[p.323]

     ...But the design of Manw"e was that the N'umen'oreans should not  be
tempted to seek for the Blessed Realm, nor desire to overpass  the  limits
set to their bliss, becoming enamoured of the immortality of the Valar and
the Eldar and the lands where all things endure.

                                 [p.331]

     ...for they desired to end all friendship between  their  people  and
the Eldar of Eress"ea, whom they named the Spies of the Valar,  hoping  to
keep their deeds and their counsels hidden from the Lords of the West. But
all that they did was known to Manw"e, and the Valar were wroth  with  the
Kings of N'umenor, and gave them counsel and protection no more;  and  the
ships of Eress"ea came never again out of the sunset, and  the  havens  of
And'uni"e were forlorn.

                                 [p.339]

     Nonetheless for  long  it  seemed  to  the  N'umen'oreans  that  they
prospered, and if they were not increased in happiness, yet they grew more
strong, and their rich men ever richer. For with the aid  and  counsel  of
Sauron they multiplied their possessions, and they  devised  engines,  and
they built ever greater ships. ...

                                 [p.342]

     ...And out of the west there would come at times a great cloud in the
evening, shaped as it were an eagle, with pinions spread to the north  and
the south; and slowly it would loom up, blotting out the sunset, and  then
uttermost night would fall upon N'umenor. And  some  of  the  eagles  bore
lightning beneath their wings, and thunder echoed between sea and cloud.

                                 [p.343]

     Now the lightnings increased and slew men upon the hills, and in  the
fields, and in the streets of the city; and a fiery bolt smote the dome of
the Temple and shore it asunder, and it was wreathed  in  flame.  But  the
Temple itself was unshaken, and Sauron stood there upon the  pinnacle  and
defied the lightning and was unharmed; and in that hour men called  him  a
god and did all that he would. ...

                                 [p.344]

     Then Manw"e upon the Mountain called upon  Il'uvatar,  and  for  that
time the Valar laid down their government of Arda. ...

                                 [p.347]

     For Sauron himself was filled with great fear at  the  wrath  of  the
Valar, and the doom that Eru laid upon sea and land. It  was  greater  far
than  aught  he  had  looked  for,  hoping  only  for  the  death  of  the
N'umen'oreans and the defeat of their proud king. And Sauron,  sitting  in
his black seat in the midst of the Temple, had laughed when he  heard  the
trumpets of Ar-Pharaz^on sounding for battle; and  again  he  had  laughed
when he heard the thunder of the storm; and  a  third  time,  even  as  he
laughed at his own thought, thinking what he would do now  in  the  world,
being rid of the Edain for ever, he was taken in the midst of  his  mirth,
and his seat and his temple fell into the abyss. But  Sauron  was  not  of
mortal flesh, and though he was robbed now of that shape in which  he  had
wrought so great an evil, so that he could never again appear fair to  the
eyes of Men, yet his spirit arose out of the deep and passed as  a  shadow
and a black wind over the sea, and came back to Middle-earth and to Mordor
that was his home. There he took up again his great  Ring  in  Barad-d^ur,
and dwelt there, dark and silent, until he wrought himself a new guise, an
image of malice and hatred  made  visible;  and  the  Eye  of  Sauron  the
Terrible few could endure.
 
 

Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age
in which these tales come to their end

                                 [p.353]

     Of old there was Sauron the Maia, whom the Sindar in Beleriand  named
Gorthaur. In the beginning of Arda Melkor seduced him to  his  allegiance,
and he became the greatest and most trusted of the servants of the  Enemy,
and the most perilous, for he could assume many forms, and for long if  he
willed he could still appear noble and beautiful, so as to deceive all but
the most wary.
     When Thangorodrim was broken and Morgoth overthrown,  Sauron  put  on
his fair hue again and did obeisance to E"onw"e, the herald of Manw"e, and
abjured all his evil deeds. And some hold  that  this  was  not  at  first
falsely done, but that Sauron in truth repented,  if  only  out  of  fear,
being dismayed by the fall of Morgoth and the great wrath of the Lords  of
the West. But it was not within the power of E"onw"e to  pardon  those  of
his own order, and he commanded Sauron to return to Aman and there receive
the judgement of Manw"e. Then Sauron was ashamed, and he was unwilling  to
return in humiliation and to receive from the Valar a sentence,  it  might
be, of long servitude in proof of his good faith; for  under  Morgoth  his
power had been great. Therefore when E"onw"e departed he  hid  himself  in
Middle-earth; and he fell back into evil, for the bonds that  Morgoth  had
laid upon him were very strong.

