Saturday, July 18, 2009
The Second Age of Middle-Earth
1- The beggining
The First Age ended with the War of Wrath in wich the Dark Lord Morgoth was defeated by the armies of Valinor, the blessed realm, and cast into the Void forever. The Silmaril jewels, made by Feanor with the light of Valinor, were lost in sea and fire.
The Elves were called by the Valar(the creators of the World) to leave Middle-Earth and return to Valinor and many do so, although many of them decide to remain.
In the first year of the Second Age the main group of the Noldor(Feanors people) found the Mithlond harbours where Cídran the shipwright ruled, and the kingdom of Lindon where Ereinion Gil-Galad, son of Fingon and High-King of the Noldor was the ruler. With Gil-Galad were Elrond son of Earendil, the Lady Galadriel, the most powerful of the Noldor and her husband Celeborn of Doriath.
Elrond had a twin brother called Elros. When his father Earendil the mariner went to Valinor, his sons were given the choice to remain immortal Elves or become humans mortals, since their father Earendil was the son of Tuor (a man) and Idril (an Elf daughter of Turgon, king of Gondolin). Elrond chose to be an Elf, but Elros chose to be mortal.
The Valar rewarded the Mens role in the War of Wrath and created the island of Númenor in the middle of the Belegaer Ocean between Middle-Earth and Valinor. Many men travelled to Númenor and set and great kingdom there, and their King was Elros who adopted the title of Tar-Minyatur, king of Númenor in the year 32 of the Second Age.
In the year 40 many Dwarves went to the Mines of Mória (Khazad-dum) where Dúrin was king.
The first centuries of the Second Age were of rebuilding after the great war and of peace, since the Dark Lord was forever banished from Middle-Earth. But some of his creations and legacy still remained and slowly were reappearing and waiting for a force that will again lead them.
Meanwhile in Númenor Elros Tar-Minyatur finally died of extremly old age in the year 442, since Númenoreans had larger life spans than the normal Men. His second Son Tar-Amandil becomes King.
In the year 500, Sauron, the most powerful lieutenant of Morgoth reappears in Middle Earth and begins gathering his power.
2- Celebrimbor and the Rings of Power
Near Mória, where the Dwarves lived and digged for metals, the Elves founded the Kingdom of Eregion where many great craftsmen lived. To there came the Lady Galadriel and Celeborn where they were welcomed as their Lords. In Eregion was created the Guild of Jewelers whose leader was Celebrimbor, son of Curufin and grandson of Feanor, the greatest craftsman of the Noldor, maker of the Silmarils.
Celebrimbor was now the greatest craftsman of all the Elves(his father and granfather having been killed in the First Age), and he sought to achieve the fame and genius of his predecessors. He had lived in Gondolin, the hidden city of Turgon until its destruction in the First Age, and was its main craftsman. Now in Eregion he cooperated closely with the Dwarves of Mória and both sides were greatly rewarded by this partnership.
Celebrimbor secretly loved the Lady Galadriel and although she was married to Celeborn, Celebrimbor crafted and beautiful jewel for her with the the light of Valinor and named it Elessar wich was the become the light of the evenstar that Arwen gave to Aragorn in the Third Age.
Galadriel and Celeborn had a daughter in Eregion in the year 1091 and named her Celebrían.
Meanwhile in the far southeast, in the lands of Mordor, Sauron began building the fortress of Barad-Dur and gathering forces of Orcs. Sauron preceived Celebrimbor as a great craftsman and decided to make use of him. Taking the form of a beautiful and kind lord he travelled through Middle-Earth calling himself Annatar, the lord of gifts. (to be continued...)
The First Age ended with the War of Wrath in wich the Dark Lord Morgoth was defeated by the armies of Valinor, the blessed realm, and cast into the Void forever. The Silmaril jewels, made by Feanor with the light of Valinor, were lost in sea and fire.
The Elves were called by the Valar(the creators of the World) to leave Middle-Earth and return to Valinor and many do so, although many of them decide to remain.
In the first year of the Second Age the main group of the Noldor(Feanors people) found the Mithlond harbours where Cídran the shipwright ruled, and the kingdom of Lindon where Ereinion Gil-Galad, son of Fingon and High-King of the Noldor was the ruler. With Gil-Galad were Elrond son of Earendil, the Lady Galadriel, the most powerful of the Noldor and her husband Celeborn of Doriath.
Elrond had a twin brother called Elros. When his father Earendil the mariner went to Valinor, his sons were given the choice to remain immortal Elves or become humans mortals, since their father Earendil was the son of Tuor (a man) and Idril (an Elf daughter of Turgon, king of Gondolin). Elrond chose to be an Elf, but Elros chose to be mortal.
The Valar rewarded the Mens role in the War of Wrath and created the island of Númenor in the middle of the Belegaer Ocean between Middle-Earth and Valinor. Many men travelled to Númenor and set and great kingdom there, and their King was Elros who adopted the title of Tar-Minyatur, king of Númenor in the year 32 of the Second Age.
In the year 40 many Dwarves went to the Mines of Mória (Khazad-dum) where Dúrin was king.
The first centuries of the Second Age were of rebuilding after the great war and of peace, since the Dark Lord was forever banished from Middle-Earth. But some of his creations and legacy still remained and slowly were reappearing and waiting for a force that will again lead them.
Meanwhile in Númenor Elros Tar-Minyatur finally died of extremly old age in the year 442, since Númenoreans had larger life spans than the normal Men. His second Son Tar-Amandil becomes King.
In the year 500, Sauron, the most powerful lieutenant of Morgoth reappears in Middle Earth and begins gathering his power.
2- Celebrimbor and the Rings of Power
Near Mória, where the Dwarves lived and digged for metals, the Elves founded the Kingdom of Eregion where many great craftsmen lived. To there came the Lady Galadriel and Celeborn where they were welcomed as their Lords. In Eregion was created the Guild of Jewelers whose leader was Celebrimbor, son of Curufin and grandson of Feanor, the greatest craftsman of the Noldor, maker of the Silmarils.
Celebrimbor was now the greatest craftsman of all the Elves(his father and granfather having been killed in the First Age), and he sought to achieve the fame and genius of his predecessors. He had lived in Gondolin, the hidden city of Turgon until its destruction in the First Age, and was its main craftsman. Now in Eregion he cooperated closely with the Dwarves of Mória and both sides were greatly rewarded by this partnership.
Celebrimbor secretly loved the Lady Galadriel and although she was married to Celeborn, Celebrimbor crafted and beautiful jewel for her with the the light of Valinor and named it Elessar wich was the become the light of the evenstar that Arwen gave to Aragorn in the Third Age.
Galadriel and Celeborn had a daughter in Eregion in the year 1091 and named her Celebrían.
Meanwhile in the far southeast, in the lands of Mordor, Sauron began building the fortress of Barad-Dur and gathering forces of Orcs. Sauron preceived Celebrimbor as a great craftsman and decided to make use of him. Taking the form of a beautiful and kind lord he travelled through Middle-Earth calling himself Annatar, the lord of gifts. (to be continued...)
