The dragons. They are among the most fierce and dangerous creations of the dark lord Morgoth.
While Smaug would be a terrible force of his own in the Third Age, he would pale in
comparison to his mighty ancestors - the Uruloki or Fire-drakes of the First Age.
Today, on Nerd of the Rings, we are covering Glaurung,
Ancalagon, and the great dragons of The Silmarillion.
We don’t know the exact year Morgoth began creating the dragons,
but we do know the reason. In the early wars of the First Age, the Noldor dealt
great blows against the dark lord in war. In the midst of a 400 year siege of Angband,
where the Noldor held Morgoth in check within his fortress, he realized orcs alone would not
win him victory in battle. Thus, Morgoth creates the very first dragon - Glaurung.
The father of dragons was not a winged creature like his later relatives. In fact,
all the initial dragons of Morgoth’s design were land-bound. In 260 FA, in the middle of the siege,
Glaurung reveals himself for the first time, against the wishes of his master. He emerges from
Angband and manages a small victory, despite still being young and not yet grown to full strength.
He pushes the Noldor from Ard-galen and causes them to retreat to Dorthonion and the Ered
Wethrin. He begins to defile Ard-galen in his victory - but it would not last.
Fingon, along with a company of mounted archers, comes to Glaurung and humbles the great worm,
causing him to retreat back to Angband. Morgoth is displeased that his secret weapon had revealed
himself prematurely, and would not allow the dragon to leave the fortress for nearly 200 years.
Finally, in 455, Glaurung is fully grown, and is unleashed upon the elves. Glaurung
leads Morgoth’s largest army of balrogs and orcs assembled to date,
utterly burning the lands of Ard-galen, creating a charred desert known afterward as Anfauglith.
17 years later, the free peoples would strike back against Morgoth. The Union of Maedhros, consisting
of armies in both the east and the west marches against Angband. On the third morning of this
battle, Glaurung and his dragons enter the fight in Morgoth’s last effort to defeat his enemies.
The strength and terror of the Great Worm were now great indeed,
and Elves and Men withered before him; and he came between the hosts of Maedhros and Fingon
and swept them apart. The elves divided, Glaurung battles in the eastern portion of the conflict,
where he would have destroyed the Noldor, were it not for the dwarves of Belegost led by Lord
Azaghal. The dwarves, with their great battle masks, were able to withstand the dragon fire,
and Glaurung’s skin was not so tough that it was impenetrable. The dwarves hewed at the dragon with
their axes, and Glaurung, driven into a rage, tramples Azaghal. Yet, with his last breath,
Azaghal drives a knife into the belly of the dragon.
Glaurung flees from the battle, yet the battle was already won.
The forces of elves, men, and dwarves would have catastrophic casualties
in what would come to be known as the Nirnaeth Arnoediad - the battle of unnumbered tears.
It wouldn’t be until 40 years later that Glaurung would once again be put to use by Morgoth. By 495,
Morgoth controls nearly the entire north of Beleriand, and there are few who openly
oppose him. One such realm is Nargothrond, where king Orodreth is convinced to act in
open hostility by his advisor Turin son of Hurin. Finally, after a number of attacks on his forces,
Morgoth sends Glaurung and an army of orcs to Nargothrond.
In another ill-advised move, Turin and Orodreth ride out to meet their
enemy in the battle of Tumhalad. The elves are crushed, Orodreth is slain,
and Turin is unable to reach the city before the great dragon.
Glaurung passes over the bridge, crosses the river Narog, and destroys the doors of the city.
In this moment, we learn of another power of Glaurung - the power of his words and his gaze.
Turin arrives at Nargothrond to find the city sacked and, as he goes to confront the dragon,
he is transfixed by Glaurung’s gaze - which freezes him where he stands.
The captives of Nargothrond are led by Turin and the dragon presents him
with a choice - to pursue the captives and rescue the elf princess Finduilas,
or return to Dor-lomin and rescue his mother and sister, who are living in misery and servitude.
Then suddenly Glaurung withdrew his glance, and waited; and Túrin stirred slowly as one
waking from a hideous dream. Then coming to himself with a loud cry
he sprang upon the Dragon. But Glaurung laughed, saying:
But Túrin drawing back his sword stabbed at his eyes; and Glaurung coiling back
swiftly towered above him, and said:
Then Túrin, being yet bemused by the eyes of the dragon, as if he were treating with a foe
that could know pity, believed the words of Glaurung, and turning away he sped over the
bridge. But as he went, Glaurung spoke behind him, saying in a fell voice:
As Turin turns north to Dor-lomin, the dragon laughs once again in his malice, for Turin
has fallen for the dragon’s lie. For his mother and sister had left long ago and now dwell safely
in Doriath. Glaurung drives away the orcs, denying them further plunder and breaks the
bridge. He lies down to sleep on his great hoard, in much the same way as his later descendants.