                                 [p.356]

     Now the Elves made many rings; but secretly Sauron made One  Ring  to
rule all the others, and their power was bound up with it, to  be  subject
wholly to it and to last only so long as it too should last. And  much  of
the strength and will of Sauron passed into that One Ring; for  the  power
of the Elven-rings was very great, and that which should govern them  must
be a thing of surpassing potency; and Sauron forged it in the Mountain  of
Fire in the Land of Shadow. And while  he  wore  the  One  Ring  he  could
perceive all the things that were done by means of the lesser  rings,  and
he could see and govern the very thoughts of those that wore them.

                                 [p.359]

     ...So great was the power and splendour of the N'umen'oreans  in  the
noontide of their realm that the servants of Sauron  would  not  withstand
them, and hoping to accomplish by cunning what he  could  not  achieve  by
force, he left Middle-earth for a while and went to N'umenor as a  hostage
of Tar-Calion the King. And there he abode, until at the last by his craft
he had corrupted the hearts of most of that people, and set  them  at  war
with the Valar, and so compassed their ruin, as he had long  desired.  But
that ruin was more terrible than Sauron had foreseen, for he had forgotten
the might of the Lords of the West in their anger. ...

                                 [p.362]

     Thus the Exiles of N'umenor established their realms in Arnor and  in
Gondor; but ere many years had passed it became manifest that their enemy,
Sauron, had also returned. He came in secret, as has  been  told,  to  his
ancient kingdom of Mordor  beyond  the  Ephel  D'uath,  the  Mountains  of
Shadow, and that country marched with Gondor upon the  east.  There  above
the valley of Gorgoroth was built his fortress vast and strong, Baradd^ur,
the Dark Tower; and there was a fiery mountain in that land that the Elves
named Orodruin. Indeed for that reason Sauron had set there  his  dwelling
long before, for he used the fire that welled there from the heart of  the
earth in his sorceries and in his forging; and in the midst of the Land of
Mordor he had fashioned the Ruling Ring. There now he brooded in the dark,
until he had wrought for himself a new shape; and it was terrible, for his
fair semblance had departed for ever when he was cast into  the  abyss  at
the drowning of N'umenor. He took up again  the  great  Ring  and  clothed
himself in power; and the malice of the Eye of  Sauron  few  even  of  the
great among Elves and Men could endure.

                                 [p.370]

     ...Yet many voices were heard among the  Elves  foreboding  that,  if
Sauron should come again, then either he would find the Ruling  Ring  that
was lost, or at the best his enemies would discover it and destroy it; but
in either chance the powers of the Three must then  fail  and  all  things
maintained by them must fade, and  so  the  Elves  should  pass  into  the
twilight and the Dominion of Men begin.

                                 [p.372]

     ...But afterwards  it  was  said  among  the  Elves  that  they  were
messengers sent by the Lords of the West to contest the power  of  Sauron,
if he should arise again, and to move Elves and Men and all living  things
of good will to valiant deeds. In the likeness of Men they  appeared,  old
but vigorois, and they changed little with the years, and aged but slowly,
though great cares lay on them; great wisdom they had, and many powers  of
mind and hand. Long they journeyed far and wide among Elves and  Men,  and
held converse also  with  beasts  and  with  birds;  and  the  peoples  of
Middle-earth gave to them many names, for their true names  they  did  not
reveal. Chief among them were those whom the Elves called  Mithrandir  and
Curun'ir, but Men in  the  North  named  Gandalf  and  Saruman.  Of  these
Curun'ir was the eldest and came first, and after him came Mithrandir  and
Radagast, and others of the Istari who went into the east of Middle-earth,
and do not come into these tales. Radagast was the friend  of  all  beasts
and birds; but Curun'ir went most among Men, and he was subtle  in  speech
and skilled in all the devices of smithcraft. Mithrandir  was  closest  in
counsel with Elrond and the Elves. He wandered far in the North  and  West
and made never in any land any lasting abode; but Curun'ir journeyed  into
the East, and when he  returned  he  dwelt  at  Orthanc  in  the  Ring  of
Isengard, which the N'umen'oreans made in the days of their power.

                                 [p.375]

     ...but Mithrandir spoke to the Council, saying:
     `It is not needed that the Ring should be found, for while it  abides
on earth and is not unmade, still the power that it holds will  live,  and
Sauron will grow and have hope. The might of the Elves and the Elf-friends
is less now than of old. Soon he will be too strong for you, even  without
the Great Ring; for he rules the Nine, and of the Seven he  has  recovered
three. We must strike.`

                                 [p.377]

     Then Sauron failed, and he was utterly  vanquished  and  passed  away
like a shadow of malice; and the towers of Barad-d^ur  crumbled  in  ruin,
and at the rumour of their fall many lands trembled. ...

