The Silmarillion of Tolkien had four parts and the event of Akallabeth was in the last of them. Akallabeth described the events of Numenor's fall after their bold confrontation of the Valar. Noldor's Pengolodh, the master of lore himself, gave the account of the powerful story that he related to Ælfwine; as Elendil wrote it.
Synopsis
In Adunaic, the word Akallabeth means The Downfallen. In Quenya, it means Mar-nu-Falmar or Atalante. After the defeat of Morgoth, the Edain (a friendly way that Eldar refer to men that took part in the war) received a new continent, created for their pleasure, as an appreciation from the Valar for their efforts in the defeat of Morgoth. The land was without the corruption and chaos of Endor. Valar placed the land on the Great Ocean: between the shores that lay west of Endor and east of Aman, the Undying Lands of the Valar. The Edain took the land with a decree from the Valar that the inhabitants must not sail to the Undying Lands. Edain accepted the decree; they believed the Valar only wanted the good for them.
And they seemed to understand the wisdom behind their mortality. They called their land Numenor and its people the Numenoreans (also the Dunedain). The Dunedain made the best out of their land and grew beyond the abilities of other breeds of men. Numenor grew for more than two centuries and began to spread their colonies, even to Endor. At this time, a new foe had risen in Endor. The loyal servant of Morgoth, Sauron, became so powerful.
He launched persistent assaults on the Eldar. The Numenoreans used their great number and power to support the Eldar of Endor and succeeded. Powerful accomplishments of the Numenor made them begin to fear death; they desired to be immortal and began to show signs of displeasure and rebellion against the Valar and Eldar out of envy. In the reign of Tar Palantir, the predecessor of Ar-pharazon, he made efforts to deter them from such beliefs. But his successor and last for Numenor promoted the rebellion instead. Ar-Pharazon grew in pride with Numenor's reputation in warfare and glory; he desired the authority of Endor. When he heard that Sauron was feared as the Lord of Men in Endor, Ar-Pharazon summoned his army and left for Endor to disgrace Sauron. The servants of Sauron knew that a battle with Ar-Pharazon's army would be too dangerous, so they escaped for their lives.
When Sauron saw his failure, he made a plot to surrender to Ar-Pharazon to destroy the undisputed might of Numenor. Sauron surrendered and pretended to be overwhelmed by Ar-Pharazon [1] and his mighty army; the king captured him and took him into Numenor as a prisoner. Sauron worked his name into Ar-Pharazon's heart and succeeded in corrupting him. He took over as his chief counsel and recommended the worship of Morgoth to him and his people for immortality. Ar-Pharazon became obsessed with Sauron's recommendations and began to persecute the Dunedain for refusing to abandon the Valar and Iluvatar. When Sauron saw that he had enough grip of Ar-Pharazon, he recommended that the King should use his might to demand immortality from the Valar of the Undying Lands. Ar-Pharazon led his people to the shores of Valinor but did not exceed it. The Valar toppled him and his host, then he submerged the land using Arda's Great Ocean. Some Numenoreans preferred to remain in good terms with the Eldar and Valar, so they remained committed to Iluvatar; these people were called the Faithful.
The other more aggressive Dunedain were called the Black Numenoreans. After Akallabeth, the surviving Dunedains moved to Endor under the guidance of Elendil and his two sons Anarion and Isildur. Together they created the Kingdoms of Dunedain in exile and ruled over them. In exile, the Faithful Numenoreans encountered other faithful Dunedains who fled Numenor during the persecution of Ar-Pharazon; they also met the Black Numenoreans that had left Numenor before Akallabeth to live in Endor. The power of the Numenoreans endured, and they continued to dominate other breeds of men.
Weaker men adopted their culture, and their speech (Westron from Adunaic) became the language of men and other beings in Endor. The Valar did not want a repeat of Numenor and Ar-Pharazon's effrontery, so they changed the face of Arda and took the Undying Lands out of reach. Arda became a sphere in shape and the dwelling of the Valar separated and became inaccessible to all races of men.
