Blue Mountains: Difference between revisions

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On the western side a small section of Lindon remained, and here the retreating [[Elves]] built the [[Kingdom of Lindon]], ruled by [[Gil-galad|Ereinion Gil-galad]], last [[High King of the Noldor]]. Its most important city was the [[Grey Havens]], from where departing Elves left Middle-earth for [[Valinor]].  Also located here were the two regions of [[Forlindon]] to the North, with its chief port being [[Forlond]].  The other was [[Harlindon]] to the South, which [[Harlond (Lindon)|Harlond]] was its chief port.
On the western side a small section of Lindon remained, and here the retreating [[Elves]] built the [[Kingdom of Lindon]], ruled by [[Gil-galad|Ereinion Gil-galad]], last [[High King of the Noldor]]. Its most important city was the [[Grey Havens]], from where departing Elves left Middle-earth for [[Valinor]].  Also located here were the two regions of [[Forlindon]] to the North, with its chief port being [[Forlond]].  The other was [[Harlindon]] to the South, which [[Harlond (Lindon)|Harlond]] was its chief port.


The Dwarven cities of Nogrod and Belegost were also ruined when the mountains were broken.  Causing most of the Dwarves to migrate east to [[Khazad-dûm]], leaving a remnant behind.  By the Third Age however, the native Dwarves seemed to have largely moved to the Southern chain.
The Dwarven cities of Nogrod and Belegost were also ruined when the mountains were broken, causing most of the Dwarves to migrate east to [[Khazad-dûm]], leaving a remnant behind.  By the Third Age however, the native Dwarves seemed to have largely moved to the Southern chain.


== The [[Third Age]] ==
== The [[Third Age]] ==

Revision as of 15:09, 30 May 2013

"Who told you, and who sent you?" — Gandalf
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Blue Mountains
Mountain Range
Rob Alexander - Blue Mountain Dwarf Hold.jpg
General Information
Other namesEred Luin, Ered Lindon
LocationBetween Beleriand and Eriador
TypeMountain Range
DescriptionGreat western mountain range
RegionsBelegost, Nogrod, and later realms like Thorin's Halls
People and History
InhabitantsDwarves (Broadbeams, Firebeards, and Longbeards)
EventsWar of Wrath

The Blue Mountains (S. Ered Luin), also known as the Ered Lindon, was the mountain range at the far west of Eriador.

In the Beginning

During the creation of Arda, the Blue Mountains were meant to line up directly with the Grey Mountains of the southlands, forming the western wall of Arda. They lay parallel to the Red Mountains and Yellow Mountains that formed the eastern wall. The Blue Mountains were originally connected with the Red Mountains by the Iron Mountains which stretched across the entire north. The symmetry of Arda was broken during the wars between the Valar and Melkor in the ages before the Years of the Lamps.

Before and During the First Age

In the First Age, the Blue Mountains were an unbroken line separating Eriador from Beleriand. Seven rivers flowed from its western side, and the land these rivers flowed through was known as Ossiriand. Later, when the Green-elves settled there, the land was called Lindon, and the mountains sometimes referred to as the Ered Lindon.

Sometime during the Years of the Trees two Dwarven Fathers awoke under Mount Dolmed and founded the two westernmost houses of the Dwarves (the Firebeards and Broadbeams). They subsequently built two great city-states, Nogrod and Belegost.

The Second Age

The Blue Mountains were ruined during the War of Wrath at the end of the First Age, and in the south central end of the range the sea broke through. The River Lhûn now flowed through the mountains to the Gulf of Lhûn. On the western side a small section of Lindon remained, and here the retreating Elves built the Kingdom of Lindon, ruled by Ereinion Gil-galad, last High King of the Noldor. Its most important city was the Grey Havens, from where departing Elves left Middle-earth for Valinor. Also located here were the two regions of Forlindon to the North, with its chief port being Forlond. The other was Harlindon to the South, which Harlond was its chief port.

The Dwarven cities of Nogrod and Belegost were also ruined when the mountains were broken, causing most of the Dwarves to migrate east to Khazad-dûm, leaving a remnant behind. By the Third Age however, the native Dwarves seemed to have largely moved to the Southern chain.

The Third Age

In the Third Age the Blue Mountains apparently saw the return of many of the Firebeards and Broadbeams due to the isolation/stagnation of Khazad Dûm, and the later awakening of Durin's Bane.

In T.A. 1974, fleeing the fall of Fornost, Arvedui briefly hid in old dwarven mines in the Blue Mountains.[1]

It also became the new home for many of Durin's folk who were exiled from their halls in Erebor by Smaug the Dragon who had driven them out. After the War of the Dwarves and Orcs, King Thrain II established his throne in the Northern range beyond the Little Lune river and later his son Thorin ruled after he went missing. During Thorin's reign many of the wandering Longbeards joined him and they became prosperous in a fashion. However, Erebor was retaken from Smaug by Thorin and company in T.A. 2941, and it can be assumed most if not all of Durin's folk relocated there.

The Fourth Age

After the War of the Ring, the Dwarves continued to rule the Blue Mountains.[source?]

Etymology

Ered Luin is a Sindarin name, consisting of ered ("mountains") and luin ("blue").[2]

The Etymologies show a Noldorin alternative name, Lhúndirien[3].

In Aelfwine's Old English translations, the Blue Mountains are named Hǽwengebeorg[4]

Portrayal in Adaptations

2006: The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II:

The Blue Mountains form the location of a fight between Dwarves and Drogoth.

2007: The Lord of the Rings Online:

The Blue Mountains appear as the game's westernmost region, Ered Luin. Ered Luin is the beginner's region for the game's races, Elves and Dwarves. The region's storyline is based around a conflict with a rogue clan of Dwarves called the Dourhands and a tribe of Goblins living in the winding valleys of a region called Rath Teraig. Ered Luin is home to the cities of Thorin's Hall and Duillond, but also contain smaller outposts such as Gondamon and Celondim. Ered Luin is also home to the hostile Dourhand cities of Kheledul and the excavation of a long-lost city named Sarnur.

2011: The Lord of the Rings: War in the North:

Although the Blue Mountains do not appear in the game, they are mentioned by the Dwarf Grof. He tells the player that the Blue Mountains are prosperous, but that they lately find more iron than gold.[5]

See also

References

  1. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The Númenorean Kings", "Eriador, Arnor, and the Heirs of Isildur"
  2. J.R.R. Tolkien, "Words, Phrases and Passages in Various Tongues in The Lord of the Rings", in Parma Eldalamberon XVII (edited by Christopher Gilson), p. 66
  3. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Lost Road and Other Writings, Part Three: "The Etymologies", p. 370
  4. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Shaping of Middle-earth, p. 341
  5. The Lord of the Rings: War in the North, Prologue