                                 [p.378]

     White was that ship and long was it a-building, and long  it  awaited
the end of which C'irdan had spoken. But when all these things were  done,
and the Heir of Isildur had taken up the lordship of Men, and the dominion
of the West had passed to him, then it was made plain that  the  power  of
the Three Rings also was ended, and to the Firstborn the  world  grew  old
and grey. In that time the last of the Noldor set sail from the Havens and
left Middle-earth for ever. And latest of all the  Keepers  of  the  Three
Rings rode to the Sea, and Master Elrond took there the ship that  C'irdan
had made ready. In the twilight of autumn it sailed out of Mithlond, until
the seas of the Bent World fell away beneath it,  and  the  winds  of  the
round sky troubled it no more, and borne upon  the  high  airs  above  the
mists of the world it passed into the Ancient West, and an  end  was  come
for the Eldar of story and of song.
 

Part Two: The Second Age
 

I. A Description of the Island of N'umenor

                                 [p.165]

     The account of the Island of N'umenor that here  follows  is  derived
from descriptions and simple maps that were long preserved in the archives
of the Kings of Gondor. These represent indeed but a  small  part  of  all
that was once written, for many natural  histories  and  geographies  were
composed by learned men in N'umenor; but these, like nearly  all  else  of
the arts and sciences of N'umenor at its high  tide,  disappeared  in  the
Downfall.
     Even such documents as were  preserved  in  Gondor,  or  in  Imladris
(where in the care of Elrond were deposited the surviving treasures of the
Northern  N'umen'orean  kings)  suffered  from  loss  and  destruction  by
neglect. For though the survivors in Middle-earth `yearned', as they said,
for Akallab^eth, the Downfallen, and never even after long ages ceased  to
regard themselves as in a measure exiles, when it became  clear  that  the
Land of Gift was taken away and that N'umenor had  disappeared  for  ever,
all but a few regarded study of what was left  of  its  history  as  vain,
breeding only useless regret. The story of Ar-Pharaz^on  and  his  impious
armada was all that remained generally known in later ages.

                                 [p.170]

     Some metals they found in N'umenor, and as their  cunning  in  mining
and in smelting and smithying swiftly  grew  things  of  iron  and  copper
became common. Among the wrights of the Edain were weaponsmiths, and  they
had with the teaching of the Noldor acquired great skill in the forging of
swords, of axe-blades, and of spearheads and knives. Swords the  Guild  of
Weaponsmiths still made, for the preservation of the craft, though most of
their labour was spent on the fashioning of tools for the uses  of  peace.
The King and most of the great chieftains possessed swords as heirlooms of
their fathers; and at times they would still give a sword  as  a  gift  to
their heirs. A new sword was made for the King's Heir to be given  to  him
on the day on which this title was conferred. But no man wore a  sword  in
N'umenor, and for long years few indeed were the weapons of warlike intent
that were made in the land.  Axes  and  spears  and  bows  they  had,  and
shooting with bows on foot and on horseback was a chief sport and  pastime
of the N'umen'oreans. In later days, in the wars upon Middle-earth, it was
the bows of the N'umen'oreans that were most greatly feared. `The  men  of
the Sea', it was said, `send before them a great cloud, as a  rain  turned
to serpents, or a black hail tipped with steel'; and  in  those  days  the
great cohorts of the King's Archers used bows made of hollow  steel,  with
blackfeathered arrows a full ell long from point to notch.

                                 [p.171]

     ...It is said that when the Edain first set sail upon the Great  Sea,
following the Star to N'umenor, the Elvish ships that bore them were  each
steered and captained by one of the Eldar deputed by  C'irdan;  and  after
the Elvish steersmen departed and took with them the most  part  of  their
ships it was long before the N'umen'oreans themselves ventured far to sea.
But there were shipwrights among them  who  had  been  instructed  by  the
Eldar; and by their own study and devices they improved  their  art  until
they dared to sail ever further into the deep waters. ...
 
 

II. Aldarion and Erendis

The Mariner's Wife

                                 [p.173]

     Melendur was a man of gentle mood, without pride, whose exercise  was
rather in thought than in deeds of the body. He loved dearly the  land  of
N'umenor and all things in it, but he gave no heed to the Sea that lay all
about it; for his mind looked further than Middle-earth: he was  enamoured
of the stars and the heavens. All that he could gather of the lore of  the
Eldar and Edain concerning E"a and the deeps that lay about the Kingdom of
Arda he studied, and his chief delight was in the watching of  the  stars.
He built a tower in the Forostar (the northernmost region of  the  island)
where the airs were clearest, from which by  night  he  would  survey  the
heavens and observe all the movements of the lights of the firmament.
 
