Dark Lord

Dark Lord was a title acquired by two powerful evil lords who attempted to take control of Middle Earth, making the Free People their slaves. [1]​

If they could not take control over something, they destroyed it. The first Dark Lord was the antagonist Melkor later known as Morgoth. The second Dark Lord was the former lieutenant of Morgoth, Sauron. Both the Dark Lords played significant roles in the history of Middle Earth and had declared numerous wars against the Elves, the Valar, and men. They had left a permanent impact on the world as they had destroyed a lot of places and things and spread immense grief and anguish. Both the Dark Lords were finally defeated. [2]​

The main antagonist in ‘The Silmarillion’, Morgoth is portrayed briefly in ‘The Lord of The Rings’. Melkor was a powerful Ainur and turned into Morgoth out of the darkness from whom all the evil in Middle Earth arose. Sauron became his main lieutenant. He got the name Morgoth upon destroying the Two Trees, stealing the Silmarils and killing Finwe, the king of elves in the First Age. Morgoth is a Sindarin name that translates to ‘Black Foe’ or ‘Dark Enemy’. He had the ability to take up any form. He had taken the form of a tall and terrible Dark Lord when he destroyed the Two Trees. Melkor possessed great powers, more than any other Ainu.​

The most powerful antagonist in ‘The Lord of the Rings’, Sauron had ruled the kingdom of Mordor. He is portrayed as a necromancer in ‘The Hobbit’ by Tolkien and is shown to be the main lieutenant of Morgoth, the first Dark Lord. Sauron had acquired a lot of knowledge and became a spy for Melkor. Then, he left the mortal realm and went to Middle Earth and joined the army of Valar. He later became the trusted servant of Morgoth. Sauron had hidden in Middle Earth when the Valar attacked Melkor. He healed Angband and started breeding Orcs. He had reappeared in the Second Age and intended to take over the Middle Earth. He took the form of ‘Annatar’ to lure the elves. The Elves forged the Rings of Power with Sauron’s help. He also created The One Ring to control all other rings. Sauron’s appearance has never been described clearly by Tolkien. He had the power to take up different forms but once his fair form was destroyed, he always remained a dark lord.​