Today, on Nerd of the Rings, we conclude our deep dive into the life of Morgoth. In the aftermath
of the Nirnaeth Arnoediad, a massive victory for the Dark Lord, the Northern lands of the
elves and men are now under Morgoth’s control. Turgon, now High King of the Noldor, and his
hidden city of Gondolin, stand as the sole reason for Morgoth to doubt his odds for total conquest.
In the aftermath of the Nirnaeth, Morgoth takes Hurin to a seat in the high places of Thangorodrim
and pronounces a curse upon him and his family.
"You shall see and you shall confess that I do not lie," said Morgoth. And taking Hurin back to
Angband he set him in a chair of stone upon a high place of Thangorodrim, from which he could see
afar the land of Hithlum in the west and the lands of Beleriand to the south. There he was bound by
the power of Morgoth; and Morgoth standing beside him cursed him again and set his power upon him,
so that he could not move from that place, or die, until Morgoth should release him.
As I mentioned earlier, Morgoth now has complete dominion over the north of Beleriand.
He gives to the Easterlings that served him the lands of Hithlum,
denying them the more fertile lands to south which he had promised them. Many
of the elves and men that had remained in Hithlim are sent as thralls to work the mines of Angband.
In 473 FA, a year after the Nirnaeth Arnoediad, Morgoth’s forces attack and
destroy the Havens of Falas. Cirdan and his people flee to the Mouth of Sirion.
In the coming years, Morgoth’s forces would continue to overthrow realms of men and elves.
Though Turin, son of Hurin and Beleg Strongbow in particular, would cause much trouble to his orcsl.
In 489 FA, his orcs defeat the pair when they sack their hideout at Amon Rudh.
We’ll go into much greater detail on Turin’s life in his own video,
but we will hit some of the highlights as they pertain to Morgoth and how his curse affects the
family of Hurin. Through a tragic accident, Turin kills Beleg, mistaking him for an orc.
Turin then comes to Nargothrond, where he becomes an advisor to King Orodreth. At Turin’s behest,
Orodreth ignores the advice of the vala Ulmo - saying to destroy the bridge and fortify the city.
Instead, Turin opts for open war with the armies of Angband. Morgoth sends out Glaurung the dragon
once again with a force of orcs. They defeat the army of Nargothrond and sack the city.
Ten years later, in 499 FA, Turin after a life of deeds gone awry by the curse of Morgoth,
kills himself upon his own sword. This victory would come at a great cost to the Dark Lord,
however, as Turin had first killed the dragon Glaurung at Cabed-en-Aras, not far from the
crossing of Teiglin. After the death of Turin and his sister Nienor, Morgoth releases Hurin,
but the curse would yet follow him. Hurin travels about Beleriand, searching for his kin,
eventually discovering his wife at the graves of his children.
His wife dies and after burying her, Hurin comes to Nargothrond, where he discovers
the Nauglamir - a great necklace made by the dwarves. He takes it to Doriath where,
in his anger that Thingol had not better cared for his son, he throws it down in front of the king.
This would be yet another example of the evil and shadow of Morgoth having a far reach,
as his curse would result in yet another realm’s downfall.
Thingol takes the Nauglamir and tasks a group of dwarves with setting the Silmaril of Beren and
Luthien within the necklace. The dwarves come to covet their creation and kill Thingol and
the sacking of Menegroth in 503 FA. Just 3 years later (507FA) the Oath of Feanor would rear its
ugly head again - as the Sons of Feanor - driven by the oath, take part in the second kinslaying
in an effort to reclaim the silmaril from their fellow elves. This would result in the kingdom
of Doriath being completely destroyed - and yet another of Morgoth’s enemies is removed.
The Silmaril, however, would evade both the sons of Feanor and Morgoth. Elwing, the daughter of
King Dior, is among those who escape to the Havens of Sirion - when she is just four years old.
Meanwhile, in the north of Beleriand, stood the one last
bastion of hope for the free peoples - Gondolin. Outside of the hidden city,
Maeglin, one of the elves of Gondolin, is captured by orcs and brought to Angband.
Morgoth promises Maeglin the kingship of Gondolin and the hand of Idril, the woman
he loves - all he must do is reveal the secret location of the city. In the greatest betrayal
of the First Age - Maeglin agrees and Morgoth finally has the information he has long sought.