And they seemed to understand the wisdom behind their mortality. They called their land Numenor and its people the Numenoreans (also the Dunedain). The Dunedain made the best out of their land and grew beyond the abilities of other breeds of men. Numenor grew for more than two centuries and began to spread their colonies, even to Endor. At this time, a new foe had risen in Endor. The loyal servant of Morgoth, Sauron, became so powerful.
He launched persistent assaults on the Eldar. The Numenoreans used their great number and power to support the Eldar of Endor and succeeded. Powerful accomplishments of the Numenor made them begin to fear death; they desired to be immortal and began to show signs of displeasure and rebellion against the Valar and Eldar out of envy. In the reign of Tar Palantir, the predecessor of Ar-pharazon, he made efforts to deter them from such beliefs. But his successor and last for Numenor promoted the rebellion instead. Ar-Pharazon grew in pride with Numenor's reputation in warfare and glory; he desired the authority of Endor. When he heard that Sauron was feared as the Lord of Men in Endor, Ar-Pharazon summoned his army and left for Endor to disgrace Sauron. The servants of Sauron knew that a battle with Ar-Pharazon's army would be too dangerous, so they escaped for their lives.
When Sauron saw his failure, he made a plot to surrender to Ar-Pharazon to destroy the undisputed might of Numenor. Sauron surrendered and pretended to be overwhelmed by Ar-Pharazon [1] and his mighty army; the king captured him and took him into Numenor as a prisoner. Sauron worked his name into Ar-Pharazon's heart and succeeded in corrupting him. He took over as his chief counsel and recommended the worship of Morgoth to him and his people for immortality. Ar-Pharazon became obsessed with Sauron's recommendations and began to persecute the Dunedain for refusing to abandon the Valar and Iluvatar. When Sauron saw that he had enough grip of Ar-Pharazon, he recommended that the King should use his might to demand immortality from the Valar of the Undying Lands. Ar-Pharazon led his people to the shores of Valinor but did not exceed it. The Valar toppled him and his host, then he submerged the land using Arda's Great Ocean. Some Numenoreans preferred to remain in good terms with the Eldar and Valar, so they remained committed to Iluvatar; these people were called the Faithful.
The other more aggressive Dunedain were called the Black Numenoreans. After Akallabeth, the surviving Dunedains moved to Endor under the guidance of Elendil and his two sons Anarion and Isildur. Together they created the Kingdoms of Dunedain in exile and ruled over them. In exile, the Faithful Numenoreans encountered other faithful Dunedains who fled Numenor during the persecution of Ar-Pharazon; they also met the Black Numenoreans that had left Numenor before Akallabeth to live in Endor. The power of the Numenoreans endured, and they continued to dominate other breeds of men.
Weaker men adopted their culture, and their speech (Westron from Adunaic) became the language of men and other beings in Endor. The Valar did not want a repeat of Numenor and Ar-Pharazon's effrontery, so they changed the face of Arda and took the Undying Lands out of reach. Arda became a sphere in shape and the dwelling of the Valar separated and became inaccessible to all races of men.
Textual History
Tolkien modified a story that already existed in his novel based on the science of time-travel, his unfinished work titled The Lost Road [2] was the source. The story of Atlantis, the lost civilization, may also have some influence on the story of the Dunedain. It was similarly a great civilization submerged in the sea.
Interpretation
In Quenya, “Atalante” means the “Downfallen”.
Canon
Tolkien's son, Christopher J. R Tolkien, clarified that the account of Akallabeth was narrated by Pengolodh to Ælfwine [3] from Elendil's writings. Christopher J. R stated that he believes the alterations he made to this part of the work pose a great danger to the actual text. He admitted having harmed the work with his bad judgment and excesses. He mentioned that the alterations in the concluding paragraph of Akallabeth may result in deviation from the original intentions of his father, the author. Finally, Christopher said that the actual text isn't completely lost; the published Silmarillion had indirect references that remained intact.
Quote
At the beginning of the actual text, it stated: "Of Men, Ælfwine, it is said by the Eldar that they came into the world in the time of the Shadow of Morgoth..."
References
Categories:
Númenór
The Silmarillion Chapters
