hill called Túna, where the city of Tirion was built and the Vanyar and Noldor dwelt together in fellowship.
The Vanyar were the beloved of Manwë and Varda, but Aulë and his people loved most the Noldor, who loved speech and craft. It was the Noldor—the House of Finwë—who first found gemstones and learned to shape them, giving them freely to others, enriching Valinor.
Finwë’s house is summarized: his three sons, Fëanor, Fingolfin, and Finarfin, and their children. Fëanor was known for his skill with craft and words; Fingolfin was strongest and most valiant; and Finarfin was wisest and known also for bringing together the House of Finwë and the House of Olwë through his marriage to Olwë’s daughter Eärwen.
After many ages upon Tol Eressëa, the Teleri began to feel conflicted by their love of the sea and their love of the light that came through Calacirya, and at last, desired the light of Valinor and to see their kinsmen again enough to leave Tol Eressëa. Ossë was grieved but obeyed their wishes and taught them the art of shipbuilding, giving them also a gift of swans by which their ships were drawn over the sea. In Valinor, they dwelt on the shores where they could meet their friends in Valmar and Tirion, if they desired, but also walk in the waves, beneath the stars. They scattered the beach with gemstones and found the first pearls; in their harbor were their famous ships, shaped as swans.
The Vanyar, also, felt their hearts change and desired the full light of Valinor and moved to dwell with Manwë or in the forests surrounding Valinor. The kings, then, were Finwë in Tirion, Olwë in Alqualondë, and Ingwë of the Vanyar was King of all the Eldar.
The Noldor shared a love of knowledge and exploration, not least of all Fëanor son of Finwë, and he and his seven sons explored the lands of Aman and were often guests of Aulë and Celegorm—third son of Fëanor—of Oromë.
1.6 Of Fëanor and the Unchaining of Melkor
The three races of Elves were now in Valinor, and Aman was its most blissful and productive. Among the illustrious achievements of this age was the invention of writing by Rúmil of Tirion, of the Noldor. Also at this time, Fëanor—the firstborn son of Noldorin king Finwë—was born in Tirion.
While bearing her son, Fëanor’s mother Miriel put forth too much of her spirit and body into him and was consumed, too weary to go on living. She was sent to the Gardens of Lórien, where her spirit left her body and fled to Mandos, and Finwë alone of all the Elves in Aman knew grief and went to Lórien no more, giving his love instead to Fëanor, who grew swiftly and quickly became skilled in craft and lore, devising the first gemstones and improving the alphabet of Rúmil.
While still young, Fëanor married Nerdanel, daughter of Mahtan. From Mahtan, Fëanor learned how to make things from metal and stone. Nerdanel alone could restrain the temper of her fiery husband, although he eventually became too much even for her. Nerdanel and Fëanor had seven sons.
Around this time, Finwë decided to remarry and wed Indis of the Vanyar. Finwë and Indis had two sons—Fingolfin and Finarfin—and their marriage was not pleasing to Fëanor. Fëanor lived apart from them and busied himself with craft.
It also came to pass that Melkor’s term of imprisonment ended, and he was brought before the Valar, where he swore to aid in healing the hurts he had caused. Manwë granted him pardon then, and he gave his counsel to the Valar and the Eldar. Soon, he was allowed to wander Aman at will, and though several of the Valar saw through to the evil that Manwë could not perceive, they did not rebel.
The Noldor, however, loved the new skills that Melkor could teach them, and through them, Melkor spread the lies that would be their undoing. Fëanor, however, always hated and mistrusted Melkor, and though Melkor would later claim to have played a role in Fëanor’s genius, this was in fact a lie, and Fëanor always worked alone.
1.7 Of the Silmarils and the Unrest of the Noldor
When Fëanor came to his fullest creative power, he created the Silmarils, three jewels filled with the Light of the Two Trees. The Silmarils were hallowed by Varda so that no one mortal, evil, or with unclean hands could touch them. The people of Aman were delighted with the Silmarils, and Fëanor often displayed them at festivals.
When Melkor saw them, his desire to sunder the Valar and the Elves increased, and he began to spread rumors and lies among the Elves. While at first, little came of his labor, with time, the Elves began to whisper of what he told them, chief of which was that the Valar had brought the Eldar to Aman out of jealousy, fearing that the Elves would flourish beyond their control. The Valar had not yet spoken to the Elves of mortal Men, and this Melkor also used to his devices, claiming that the Valar preferred that the weaker mortal race should inherit Middle-earth.
The Noldor paid heed to these words, and a hunger for his own kingdom grew especially in Fëanor. While Fëanor despised Melkor, Melkor’s words reached him nonetheless, and he began to jealously guard the Silmarils. Seeing the strife between Fëanor and the children of Indis, Melkor also spread lies that Fingolfin sought to supplant Fëanor’s rights as the eldest son; to Fingolfin and Finarfin, he told that Fëanor would drive them from their homes in Tirion.
Not long after, the Noldor began crafting weapons and speaking openly of rebellion, especially Fëanor. Fingolfin sought the counsel of his father Finwë concerning Fëanor, and Fëanor threatened him with a sword on the palace stairs, earning himself twelve years of banishment from Tirion, a decree laid down by the Valar. At this time, the Valar also uncovered Melkor as the root of the rumors, but Melkor had fled and could not be found, although a shadow came over the land that told them that he remained in Aman.
Fëanor went to Formenos to serve the terms of his banishment, taking his sons and his father Finwë with him. Fingolfin ruled the Noldor in his father’s stead. Melkor then came to Fëanor in Formenos and offered to help him form his own kingdom, adding that the Silmarils were at risk in any realm of the Valar. Fëanor saw through his fair words, though, and slammed the door in his face. Finwë, fearful of his son’s daring insolence, sent word immediately to the Valar.
Melkor fled then to Middle-earth, and the shadow was removed from Valinor, but not knowing what evil may still come, the people of Aman looked with fear to the future.
1.8 Of the Darkening of Valinor
Hearing that Melkor had fled and suspecting that he had gone to his strongholds in the north of Middle-earth, Oromë and Tulkas pursued him, but he had turned back and gone—unknown to the Valar—into the south of Aman, to the land of Avathar. There lived Ungoliant the spider, in endless hunger, and she devoured all light that she could find and spun forth webs of darkness between a cleft in the mountains. Melkor persuaded her into his service by offering her anything she demanded, a promise he did not intend to keep.
Amid a cloak of darkness, Melkor and Ungoliant surveyed the realm of Valinor, which was in a time of festival honoring the gathering of fruits. Manwë had planned the festival, intending to heal the feud between the princes of the Noldor. Fëanor was commanded to come, but Finwë and Fëanor’s sons remained in Formenos, along with the Silmarils. Before the throne of Manwë, Fëanor met Fingolfin, who pardoned the threat Fëanor had made in Tirion and promised to follow him.
At the same time, the Trees mingled, and Ungoliant and Melkor came forth to Ezellohar, where the Trees stood. Melkor wounded each Tree with his spear and their sap poured forth, and Ungoliant drank them until they were dried and withered, swelling to a size that even Melkor feared and putting out clouds of darkness.
Darkness fell then on Valinor. The darkness—being made from the destruction of light—was malicious and all sight, sound, and will were lost. Manwë knew that it was the work of Melkor and Oromë and Tulkas set forth in pursuit of him, but they were lost amid the blindness and confusion of the darkness put forth by Ungoliant.
1.9 Of the Flight of the Noldor
The Valar sat in council around Ezellohar, and it was revealed that the Trees had died and were beyond the healing of Yavanna. However, with the light of the Silmarils, the Trees could be healed and restored, and so the Valar asked Fëanor for the Silmarils.
Fëanor—who had not yet heard of his father’s murder—believed that he should be slain if he relinquished the light of his stones, and he refused. At that time also, news came from Formenos that Finwë had been killed and the Silmarils stolen. Fëanor was anguished over the loss of his father, and he cursed Melkor and gave him the name “Morgoth” and fled from the council of the Valar.
Meanwhile, Melkor and Ungoliant crossed the north of Aman, across the Helcaraxë, and into the north of Middle-earth. Melkor sought to escape Ungoliant, and she perceived this and stayed him, and he fed her one by one all of the treasures of Formenos—except for the Silmarils. The Silmarils had begun to burn him, but he held them away from her, until she rose against him and tried to strangle him with webs of darkness. He let forth a terrible cry then that echoed ever after in that land—called Lammoth—and it summoned from the depths of Angband the Balrogs that the Valar had failed to discover. With their whips, they broke her webs and she fled, frightened and under a cover of darkness, to Nan Dungortheb, the Valley of Dreadful Death.
Melkor made for himself an iron crown and—although they burned his hands with a pain that would never diminish—he set the Silmarils in it and ruled his armies from his throne. He raised the triple peaks of Thangorodrim and bred the evil creatures that served him.
Meanwhile, in Valinor, the Noldor returned to Tirion, and Fëanor summoned them to hear him speak, claiming the kingship of the Noldor and encouraging the Noldor to seek the lands and freedom of Middle-earth. He swore a terrible oath then, and his sons also, to pursue unrelenting anyone who kept a Silmaril from them, calling the Everlasting Darkness upon themselves if they failed to keep their oath. The House of Finwë was then divided in their allegiance, with some speaking against Fëanor and others eager to be gone.
Most of the Noldorin people also wanted to be gone and would not be persuaded by Finarfin to think more on their decision. Fëanor hastened them, fearing that time would cool the angry flames that drove them—fearing also the intervention of the Valar—but the Valar, aggrieved, were silent.
The majority of the Noldorin people refused to renounce Fingolfin as king, though, and so they went forth divided into two hosts with Fingolfin’s the larger. Fingolfin did not wish to go, but he was urged by his son Fingon and would not desert his people nor leave them to Fëanor, and before the throne of Manwë, he had made the promise to follow Fëanor’s lead and was now bound to it. Finarfin followed for the same reasons as Fingolfin, but he was most loathing to depart. Roughly ten percent of the Noldor remained in Tirion for various reason, none of them cowardice.
As the Noldor prepared to depart, Manwë at last sent a herald who cautioned the Noldor to stay behind—portending only tragedy on their road—and exiling Fëanor (again). Fëanor spoke again to the Noldor, asking them to find joy and freedom since Valinor had proven such a disappointment in both regards. To the herald, he said that—even if he could not destroy Melkor—he would not sit idle in his grief. So potent were the words of Fëanor that the herald bowed before him and the Noldor left Tirion.
Fëanor knew that he needed ships to follow Melkor to Middle-earth, and he tried to persuade the Teleri to join the Noldor in rebellion. But Olwë refused the use of the Telerin ships, and when the Noldor tried to take them by force, the first kinslaying resulted, and many Telerin mariners were slain. As the Noldor sailed northward, the seas rose against them and some were lost, but most made it to the wastes of Araman in the far north of Aman.
There, the Doom of the Noldor was spoken by Mandos, but Fëanor persisted in his quest f for Middle-earth, although his half-brother Finarfin turned back and received the pardon of the Valar and became the High King of the Noldor in Tirion.
Those Noldor who kept their road arrived then at the Helcaraxë—the grinding ice—and had the choice of two roads: by ship or across the ice. There were not enough ships for all of the Noldor, but none wanted to be left behind while others went first, and the first fear of treachery awakened. Fëanor and his sons then took all who were loyal to them and stole the ships in the night, leaving Fingolfin and his people behind, arriving in Middle-earth at the firth of Drengist.