In 510 FA, as the Gondolodrim are celebrating the festival of the Gates of Summer, they gather to
watch the sunrise over the mountains. However, rather than seeing light arise in the east,
they see light in the North. The armies of Morgoth - orcs, wolves, dragons and other creatures
descend upon the city. While Gothmog would fall in the battle, it is an overwhelming victory for
the Dark Lord. King Turgon, the Lord Echthelion, Glorfindel and the vast majority of the population
are killed in the battle. Gondolin, the last hope of the elves, is no more.
One of the very few survivors is the elf seven year old Earendil who, along with the others,
would make his way south to the Havens of Sirion. There, he would meet Elwing, the bearer of the
Silmaril. Decades later, (532 FA) they would be married and have twin sons - Elrond and Elros.
Six years later, the sons of Feanor would once again be led by their oath to slay their own kin.
In the Third Kinslaying, Elwing escapes with the Silmaril and is taken on her husband’s
ship and they sail to the West - in a stroke that would change the fortunes of the world.
They come to Valinor and Earendil pleads with the Valar… And Eärendil went into
Valinor and to the halls of Valimar, and never again set foot upon the lands of Men.
Then the Valar took counsel together, and they summoned Ulmo from the deeps of the sea;
and Eärendil stood before their faces, and delivered the errand of the Two Kindreds.
Pardon he asked for the Noldor and pity for their great sorrows,
and mercy upon Men and Elves and succour in their need. And his prayer was granted."
The Valar send forth the great Host of Valinor, which lands in Beleriand in 545 FA. Included in
the host are the Vanyar led by Ingwion, the Noldor of Valinor under Finarfin,
Eonwe - the chief of the Maiar, and possibly other Ainur (Maiar and even some Valar).
It is said that the “whole power of the Throne of Morgoth” is assembled.
The armies of Morgoth are uncountable. The mountains rang underneath the boots of the
Valar. The entire North of Beleriand is aflame with war for forty-two years.
In the final years of battle, Morgoth is facing defeat. In his final act of desperation,
he summons for the winged dragons - never before seen in Middle-earth.
The dragons are led by Acalagon the Black, the largest and most powerful
dragon to ever live. The tide turned, the Host of Valinor is driven back and their
outlook is bleak - as so many of the battles that had come before against the Dark Lord.
It is in this moment, when Earendil, wearing the silmaril upon his brow,
arrives in his ship. The ship, having been blessed by the valar, sails not the seas, but the skies.
With Earendil is Thorondor and flocks of the great Eagles. Together, they battle the dragons for an
entire day. In the end, Earendil kills Ancalagon, who breaks the towers of Thangorodrim in his ruin.
As the Host of Valinor retakes the battlefield and defeats his army force by force,
Morgoth flees to the deepest dungeons of Angband. There he is caught, but being weak from the war,
he demands peace and parley rather than fight. But his feet are hewn from under him. Morgoth
falls upon the floor, where he is bound once again in the chain of Aule. The two silmarils
are taken from him and he is thrust through the Door of Night and into the Timeless Void.
While Morgoth is removed from Beleriand, his effects are far from gone. As a result of
the battle, most of Beleriand is destroyed. The wreckage of the war is so great, that soon after,
all of the land west of the Ered Luin, along with a central portion of the Blue Mountains,
sinks into the sea. Many of the elves make the journey back to Aman,
while some - such as Galadriel, Gil-galad, Cirdan, and Elrond, travel east.
There, in the ages to come, they would face a new Dark Lord - Sauron, the lieutenant of Morgoth.
As for the original Dark Lord, he would not be heard from again in recorded history. However,
it is prophesied that Morgoth will one day break the Door of Night and. And there shall be one
final battle, the Dagor Dagorath “the battle of all battles” - a final confrontation between good
and evil on the very plains of Valinor. Tolkien wrote many versions regarding the Dagor Dagorath,
leaving some details up for debate and speculation - including the idea that it would be Turin who
would deal the final blow, killing Morgoth himself and avenging the Children of Hurin.
In the end, the lands of Beleriand will be lifted up from the sea and the world rebuilt,
with the dwarves helping their creator Aule in doing so. The dwarves will then be counted among
the Children of Iluvatar and a new world will be ushered in with the Second Song of the Ainur,
this time with the Children of Iluvatar joining in the music.
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