Túrin

This character originated from Marach’s House and a prominent member of the Atanatari and Atani. He was known as Turin Turambar. He was one of the roles that were portrayed as an anti-hero because of the unconventional heroic characteristics he had. His tale was much more explained in the first part of the Unfinished Tales. The second chapter talked about Turin.

Umarth, a hero of the First Age, and the beautiful Eledhwen had one son. He was named Turin. They had a daughter, more commonly called Lalaith. She was a carefree child. Her name was chosen because of the way she laughed. The plague took a hit on her and she died at such a young age. Turin's father had a trusted servant named Sador. He was a carpenter with only one leg. He had become one of Turin's closest comrades. Turin called him Labadal, and it means hop on one foot. Turin's father was seized in the Battle of the Unnumbered Tears. It was a battle waged against Morgoth. His mother hid them from the Swarthy Men under Melkor's orders. The men were sent to the northern part of Beleriand, where Turin was. His mother was beyond afraid that the pursuant would reach Turin and kill or capture him. He was still so young to understand what was happening. He did not know that Melkor had cast a nasty hex on all of Hurin's lineage. [1]

Turin's mother decided to send him to Artanor. It was an elven kingdom. He was only eight when he separated from his family. Elu, the Teleri Elf, was the one who took him in. Elu was the founder of Artanor. He was well-loved and honored by his people. After his adoption was initiated by an elf maiden. His parents bore another child. It was her sister named Niniel. He met Elu's chief march warden named Beleg. When Turin was strong enough, he was allowed to accompany Strongbow. He fought alongside Doriath's army against Morgoth's orcs forces. That was the battle that resulted in Turin being rewarded for his bravery with the Helm of Hador. It was a war helmet forged in the First Age. It became one of his prominent trademarks. Since he was learning the chaos of battles, he sustained injuries. But he was never injured because of the protection of his helmet. It was a legacy from Hador Golden head. Its presence on the battlefield causes fears in the eyes of the orc’s forces.

Saeros was Nandor Elf and one of the King's high advisers. Right from the beginning, he had such hatred towards Turin. He despised the child because it was a local or his beloved kingdom. During a meeting, he spoke hurtful words to Turin. His patience ran out and consumed with his anger; he unwittingly slew the adviser. Turin did not wait for a trial. He escaped when he had the chance. He met the Gaurwaith or most commonly known as the wolfmen. Having options to none, he joined their group and went to their home. He changed his name to Neithan, and it directly translated to the wronged. His companions, later on, noticed how skillful he was. The group feared him in silence and never challenged what he said. Turin witnessed their head terrorizing a woman. He did not hesitate to slaughter him in cold bold. He ascended to be the leader of the band. When he had control over the group, he prevented his people from destroying the estates of the innocent. He had a strict order to only hunt down for Orcs. Doriath's skilled Bowman sought out Turin.

During the First Age of 487, Beleg tracked down his friend's group in Bald Hill. It was the southern part of Brethil. He was captured and was being interrogated by Turin's people. When Turin finally arrived, he let them free him because he was a comrade of his. One of the main elements of Turin's inner circle was Androg, and he was suspicious about the arrival of the Bowman. He was trying to convince Turin to come back to their home. He shared with Turin that the King already knows of his innocence. Persuading Turin to leave his group was a lost cause, Beleg had no choice but to come back home empty-handed. The outlaws seized a Noegyth Nibin named Mim. The dwarf had no choice but to give up his place in Bald Hill. Mim's son was Khim, and he was killed unintentionally. Turin vowed to return what the dwarf lost that day.

Doriath's famous Bowman asked permission from his King to seek out Turin. Elu granted his request and bestowed to him the dark elf's sword called Gurthang. Elu's wife Melian was of descent from Maia's race. She was considered the most powerful of all her people. She gave him the Elven bread or commonly known as Waybread. It was a special kind of food made, especially for traveling. The Bowman visited Turin's group during the season of cold, and he helped in treating Turin's people. His friend brought his helmet, and Turin was pleased to see it again. Bald Hill was renamed to Dor-Curathol. The two comrades were the protectors of the Hill. The name refers to them. [2] They had defended it against Morgoth's troops.