Fëanor then gave order to burn the ships, and only his eldest son Maedhros stood aside in loyalty to his great friendship with Fingon. Across the sea, Fingolfin’s people could see the red light on the clouds and knew they’d been betrayed. Not wishing to return to Tirion, they decided to brave the Helcaraxë. Many were lost on this journey, but the people of Fingolfin greatly wished to again meet the people of Fëanor.
1.9. 1 Of the Sindar
In Middle-earth, in Beleriand, the Elves that had remained behind took Elwë as their lord. These Elves were called the Sindar, and in their language, Elwë was called Elu Thingol. Under his guidance and that of Melian, the Sindar thrived to be the wisest and most skillful of the Elves in Middle-earth, and while Melkor was still chained and Valinor was its fairest and brightest, a daughter Lúthien was born to Thingol and Melian.
In the second age of Melkor’s captivity, the Dwarves came also into Beleriand and built great halls in the sides of Ered Luin, the Blue Montains, chiefly Nogrod and Belegost. The Eldar welcomed the Dwarves—surprised to find that they were not the only people to speak and make things with their hands—although few learned the Dwarvish language and fewer ventured into their halls. The Dwarves built a road across Beleriand, and the Dwarves and the Elves profited much from each other. Later, the Dwarves would form a stronger bond with the Noldor, whose work with gemstones they would prize above all else.
At this time also, Melian foresaw that the peace would not last forever, and Thingol paid the Dwarves to delve him an underground realm of caves called Menegroth. Under the guidance of Melian, the Elves and Dwarves worked together to create Menegroth in the likeness of Valinor, and it was the fairest dwelling east of the sea.
In the third age of Melkor’s captivity, the Dwarves reported to Thingol that the servants of Melkor lived still in the north and had begun to again roam the land. Uneasy at such reports, Thingol commissioned the Dwarves to make weapons for his people, and the Sindar learned much of the Dwarves, although they never surpassed them in skill, and the lands were free from evil once more.
In previous chapters, it was told of Lenwë’s people, who forsook the journey of the Elves at the great river Anduin and later migrated further north. Lenwë’s people were a woodland folk, and they did not have weapons of steel. Hearing of the might of Thingol’s realm, Denethor, son of Lenwë, gathered his people and brought them over the mountains and into Beleriand, where they were welcomed by Thingol and dwelt in the land of Ossiriand.
At this time also, Daeron devised the Cirth (runes), and the Dwarves praised it and learned it, and it spread throughout Middle-earth in the ensuing years, although Daeron’s own people—the Sindar—did not value it so much and used it little.
When Melkor and Ungoliant fled back to Middle-earth, his great cry at Lammoth was heard by the Sindar, and they knew that it portended death. By the power of Melian, Ungoliant was kept from entering Thingol’s realm, and Ungoliant dwelt in the mountains just north that were afterward called Ered Gorgoroth. In secret, Melkor also dispensed his armies of Orcs to attack Thingol and the Elves that lived scattered throughout Beleriand, sundering Thingol in the east from Círdan in the west. Thingol called for the aid of Denethor and the Elves of Ossiriand, and with the help of the Dwarves, the Orcs were stopped. Denethor, however, was killed in the onslaught, although his death was avenged by Thingol. In grief, the Elves of Ossiriand never took another king. The death of Denethor also frightened his people, and they never came forth into open war again but kept to themselves in secrecy in Ossiriand.
The attack upon Círdan in the west, however, was successful, and his people were driven to the edge of the sea. Thingol called as many of his people as he could into his realm, and Melian fenced the area against all intruders—called the Girdle of Melian—and the realm was called Doriath. Except in Doriath and the walled havens at Falas, the servants of Melkor roamed at will.
1.9.2 Of the Sun and Moon and the Hiding of Valinor
After Melkor and Ungoliant fled to Middle-earth, the Valar sat long in thought, holding council without voices, in grief of both the loss of the Trees and the corruption of Fëanor. When Manwë’s herald told of Fëanor’s answer, he wept, and Mandos foresaw that Fëanor would soon die.
Yavanna and Nienna attempted to heal the Trees, but all that they yielded before the Trees died was a single silver flower from Telperion and a single golden fruit from Laurelin. These they gave to Aulë, and his people made vessels for them—the Sun (Anar) and the Moon (Isil)—and Varda gave them power to traverse the skies, wishing to light all of Arda to hinder the work of Melkor and for the sakes of the Elves of Middle-earth and the Men, who Manwë believed would be arriving soon.
Arien was chosen from among the Maiar to guide the Sun, for she had cared for Laurelin and had not feared Laurelin’s heat. She was a spirit of fire whom Melkor had not corrupted to his service. Tilion was chosen from among the Maiar to guide the Moon; he was a hunter of Oromë and he loved silver, and he begged to be the keeper of the last flower of Telperion. Arien was the more powerful of the two and as bright as a flame. Not even the Elves could look her in the eye.
Isil was the first of the vessels to be ready and—as Telperion had been the older of the Trees—was the first of the lights put into the sky. Many things which had been under the sleep of Yavanna awakened then, and the Elves were delighted. Fingolfin’s host first set foot into Middle-earth with the rising of Isil.
When Tilion had crossed the sky seven times with Isil, Anar was launched and brought full light to the world. Morgoth was frightened by this and hid deep in Angband, withdrawing his servants, and put forth smoke to hide his realm from the light of the Sun.
Varda’s original plan was to have the two vessels always aloft in the sky but on opposing paths, meeting above the middle of the earth once per day, in the fashion of the Mingling of the Lights. But Tilion did not hold his course and sought to come near Arien, although she scorched him, and the Moon was darkened. Because of Tilion’s waywardness and the protests of Estë and Lórien that sleep had been banished and the stars were hidden in the splendor of Anar’s light, Varda changed her counsel and allowed Anar to sink into the west and pass beneath Arda, allowing a restful time of half-light before Anar rose anew in the east. Isil was supposed to move in a like manner, but Tilion was inconsistent in his pace and was still drawn to Arien, and there are times when both vessels are in the sky or Isil blocks Anar and the light of day.
The light was still fairest in Valinor, for Anar rested there at the end of each day, but the light of Anar and Isil is not as pure as the light of the Trees, unspoiled by Ungoliant. That light exists only in the Silmarils. Morgoth hated both Isil and Anar and attempted to assail Tilion, but he was not successful. Having put his power into evil creatures, Melkor’s power had become dispersed across and firmly bound to the earth, and he no longer had the power to assail Arien or even bear her glance for long. He put out clouds over his land to hide from her light.
The Valar grew fearful with the attack on Tilion, however, and they strengthened the mountains that guarded their lands and increased their vigilance and set also the Enchanted Isles, a dangerous network of islands shrouded in mist and weariness, in the sea before Tol Eressëa. Anyone who set foot on these islands fell into interminable slumber, and it was as Mandos had foretold: Aman was shut against the exiled Noldor.
1.9.3 Of Men
As the Years of the Sun began, the Valar left Middle-earth to the control of Morgoth, as they were safe in Valinor, except for Ulmo, who gathered and passed news through the waters. Life, however, flourished in Middle-earth, and at the first rising of the Sun, Men awakened in Hildórien.
Because they woke in the first light of the Sun, Men tended to stray toward it, and—unlike the Elves—the Valar did not come to council and guide them. Men, then, have tended to fear the Valar, not understanding them or their purposes. Ulmo, though, again did not forsake the children of Middle-earth and attempted to guide Men through messages in the water. Lacking the skill of the Elves to perceive these messages, though, Men were drawn to the waters but did not know why.
Instead, Men learned much of the Moriquendi—Dark Elves—who had not set out on the paths to Valinor. Morgoth, being held in check by the new light, did not have the power to wander far abroad, and Men spread out over the land and many new things grew in Middle-earth. The peace was brief, however, as war with Morgoth grew nearer.
Unlike the Elves, Men are mortal and succumb easily to illness and accidents. Their fates after death is known by none save Manwë and Mandos (Námo), and it is speculated that perhaps the Valar do not even control their fates after death. This was not told in the Music. In the early years of Men in Middle-earth, Men and Elves fought side by side, and many were counted as heroes among the Elves.
1.9.4 Of the Return of the Noldor
Fëanor and his sons, upon coming to Lammoth and setting fire to the ships, drew the attention of both Fingolfin still in Aman and the Orcs of Morgoth. After Fëanor’s people had settled in Mithrim, they were assaulted by Morgoth’s minions in the Battle-under-Stars, and though they’d been taken at unawares, the Noldor were swiftly victorious.
Fëanor, though, in his wrath, kept pursuit, thinking to come to Morgoth himself, and Balrogs came upon him. Fëanor was wounded but fought bravely, and before he was killed, his sons arrived and drove away the Balrogs. Before he died, he asked them to renew their oath and avenge his death and three times cursed the name of Morgoth. So strong was the fire of his spirit that it burned his body to ash.
In the hour of Fëanor’s death, Morgoth sent a messenger conceding defeat, and Maedhros—the eldest son of Fëanor—wished to feign treaty with him. But Morgoth was also treacherous in his intent, and he arrived with a larger force than Maedhros and captured him, holding him hostage until the Noldor agreed to depart from Beleriand and forsake the war. The sons of Fëanor, knowing that Morgoth would not release their brother and being bound by their oath, could do nothing, and Morgoth hung Maedhros from a precipice of Thangorodrim by his right hand in a band of steel.
Meanwhile, Fingolfin had returned to Middle-earth, and the servants of Morgoth fled in terror from the light of the sun. Fingolfin and his people smote upon the gates of Angband but were not answered and so retreated to Mithrim. There was much animosity toward the people of Fëanor by the people of Fingolfin, who had endured much hardship in crossing the ice. The people of Fëanor marveled at the return of their kinsmen, and indeed, many repented of the burning but would not meet with Fingolfin’s folk for shame.
It was as the curse had said: that fear of treachery should impede what the Noldor may accomplish. But Fingon, the eldest son of Fingolfin and once a good friend of Maedhros, vowed to heal the divide between their people. Alone and telling no one of his intentions, Fingon went to Thangorodrim under a cover of darkness to search for his cousin. In defiance of Morgoth, he sang a song of Valinor and Maedhros sang back in answer. Fingon found him then, but could not reach his cousin high upon Thangorodrim. Maedhros begged Fingon to kill him with his bow, but even as Fingon prepared to do so, Thorondor of the Great Eagles of Manwë flew down and bore Fingon to Maedhros. The steel of Angband would not be released from the rock, so Fingon cut Maedhros’s hand off at the wrist.
Maedhros was healed over time and Fingon justly won renown for his deed. Maedhros also begged the pardon of Fingolfin for the desertion of Araman and turned over to him the kingship of the Noldor, healing the feud between their people. The united Noldor set watch upon Angband from the east, south, and west and began to explore the realm of Beleriand.
King Thingol in Doriath did not like the idea of so many princes arrived from the west and, under the wisdom of Melian, did not trust that the peace would last and would not remove the Girdle from Doriath. Only the children of Finarfin were allowed in his realm, for their mother Eärwen was the daughter of his brother Olwë. Angrod was the first to visit Doriath, and he told Thingol of the Noldor but not of the exile, oath, and kinslaying. Thingol gave leave for the Noldor to dwell north and east of his realm but would not give permission for any to live in Doriath or to assume control over his people living elsewhere in Beleriand, making a claim as king of all of Beleriand.