 

IV. The Hunt for the Ring
 

Of the Journey of the Black Riders according to the account
that Gandalf gave to Frodo

                                 [p.338]

     Now few could withstand even one of these  fell  creatures,  and  (as
Sauron deemed) none could withstand  them  when  gathered  together  under
their terrible captain, the Lord of Morgul. Yet this weakness they had for
Sauron's present purpose: so great was the  terror  that  went  with  them
(even invisible  and  unclad)  that  their  coming  forth  might  soon  be
perceived and their mission be guessed by the Wise.
     So it was that Sauron prepared two strokes - in which many after  saw
the beginnings of the War of the Ring. They were made together.  The  Orcs
assailed the realm of Thranduil, with orders to recapture Gollum; and  the
Lord of Morgul was sent forth  openly  to  battle  against  Gondor.  These
things were done towards the end of June  3018.  Thus  Sauron  tested  the
strength and preparedness of Denethor, and found them  more  than  he  had
hoped. But that troubled him little, since he had used little force in the
assault, and his chief purpose was that the coming forth  of  the  Nazg^ul
should appear only as part of his policy of war against Gondor.
     Therefore when Osgiliath was  taken  and  the  bridge  broken  Sauron
stayed the assault, and the Nazg^ul were ordered to begin the  search  for
the Ring. But Sauron did not underesteem the powers and vigilance  of  the
Wise, and the Nazg^ul were commanded to act as secretly as they could. ...

                                 [p.343]

     ...All except  the  Witch-king  were  apt  to  stray  when  alone  by
daylight; and all, again save  the  Witch-king,  feared  water,  and  were
unwilling, except in dire need, to enter it or  to  cross  streams  unless
dryshod by a bridge...

                                 [p.344]

     ...It would then no doubt be late in April before Sauron  heard  that
Gollum had been seen again, apparently captive in the hands of a Man. This
might mean little. Neither Sauron nor any of  his  servants  yet  knew  of
Aragorn or who he was. But evidently later (since the lands  of  Thranduil
would now be closely watched), possibly a month later,  Sauron  heard  the
disquieting news that the Wise were aware of Gollum, and that Gandalf  had
passed into Thranduil's realm.
     Sauron must then have been filled with anger and alarm.  He  resolved
to use the Ringwraiths as soon as he could, for speed rather than  secrecy
was now important. Hoping to alarm his enemies and disturb their  counsels
with the fear of war (which he did not intend to make for some  time),  he
attacked Thranduil and Gondor at about the same time.  He  had  these  two
additional objects: to capture or kill Gollum, or at least to deprive  his
enemies of him; and to force the passage of the bridge  of  Osgiliath,  so
that the Nazg^ul could cross, while testing the strength of Gondor.
     In the event Gollum escaped.  But  the  passage  of  the  bridge  was
effected. The forces there used were probably much less than men in Gondor
thought. In the panic of the first assault, when the Witchking was allowed
to reveal himself briefly in his full  terror,  the  Nazg^ul  crossed  the
bridge at night and dispersed northwards. Without belittling the valour of
Gondor, which indeed Sauron found greater far than he  had  hoped,  it  is
clear that Boromir and Faramir were able  to  drive  back  the  enemy  and
destroy the bridge, only because  the  attack  had  now  served  its  main
purpose.
 
 

Part Four

II. The Istari

                                 [p.389]

     ...Emissaries they were from the Lords of the West,  the  Valar,  who
still took counsel for the governance of Middle-earth, and when the shadow
of Sauron began first to stir again took this means of resisting him.  For
with the consent of Eru they sent members of their  own  high  order,  but
clad in bodies as of Men, real and not feigned, but subject to  the  fears
and pains and weariness of earth, able to hunger and thirst and be  slain;
though because of their noble spirits they did not die, and aged  only  by
the cares and labours of many long years. And this the Valar did, desiring
to amend the errors of old, especially that they had  attempted  to  guard
and seclude the Eldar by their own might and glory fully revealed; whereas
now their emissaries were forbidden  to  reveal  themselves  in  forms  of
majesty, or to seek to rule the wills of Men or Elves by open  display  of
power, but coming in shapes weak and humble  were  bidden  to  advise  and
persuade Men and Elves  to  good,  and  to  seek  to  unite  in  love  and
understanding all those whom Sauron, should he come again, would endeavour
to dominate and corrupt.

                                 [p.392]

     Most of the remaining writings about the  Istari  (as  a  group)  are
unhappily no more than very rapid jottings, often illegible. Of major

                                 [p.393]

     interest, however, is a brief and very hasty sketch of  a  narrative,
telling of a council of the Valar, summoned it seems by Manw"e (`and maybe
he called upon Eru for counsel?'), at which it was resolved  to  send  out
three emissaries to Middle-earth. `Who would go? For they must be  mighty,
peers of Sauron, but must forgo might, and clothe themselves in  flesh  so
as to treat on equality and win the trust of Elves and Men. But this would
imperil them, dimming their wisdom and knowledge, and confusing them  with
fears, cares, and wearinesses coming from the flesh.' ...

edited by Christopher Tolkien

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