The Bald Hill became the Bow and Helm Land. Turin's name became Gorthol, which means the dread helm. Soldiers joined their resistance. Evil was gone. The dwarf saw the camaraderie of the Bowman and Turin. He envied the Bowman. The petty dwarf betrayed Turin. He was responsible for letting several Orcs know about the whereabouts of the company. The information he let slip was vital that when fallen to the wrong hands, it would be destruction. The dwarf had only one demand. He wanted to be one to end Beleg's life. Gorthol was seized at the Bald Hill, and his allies were slaughtered in front of him. Androg rescued Beleg in the hand of the dwarf. He sacrificed his life to save Beleg. In turn, he now had the chance to rescue his comrade.

He helped Turin get away from the enemies holding him captive in Deldúwath. It was in a highland region. The Bowman was accompanied by a Nargothrond's elf named Gwindor. He, too, was Morgoth's prisoner. A tragic event took place, Turin unintentionally slew Beleg with his sword Gurthang. Beleg freed him from his ropes. But Turin did not know about it, and he thought that it was the same Orcs torturing him. Turin could not believe what he had done to his closest friend. Gwindor urged him to flee with him. He brought Turin to the Falls of Ivrin. There, Turin was torn by his guilt and rage. All of his emotions so consumed him that he was starting to lose his mind. Turin poured his heart out in Irvin. The falls cured his madness.

The elf pointed him to an elven underground fortress. Finrod was the one who engineered this city. He brought Turin there because it was once his home. In this place, Turin concealed his name and used a moniker. He was now known as Umarth's son, Agarwaen. Turin's purpose is to conceal his true identity and evade the curse his family endures. His fallen friend's sword was with him, and he remodeled it and changed it to Gurthang. The Noldorin Elf ruler had a daughter. The princess has fallen in love with Turin. He was trying to evade her feelings and pursuits because the princess was Gwindor's love interest. Turin did not even reveal his name to her. She gave him a name, which means the secret. It was Thurin.

Turin resembled the elf-like appearance. Some called him Adanedhel. It means elf man. His grief and envy towards Turin consumed Gwindor. His elf comrade was jealous, and he revealed the secrets of Turin to the princess. Later on, the King found out about the real identity of Turin. He was not expecting the turn of events. The King made him one of his principal advisers. Turin became prominent in the underground fortress. He influenced them. He was the one who convinced the people to discontinue secretive style. Together, they planned to construct a bridge. It was a massive bridge across the Narog river.

It was put up in the latter part of the First Age. Turin was a known skillful and expert swordsman. He was named as the black sword of the underground fortress. It was in the First Age of 495 when Turin's advice had a lot of sway to the King. He convinced him to have an open battle against Morgoth's forces. The King's army went out of their underground fortress and charged to the northern mountain range. They confronted the enemies that were in the mountains and the passage. There was a vast Orc accumulation beneath it. The King's armies could not hold off much too long. They were pushed back to the field in the western part of Beleriand. The Nargothrond's elves were not used to wars in open areas. They could not match the onslaught of their enemies.

The King and his kinsman were slaughtered. Turin was the only survivor of Galurung's fiery attack. The Dragon helmet was the only thing that kept him from burning himself alive. The battle was lost. Casualties were endless, and those who survived suffered being slaves. Their enemies were trying to obliterate the newly built bridge. The foot soldiers could not put a dent on it. The arrival of the fire breathing dragon, Glaurung, made a big difference. The Dragon obliterated the barrier and opened the underground fortress to its destruction. [3]

Turin was under the fire breathing dragon's hypnotizing spell. He only stood still as the princess, and their people were being pulled away. She was calling after him. With all the chaos and madness happening, her voice was not heard. While Turin was under the Dragon's hypnosis, he was hallucinating the presence of his parents. They were severely hurting. He left the princess and sought his family's safety. It was all an illusion, and his parents were in their hometown safe and sound. In the region of Hithlum, he located his former home. He went straight to the Easterling lord's estate. He remembered that Hurin had a kinswoman named Aerin. Brodda made her be his spouse. He captured and made Turin's people his slaves.

He went straight to the Easterling lord's estate. He remembered that Hurin had a kinswoman named Aerin. Brodda made her be his spouse. He captured and made Turin's people his slaves. There were incidents that he was harming his wife physically. He was responsible for taking Turin's father's wealth. These properties were Turin's birthright. Turin was informed by Indor's daughter about Morwen's whereabouts. He got furious. Turin threw Brodda like he weighed nothing. He tossed him, and it resulted in his neck-breaking. The fate of Indor's daughter was sealed. She burned herself to death.