The Noldor held council in Mithrim, and Angrod returned bearing Thingol’s message, and it angered the sons of Fëanor, though Maedhros held that Thingol would be glad to have descendents of Finwë as his neighbors, protecting his borders. The Noldor then took their realms. Maedhros chose the northernmost realm called the March of Maedhros where attack from Angband would fall first. Caranthir also met the first Dwarves, and although they did not like each other, they formed an allegiance out of mutual hate for Morgoth, and the Dwarves learned much of the Noldor while great riches came to Caranthir.
After twenty years, Fingolfin held a festival to which all the Elves of Beleriand came, and there was joy and peace for Morgoth was shut behind his gates. Thirty years after the festival, Turgon and Finrod journeyed together along the River Sirion, and Ulmo came to each in dreams, bidding him to seek secret strongholds. Admiring the caves of Menegroth, Finrod sought Thingol’s counsel and was told of a series of caves along the River Narog, and Finrod there built his underground realm Nargothrond with the help of Dwarves from the Blue Mountains. The Dwarves also made for him a necklace called Nauglamír of exceptional loveliness, and he was afterwards known as Felagund, “hewer of caves.”
When Finrod went forth into his realm, but Galadriel would not follow for the great love between her and Celeborn, kinsman of Thingol. In Doriath she remained and learned the wisdom of Melian.
Turgon remembered and longed for Tirion, and Ulmo came again to him and had him go again into the Vale of Sirion, where he found a hidden place encircled by mountains with a hill of stone at its center. In secret, he began to devise a realm located there, fashioned after Tirion.
Morgoth, meanwhile, decided to test his strength again, but his forces were assailed on either side by the people of Fingolfin and Maedhros and quickly defeated in what would later be called the Dagor Aglareb, the Glorious Battle. The Noldor then drew closer to Angband and maintained for four hundred years the Siege of Angband when no servant of Morgoth dared past its gates for fear of the Noldorin wrath. They could not, however, hold their leaguer to the north, where there was impassable snow and ice, and through this area, he sent orcs to take alive as many of the Eldar as they could. Setting fear in them, he released them again among their people to spread foul rumors and ignite dissension. The first of the dragons, Glaurang, also came upon the Elves at this time, but was driven back by Fingon and his archers.
Great peace and prosperity lay upon Beleriand for hundreds of years, and wonderful things were accomplished. In places, the Noldor and the Sindar became as united as one people, although the Noldor were stronger and wiser. The Sindar, though, possessed greater love of natural things and were more skilled in music.
1.9.5 Of Beleriand and Its Realms
Chapter Fourteen summarizes the geography of Beleriand and how the Eldar divided it into realms and held the Siege of Angband.
To the far north of Beleriand, Melkor had raised the Iron Mountains in defense of Utumno and Angband and, over these, the triple towers of Thangorodrim, built of filth and slag from his subterranean realm. Angband was deep—“endless dungeons”—and the Valar in their haste had not cleared it fully, and many foul things remained there even after Melkor had been taken captive.
To the west of Angband was Hithlum, a cold land but fertile, and the Noldor raised their horses there upon Ard-Galen. Fingolfin and his son Fingon held this realm. To the west of Hithlum, warmed by the winds from the sea, was the land of Nevrast, which was ruled by Fingolfin’s second son Turgon before he departed for Gondolin.
To the east of Hithlum stretched the great highland of Dorthonion, overlooking the fertile plains of Ard-Galen. This land was held by Angrod and Aegnor, brothers of Finrod Felagund. Few Elves lived there because the land was barren and it was believed that the treacherous highland would not be lightly crossed by Morgoth.
Finrod Felagund kept the Pass of Sirion where the River Sirion flowed, and upon the island Tol Sirion, he built his great watchtower Minas Tirith. When Finrod went to Nargothrond, this fortress he left to the keeping of his brother Orodreth. The River Sirion cut the land of Beleriand in half. To the west lay the realm of Nargothrond—which extended from Sirion to the sea except for the Falas, kept by Círdan, close in friendship with Finrod—and was ruled by Finrod Felagund. Nargothrond was the most extensive realm in Beleriand.
Eastern Beleriand stretched on the other side of the Sirion, the widest land in Beleriand. Here was Nan Dungortheb, a terrifying place north of Doriath where the Noldor passed only at great need, keeping close to Doriath. Here, Ungoliant had fled and defiled the land, and her offspring remained and wove their webs. The water that came out of Nan Dungortheb was poisonous and filled the hearts of those who drank it with thoughts of madness and darkness.
South of Nan Dungortheb laid Doriath, which lay within the Girdle of Melian and into which no one could pass against King Thingol’s will.
In Eastern Beleriand, from the north, flowed the river Gelion, which split into the seven rivers after which Ossiriand—the Land of the Seven Rivers—was named. Ossiriand was bordered in the East by the Blue Moutains (Ered Luin/Ered Lindon). In Ossiriand, the Green Elves (Laiquendi) lived, and the Noldor named the mountains Ered Lindon after the sound of their singing.
The area east of Dorthonion was most open to attack, and here the Sons of Fëanor lived with their people. Maedhros held the northernmost realm in the March of Maedhros. South from him was the land of Himlad, guarded by Celegorm and Curufin. To the east, where the hills failed, was the gap held by Maglor and—south of him—the land held by Caranthir, called Thargelion. The people of the Sons of Fëanor kept mostly to the northern parts of the land—although the youngest sons Amrod and Amras kept lands to the south—except to hunt in the forests in the south.
1.9.6 Of the Noldor in Beleriand
After the Glorious Battle (Dagor Aglareb), Turgon felt unease in his heart and returned to the secret vale that Ulmo had shown him, taking with him the strongest and most skillful of his people. After two hundred and fifty years of secret toil, the city that was known in the Sindarin tongue as Gondolin was finished. In the nearby waters of the Sirion, Ulmo set his protection so that none should find Gondolin against the will of Turgon. Turgon summoned his people, along with some of his father Fingolfin’s people and many of the Sindar, from Nevrast and moved them to the hidden city. There, they seemed to disappear, and none knew where they had gone.
Ulmo also warned Turgon not to love too much the work of his own hands and not to forget that he also came under the Doom of Mandos and so should fear that treason would awake within the secret walls of Gondolin. Ulmo promised to send someone to warn Turgon, should this betrayal come to pass, and bade Turgon to leave armor and sword in Nevrast for the messenger to find so that Turgon would know him when he arrived.
Gondolin thrived, sequestered within the mountains, until it became nearly as fair as Tirion in Valinor. Fairest of all was Turgon’s golden-haired daughter Idril.
At the same time, Galadriel dwelt in Doriath and spoke often to Melian, though she would not speak of what had come to pass after the Trees were darkened. Melian sensed woe about her, but sight of the West had been shut to all in Middle-earth, even her. Galadriel told her of the Silmarils and Finwë’s murder, but would not speak of the Oath of the Fëanorians, the Kinslaying, or the burning of the ships at Losgar. Melian told Thingol what she knew, and Thingol took heart that he should be able to better trust that the Noldor would never ally with Morgoth, since their arrival in Middle-earth had been for the purpose of exacting revenge upon the Dark Lord. Still, Melian cautioned him to beware the sons of Fëanor, for a shadow of evil deeds lay about them and—though they may prove to be Doriath’s greatest defense—also they might prove to be treacherous.
Not long after, Morgoth set rumors amid the Sindar, who were more trusting of what they heard, of what had befallen the Noldor prior to their arrival in Beleriand. Círdan carried the news then to Thingol, with whom the sons of Finarfin were staying to visit their sister Galadriel. Thingol approached Finrod in anger, that he should come to Doriath with the blood of his mother’s people upon his hands, and Finrod did not deny the false accusation, not wanting to speak ill of the other Noldorin princes. Angrod, who had been rebuked by Caranthir long before and was still bitter, then told the truth: The people of Finarfin were guiltless in the Kinslaying and had indeed been betrayed by the Fëanorians and forced to cross the grinding ice. He excused their silence on the Kinslaying as a wish not to betray the other princes—a decision that had earned them, in turn, Thingol’s anger. But Angrod would hold the silence no more, and told of all that had transpired.
In his anger, Thingol sent forth the sons of Finarfin but agreed not to shut his doors against them or the people of Fingolfin, who had bitterly atoned for their deeds upon the grinding ice. But he banned the speaking of Quenya within his borders, and the Sindar refused to speak it, and it became a language spoken only by the lords of the Noldor, amongst themselves.
The sons of Finarfin were heavy-hearted after, knowing that the people of Fëanor should never escape the shadow that lay upon his house and that fear of treachery would indeed be their undoing. In the darkness of his thoughts, also, Finrod Felagund perceived that he too must be free to fulfill an oath—unbound by marriage—and that nothing of his kingdom would remain for a son to inherit, even if he should desire marriage: but she whom he had loved was a woman of the Vanyar, and she went not with him into exile.
1.9.7 Of Maeglin
Aredhel, daughter of Fingolfin, dwelt with her brother Turgon in the hidden city of Gondolin, and quickly, she became wearied by her lack of freedom there. Reluctantly, Turgon granted her leave to visit their brother Fingon, although bad tidings were portended to him. Aredhel, though, had different plans, and instructed her escort that they would instead seek the sons of Fëanor, with whom she’d been friends in Valinor. They were not permitted admittance into Doriath—being not of Finarfin’s house—but passed between the northern border of Doriath and the treacherous Ered Gorgoroth, where the group became lost in shadows, and Aredhel was separated from her escort. They searched without finding her and were nearly killed; fearing that she was dead or captured, they returned to Gondolin with the bad news.
Aredhel, though, upon being separated from her companions, rode on alone, until she came to Himlad, the land of Celegorm and Curufin. The brothers were not at home, but the people of Celegorm welcomed her, and she remained, wandering freely about their lands. Eventually, she wandered too far and into the forest of Nan Elmoth, where the enchantment of Melian still lay and the trees grew so tall and thick that the sun could not penetrate the canopy. There, Eöl—called Dark Elf—dwelt, preferring the twilight and night to the light of day. Eöl had befriended the Dwarves, and they learned much of each other. Often, he stayed with them in their kingdoms, and he had devised a metal from the skills that he learned called galvorn: dark and impenetrable but supple.
When Eöl saw Aredhel wandering in his forest, he desired her, and set such enchantments about her that she could not find her way out but was drawn ever-nearer to his home. When she arrived, he welcomed her, and he took her to wife, though she was not wholly unwilling and was happy for a time with Eöl. The couple had a son called Maeglin—“sharp glance”—who resembled in appearance the Noldor but in thought and mind was like his father. He spoke little but was very powerful when he did, and with his father, he went to the Dwarves and learned much from them, especially of delving ore from the mountains.
Despite this, he had a deep love for his mother and for his mother’s people, and he loved to hear tales of their deeds and especially of Turgon, who had no heir. Maeglin desired to seek others of the Noldor and was direly forbidden by his father, and the trust and friendship between them was broken. When Eöl was off to a midsummer feast with the Dwarves, Maeglin persuaded his mother to return to Gondolin. To the servants of Eöl, Aredhel told them that they sought the sons of Fëanor.
When Eöl returned, he pursued his wife and son and was taken by the people of Curufin. Curufin was angry that Eöl had taken Aredhel to wife and advised him to return to Nan Elmoth and said that Eöl’s wife and child loved him no more. Eöl, though, was wrathful and knew then that his family was riding to Gondolin—not the sons of Fëanor—and pursued them, spotting them just as they arrived at the gates.
