Lord of the Rings.

a hobbit from the Shire, the son of Bungo Baggins and Belladonna Took, and the uncle of Frodo Baggins. Initially, Bilbo was a very respectable hobbit from a respectable family. Subsequently, he completely lost his reputation, since he was engaged in completely indecent (for a respectable hobbit) affairs, such as: traveling, making friends with elves and dwarves, writing poetry. However, he himself did not regret such a loss, especially since his fortune was significantly replenished with gold brought. He took part in the quest to the Lonely Mountain led by Thorin Oakenshield, during which he found the One Ring in Gollum's cave and fought in the Battle of the Five Armies. After returning to the Shire, Bilbo wrote the Red Book, an account of his adventures, and adopted his orphaned nephew Frodo. After his 111th birthday, Bilbo left the Shire and settled in Rivendell, where he supplemented his memoirs with translations from the Elvish.

Childhood Frodo was born on September 22, 2968 of the Third Age. Frodo spent most of his childhood at Brandy Hall, in Buckland, the home of the Brandybuck family, with his mother, Primula Brandybuck. Frodo was known to be a very restless child, often stealing mushrooms from old Farmer Maggot.

In TA 2980, when Frodo was 12 years old, his parents were drowned in a boating accident on the Brandywine River. Since Frodo had no siblings, he remained alone at Brandy Hall in the care of his maternal uncle Rorimac Brandybuck until he was adopted by his paternal uncle Bilbo Baggins (TA 2989), making him his heir. Frodo soon came to live with him entirely, at Bag End, Bilbo's home.

On September 22, 3001 T.A., a party was held to celebrate the birthdays of Bilbo and Frodo (they were, as we know, born on the same day). Bilbo turned 111 years old, and Frodo 33 years old - the age at which a hobbit, as many believe, comes of age. Frodo became the keeper of the One Ring, which the Dark Lord Sauron sought to use to gain his full power. Frodo carried the Ring from the Shire to Rivendell and volunteered to carry it further to Mordor to destroy it in the fires of Mount Doom. One of the main characters in J.R.R. Tolkien's novel The Lord of the Rings, playing a key role in it.

a Dúnedain man, son of Arathorn II and Gilraen, sixteenth Chieftain of the Dúnedain of the North, a direct descendant of Isildur, the eldest son of Elendil and the last High King of the Dúnedain, and the only legitimate heir to the throne of Gondor.

The third and last man in the history of Middle-earth to marry an elven maiden - his wife and queen was Arwen Undómiel, daughter of Elrond Half-elven. Aragorn became the greatest man of his era - he led the Men of the West in the war against the Dark Lord Sauron and helped destroy the One Ring of Power (he was one of the nine members of the Fellowship of the Ring), and after the victory, he reunited the kingdoms of Arnor and Gondor into a single state. Aragorn was dark-haired (with gray hair), gray-eyed, thin. His height was 6 feet 6 inches (198 cm). In general, Aragorn's appearance was very similar to Isildur's eldest son, Elendur, who died during the defeat in the Gladden Fields. Aragorn was born on March 1, 2931 T.A. in the family of the Dúnedain chieftain Arathorn II. His father died in a battle with orcs when Aragorn was only 2 years old. Gilraen and little Aragorn fled to Rivendell and were taken in by Elrond's house.

The Elven Lord raised Aragorn as his own son.

On Elrond's advice, the boy's origin was kept secret, for the White Council had learned that Sauron was searching for Isildur's heir. He was given the name Estel ("hope" in Sindarin). During his days in Rivendell, he was very close to Elrond's sons, Elladan and Elrohir. He often accompanied them on their various journeys, and they taught the boy much. At the age of twenty, when Aragorn returned from a journey with the company of Elladan and Elrohir, Elrond revealed his true name and origin to him. The lord of the elves also gave him the relics of the Dúnedain: the Ring of Barahir and the fragments of Narsil, but kept the scepter of Annuminas for himself for now, since Aragorn had yet to earn it. He also predicted a long life and great deeds for the youth. The next day, while walking in the forest, Aragorn met Elrond's daughter.

an elf from the Sindar, son of Thranduil, king of the wood elves of Northern Mirkwood.

One of the nine members of the Fellowship of the Ring who participated in the expedition to Mount Doom and the War of the Ring. Being the only Elf in the Fellowship, Legolas became friends with the Dwarf Gimli, which was notable for both peoples. Legolas' date of birth is unknown, but it is likely that he was over five hundred years old during the War of the Ring.