The estate of Brodda and the surviving Hador house caught fire. He briefly saw Sador, but he too died. The losses and casualties of the war continued to grow in numbers. Turin sought out the princess. When he caught up with the enemies. The princess had been murdered. She was helping out in rescuing her people from being imprisoned. Turin was devastated and was consumed with grief. He crumbled in the princess's tomb. They returned to the woodlands after the battle. Where Turin stayed, he decided to rename himself the Turambar. He felt that the curse cast on him was already lifted. With all that has happened, he thought that it was enough. During a stormy night, he was scouting the area with his people. They found a woman on the princess's grave.

They knew nothing about her or why she was mourning. Later on, they knew of her name. She was Niniel. She was known as the maiden of tears. After a few years had passed, Turin married Niniel. They did not realize that they were siblings. He did know that she was his long-lost sister. His memories were wiped out by the Dragon's spell. The Lord of Haladin named Brandir the Lame had a hidden grudge towards Turin. He revealed to Turin's wife that darkness was looming over Turin. The night would eventually dominate Turin and not the other way around.

Turin's bad luck started when the Dragon appeared. It burnt most of the forest down. The fire even reached where the wooden men lived. Turin, Dorlas, and Hunthor sought out the Dragon to slay it once and for all. Dorlas of House Haleth was overwhelmed by his fear that he fled. Leaving the two behind to fend for themselves. Fortunately, Hunthor stayed behind and helped slaughter the Dragon. The Dragon has an overpowering putrid smell, Turin was nearly passing out when his ally enabled him to stand up. The reaction to take a step cost Hunthor being struck by his head and falling over the gorge. Upon witnessing it, Turin was triggered and acted out of his rage towards the enemy. [4]

He stabbed the torso of the firedrake with all the strength he could muster. That was the end of the father of the Dragons. Turin slew the Dragon in the deep gorge near his hometown. As he was trying to remove his sword from the Dragon, the foul stench of the blood was overwhelming. A drop of blood-stained Turin's hand. He suddenly felt dizzy and collapsed. Niniel came to Cabed-en-Aras, through the Dragon's dying breath, he revealed to Niniel the truth of her identity and Turin's. She found out that they were, in fact, related and were siblings. She was mortified. She believed that Turin died. She decided to kill herself and jumped straight in the gorge.

Turin finally came back to his consciousness. Brandir was the one who informed him of the recent happenings. Turin lost his right mind and slaughtered his ally in cold blood. He thought that Brandir was lying and making up stories. A Sindarin elf revealed to Turin that Brandir spoke of the truth and that his death was in vain. He killed an innocent person. Turin could not stomach all the wrongs he has done to a lot of people. He was remorseful and full of guilt and hatred. He killed himself. Turin was placed in his final resting beside the princess's grave. His sword laid atop his grave. There were Doriath's runes on his tomb carvings.

Turin's parents went to the graves of their fallen children. After a few months, his mother died on her deathbed, holding his father's hand. His parents were also buried near him. The tragic happenings in Turin's life was always a debate. Some say that it was because of his doings. Some even suggest that it was because of the curse cast on him.

Mandos has foretold the reincarnation of Turin in the final war to come. But, it was taken out from Tolkien's Silmarillion. It was prophesied that Turin would walk the Middle east again and plunge his sword deep into the heart of Morgoth. He would be defeated and end the darkness forever. This, too, would avenge his family. To take back all the tragedies brought upon the curse to their family.

In Common Eldarin, Turin's equivalent is Turindo. It came from indo meaning mood. The term tur, meaning master. Turin was derived from the Sindarin language. It translates to the one who desires mastery. Tur says mastery, power, lord. Ind means heart and desire. His moniker master of doom is Turambar. It was derived from the term ambar, which means doom.

Tuor was a cousin of Turin's. There were many similarities in their life stories. The Battle of the Unnumbered Tears had taken their fathers. They were both adopted by elves. They experienced being bandits. Both were war commanders. Despite all of those happenings, Turin's life was full of tragedies no one could imagine. They did not have the chance to get to know each other. Tuor had a glimpse of his cousin. There was a comparison of the incest relationship Turin had with his sibling. It has similarities with Sigmund's (Sigmund) story too. Kullervo's (Kullervo) tales were also alike. His sister plunged into the river. He, too, killed himself like what Turin did. Their swords ended their lives.

1. ^The Children of Húrin.
2. ^The Death of Beleg.
3. ^Sack of Nargothrond.
4. ^Fire Breathing Dragon.