Aredhel and Maeglin were joyfully welcomed to the city, and Turgon was pleased with Maeglin and offered him the highest honors of his realm. Maeglin took Turgon as his lord and king and marveled at Gondolin—but most of all at the King’s daughter Idril.
Meanwhile, Eöl had also come to the gates of Gondolin and was taken captive by the guard. When he identified himself as the husband of Aredhel, all were surprised and sent a messenger to Turgon. Aredhel confirmed that he was her husband and asked Turgon to allow him to be brought into Gondolin for judgment by Turgon. Upon first sight of Gondolin, Eöl was amazed at its splendor and hated the Noldor all the more for it. Turgon, though, treated him as a kinsman and offered him to live in Gondolin, though he would never be permitted to leave, now that he had found his way to the hidden city. Eöl would not acknowledge Turgon’s law or his right to set boundaries of a kingdom, and he demanded that Maeglin return with him. Maeglin, though, had intentions to stay and said nothing.
Again, Turgon offered him the chance to live in Gondolin … or to die there.
Casting a dart that he’d hidden beneath his cloak at Maeglin, he shouted that he chose the second and for his son also. But Aredhel leaped in front of the dart and was struck in the shoulder. Eöl was set in bonds and would appear the next day for the King’s judgment, and Aredhel and Idril pled to Turgon for mercy. But that night, Aredhel died, for the dart had been poisoned, and Turgon found no mercy for Eöl, ordering him to be cast from the walls of Gondolin.
Maeglin stood by and said nothing, and Eöl—angered by his son’s treachery—predicted that Maeglin would realize none of his hopes in Gondolin and would die the same death as his father. Eöl was then cast over the side of the city to his death.
Idril was bothered by this and would never again trust her kinsmen. Maeglin, meanwhile, thrived—a favorite of Turgon—and was eager to learn and had much to teach. He found many rich deposits of metal in the Encircling Mountains and delved it for the benefit of
Still, Maeglin was not content, for he loved Idril, though no one but she perceived it. The Eldar do not wed such near kin and none had ever desired it before, and she saw it as a perversion, a flaw in him. And his unrequited love turned to darkness in his heart, and he lusted for power so that he might have Idril, and amid the bliss of Gondolin, evil took hold.
Of the Coming of Men into the West
Finrod Felagund was the first of the Elves to discover Men, in the forests of Ossiriand. Drawn by the light of their fires and then their singing, he watched them long—the people of Bëor—and felt affection for them. When they were asleep, he walked among them and took up Bëor’s harp, playing music upon it like none they’d ever heard. The Men awoke and listened to the song, and it spoke to each individually of the making of the world and the Valar beyond the sea, and the followers of Bëor grew wiser in hearing it and took Felagund as their lord, ever after loyal to the House of Finarfin.
Felagund could perceive the meaning of the Men’s strange language in their thoughts, and soon, he could hold converse with Bëor. But Bëor knew little of his people’s origins and did not wish to return, even in thought, to the dark past they’d left on the other side of the Blue Mountains. Morgoth, ever desiring to ruin that which was new, had come among the first Men and sought to turn them against the Eldar, but fearing the strength of the Elves in the north, he’d left before his errand was wholly complete. The Eldar perceived the shadow of this past even among those Men that they counted as friends, much as the Kinslaying and Doom of Mandos had cast a shadow upon the Noldor.
Felagund learned from Bëor that the Men were many in numbers and that others were crossing or waiting to cross the mountains. Perturbed by the presence of the Men in their lands and dismayed by the trees they cut and beasts that they killed, the Green Elves asked Felagund to encourage them to move on, so they traveled to the lands of Amrod and Amras, in a realm afterward known as Estolad. Bëor, though, asked leave to accompany Felagund to Nargothrond and lived the rest of his days as Felagund’s vassal, never returning to Estolad.
The other Men crossed the Blue Mountains shortly thereafter: The Haladin dwelt in Thargelion and the people of Marach lived close to Bëor’s people, and they became close in friendship. The Elves—curious about the Second People, came often to see them and named them “Edain,” and they were welcomed by High King Fingolfin and given leave to dwell in the realms of the Noldor. Many Men served the Elves or migrated into their realms.
King Thingol of Doriath, though, had dreamt of the coming of Men and believed that it portended trouble. He ordered that none should come to Doriath—even of Bëor’s house—and decreed that the Noldorin princes whom they served would be responsible for their actions. But Melian foretold to Galadriel that one of Bëor’s house would indeed come to Doriath, and the songs that sprang from that event would outlast the changing of the world.
Some Men, though, doubted the wisdom of uniting with the Eldar in the war against Morgoth, namely Bereg of the house of Bëor and Amlach of the house of Marach. Many were dismayed that the light of the gods that they’d desired was beyond their reach, on the other side of the sea, and Bereg argued that the war should be left to the deathless Elves. Another spoke then who was believed to be Amlach, saying that the Elves had beguiled the Men with tales of light and gods and a dark lord in the north, desiring to hold the Men in thrall. There were no gods, no Valinor, and the war in the north was fabricated by the Elves. Those who listened fell into fear and vowed to depart far from the Eldar.
But Amlach later claimed to have made no such speech, and the proof of a dark lord was then his, and he had reason for quarrel with Morgoth, who he called “Master of Lies,” and he journey north and entered the service of Maedhros. Bereg’s people and those of Amlach’s people who did not wish to stay journeyed back over the Blue Mountains into Eriador and were forgotten.
During this time, the Haladin remained content in Thargelion. Morgoth, seeing that he could not sunder the Elves and Men, sent an Orc-raid to the Haladin, and the strongest and most courageous among them, Haldad, built a stockade at the river to save as many of the women and children as he could. Haldad was killed as the battle lost hope with his son beside him, and his daughter Haleth held the people together. As the Orcs broke through the barricade, the people of Caranthir arrived and saved the Haladin from destruction. Caranthir, seeing the courage of Men, offered Haleth and her people free lands in his realm and their protection, but she and her people were proud and sought independence, leaving then for Estolad and finally crossing in great peril and with significant loss the treacherous road north of Doriath, into the Forest of Brethil.
The Forest of Brethil belonged to King Thingol, but Felagund persuaded him—knowing the hardship the people of Haleth had faced—to allow them to remain and guard the Crossings of Teiglin. Other groups of Men dwelt with the Elves and learned much of them, but the lords of the Eldar felt that the Men were best ruled by their own leaders and gave them realms to be self-governed, though some remained in service of the Elves. Most notable of these Men were Hador, who was given by Fingolfin rule over Dor-lómin, and Boromir of the house of Bëor, who ruled Dorthonion.
During the height of friendship between Elves and Men, Morgoth was strongly restrained, for the Men did not fear going into the cold north and keeping watch of his activities. Men did great deeds in the battles against Morgoth, and lived longer and grew wiser upon arrival in Beleriand. The Elves, though, were puzzled and dismayed when they learned of death, for their lore said nothing of it and what lay beyond life for Men was not theirs to see.
1.9.8 Of the Ruin of Beleriand and the Fall of Fingolfin
Fingolfin, High King of the Noldor, desired to test the Noldorin strength again against Morgoth, feeling that the peace would not last, but while the sons of Fëanor, Angrod, and Aegnor supported his wish, the people were not convinced, desiring the peace to last upon the land. But Morgoth had wrought designs in secret, and after many centuries of peace, poured forth smoke and fire from Thangorodrim and many Noldor perished in the onslaught of fire. As well, the land of Ard-galen was utterly destroyed and the slopes of Dorthonion and Ered Wethrin that faced Angband were burned, causing confusion in the thick smoke.
The fourth battle, the Battle of Sudden Flame (Dagor Bragollach) broke the leaguer around Angband, and many Noldor, Sindar, and Men were slain; others fled to the south of Beleriand, Doriath, and Nargothrond; others crossed the Blue Mountains entirely. Angrod and Aegnor were slain in the battle and Finrod Felagund nearly so, but he was saved by Barahir of Bëor’s house. In his gratitude, Finrod swore an oath of friendship and aid in every need, giving to Barahir a ring as proof.
Also killed was Hador, lord of Dor-lómin, and his son, and while Hithlum could not be conquered, Fingolfin was sundered from his kinsmen. Of the sons of Fëanor, only Maedhros held his land, doing deeds of great valor upon Himring, although all seven sons lived. Later, the most valiant among Elves and Men would return to Himring and guard the northern road. Himlad was overrun and Celegorm and Curufin fled to Nargothrond to take shelter with Finrod Felagund.
When news came to Fingolfin of the loss of Angrod and Aegnor and the defeat of the sons of Fëanor, he believed the battle lost for the Noldor and rode for alone to the gates of Angband, challenging Morgoth to single combat. This was the last time that Morgoth would pass his gates, for he alone of the Valar knew fear, but after being called a coward by Fingolfin, he agreed to the duel and came forth. He tried to crush the Noldorin king with Grond, Hammer of the Underworld, but Fingolfin always leaped clear and wounded Morgoth seven times, and seven times Morgoth cried in anguish, dismaying the hosts of Angband.
But Fingolfin wearied and stumbled into one of the pits that Grond had made and Morgoth put his foot upon the King’s throat. But with his last effort, Fingolfin cut the foot of Morgoth. After Fingolfin died, Morgoth sought to cast his body to his wolves, but Thorondor of the Great Eagles swept down and marred Morgoth’s face and carried Fingolfin’s body to a mountain overlooking Gondolin, where Turgon built a cairn over the body of his father. Fingon then took the high kingship and sent his youngest son Gil-Galad to the relative safety of the Gray Havens. The pain of Morgoth’s wounds would not heal and he went lame in one foot with scars upon his face.
Barahir held Dorthonion against Morgoth until all but twelve of his men were slain; those who remained included Beren his son, two nephews, and nine servants. They were hunted like beasts and hid among the moors of the region, as far from Morgoth as they could. The women and children had followed Elmeldir, wife of Barahir, to Brethil, amid great loss.
Two years after the Battle of Sudden Flame, Sauron—the chief servant of Morgoth—drove Orodreth for from Minas Tirith upon the River Sirion and made the watchtower and its island foul, afterwards called the Isle of Werewolves (Tol-in-Gaurhoth). Orodreth fled to Nargothrond and his brother Finrod Felagund.
Morgoth’s servants wandered Beleriand and captured many of the Elves or spread lies between them. Morgoth tried to ensnare Men with lies and pity, though few of the Three Houses of Edain would listen to him. At this time, the Swarthy Men came into Beleriand; many were already servants of Morgoth. Maedhros forged friendship with their two leaders, Bór and Ulfang, which was just as Morgoth intended.
The Haladin meanwhile guarded the forests of Brethil and—with the help of Beleg Strongbow and the strength of the Sindar—secured that region and Nargothrond behind it. Dwelling with the Haladin were Húrin and Huor, and though they were young, they went into battle with the Orcs and would have been killed but for the protection of Ulmo. Under the cover of mist, they wandered to the Crissaegrim and knew not how to return; Thorondor of the Great Eagles then bore them into the hidden city of Gondolin. Turgon welcomed them and they learned much of the Elves, and Turgon desired to keep them there, not only for his law, but also for love.
Huor and Húrin, though, desired to return and fight alongside their people, and because they had not seen the way to Gondolin—borne high in the air with their eyes veiled—and knew not its exact location, then Turgon allowed Thorondor to bear them back as they came, though he grieved their loss. Maeglin, however, was glad to see them go, though he took care to remind them of their fortune, for the law decreed that they remain in Gondolin until their deaths. They both swore oaths to him then to keep secret all that they had seen and learned in the last year, and when they returned to their people, kept their oath and would not speak of Gondolin, though many of their people discerned where they had been and eventually the tale reached Morgoth’s ears.
