.png) | |
| Mountain pass | |
| High Pass | |
|---|---|
| General Information | |
| Other names | Pass of Imladris, Cirith Forn en Andrath |
| Location | Misty Mountains above Rivendell |
| Type | Mountain pass |
The High Pass, also known as the Pass of Imladris[1] or Cirith Forn en Andrath[2],[3] was a pass over the Misty Mountains east of the elven refuge of Rivendell.[4] Somewhere close to Rivendell[2] a long, hard and dangerous path climbed into the mountains until it reached the mountain under which laid Goblin-town on its way to the High Pass.[5] From the High Pass the ancient Old Forest Road descended to the Vales of Anduin to the river Anduin and then on into Mirkwood forest.[1][6]
There were two passes near Goblin-town: the High Pass and another pass that was easier to travel. The main gate of Goblin-town was located near the easier pass. Because the Orcs of Goblin-town had often caught travellers who spent the night near the main gate at the easier pass, travellers stopped using this pass and used the High Pass instead. However, the Orcs created a new entrance in a cave near the High Pass.[7]
History
In S.A. 3434[8] the main part of the army of Gil-galad, along with Isildur and part of the army of Arnor, used the High Pass, as well as the pass of Caradhras, to cross the Misty Mountains on their march to Mordor in the War of the Last Alliance of Elves and Men[9]. After this war Isildur was slain on his way back from Gondor to Rivendell at the Gladden Fields by Orcs that had been sent there before the War of the Last Alliance by Sauron to watch the passes.[10]
In the Third Age, the High Pass became dangerous again because of the Orcs. Only after the War of the Dwarves and Orcs, which nearly wiped out all of the Orcs of the mountains, did it become safe again. Nevertheless, in T.A. 2940, the goblins of Goblin-town had burrowed their way back to it, and Bilbo Baggins and the Dwarves of Thorin were captured there the next year during the Quest of Erebor.[5]
During the War of the Ring, Grimbeorn the Old and the Beornings kept the High Pass open,[11] but the Fellowship of the Ring ignored the High Pass because the eastern side of the Misty Mountains had become too dangerous.
Other names
The High Pass was also known as the Pass of Imladris.[3]
In Sindarin,[12] the pass was called Cirith Forn en Andrath ("The High-climbing Pass of the North").[3] Paul Strack suggests that the name is a combination of cirith ("pass"), forn ("north"), en ("of the") and andrath ("long climb").[12]
Other versions of the legendarium
The translation of Cirith Forn en Andrath as "the high-climbing pass of the north" seems to be either a loose gloss or even an error, since elsewhere in Unfinished Tales andrath is definitively translated as "long climb",[13] and an(d) is definitively stated to mean "long".[14]
In the draft for the chapter, "The Ring Goes South", Elrond gave a name for both the High Pass and the Goblin Gate, which was Annerchin.[15]
Portrayals in Adaptations
2007: The Lord of the Rings Online:
- The High Pass can be found in the region of the Misty Mountains and is divided into two areas: the Northern High Pass and the Southern High Pass. The mountain pass to the Vales of Anduin to the east was reopened by the Beornings following the War of the Ring.
2012: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey:
- The Dwarves take the High Pass, but they do so without Gandalf. They end up in the middle of a fight between Stone-giants.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The Disaster of the Gladden Fields", "Notes", note 14
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The Disaster of the Gladden Fields", second paragraph
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, Index, entry * Cirith Forn en Andrath
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, "Unfinished index for The Lord of the Rings", in Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull (eds), The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, entry High Pass, p. 207
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, "Over Hill and Under Hill"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, "The West of Middle-earth at the End of the Third Age" [map]
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, "Out of the Frying-Pan into the Fire", "But their main gate used to come out on a different pass [...]"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, "The Second Age", entry for the year 3434, p. 1084
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The Disaster of the Gladden Fields", "Notes", note 20
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The Disaster of the Gladden Fields"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "Many Meetings", p. 228
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Paul Strack, "S. Cirith Forn en Andrath loc.", Eldamo - An Elvish Lexicon, accessed 28 June 2023
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The Disaster of the Gladden Fields", "Notes", note 4, p. 278
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Appendix: Elements in Quenya and Sindarin Names", entry an(d)
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Return of the Shadow, "The Story Continued: XXIV. The Ring Goes South", pp. 416, 432
| Route of Thorin and Company |
|---|
| Bag End · Green Dragon · The Shire · Lone-lands · Last Bridge · Trollshaws · Trolls' lair · Rivendell · High Pass · Front Porch · Goblin-town · Goblin-gate · Eagle's Eyrie · Carrock · Beorn's Hall · Wilderland · Forest Gate · Elf-path · Mirkwood · Elvenking's Halls · Forest River · Lake-town · Long Lake · River Running · Desolation of the Dragon · Ravenhill · Back Door · Lonely Mountain · Great Hall of Thráin |