Nothing is known about Legolas' mother either.

On 20 June 3018 T.A. Legolas fought in a battle against the Orcs who had attacked the Elves to help Gollum escape. On 25 October, Legolas was present at the Council of Elrond in Rivendell, where it was decided to destroy Sauron's One Ring. Afterwards, Legolas joined the Fellowship of the Ring, who set out for Mordor to destroy the Ring in Orodruin.

In Moria, Legolas participated in the battle after which the Fellowship was forced to flee from the Balrog. The Balrog was stopped by Gandalf's sacrifice, and the Fellowship was led by Aragorn, who left with his companions for the kingdom of the Galadhrim - Lothlórien. There Legolas received a new bow and an elven brooch in the form of a leaf. Also, the Lady Galadriel predicted to Legolas that he would lose his peace when he saw the sea.

During the Fellowship's voyage down the Anduin, Legolas shot a Winged Rider and sent him plummeting into the water, but the Ringbearer was unharmed. Legolas was present at the skirmish on Amon Hen, where Boromir died and the Fellowship of the Ring was broken. Legolas and Gimli followed Aragorn in pursuit of Saruman's band of Orcs who had kidnapped Merry and Pippin.

Upon reaching Fangorn Forest, they met the resurrected Gandalf, with whom they set out for Edoras. Legolas and his companions joined the army of Rohan and fought together at the Battle of Helm's Deep, where Saruman's forces were routed. After the battle, he accompanied King Theoden to Isengard and was present at the negotiations with Saruman.

a dwarf of the royal line of Durin, son of Gloin and nephew of Oin. The only representative of his people in the ranks of the Fellowship of the Ring. Appearance It is known that Gimli had dark eyes, and also he, like all dwarves, is short in stature, he has a long reddish beard with a moustache and hair of the same color. Gimli wears armor and chain mail, as well as an axe.

Biography Gimli was descended from the oldest line of Dwarves, the Longbeards, the first inhabitants of Khazad-dum, and was a direct descendant of Durin VI through the younger line.

He was born 77 years after the Dwarves, led by Thráin, established a settlement in exile in the Blue Mountains (Ered Luin). He was not allowed to participate in the expedition to Erebor, as he was considered too young by Dwarven standards (in 2941 of the Third Age he was "only" 62 years old).

After the Dwarves reclaimed the Lonely Mountain (Erebor), Gimli and his father began to live in Erebor.

In the year 3018 of the Third Age, Gimli, his father Glóin, and several other dwarves traveled to Rivendell as messengers from the King under the Mountain. At the council of Elrond (ruler of Imladris), it was decided to destroy the ring brought by the hobbit Frodo, but there was a catch: the ring could only be destroyed where it was made. Gimli was chosen as one of the nine members of the Fellowship of the Ring (and the only representative of the dwarves in it). On December 25, 3018, the Fellowship set out on a campaign against Mordor.

the largest and most populated continent in Arda.

Although the word is often used to refer to the entire fictional universe of J. R. R. Tolkien, within the legendarium itself, Middle-earth refers only to the eastern part of the world, where the mortal lands are located, as opposed to the Undying Lands of Aman to the west. Middle-earth is a literal translation into modern English of the Middle English middel-erde, which comes from the Old English middangeard, which was the name of the real, inhabited world of men, located halfway between heaven and hell. In Quenya, Middle-earth was called Endor, "middle land", and in Sindarin the same name sounded like Ennor. In various eras it was also called the Forsaken Lands, the Outer Lands, and the Great Lands. Geography Middle-earth is a vast continent with a long coastline in the west that gradually slopes away to the southeast.

Days before days After the First War, the Valar ordered the lands of Arda and created Great Lamps for the growth of plants, setting them up in the south and north of Middle-earth. The light of the lamps merged on the island of Almaren, near the great lake, where the Valar founded their first abode. Soon Melkor returned to Arda and built his first stronghold, Utumno, in the north of Middle-earth, as well as a shelter in the form of the Iron Mountains (from east to west).