When Turgon learned of the breaking of the Siege of Angband, he would not send his armies forth, knowing that Gondolin was strong but not yet ready to be revealed. He did send ships and mariners in secret into the West, to ask the Valar for pardon and aid, but none could navigate the enchanted seas into the hidden realm of Valinor, and few returned from their attempt.
Morgoth heard of these things, and he feared Finrod Felagund and Turgon for he knew them to be alive yet not where they had gone or the strength of their realms. Of Turgon and Gondolin, he knew the least and so feared them more. The strength of the Noldor was returning, and with the help of Men, they were recovering the lands that they had lost to Morgoth. Morgoth recovered the main hosts of his Orcs and sent spies abroad, trying to regain his strength.
Seven years after the fourth battle, Orcs assaulted Hithlum and killed Galdor, lord of Dor-lómin and might have overtaken Fingon’s army as well if the ships of Círdan did not sail up the Firth of Drengist in the hour of the Noldorin need, driving back the Orcs to be pursued by Fingon’s archers to the Iron Mountains.
Húrin was then the lord of Dor-lómin and the head of the House of Hador, and he wed Morwen, who had escaped with Elmeldir to Brethil. The outlaws living in Dorthonion had been killed by this time save one: Beren son of Barahir, who escaped and came to Doriath.
Of Beren and Lúthien
Prior chapters told of how Barahir of the House of Bëor would not forsake Dorthonion, and he hid in the wilds of Tarn Aeluin with his twelve companions, and Morgoth could not discover them. Of those companions, one was called Gorlim, who had joined the company after discovering that his beloved wife Eilinel had been killed or taken by Morgoth. Gorlim persisted in the hope that his wife might still live, and he returned to their homestead, and this was discovered by Sauron. Sauron’s hunters captured him and tried to learn the location of Barahir, but he would not succumb to the torment, until at last, they promised to return Eilinel to him, and he faltered and told all that he knew, only to discover that Eilinel was dead. In keeping his “promise,” Sauron killed Gorlim also.
Sauron’s servants then found and killed Barahir’s company save one: Beren his son, who was far away on another mission. Visited by the wraith of Gorlim, Beren learned of the treachery and returned to warn his father but was too late. He pursued the Orcs and came in secret to their fire, witnessing their captain holding aloft his father’s hand as a trophy, bearing the ring of Felagund. Beren slew the captain and took the hand with the ring, managing to escape before the Orcs could kill him.
For four years after, Beren wandered the wilds of Dorthonion, until evil things became so thick there that the good departed, and he fled into the Mountains of Terror (Gorgoroth) and decided to descend into Doriath, amid much peril, and found his way also through the enchantment that Melian had set about Doriath.
Wandering in Doriath, he first found Lúthien, daughter of Thingol, dancing beneath the moon, and he was enchanted with her. She disappeared from his sight, but he pursued her until spring came and her song awakened flowers and melted the frozen rivers and Beren called to her, calling her by the name Tinúviel (nightingale) that he had given her, knowing no other. She halted then, and he came to her, and she loved him and was then ensnared in his fate, for he was mortal though she was not, and her anguish would be greatest of the Elves. She returned to him often, in secret, through the spring and summer, and their joy—though brief—was greatest of any of the Children of Ilúvatar.
Daeron the minstrel also loved Lúthien, and he betrayed her secret meetings to Thingol, who was dismayed as he would not even take mortals into his service—much less trust to one his beloved daughter—and he demanded answers of her, though she would not give them. He sent his servants to return Beren to Menegroth, but Lúthien brought him first before her father as an honored guest. Thingol demanded for Beren to answer for his deeds, and Beren made known his desire for Lúthien, for which Thingol thought a blasphemy worthy of death. Beren presented the ring of Felagund, but Thingol was swayed by neither his deeds nor those of his house and demanded that Beren bring to him a Silmaril from Morgoth’s crown; then, if she desired, Lúthien would be his. Doriath, then, was drawn into the curse of Mandos and the fate of the Noldor. Melian saw ill portents in Thingol’s actions, and Lúthien would not sing again in Doriath, and the realm fell into dark silence.
Beren went to Nargothrond and—holding aloft the ring of Felagund—was brought before Finrod Felagund. Finrod had long ago made an oath of friendship and aid to Beren’s father Barahir, and his oath called him. Likewise, the sons of Fëanor, Celegorm and Curufin, dwelt in Nargothrond, and their oath to regain the Silmarils would likewise call them. Finrod spoke to the people of his oath and the journey that he would take with Beren, but Celegorm and Curufin spoke also and awakened fear of war in the hearts of the people of Nargothrond. Also, the curse of Mandos came upon them, and they thought that by Finrod going to certain death, they would usurp the reign of Nargothrond. Of all the citizens of Nargothrond, only ten came forward to aid their king, and the crown was trusted to Finrod’s brother Orodreth.
The company of Beren and Felagund went to the north, slaying Orcs and taking their disguise. Sauron, though, noticed their odd behavior from the tower of Tol-in-Gaurhoth, and they were brought before him, and Sauron and Felagund battled together in a duel of song, in which Felagund fell when Sauron invoked the memory of the Kinslaying at Alqualondë, and their disguises fell away, though none would tell Sauron their names or purposes. He cast them then into a dark pit, and at times, two eyes would kindle in the darkness, and one of the companions would be devoured by a werewolf, but none quailed and betrayed Finrod.
When Beren was cast into the pit, Lúthien perceived it and learned of the truth from her mother Melian. She resolved to aid him herself and sought the aid of Daeron, but he again betrayed her to Thingol, and Thingol had a house built high in the trees, and she was imprisoned there. Using her powers of enchantment, Lúthien caused her hair to grow to great length, and she wove from it an enchanted cloak and long rope, both of which contained spells of sleep, and using these, Lúthien escaped Doriath.
At this time, Celegorm and Curufin were hunting the wolves that Sauron had sent into the Elven realms, followed by Celegorm’s faithful hound Huan. It had been prophesied that Huan would die in Middle-earth—though he was a creature of Valinor, from before the Noldorin rebellion—in a battle with the greatest of wolves to walk upon the earth. It was Huan who found Lúthien and brought her to Celegorm and Curufin, and Celegorm became enamored of her and offered her help, if she would return to Nargothrond. Celegorm did not admit that he knew already of Beren’s quest or its importance to him. But the brothers betrayed her, imprisoned her, and took her cloak, and Celegorm sent word to Thingol that he intended to wed Lúthien, for that would make him the most powerful of the princes of the Noldor, if he ruled Nargothrond and was tied also through marriage to Doriath.
Huan, though, also loved Lúthien and befriended her, and he stole back her cloak and helped her to escape Nargothrond, and she rode him swiftly into the north, to Morgoth’s realm. By this time, only Beren and Finrod remained of the companions, and Sauron perceived that Finrod was a Noldo of great power and intended to save him for last, for he perceived that he held the secret of their errand. A wolf then came for Beren, but Finrod summoned all of his powers and broke his bonds, slaying the werewolf with hands and teeth, though he was also wounded and died in the pit to save Beren.
In the same hour, Lúthien came to Tol-in-Gaurhoth and sang a song of power, which Beren answered. Sauron heard it also and intended to take her captive, but the wolves he sent were slain by Huan, as was the beast Draugluin, who died at Sauron’s feet and reported that Huan was there. Meaning to make good on the prophecy concerning Huan, Sauron took on the disguise of a wolf, and he battled with Huan and Lúthien, until Lúthien took mastery of his island and all that lay there. She opened the walls and the captives of Sauron were released but Beren—grieving the death of Finrod—did not come forth, and Lúthien found him and their love resumed.
Many of the released captives returned to Nargothrond, and the treachery of Celegorm and Curufin was discovered, and the loyalty of the people returned to the House of Finarfin. Orodreth cast the brothers from his realm, and none would go with them, even Celebrimbor, son of Curufin, only Huan, who had returned to his master. While riding to their brother Maedhros in Himring, they saw from afar Beren and Lúthien, and Curufin tried to take her, but Beren throttled and nearly killed him. Huan betrayed Celegorm then in service of Lúthien. Lúthien would not allow Curufin to be killed, but Beren took his horse and his weapons from him, including Angrist, made by the dwarves, that would cleave iron. As the brothers rode away on Celegorm’s horse, Curufin used his brother’s bow and tried to kill Lúthien; two arrows he shot, and one was caught by Huan and the other hit Beren, but he was healed by Lúthien and they returned to Doriath. Trusting her again to the care of Huan, he decided to fulfill his quest in regaining a Silmaril, and left her while she slept.
As Beren pondered his quest and the distant peaks of Thangorodrim, he sang a song to Lúthien, and she returned to him, disguised as a bat, again upon the back of Huan, disguised as a wolf. They cast aside their disguises, and Beren sought to dissuade her, but their fates could not be divided, and he took on the disguise of the werewolf while Lúthien took the disguise of a bat, and they came to the Gates of Angband, guarded by the wolf bred and raised by Morgoth and called Carcharoth. Carcharoth waylaid them, but Lúthien put a sleep upon him, and they passed through the gate and into Angband. Coming before Morgoth, Lúthien’s disguise was stripped from her, but she offered her service to Morgoth, and in the pleasure of thoughts of his evil desires, she disappeared from his sight and sang a song that cast all of his servants into slumber and quenched the fires of Angband, and the Silmarils blazed with luminance and bowed Morgoth’s head with their weight, and Lúthien threw her cloak of enchantment before his eyes, and he fell prone upon the floor, his crown with the Silmarils falling from his head.
Lúthien roused Beren, and he cut a Silmaril from the crown with Angrist, and the Silmaril bore his touch and filled him with the desire to bring all three gems forth from Angband. But Angrist broke upon the crown, and a shard hit Morgoth’s face, and he stirred in his sleep, as did his servants. In terror, desiring only to again see light, Beren and Lúthien fled then, but Carcharoth had awakened and sprang upon them. Beren held forth the Silmaril against him, but Carcharoth bit off Beren’s hand at the wrist. The terrible burning of the Silmaril then filled him, and all living things both good and evil fled before him because, in a madness of pain, he killed them all.
As Lúthien healed Beren with the last of her fading power, the servants of Morgoth awakened, but three Great Eagles soared from the sky and bore them away from Angband and back to Doriath, and though Beren’s wound was grave, he was revived by the love of Lúthien. Beren persuaded Lúthien to return to Doriath, where darkness had fallen in her absence, the people searching for her and Daeron—the minstrel who had loved her—straying forevermore from his people.
Thingol had sent word to Maedhros, asking for help in finding Lúthien, but his messengers were all killed when the rampaging wolf Carcharoth came to Doriath, all except Mablung. At the same time, Lúthien and Beren came before Thingol, and Beren claimed that a Silmaril was indeed in his hand and named himself “Camlost,” the Empty-handed. Feeling at last sympathy for Beren, hearing their tales, he consented to give the hand of his daughter.
