War of Wrath

The war was also known as the Great Battle of Endor that occurred in the First Age of Arda. It was often considered the greatest war of all ages as all major races of Endor took part in it. The races feared that it would determine the fate of Arda itself. The Valar, Eldars, Edain (the post-war name for participant men), and the Khazad (Dwarves of Aule) [1] combined their most formidable warriors to face the single most powerful Valar, the Dark Lord Melkor (Morgoth). The war led to the final judgment upon Morgoth: to cast him out of reach and into the empty void. It also marked the beginning of a new age for the people of Endor and the time for the second flourish of Arda. Morgoth's influence on Arda reached its peak in the early years of the sixth century. There was nothing that could stand in his way, not the race of men, Eldar, dwarves, nor the Valar. Morgoth overthrew all major Kingdoms and shattered households of men and Eldar. The Dark Lord controlled all parts of Beleriand except Arvenien, as he deemed them unworthy of his effort. The Eldar had major internal battles and were recovering from the devastating effects of their gruesome kinslaying in the recovery of Feanor's Silmarillion. Maedhros and his brothers had destroyed Doriath with their hands and displaced the inhabitants of the Mouth of Sirion. Earendil feared that the races had chosen a wrong time to be in disunity; he sailed towards the Undying Lands to meet the Valar. He reached Valinor and beseeched the Valar to interfere against the evil of Melkor; he implored them to overlook the excesses of those races of Endor who overstepped the limit with one another.

Manwe heard the words of Earendil and felt pity for Endor and its people. He summoned the Valar, and they resolved to intercede regardless of the disobedience, corruption, and excesses of many races, especially the accursed Noldor clan. The Valar and Vanyar [2] answered the call of Manwe, and the Eldar of Noldor that stayed back with Finarfin also followed the Valar. Together they formed the allied force with the forces on Endor, in the only one of such union in Arda.

The Teleri in Valinor offered their help with ships and mariners despite the memory of all the times that the Noldor clan committed kinslaying. The mariners returned immediately after they discharged their duty. The great allied forces of Valinor moved across Beleriand in search of Morgoth, and they met them in the Anfauglith's plains.

Morgoth reveled in the enormity of his force, as they were so many that even Anfauglith could not bear them all. The allied forces of Aman struggled with the servants of Morgoth but overcame him after 40 years. The Allied forces captured Morgoth and destroyed his forces that included Balrog, Orcs, and mercenaries from the races of men in the south and the eastern parts of Arda. Morgoth realized that he was losing the battle and released the winged dragons, which caught the Valar by surprise and caused them to retreat for some time as it was a creature unknown to them. Morgoth accompanied the dragons with thunderbolts and fire that consumed armies of the allied forces. Earendil resorted to his ship, Vingilot, to attack the dragons from the skies. Thorondor and other Great Eagles of Manwe joined him in confronting the dragons, and Elendil killed the leader of the winged dragons, Ancalagon, himself.

Ancalagon fell from the sky and landed upon Thangorodrim, leveling its tower and returning Angband to its plain state before Melkor's elevations. The Vala named Astaldo (also called Tulkas) arrived late to Arda and joined the battle. He aimed for Morgoth in the mines and found him hiding in the most hidden part of his Mine. Astaldo then caught him and bound him with Aule's special chain, Angainor. Melkor scampered and begged for mercy but his pleas were not regarded. Eonwe, the most skilled with weapons, found the Silmarils of Feanor that Morgoth stole and took it from him. Morgoth was then taken to Aman for judgment. On reaching Aman he was charged and beheaded. The remains of Melkor were tossed into the timeless void, and Earendil kept watch over the door forever.

The most significant effect of Morgoth's war with the Valar was not only the countless number of heroes that fell but also the land of the people of Endor lost. Lands to the west of Ered Lindon sank with only a few portions of land spared. Many of Morgoth's creatures were destroyed but others, like Orcs, Dragons, and Balrogs remained and served Sauron in his reign, although only the Balrog called Durin's Bane appeared in Endor after The War.

Also, some dragons fled the war and reproduced over centuries to bother Endor, most notably the Smaug in Erebor and Lake-town. After the Great Battle ended, Eonwe called upon the Eldar to follow the Valar back to Valinor. Many of the Eldar listened and followed the Valar, some others wanted to delay their departure, so they could loiter in Endor before their departure, while others just stayed adamant and wanted their rule on Endor.

The Eldar such as Galadriel, Celeborn, and Gil-galad remained and moved to the East of Endor to establish their realms. Elrond established Rivendell to dwell in it until his departure, as he was only staying for an indefinite period. The Children of Feanor were at first overjoyed that their father's jewels were recovered from Morgoth but soon fell into despair after they requested it and the Vala refused to hand the Jewels to them. They became bitter even after the victory over Morgoth as their oath still burdened them. Feanor’s eldest son wanted to fulfill his oath more than anything else. He spoke to his brother about stealing the jewel, but his brother counseled him about having any more crimes of kinslaying.

When the brothers saw that they could not let go of the Jewels, they left for Eonwe’s camp knowing it might lead to their end. The brothers entered Eonwe’s camp and took the Jewels. They were caught, but they held onto the Silmarils and prepared to fight till their death. The Vala allowed them to leave without resistance on seeing their determination. The brothers later realized they could not hold the Jewel in their hand anymore because it caused them great discomfort and pain; the Valar may have cursed them for the attack on Eonwe’s camp. In despair, Maedhros entered a burning fiery with his Jewel and met his end, while his brother flung his Jewel into the sea. The races of men that took part in the fierce war were honored with a gift of the land between the Undying Lands and Endor. The Edain later lived in the land and named it Numenor while they earned the name Dunedain or Numenoreans.

A discussion occurred between Finrod and Athrabeth [3] during the period of long peace, regarding the ring of Morgoth, and it was prophesied that Túrin would destroy Ancalagon, but Earendil did. It was also not stated how exactly Eärendil managed to slay Ancalagon. Also, the dragons could make a lot of impacts if they fall on anything during their death as noticed with Durin's Bane, Ancalagon, and Smaug. They all fell to their death from the skies and destroyed whatever was below them. Durin's Bane was less than 16 feet in height and destroyed a mountain during its death when he fell upon it. Ancalagon fell on Thangorodrim which was thousands of miles in length and 5 miles tall, but it took Ancalagon to make the land plain. Finally, Smaug fell on Master of Laketown and his stolen wealth of Laketown, destroying him.

1. ^Children of Aulë.
2. ^Elves of Valinor.
3. ^Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth by J.R.R. Tolkien.