They fenced off the lands of eternal cold in the far north. Melkor began to spread his influence in Middle-earth: greenery withered and rotted, poisonous swamps arose, forests became dark, and animals turned into monsters. The Valar began to search for Melkor, but he got ahead of them, destroying the Lamps, which caused cataclysms. The symmetry of the waters and lands of Middle-earth was distorted, and the original plan of the Valar was broken. As a result of the fall of the Lamps, the seas Helcar and Ringil arose, and Almaren was destroyed.

the main city of the Gondorian province of Anorien, built by Anarion at the foot of Mount Mindolluin, since 1640 T.A. - the capital of Gondor. Minas Anor When Anárion and Isildur founded Gondor and began to build cities, Osgiliath became the capital, but Isengard was not enough to protect the western borders, and it was decided to build two more guard fortresses, covering Osgiliath from the west and east (like Kronstadt covering St. Petersburg). In the east, Minas Ithil was built against the threat from the inhabitants of Mordor and other eastern lands, and in the west Anárion built a fortress and called it Minas Anor. The fortress, and later the city that developed around it, began to carve mountains from stone. Minas Anor grew and expanded. One of the palantiri was located in the city. After Minas Ithil was burned for the first time, Isildur moved a sapling of the White Tree to Minas Anor.

In 420 T.A., King Ostoger, the 7th King of Gondor, rebuilt the fortress and made Minas Anor his summer residence. The city grew and developed, becoming the cultural center of Gondor (in particular, the royal library, founded by Isildur and containing documents from the time of Numenor, was located there). However, when the growth of Gondor's power was replaced first by stagnation and then by decline, frequent raids by Easterlings and Orcs on the lands of Gondor began. Osgiliath, which never recovered from the consequences of the civil war of 1432-1447 T.A. (in 1437 T.A., the army of the usurper Castamir stormed the city, burned and plundered it), began to decline. In 1636 TE the population of Osgiliath (including the king) died out during the Great Plague, and in 1640 TE King Tarondor moved the capital to Minas Anor. In 2002 TE Minas Ithil, originally intended as the most important fortress and the center of Gondorian military power, was captured by the Nazgul and turned into Minas Morgul, Minas Anor was henceforth called Minas Tirith (Sind. Minas Tirith, "Guardian Fortress"). Direct confrontation between Gondor and the growing power of Mordor began.

Geography and description Story The Second Age Before the Second Age, the forests around Amon Lanc were inhabited by the Nandor Elves, who had no kings or rulers. At the beginning of the Second Age, the Sindar Elves settled in the forests around the hill of Amon Lanc, mixing with the Wood Elves. Oropher, who was of Sindarin descent, became the ruler of all the Elves of Greenwood. Oropher and his people later left the lands around Amon Lanc, moving north near Emyn Duir due to disturbing news of Sauron's growing power in Mordor to the south.[8] In addition, unlike the Elves of Lórinand, Oropher was dissatisfied with the proximity of his lands to the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm. The Third Age Sauron settled in southern Mirkwood around 1000 T.A. and built a fortress on Amon Lanc, where he recovered his strength and gained a corporeal form. As it turned out, Sauron did not settle on Amon Lanc by chance. Upstream from Dol Guldur along the Anduin were the Gladden Fields, the site of Isildur's death and the loss of the One Ring that Sauron was seeking[10]. All the Wood Elves retreated north, where their king, Thranduil, created a palace-fortress in case of war.

Dol Guldur attracted the attention of the Eldar Lords, Galadriel and Celeborn. They dwelt in Lórien for a time, gathering information about Dol Guldur, and then travelled throughout Rhovanion. The ruler of Lórien, Amroth, was also concerned, and Dol Guldur was kept under constant surveillance (especially by Cerin Amroth)[9]. In T.A. 1140, the Istari order of wizards learned of the Darkness that had fallen to Mirkwood from Dol Guldur, but at the time it was attributed to one of the Nazgûl[4]. In T.A. 2063, the wizard Gandalf visited Dol Guldur[10]. Sauron knew of his coming, but was not strong enough at the time and, not wishing to be noticed or engage in combat, withdrew to the east[11]. Thus began the Watchful Peace, which lasted until 2460, when Sauron returned to the fortress. Then in 2463 T.A. the White Council was created, aimed at combating the master of Dol Guldur[5].