But Doriath was still not safe, for Carcharoth roamed ever closer to Menegroth, and Thingol, Beren, Mablung, and Beleg—in the company of Huan—led a hunt against him. Carcharoth was hidden, but Huan pursued him, and Beren was gravely injured while Carcharoth and Huan fought to the death. Huan triumphed but was poisoned and died also, beneath Beren’s hand, and Mablung cut open the wolf and recovered the Silmaril, placing it into Beren’s hand. They bore him back to Menegroth, and Lúthien met them and told Beren to wait in the halls of Mandos for her to come to him and say her last farewell, and Beren looked last upon her eyes before he died. Her spirit also fled her body and came to Mandos, and she sang before him, a song that wove both the sorrow of the Eldar and the grief of Men. Moved to pity, the spirits of Beren and Lúthien were allowed to meet again, and Mandos went to Manwë, to seek the will of Ilúvatar in this matter.
Lúthien was given two choices: to dwell among the Valar, forgetting the grief of her life, or to return to life and Middle-earth with Beren, but they would both be mortal and suffer a second death. It was this choice that she made, and through her choice, the kindreds of Elves and Men were joined.
Of the Fifth Battle: Nirnaeth Arnoediad
Beren and Lúthien returned to Middle-earth as mortals, and Lúthien healed Thingol, but Melian was grieved, perceiving her daughter’s fate. They left Doriath then and dwelt upon an island in Ossiriand, where their son Dior was born, and they were never seen again.
The tale of Beren and Lúthien reached Maedhros in Himring, and he perceived that Morgoth was weak and formed the Union of Maedhros with Elves from all realms, Men, and Dwarves. But the Oath of Fëanor and the actions of Celegorm and Curufin proved in part their undoing, for Orodreth would not march at the word of any son of Fëanor and Thingol—having been threatened for his possession of the Silmaril—refused also to serve Maedhros, and few from those realms came, marching under the banners of Fingon the High King.
Under the Union of Maedhros, the northern lands were at last cleared of Orcs, but Morgoth was warned also of the assault of the Union, and he sent forth many spies among the Men allied with Maedhros. Maedhros planned to march out openly upon Anfauglith and draw forth the armies of Morgoth. Then, from the west, Fingon’s army would emerge, upon the lighting of a great beacon upon Dorthonion.
Fingon knew that the challenge had been accepted by the black smoke rising from Angband, but he could not perceive Maedhros’s forces and did not know that they’d been waylaid by the treachery of Uldor, claiming that Morgoth intended to assault them in Himring. Fingon was doubtful, but his fears were assuaged by the surprise arrival of his brother Turgon and his army from Gondolin.
By this time, a camouflaged host from Angband was well on its way to Hithlum, and the Noldorin captains wished to assault the Orcs upon the plain, but Húrin bade them to wait, not trusting Morgoth. The lighting of the beacon, signaling the readiness of Maedhros, did not come. The Captain of Morgoth had been commanded to draw out Fingon’s army in whatever way possible, but they would not come before the lighting of the beacon. Finally, the Orcs brought forth Gelmir, a lord of Nargothrond taken captive during the Bragollach, and cut off his hands, feet, and head last, claiming to do the same to other captives upon their return. Before them waited Gwindor of Nargothrond, the brother of Gelmir, and his rage was kindled, and he rode forth with many riders, and Fingon’s army was at last released. Their strength was great, and they came even to the stairs of Angband before they were stopped and all the host of Nargothrond slain save Gwindor, who was taken.
Fingon’s host was forced to retreat, and most of the Men of Brethil were slain. The host of Gondolin—who had been restrained—came to their aid, and Turgon and Fingon met with joy, even in the midst of battle. At last, the host of Maedhros arrived as well, and Morgoth unleashed his full strength. But it was the treachery of Men who proved the undoing of the Noldor, for Uldor turned on the sons of Fëanor in the midst of battle, and they were assaulted from three sides, escaping with a remnant of Elves and Dwarves into the east.
The last of the eastern force to remain were the Dwarves of Belegost, for they withstood the fire of the dragons better than the Elves, and their lord Azaghâl wounded Glaurung of the dragons and caused his retreat. But he was slain in the attack, and the Dwarves bore away his body, singing a dirge, and none dared hinder them.
The force that then attacked Fingon and Turgon was three times the size of what remained to them, and Fingon found himself faced with Gothmog, Lord of Balrogs, with his guard dead around him, and Fingon was slain. At the bidding of Húrin, Turgon returned to Gondolin, for as long as Gondolin survived, Morgoth would have reason to fear. Tuor predicted then that of Turgon’s line and his, a new star would rise; this was overheard by Maeglin. The Elves retreated then, but the Men of Dor-lómin remained and would not stand aside and lose their homes. From this, the treachery of Uldor redressed the race of Men. They fought until they came to the stream of Rivil and would go no further. Huor was slain and his men around him; Húrin was taken alive, even as he hewed the arms of his captors.
Morgoth had triumph then, for he’d not only won but done so through treachery, creating fear between Elves and Men, save the Three Houses of the Edain. The realm of Fingon was gone, and none who marched beneath his banner or for the House of Hador returned. The sons of Fëanor were scattered and lived wild in Ossiriand. Morgoth shut the Easterlings into Hithlum, denying them their prize for treachery, to plunder and torment the remnants of Hador’s people. The remaining Eldar there he took for thralls, to work in the mines, except for those who eluded him and fled to the wild.
Orcs and wolves passed freely through Beleriand, and many Elves fled to the Havens. But the Havens were laid in ruin, and the only Elves to escape did so by sea, including Gil-Galad, who had been sent by his father Fingon to the Havens. Those to escape took refuge on the Isle of Balar. The others were enslaved.
Turgon sought Círdan’s aid, and they sent seven ships with messengers from Gondolin into the west, to plead with the Valar for help. Of these seven, only one returned: He was called Voronwë, and he was saved by Ulmo from the wrath of Ossë and borne to the safety of the shore at Nevrast.
Morgoth’s fear and wrath were now directed toward Turgon, for he’d always felt that from Turgon, his ruin would come. Húrin was brought before Morgoth, but Húrin would not reveal the location of Gondolin and mocked Morgoth, and so Morgoth cursed him and his wife Morwen and all of their offspring; he bound Húrin to a chair high upon Thangorodrim, where he could watch the curse unfold, but Húrin never humbled himself to ask for death or mercy, for himself or for his kin.
On order of Morgoth, the dead were gathered and piled into a high hill upon Anfauglith, but alone of Anfauglith, grass grew upon that hill, and the servants of Morgoth never dared to tread upon it again.
1.9.9 Of Túrin Turambar
Rían was the wife of Huor, and she was aided by the Grey-elves of Mithrim, who fostered her son Tuor when he was born. Rían departed to the Hill of the Slain built by the servants of Morgoth, and lying upon it, she died. Morwen was the wife of Húrin, and she had a son Túrin. She was also with child when her husband was taken captive in the Battle of Unnumbered Tears, living in Dor-lómin when the Easterlings came and her people were enslaved. In secret, she sent Túrin to be fostered in Doriath, for Beren was a kinsman of her father.
Morwen gave birth to a daughter called Nienor, and despite the fact that Thingol sent messengers begging her to come to Doriath, she would not leave the home in which she’d dwelt with Húrin her husband. She did, however, send with them the great heirloom of her house: the Dragon-helm of Dor-lómin.
Frequent messengers came from Dor-lómin to Túrin, but after nine years, they stopped, and he went to battle on the marches of Doriath as a companion to Beleg Strongbow. When Túrin next returned, he was unkempt from his life in the wild, and an Elf in the council of Thingol made mockery of his people, saying that the women ran naked and clad only in their hair like wild animals, and Túrin injured him with a drinking mug. The next day, they pair fought further, and Saeros was made to run naked through the forest by Túrin. In his terror, Saeros ran off of a cliff and was killed upon the rocks below. Túrin was asked to return to the judgment of the King, but he thought himself an outlaw by then, and he left Doriath and joined a band of desperate and ruthless men.
When Thingol heard of what had happened, he pardoned Túrin, whom he had loved as his own son, and Beleg—who also loved him—vowed to search for him and bring him back to Doriath. Beleg was captured by the men of Túrin’s band and treated cruelly, as a spy, but Túrin had him released and left the cruel group of men, swearing to never again harm any but the servants of Morgoth. Beleg told him of the King’s pardon, but Túrin would not humble himself to accept it, and Beleg returned to Doriath.
Thingol was grateful for his efforts and gave him leave to guard and guide Túrin in the wild, giving him the sword Anglachel as a gift, despite Melian’s foreboding that the sword was evil and would not serve Beleg for long.
In the meantime, Túrin and his band of outlaws grew weary of their life, ever in motion, and sought a safer refuge. They encountered three Dwarves one day and managed to capture one, Mîm, who offered to lead them to his hidden halls upon the great hill Amon Rûdh in exchange for his life. They followed Mîm to his halls, where he discovered that one of his two sons had died of an arrow loosed by a man of Túrin’s company. Túrin offered him a recompense of gold, and Mîm gave him leave to dwell there.
Mîm was of the Petty-Dwarves, who had long ago been banished from the eastern Dwarf cities and were diminished in stature and skill from their relatives in the Blue Mountains. They had once been hunted by the Elves and so hated them; the Petty-Dwarves were responsible for beginning to delve the caves of Nargothrond. They’d since mostly died out, save Mîm and his two sons.
When winter fell, Beleg came to Túrin’s new home, and although Túrin would not return to Doriath, Beleg stayed with him and helped the men of his company. Mîm, though, hated Beleg, but Túrin paid the Dwarves no mind any longer.
When the servants of Morgoth invaded the area, Beleg and Túrin strove against them and gave hope to the people. But Morgoth became aware of Túrin—son of his captive Húrin—and sent spies to Amon Rûdh. While foraging in the wild, Mîm was again captured—this time by the servants of Morgoth—and again led them to the doors of his home. Many of Túrin’s men were slain, and Túrin was taken captive. Beleg was badly wounded but not killed, and when he didn’t find Túrin among the dead, knew that he’d been captured, and he set forth in pursuit of his captors. On his way, he found an Elf—aged and bent—sleeping beneath the tree. The Elf named himself Gwindor, who had been captured by Morgoth during the Battle of Unnumbered Tears, after he witnessed the slaying of his captured brother Gelmir.
Gwindor had seen a company of Orcs moving with a captured man in chains, and Beleg persuaded Gwindor to join him, and they crept upon the Orc encampment, slaying the sentinels and carrying away an unconscious Túrin as the Orcs slept. Once they were free of the encampment, Beleg put him down to cut his bonds, but Túrin awakened then, and thinking Beleg a foe, grappled and killed him with his own sword Anglachel.
The Orcs did not search long for Túrin and returned empty-handed, and Gwindor and Túrin buried Beleg. Túrin took Anglachel, so that it might continue to serve the cause against Morgoth. Túrin was silent and purposeless in his grief, but Gwindor stayed at his side and guided him to the springs of Eithel Ivrin, and drinking of the water, Túrin recovered from his grief-induced madness. Journeying southward along the banks of the Narog, Túrin and Gwindor were taken by the guards of Nargothrond to that realm.
The people of Nargothrond did not recognize Gwindor, as his torments in Angband had aged and diminished him, but he had once been in love with Finduilas, daughter of Orodreth, who was the king of Nargothrond and the brother of Finrod Felagund. Finduilas recognized him, and Túrin was permitted to stay with him. Túrin quickly grew to be favored in Nargothrond, though he would not speak his true name—hoping that his family’s curse would evade him—and he was feared in battle.