The following year (496), Glaurung encounters Morwen and Nienor, as they come to Nargothrond
seeking news of Turin. Quickly detecting their approach, he lies in the river, causing a great
steam and stench to cover the area. The women and their elf guard are separated and Nienor comes
face to face with the dragon, who also puts her under his spell. In this case, however,
Glaurung uses his power to wipe Nienor’s mind of all her memory, leaving her to flee into the wild.
As Glaurung returns to his conquered city, he detects the presence of Mablung - one of the elves
accompanying Nienor and Morwen. In this moment, we realize there is a deep connection between
dragon and master, as he speaks with the very voice of Morgoth: But he turned before he went
in and looked back eastward, and there came from him the laughter of Morgoth, dim but horrible,
as an echo of malice out of the black depths far away. And this voice, cold and low, came after:
Glaurung would rule Nargothrond as a dragon-king for the next few years. By 498,
he begins to send parties of orcs to attack the mannish realm of B rethil, which forces Turin
to reveal himself once more. The following year, Glaurung sets out to face his mighty foe himself.
However, Turin predicts the dragon’s path, and taking inspiration from Lord Azaghal before him,
Turin hides out in the gorge of Cabed-en-Aras, so that as the great serpent casts his front
legs across, Turin stabs him with his sword Gurthang - all the way to the hilt.
Even in his final moments, Glaurung is dangerous and cunning. As Turin pulls his
sword from the dragon, it’s blood covers his arm, and renders Turin unconscious. Later, Turin’s wife
Niniel comes upon the scene to discover her husband apparently dead. With his last breath,
Glaurung reveals his ultimate deception - that Niniel is in fact Turin’s sister Nienor,
and gives her back her memory. In despair at the truth,
and the loss of her twice beloved Turin - Nienor casts herself from the brink
and is lost to the river far below. Turin, finally waking, discovers the truth for himself
from another who had heard Glaurung’s last words - and casts himself upon his own sword.
With Glaurung dead, Morgoth had suffered a great loss. However,
his first dragon would not be his greatest. Other dragons, known as Glaurung’s brood - either by
parentage or simply others of the same species - would wreak havoc in further wars and battles.
Just 11 years after Glaurung’s death, Morgoth would launch an attack on the last
great hope of the Noldor. For he had finally discovered the location of the hidden city of
Gondolin. He sends an army of Balrogs and dragons and catches the elves by surprise.
The city, and much of its population is destroyed.
While we don’t know how many dragons there were, we are told they were “many and terrible.”
Aside from Glaurung, we know the names of only two other dragons of the first age.
One is Gostir, of whom we know only its name, which means “dread glance.”
The other would not be revealed until the War of Wrath, which begins in 545 FA. Finally
deciding to move against Morgoth, the Valar send the Host of Valinor to Middle-earth,
where a massive force of elves, men, maiar, and possibly even some valar,
make war upon an uncountable force of orcs along with the Balrogs of Morgoth.
This war would last for 40 years. In the final years of the conflict, facing the final defeat
of his forces, Morgoth unleashes his last and greatest weapon - the winged Dragons,
never before seen in Middle-earth. The Host of Valinor is caught by surprise,
overwhelmed by the sheer devastation of the flying fire-drakes of Angband.
The dragons are led by Ancalagon the Black - the largest and most powerful dragon in the history of
the world. The skies erupt with lighting and flame as the dragons push back the army of the Valinor.
As it appears that Ancalagon and his winged dragons will bring ultimate victory to Morgoth,
help comes from the skies. Earendil, the father of Elrond and Elros,
arrives in his ship - blessed with the power of flight by the Valar.
Alongside him are the great Eagles of the first age, led by Thorondor.
The aerial battle lasts for an entire day. In the end,
Eärendil slew Ancalagon the Black, the mightiest of the dragon-host, and cast him from the sky;
and he fell upon the towers of Thangorodrim, and they were broken in his ruin.". Thus ended
the greatest of the flying dragons, and with him, the hope of Morgoth’s victory.
The Host of Valinor retakes their lost ground and more - destroying the majority of Morgoth’s army.
The Dark Lord would be captured and thrust through the door of night, and the few
remnants of his army were scattered - including orcs, Sauron, a lone balrog, and the dragons.
The dragons would flee to the Northern Waste - far from any lands of Men and Elves. There, they
would live on, infesting and breeding in the area known as the Withered Heath, from which would come
future great dragons that would plague the dwarves of the third age - dragons like Smaug