Khazad-dum
We never get to see Khazad-dum in its heyday. By the time
Tolkien brings the reader to the great mansions of the ancient
Dwarves, the
halls are empty, except for
Orcs.
Gimli's deep voice must have echoed through the empty tunnels and chambers as he sang for his companions an old Dwarven folk-song:
The world was young, the mountains green,
No stain yet on the Moon was seen,
No words were laid on stream or stone,
When Durin woke and walked alone.
He named the nameless hills and dells;
He drank from yet untasted wells;
He stooped and looked in Mirrormere,
And saw a crown of stars appear,
As gems upon a silver thread,
Above the shadow of his head.
How long ago was this episode? How old was Durin before he found a wife (as he plainly must have, since he originally walked alone)? How long was it before he found the Mirrormere and the entrance to the mighty caverns that he made his home?
We can infer a few points about ancient Dwarven history from what is told of their dealings with the
Elves. For instance, we know that the Dwarves first entered
Beleriand during the
second age of
Melkor's captivity in
Valinor. According to THE WAR OF THE JEWELS, this was Year of the
Trees 1250, which was 200 years after the
awakening of the Elves (a period equal in length to about 1900 Years of the Sun).
The
Dwarven cities of Nogrod and Belegost, the two
cities in the
Ered Luin, were not founded by Dwarves of Durin's Line, but instead were the homes of other Dwarves. They were most likely the ancestral homes of the Firebeards and the Broadbeams, the two kindreds of the Dwarves who awoke in the northern Ered Luin.
Khazad-dum engaged in trade with Nogrod and Belegost.
Tales of Khazad-dum reached Beleriand, though it is only briefly mentioned in
THE SILMARILLION as being the greatest of Dwarven cities. The ancient Dwarf-road that passed through the forest of Greenwood (later
Mirkwood) and through
Eriador apparently carried traffic from Khazad-dum to other Dwarven cities in
the east.
And yet Khazad-dum was far to the south of the High Pass where the ancient road crossed the mountains. This seems a little strange. One can only imagine the Dwarves had built a road north along the foot-hills of the
Misty Mountains to reach the high pass. Or perhaps they followed the
Silverlode down to
Anduin and crossed the river by raft or boat. And wondering this, one cannot fail to ask whether Durin's folk were friendly with the Nandorin Elves who lived in the Vales of Anduin.
We know something of the life the Dwarves led in the
First Age. They were, of course, miners and stone-masons of exquisite and almost unrivaled skill. They smelted metals such as gold, silver, iron, and probably copper and tin. They worked with crystal, unearthed gems of many types, and even learned to make instruments such as trumpets and harps.
The
city itself conducted trade mostly with the east. There was no West-gate until around the year 750 of the Second Age. Dwarven merchants must also have trekked into the distant north. The road passing through the forest ran to the Celduin and probably crossed the river by a bridge just as it crossed Anduin by a bridge. From the crossing point on Celduin the road turned northeast and ran toward the Emyn Engrin, and from there ran eastwards to the other
Dwarven realms of the Ironfists, Stiffbeards, Blacklocks, and Stonefoots.
THE
PEOPLES OF
MIDDLE-EARTH tells us that Dwarves did indeed live well to the east of Celduin, and that there was a city or gathering place for all the Dwarves at
Mount Gundabad, where they held enclaves. The lands of Durin's folk were selected for this honor because he was the eldest of the Dwarves and Gundabad was the place where he awoke.
How numerous could Durin's folk have been in the First Age? We can only guess. But the time from the awakening of the Elves in Cuiviënen to the end of the First Age of the Sun was equivalent to approximately 4900 Years of the Sun. Yet there was no mention of the Elves encountering the Dwarves during the Great Journey. On the other hand, the Noegyth Nibin (the
Petty-Dwarves) claimed to have settled in Beleriand before the Elves arrived.
The Dwarves must have awoken soon after the Elves did, but their numbers were few and increased only slowly. When they made contact with Durin some members of each tribe joined him in Khazad-dum. As the years passed a few outcasts wandered west into Beleriand. The
Vanyar and
Noldor entered Beleriand in Year of the Trees 1115, about 622 Years of the Sun after the awakening of the Elves. The Teleri arrived in Year of the Trees 1128, or about 124 Years of the Sun after the Vanyar and Noldor.
The Noegyth Nibin could have entered Beleriand before the Vanyar and Noldor. But they could also have entered after them and before the
Sindar. Nonetheless, it is clear there had to be Dwarves in Beleriand by Year of the Trees 1128, about 747 Years of the Sun after the awakening of the Elves. If the Dwarves awoke within 10
Years of the Trees after the Elves, they would have had the equivalent of a few centuries in Years of the Sun in which to find each other and to cast out the Noegyth Nibin.
Since Nogrod and Belegost were not founded until Year of the Trees 1250 (almost 2,000 Years of the Sun after the awakening of the Elves), it seems evident the Firebeards and Broadbeams must all have wandered east soon after they awoke. Perhaps all the Dwarves came together in
Khazad-dum with Durin first, and there built the first Dwarven city. When their numbers became large enough, the six "younger"
kings (descendants of the original fathers) could have led their peoples away from Khazad-dum to establish new ancestral homes for their peoples. This could explain why the Eldar encountered no Dwarves on their journey. The only Dwarves who would have left Khazad-dum by this time would have been the Noegyth Nibin.
So, what does this get us? Room to estimate a maximum probable population for Khazad-dum at the end of the First Age of the Sun (some 3900 Years of the Sun after Durin might have awoken). This would allow 45 - 48 generations for the Dwarves of Durin's Line to increase their numbers. By the time the Second Age started, there could have been upwards of 100,000
Dwarves living in Khazad-dum and more than 120,000 in most of each of the other Dwarven cities (not including Nogrod and Belegost, which had by then suffered grievous losses in the
wars with
Morgoth and the Elves).
Early in the Second Age Durin's folk were joined by most if not all of the Dwarves of Belegost, and many of the Dwarves of Nogrod. The population of Khazad-dum could have swelled to 500,000 or more by the end of the Second Age (but this estimate presupposes some changes in Dwarven birth rates -- signaling the onset of the decline of the Dwarven
race).
Population estimates aside, we know that Khazad-dum grew slowly through the long centuries. The Dwarves added hall after hall and gradually extended their mines northward, especially after the discovery of
Mithril sometime in the 7th or 8th centuries of the Second Age. The west-gate was built during this time, after the Noldor of Eregion established their great friendship with the Dwarves of Khazad-dum (who undoubtedly were influenced by tales of the friendship between the Noldor and the Dwarves of Nogrod and Belegost).
Tolkien wrote that Durin was reborn in his descendants six times. We know that Durin III was King of Khazad-dum when
the Rings of Power were made, and he led an army against
Sauron in the War of the Elves and Sauron. So it must have been Durin II who was king when Narvi and
Celebrimbor built the west-gate. The king at the end of the Second Age may have been Durin IV.
He marched with the Host of the Last Alliance of Elves and
Men.
Khazad-dum continued to flourish in
the Third Age even though the Eldar were in decline. The west-gate may have been re-opened to allow trade with
Arnor and, later, the peoples of
Dunland. When the
realm of
Angmar arose in the distant north and
Amroth of
Lorien sent
armies over the mountains to help the
Dunedain, it may be the Dwarves gave aid to the Elves, or even permitted Amroth's warriors to pass through Khazad-dum.