Finduilas grew to love Túrin, though he did not love her, and her heart turned from Gwindor, who loved her still and gave her leave but warned her against loving a mortal—and one whose family had been cursed by Morgoth. He revealed to her Túrin’s true name, and Túrin was angry for this, but when Orodreth learned of it, Túrin grew even more in his favor. It was Túrin’s counsel that Nargothrond should go openly into battle rather than relying on secrecy and stealth, as they had done. He also counseled that a bridge be built across the Narog, to the long-secret entrance, to aid in moving their armies. Though Gwindor spoke against this, he was no longer strong or favored, and Nargothrond marched into open warfare, and the servants of Morgoth were cleared from their land.
This withheld the power of Morgoth to where Túrin’s mother Morwen and sister Nienor could escape to Doriath, where they were welcomed, but she was saddened to learn that Túrin was there no longer.
Two Elves came also to Nargothrond—called Gelmir and Arminas—and they lived with Círdan’s people. Ulmo had warned Círdan of great peril coming to Nargothrond, and they begged Orodreth to cast down the bridge and return to secrecy. But Túrin—in his pride—would not heed their warning, and Morgoth unleashed an attack as predicted, unleashing the dragon Glaurung upon the realm. Only Túrin could withstand the attack, and Orodreth was slain and Gwindor mortally wounded. Before he died, Gwindor warned Túrin that he must return to Nargothrond and save Finduilas, or he too would be doomed.
But he was too late, for the bridge had made it easy for the Orc-host and Glaurung to reach and invade the caves of Nargothrond. The women had already been either killed or herded aside to serve as slaves in Angband, but Túrin hewed his way toward them but was stopped by Glaurung and frozen with a spell. Then, he was told of the evil that he had become, and he saw himself as such and loathed it. While he was under spell, the captives were driven past him, and though Finduilas cried for him, he did not hear her. When she was gone, Túrin was released from the spell, and Glaurung told him a lie of his mother and sister also being put to torment and killed in Dor-lómin—for Túrin did not know that they had fled to Angband—and he abandoned his pursuit of Finduilas to go instead for his mother and sister, believing the dragon’s lies.
Túrin went to Dor-lómin and discovered his mother and sister gone. He went to his mother’s kinswoman Aerin and was told that they had gone to Doriath to seek her son, and Glaurung’s spell came off of him, and he saw that he’d been deceived. He killed the Easterlings who had taken Aerin into slavery and left Dor-lómin a hunted man, searching for Finduilas. A group of men whom he saved from Orcs knew of her fate, that all of the captives of Nargothrond had been slain; Finduilas was pinned by a spear to a tree, and her last words were to tell Túrin of her location. She had been buried beneath a mound called Haudh-en-Elleth, the Mound of the Elf-maid.
Túrin’s identity was revealed as he mourned beside her grave, and he was taken to the settlement of the People of Haleth, now ruled by a man named Brandir. Brandir consented to take Túrin in and healed him; Túrin adopted the new name Turambar in hopes that he could remain hidden where the shadow of his curse would not find him.
Meanwhile, the few survivors of Nargothrond came to Thingol in Doriath and brought tidings of Glaurung remaining in the Halls of Nargothrond; Túrin, it was believed, was either dead or still under the dragon’s spell. Morwen was distraught at this and set out for Doriath, refusing the counsel of Melian. Knowing that she would not be dissuaded, Thingol sent Mablung after her; Nienor her daughter followed also in secret. Upon reaching Amon Ethir (the Hill of Spies) in Nargothrond, they could see no sign of enemy, but Glaurung saw them and flew forward, sending forth vapors that blinded them and maddened their horses. Nienor fell unhurt from her horse and climbed Amon Ethir to await Mablung’s return, but it was Glaurung at the hilltop—not Mablung—and when she looked into his eyes, a spell of forgetfulness came upon her, and she knew nothing of herself and stood motionless for many days. There, Mablung found her and discovered that—though she could not speak or hear—she would walk blindly if led. Resting just outside of Doriath, they were surprised by an Orc-band, and Nienor recovered her senses then and fled in terror. The Elves pursued her, but she escaped them, and Mablung searched long afterward for tidings of Morwen and Nienor.
Nienor fled to Brethil, and when a storm came upon the land, lay upon the Haudh-en-Elleth, where she was found by Túrin. Afterward, she would not be parted from him, and—unable to remember her name—he renamed her Níenel and took her back to Brandir’s people. There, she was healed, and Brandir loved her, though her heart was given to Túrin. Remembering nothing of her prior life, she did not know that he was her brother.
With a feeling of foreboding, Brandir gave Túrin’s rightful name to her, and though she remembered nothing, a blackness settled upon her thought. Still, Túrin insisted that they should be married else he would return to war, and she consented. Túrin returned to war to fight for his people, and rumor of him reached Glaurung in Nargothrond, and he came forth from Nargothrond in the same spring that Nienor conceived a child.
When it became clear that Glaurung did not intend to pass Brethil on his return to Angband but would remain and destroy their homes, Túrin set out with a small company. In secret, Nienor followed, and Brandir—who loved her still—followed also. Túrin and Hunthor sought to sneak up on Glaurung while he rested alongside the Teiglin, but he rose up, and they were driven back, and Hunthor was killed by a falling stone, leaving Túrin alone. But Túrin pursued and threw his sword into the belly of the dragon, slaying him. When Túrin wrenched the sword from the dragon’s belly, Glaurung’s blood burned him, and Glaurung opened his eyes and the malice in his eyes struck Túrin into unconsciousness.
As Glaurung screamed, the people of Brethil thought that he had triumphed, including Nienor. Believing Túrin dead, Brandir led her into the forest, thinking that she would now be his. But she refused his summons and sought her husband, finding him alongside the dragon. She bandaged his wound and bade him to awake, but he did not. It was Glaurung who spoke instead, and with his last words, congratulated Nienor on finding her brother at last, and the spell of forgetfulness was removed from her, and she remembered all of her past. Distraught, she cast herself off of a cliff and into the river, to her death.
Brandir returned to his people with the tidings of Nienor’s death and the truth of her relationship with Túrin, thinking him dead, and called his death good tidings. But Túrin had awakened and returned and was told of Nienor’s death and his relationship to her by Brandir; by another, he was also told that Brandir had called his death “good tidings. Believing that Brandir had orchestrated deception, jealous of their love, he killed him and fled to Haudh-en-Elleth, to call upon Finduilas for help. Mablung came upon him then and Túrin asked for tidings of his family in Doriath. Being told that his mother was lost and his sister cast into a spell of forgetfulness and also lost, he realized that he had slain Brandir unjustly and that Nienor was in fact his sister.
Fleeing from them, he asked his sword if it would take his life, and it answered that to forget the blood of Beleg and Brandir, it would. He set the hilt upon the ground and fell upon it, killing himself. Mablung found him there and knew that—by the tidings he’d brought—he’d caused the death of a friend. The body of Glaurung was burned and a mound built over Túrin, with a stone inscribed with his name and Nienor’s, though they knew not where the river had taken her.
10.1 Of the Ruin of Doriath
Morgoth released Húrin from captivity so that he may further Morgoth’s hatred of Elves and Men. He’d been in Angband for twenty-eight years and was grim to look upon, and while his people shunned him, they let him wander at will, unbothered. The attitudes of his people embittered him, and he thought to seek the way back to the hidden city of Gondolin, but the way was blocked.
The area around Gondolin was watched by the servants of Morgoth—seeking to find the entrance—and the Great Eagles. Thorondor, King of the Eagles, carried word to Turgon that Húrin was attempting to re-enter Gondolin, and after long thought on Húrin’s brave deeds, Turgon was moved to pity and asked Thorondor to bring him to Gondolin. But Húrin could no longer be found.
Húrin’s freedom had already led to one evil, though. In his frustration, he’d cried aloud to Turgon, and the servants of Morgoth heard and knew then in what region Gondolin could be found. In despair, Húrin fell into a deep sleep, and he dreamed of his wife Morwen and, upon awakening, sought her in Brethil, at the grave of Túrin. There she was—an old woman now—knelt before the stone marking the deaths of Túrin and Nienor. She died that night, and Húrin buried her there also, and he was filled with anger for vengeance against Morgoth.
Húrin went south then to Nargothrond, where no one dared venture for memory of Glaurung alone, only Mîm the Petty Dwarf, who coveted the dragon’s treasure found there. Húrin knew that Mîm had betrayed Túrin, and though the Dwarf offered Húrin any of the treasure in exchange for Mîm’s life, Húrin killed him and stayed a while in Nargothrond, and when he left, he took only Nauglamír, the Necklace of the Dwarves, that Finrod Felagund had once prized above all other treasure. Húrin went to Doriath, and he was welcomed there, but he cast Nauglamír at Thingol’s feet as a fee for keeping his wife and children, believing that Thingol had played a role in the downfall of his family. But Melian betrayed Morgoth’s lies to Húrin, and Húrin picked up Nauglamír to present it again, as a gift from a friend, and departed from Doriath and cast himself into the western sea.
Thingol, gazing upon Nauglamír, thought to have it remade to hold the Silmaril of Fëanor, with which he had become obsessed, as had its previous keepers. Dwarves from Nogrod still stayed on occasion in Doriath to assist with metal- and stonework, and Thingol revealed his desire to them, and looking upon the Silmaril, they coveted it also, but consented to the task. When it was finished, Thingol sought to take it back from them, but they withheld it from him on the pretext that Nauglamír had been made by their fathers and given as a gift to Finrod Felagund, who was dead, but Thingol saw through their claims to their lust for the Silmaril and ordered them to leave his halls. The Dwarves rose up against him and killed him, taking Nauglamír and the Silmaril, but they were pursued by Elves from Doriath and most were killed. Nauglamír was returned to a grief-stricken Melian, and only two of the Dwarves returned to Nogrod, bearing word that the Elven-king of Doriath had ordered the slaying of their kin. Despite warnings from their kinsmen in Belegost, the Dwarves of Nogrod swore to pursue vengeance and marched forth to Doriath.
Melian sat long in grief beside Thingol, and she knew that the parting brought by his death portended a greater parting, for she was of the Ainur and he was of the Eldar. Slowly, her powers that had protected Doriath were withdrawn, leaving it open to attack. Speaking to none save Mablung and bidding him to take heed of the Silmaril and send word to Beren and Lúthien, she departed for Valinor and the Gardens of Lórien. When the Dwarves came, the captains of Doriath were disorganized in their defense, and Mablung was slain before the doors of the treasury and Nauglamír—with the Silmaril—was taken. The halls of Menegroth were destroyed, and many Elves and Dwarves were killed.
Word came to Beren and Lúthien of what had happened. They had a son Dior who was wed to the kinswoman of Celeborn, Nimloth, and they had three children: two sons Eluréd and Elurîn and a daughter Elwing. With Dior and many of the Green Elves of Ossiriand, Beren assailed the Dwarves and himself killed the Lord of Nogrod and returned Nauglamír to Lúthien, though it did little to ease her grief. As Thingol’s heir, Dior went forth with his family to raise Doriath to its former splendor.
On a night in autumn, a messenger from the Green Elves arrived in Doriath, bearing only a coffer that contained Nauglamír, and Dior knew that Beren and Lúthien were dead and lost to the fate of Men.
Word of the Silmaril in Doriath reached the ears of the sons of Fëanor, and Dior would not answer their correspondence, asking that it be returned to them. Thus, their oath re-awakened, and they attacked Doriath in what was the second kinslaying. Dior and Nimloth both were slain, as were the Fëanorian brothers Celegorm, Caranthir, and Curufin, but the Silmaril escaped with Dior’s daughter Elwing to Sirion.
