Pulled from the mind of J.R.R Tolkien,The Lord of The Ringsis one of the most detailed fantasy worlds ever created. As well as being a professor at Oxford, Tolkien was an avid philologist and enjoyed creating languages in his spare time. This wasn’t enough however as Tolkien himself stated, “for the perfect construction of an art-language, it is found necessary to construct at least an outline of a mythology.”
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This outline of a mythology became one of the most successful cultural touchstones in history. For those who are unfamiliar with the author’s work though, the mythology created by Tolkien is at best slightly overwhelming, more so for anyone without a decent understanding of some of the most important moments in the history of Middle Earth.
Ainulindale (Beginning of time)
The Ainulindale (the music of the Ainur) was the music sung by the Ainur (an ethereal class of being predeceasing the universe) which laid the foundation for the creation of sentient races of Elves and Men.
Conducted by Eru Iluvitar (the creator of the universe), these songs were sung by his children which formed the idea of the physical universe of Ea. Some Ainur began to create the physical world in their own image, thus becoming the Valar and the Maiar.
Killing of the Two Trees of Valinor (Late Years Of The Trees)
The Two Great Trees of the Valinor were created to bring light to Middle Earth when the stars cannot. Morgoth (one of theValarand the chief antagonist ofThe Silmarillion) andUngoliant (a great spider) took it upon themselves to destroy these great trees to plunge the world into darkness.
Upon the destruction of the trees, the true light source is revealed to be within three gems called the Silmarils, which must be protected at all costs.
Voyage of Earendil (Late First Age)
At the dawn of the War of the Wrath, the armies of Elves and Men were falling to defeat against the armies of Morgoth (Melkor as he was named). Earendil, a half-elf mariner, took it upon himself to voyage to Valar with his wife Elwing to plead for the Valar to help in the defense of the children of Iluvitar.
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Carrying one of the Silmaril called the Morning Star across the sea, he brought the Valar with him and became the hero of the war.
War of the Wrath (Late First Age)
Sometimes called The Great Battle, the War of the Wrath was the largest battle of the First Age. The armies of Elves and Men fought to end the power of Morgoth. Thanks to the action of Earendil, theValar joined in the fight and were the deciding factor in the defeat and destruction of Morgoth’s army.
The victory came at a cost, however, as the force of the battle caused theBeleriand (the northwestern portion of Middle Earth) to sink beneath the sea.
Crafting of the Rings (Mid-Second Age)
In theland of Aragian(an Elven kingdom founded on their arrival to Middle Earth),Celabrimborwas one of a number of Elves who were corrupted by the teachings of Annatar. Together, the Elves forged 16 rings, seven of which went to the dwarves and nine to the realms of Men.
Celabrimbor forged in secret another three rings that went to the Elves. Annatar (who turned out to be Sauron) then developed the One Ring to rule them all in secret and a war over the rings would dictate the next two ages.
The Downfall of Numenor (Late Second Age)
Numenor was the great power in Middle Earth in the second age, but dissent was growing within the Kingdom’s ranks. Envious of the immortality of Elves, the men of Numenor began to corrupt to the ways of arrogance and forsake their friendship with the Elves.
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After capturing Sauron in Middle-Earth, he began to work his way up the chain of influence within Numenor and soon became anadvisor to the King. After turning their attention away from Sauron and trying to fight the Valar to the West, Numenor fell.
Isildur takes the One Ring from Sauron (Late Second Age/Early Third Age)
After Sauron attacked Gondor, the armies of Men, Dwarves, and Elves took up arms against him in a long and drawn-out battle. Sauron fell the Kings of Gondor andArnor (Alendial) and the king of Mordor (Giggalad).
It was the son of Alendial, Isildur who finally defeated Sauron by cutting the One Ring from his finger. The Saviour of Men,Isildur paraded the ringthrough Middle Earth for years before he was jumped by a number of orcs and killed.
Finding of the One Ring (Mid/Late Third Age)
Having been lost for many years after the demise of Isildur, a Stoor Hobbit from the Gladdin Field named Smeagle found the One Ring submerged at the bottom of a stream.
Having to murder his friend to come into possession of the One Ring, Smeagle fled to the heights of the Misty Mountains to keep his ‘precious’ safe. The corrupting power of the ring slowly turned this hobbit into the creature known as Gollum.
Bilbo finding the One Ring (Late Third Age)
After finding himselflost in the Misty Mountains, Bilbo Bagginsof Hobbiton came across the One Ring which had been dropped by Gollum. After outwitting Gollum in a game of Riddles, Bilbo escaped with the ring.
He then used its power to help defeat the dragon Smaug and free the Kingdom of Erebor allowing the Dwarves back into their homeland. Bilbo brought the One Ring home with him to Hobbiton and gave it to his adopted nephew Frodo after the corrupting power became too much.
Destruction of the One Ring (Late Third Age)
After the most epic journey Middle Earth has ever seen, Frodo Baggins was the creature who vanquished the power of Sauron by destroying the One Ring in the fiery depth of Mount Doom.
With the help of the Fellowship, the Armies of Gondor, Rohan, Men, and The Ents as well as more than a little bit of help from Gandalf the White (formerly the Grey), Frodo finally freed the peoples of Middle Earth with his Hobbit friends.
Leaving of the Elves (Late Third Age/Early Fourth Age)
At the end of the Third Age and the Battle of Middle Earth, theElves left the landof men for good. Bringing with them the wizard Gandalf, they would remove the remaining rings of power from Middle Earth.
Upon doing so, they effectively left the destiny and control over the coming Fourth Age in the hands of the Men of Arnor and Gondor. This marked the end of the story of the rings of power.
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