Of Tuor and the Fall of Gondolin
Tuor was the son of Rían and Huor—who was slain in the Battle of Unnumbered Tears—and fostered by Annael of the Gray Elves. When Tuor was sixteen years old, the Elves set out for Sirion from Androth but were ambushed by Orcs and Easterlings, and Tuor was taken as a slave. After three years, he escaped and returned to Androth and inflicted enough harm on the Easterlings that a price was set on his head.
Ulmo had chosen Tuor, though, to carry out his plans, and Tuor shortly felt a drive to depart from his home and went to Nevrast, the land that had been inhabited by Turgon’s people before they moved to Gondolin. His leaving was marked by no one, and he dwelt in Nevrast until seven swans appeared in the sky, and he knew them a sign and followed them to the halls of Vinyamar, finding the sword and armor that Turgon had left there on the word of Ulmo. Taking these items, he went down to the sea, and Ulmo appeared to him and told him to go to Gondolin, giving him a cloak that would hide him from his enemies.
Tuor also met Voronwë there, who alone of the mariners that Turgon had sent to try to reach Valinor had been spared by Ulmo and washed ashore at Vinyamar. Hearing Tuor’s tale, he agreed to lead him to Gondolin.
On their journey there, they also spied from afar the movements of a tall man clad in black and carrying a black sword: Túrin Turambar.
They reached the gates of Gondolin and were taken as prisoners, but when Tuor revealed the armor and sword he’d found in Vinyamar, it was known that he’d been sent by Ulmo, and he was taken to Turgon, who was then High King of the Noldor. Speaking the words of Ulmo, he warned Turgon that all works of the Noldor would soon be destroyed, and he should depart Gondolin and save his people.
But Turgon was proud and trusted the strength and secrecy of his city. Maeglin also spoke against Tuor, and because his words were what Turgon wished to hear, they seemed to carry an extra weight, and Turgon rejected the plea of Ulmo. Fear of treachery, though, was also awakened in his heart, and the city was shut completely from the world beyond, its entire people forbidden to leave on any errand of war or peace. News came now only from Thorondor, Lord of the Eagles, of the fall of Nargothrond and the ruin of Doriath, but Turgon shut his ears and heart to this.
Tuor remained in Gondolin, and he and Idril, the daughter of Turgon, fell in love, and after seven years, Turgon gave them permission to marry. This caused Maeglin to hate Tuor all the more, for he desired Idril—Turgon’s only heir—for himself. In the spring of the year after, Idril and Tuor’s son Eärendil was born, a beautiful child with the wisdom of the Eldar and the strength of Men, to whom the sea spoke.
Times were joyful then in Gondolin, but Húrin had—unbeknownst to the people of Gondolin—revealed something of their location when he cried to Turgon in his despair, and Morgoth began to concentrate his thoughts on those mountains where his servants could not go because of the vigil of the Great Eagles. Idril, who was wise and had far sight, felt a shadow of dread then, and in secret, she prepared a way out of the city.
At this time, Maeglin—in defiance of Turgon—went beyond the leaguer of the hills and was taken captive by Orcs. Threatened with torment, he revealed the location of Gondolin to Morgoth, and Morgoth promised him kingship of Gondolin and possession of Idril, should his plots succeed, which made him more willing in his treachery. Maeglin was returned then to Gondolin, and the foreboding upon Idril deepened.
When Eärendil was seven years old, the attack of Morgoth finally came on a morning of festival, when all of the citizens of Gondolin were upon the walls to welcome the rising of the sun. With Balrogs, Orcs, wolves, and dragons, the city was overtaken, and many great deeds of valor were done, but the tower of the King fell and Turgon with it.
Maeglin had taken Idril and Eärendil, and Tuor fought with him and cast him off of the walls of the city and into the fire below. Gathering what they could of their people, Idril and Tuor led them to the secret passageway that Idril had prepared of which Morgoth knew nothing, aided by the cover from the smoke of battle. They had to climb high and treacherous passages through the mountains and were there assailed by Orcs with a Balrog. Glorfindel fought the Balrog, and both fell into the abyss and were killed, but the Great Eagles drove back the Orcs and Thorondor bore up Glorfindel’s body, and he was buried beneath a mound where golden flowers always grew.
Tuor led the remnants of the people of Gondolin to Sirion, where they were joined also by the refugees from the destruction of Doriath, including Elwing, the daughter of Dior the king. Ereinion Gil-Galad, the son of Fingon, was named High King of the Noldor.
Morgoth thought then that he was successful, that what remained of the Elves was no threat to him, and Ulmo begged the Valar on behalf of the Elves, asking that they be forgiven and aided in their fight against Morgoth. But it is said that only one speaking on the behalf of Elves and Men could have persuaded Manwë, and the hour for the Valar to lend their assistance had not yet come.
Feeling old age upon him, Tuor felt the sea-longing growing in his heart, and he built a great ship and sailed with Idril into the west, and no tales came of them again. But Tuor’s fate was sundered from that of mortal Men, and he was joined to the Noldor, whom he loved.
10.2 Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath
Eärendil, the son of Idril and Tuor, was the lord of the people at Sirion, and he married Elwing, the daughter of Dior who had escaped the attack of the Fëanorions at Doriath, and they had two sons called Elrond and Elros. With the help of Círdan, Eärendil built a ship called Vingilot and with it went on many journeys, always seeking to find his parents Idril and Tuor or to reach the western shore and plea with the Valar for help. Elwing did not go with him and sorrowed on the shores of Beleriand, and Eärendil was confounded by the enchantments set around Valinor. With dread in his heart, he set to return to Beleriand.
Elwing still held the Silmaril that had caused the deaths of both Thingol and Dior, and though Maedhros—repenting of his oath—left her in peace for a while, soon the oath returned to haunt the remaining four brothers, and they sent letters of friendship but with stern demands that the Silmaril be returned. Believing that the blessings upon them were because of the Silmaril and with their lord Eärendil at sea, they refused, and the Fëanorions marched on Sirion and executed the third kinslaying. Sirion was destroyed and two of the Fëanorion brothers also killed—leaving only Maedhros and Maglor—and the few survivors went to live with Círdan and Gil-galad on Balar, telling the tale that Elrond and Elros had been taken captive and Elwing with the Silmaril had cast herself into the sea.
Elwing was borne out of the sea by Ulmo and given the form of a bird with the Silmaril upon her breast, and she flew to Eärendil returning upon his ship. They grieved for the destruction of Sirion and the capture of their sons, believing that they would be slain, but Maglor pitied them and fostered them as his own, and love grew between them.
With the Silmaril bound to his brow, Eärendil, Elwing, and his three loyal mariners sailed into the west, passed the enchantments of Valinor, and he set foot first of all mortal Men upon the western shores. His companions, he bade to stay behind, preferring to bear alone the wrath of the Valar. But Elwing would not allow them to be parted and leapt from the ship to run after him. He allowed her with him, but when they reached the pass of Calcirya, he went forth alone, for it was his fate to do so. He had come to Valinor on a day of festival, and many Elves did not remain in Tirion, but those that kept guard on its walls went with haste to Valimar, seeing the Silmaril. Finding Tirion deserted, Eärendil feared that evil had come even to the Blessed Realm, and he turned back for the sea.
But Eonwë, the herald of Manwë, came to him then and bade him to come before the Valar. Before them, Eärendil pled for forgiveness for the Noldor and pity and aid for Men and Elves both, and the Valar sat in counsel, and it was Manwë’s decision that Eärendil’s prayer be granted, but that he and Elwing should never walk again in Middle-earth and—being half-Elven both—would have to choose to be counted among one of the kindreds, either Men or Elves. On their sons, this choice would also fall. Elwing chose to be among the Elves because of Lúthien and Eärendil chose the same, not wishing to be parted from her, though his heart lay more with the kindred of Men. The three mariners of Eärendil were given a boat and borne back to the east upon a strong wind, and Vingilot was hallowed and passed through the Door of Night and into the heavens.
Alone upon Vingilot, Eärendil journeyed, appearing as a star in the heavens with the Silmaril upon his brow. Elwing was given a tower, and she learned the language of the seabirds and they taught her to fly, and when Eärendil on occasion returned to Valinor, she rose to meet him.
In the east, the new star was seen by all and the Elves were given hope, naming the star Gil-Estel (the Star of High Hope). Morgoth was filled with doubt, but in his pride, he never expected anyone to come against him again in open battle, and he believed that he’d sundered the Noldor forever from the Valar, who would be content to sit in paradise and do nothing. But the Valar came with the Vanyarin Elves and the Noldor who had stayed in Valinor. The Teleri would not go, but they listened to the pleas of Elwing—who through Dior was of their blood—and sent mariners enough to sail into the east, though none would step from the ships and onto land.
The armies of the west and the armies of the north met upon Anfauglith, and the whole north was aflame with war. None of the Elves of Middle-earth marched in that battle, but those remaining of the three Houses of the Edain did and so gained vengeance for the cruelties done by Morgoth to their ancestors. Some of the Men of the east—possibly the same who had betrayed Maedhros at the Battle of Unnumbered Tears—fought on the side of Morgoth, and the Elves would never forget it.
Most of the Balrogs were destroyed—though some fled to deep recesses in the earth—as well as most of the Orcs. As a last effort, Morgoth unleashed dragons, and the host of the Valar was driven back. But Eärendil came from the sky upon Vingilot with the birds—Thorondor of the Great Eagles their captain—and there was a battle in the air that ended in the morning, when Eärendil slew the Ancalagon the Black, the greatest of the dragons, and his falling body crushed the at last the towers of Thangorodrim. Soon, little was left of Morgoth’s realm except for Morgoth, hiding in the deeps of Angband.
Morgoth fled to the depths of the earth and sued for pardon, but he was captured and the Silmarils taken by Eonwë and his iron crown beaten into a collar for his neck, bound again with the great chain Angainor. The captives of Angband were released. So great had been the force of battle that the sea flooded some places, the courses of rivers were changed, hills crushed, and valleys raised in upheaval.
Eonwë summoned the Elves of Beleriand to leave Middle-earth, but Maedhros and Maglor would not answer the summons, for Eonwë held the Silmarils and their oath still haunted them. They sent a message to Eonwë, but Eonwë claimed that their ruthless deeds had nullified their claim, and the Silmarils must go into the west. Maglor—being wearied and saddened—wished to answer Eonwë’s summons and stand judgment before the Valar, but he was persuaded by Maedhros. Disguised, they crept into Eonwë’s camps and slew the guards and stood alone against all of the camp, prepared to die for their treasure. But Eonwë let them escape, and each took a Silmaril.
Maedhros’s Silmaril burned his hand with unbearable pain, and he knew that his deeds had indeed voided his right to his father’s heirloom. He cast himself and his Silmaril into a fiery chasm.
Maglor also could not bear the pain of his Silmaril, but his he cast into the depths of the sea, and he wandered ever after upon the shores of Middle-earth, singing in lament.
The Elves of Beleriand were pardoned by the Valar and the Teleri whom they’d wronged long ago, and the curse of Mandos was laid to rest. The newcomers dwelt upon the island Tol Eresseä. Some of the Elves remained in Middle-earth, though: Círdan, Galadriel and Celeborn, Gil-galad and Elrond with him, who had chosen to be counted among the Elves. His brother Elros chose to be counted among Men.
Morgoth was tossed into the Timeless Void beyond the Doors of Night and a guard set around him, including the watchful eye of Eärendil. While his realm had been destroyed, the hatred that he’d sowed in the hearts of Elves and Men both had taken root, and that would never die.