In T.A. 2509, messengers were sent from Gondor to the Éothéod asking for help. Only one of the six messengers

a region in the southeast of Middle-earth, the kingdom of the Dark Lord SauronGeography Mordor was protected on three sides by roughly rectangular mountain ranges: the Ered Lithui (or Ash Mountains) to the north, the Ephel Dúath (or Scorch Mountains) to the west and south. In the northwest of Mordor, the deep valley of Udûn was the only entrance for large armies. There, at the junction of the Ash and Scorch Mountains, the Morannon were built. The towers placed behind the Black Gate (called the Teeth of Mordor) were built by Gondor to keep evil within Mordor. In front of these gates lies the great field of Dagorlad. Sauron's main fortress, Barad-dûr, was located in the foothills of the Ered Lithui. To the southwest of Barad-dûr lies the arid plateau of Gorgoroth, and to the southeast, by the salty Sea of ​​Núrnen, lies another large plateau, Lithlad. The passage to the narrow pass through the Pitch Mountains was guarded by the fortress of Minas Morgul (formerly Minas Ithil). The pass is called Cirith Ungol, in honor of the fortress standing directly on the pass. Shelob also lived there, in the tunnels, not far from the fortress of Cirith Ungol. Shelob's labyrinth was called Tirah Ungol. The southern part of Mordor was much more fertile, and wet enough to conduct agriculture. In this part of Mordor was the salty inland sea of ​​Nurnen. To the west of Mordor was a narrow strip of land of Ithilien, beyond which was the city of Osgiliath and the Anduin River. The flora of Mordor are the last plants that managed to survive in this "dying, but not yet dead" country (The Lord of the Rings). Includes "small trees," "clumps of stiff grey grass," "wrinkled mosses," "bramble thickets," and dense bushes that might be found near tiny streams running down from the mountains. Sam and Frodo took shelter behind such bramble bushes, which had long sharp thorns and hooked spines. The bushes also had thorns that Sam describes as "a foot long." But in the south of Mordor, around Lake Nurnen, the picture was very different.

a vast forest area in Middle-earth, a remnant of the primeval forest that covered a significant portion of the Continent in ancient times.

Geography Mirkwood is located in Rhovanion, east of the Misty Mountains, across the Anduin River. In the north, Mirkwood approaches the Grey Mountains, in the east it borders Erebor, and from its southern end begin the Brown Plains.

Northeast of Mirkwood (about 40 miles) is the Lonely Mountain.History The forest was originally inhabited by the Nandor (or "Silver Elves"), who remained in Middle-earth after abandoning the Great Journey. During the Second Age, Mirkwood and its people were ruled by King Oropher, and later by his son Thranduil. The forest was called Erin Galen (

sind. Eryn Galen ), or "Great Greenwood", "Great Forest", approximately until

1100 T.E. , when the shadow of the Dark Lord Sauron fell on the forest, and people began to call it "Taur-e-Ndaedelos" ("Forest of Great Fear") - in English Mirkwood ("Mirkwood"). Sauron established himself in the fortress of Dol Guldur, forcing Thranduil and his people to leave to the northeast. Over time, more and more evil creatures appeared in Mirkwood - orcs, trolls, giant spiders. The forest from east to west was crossed by an old dwarven road - Men-in-Naugrim, but because of its relative proximity to Dol Guldur, the road was abandoned. The elves used a path further north - it ended somewhere in the swamps south of Esgaroth, on the Long Lake. 2941 T. E. (These events are described in the novel "The Hobbit, or There and Back Again") Bilbo Baggins, along with Thorin Oakenshield and 12 other dwarves, passed through Mirkwood. There they encountered giant spiders. Bilbo saved the dwarves, but soon after they were captured by the Wood Elves, escaped from captivity and freed Erebor from the dragon Smaug. Around this time, the White Council attacked Dol Guldur, and Sauron fled to Mordor, after which his influence in Mirkwood diminished for a time.

Many years later, Gollum, after being released from Mordor, was captured by Aragorn and brought to Thranduil, but escaped.

an active volcano in Mordor, located on the Gorgoroth plateau.

Around 1600 of the Second Age, Sauron forged the One Ring in the fires of Mount Doom; from then on, whenever Sauron returned to Mordor, the volcano erupted. This happened in 3429 of the Second Age, and from 2954 of the Third Age until the end of the War of the Ring, flames erupted from the crater of Mount Doom continuously. A particularly strong eruption (and possibly an explosion) occurred in March 3019, when Sméagol-Gollum fell into the volcano with the One Ring. Mount Doom was approximately 4,500 feet (1,400 meters) high, with a diameter of seven miles (just over 11 kilometers) at its base. From the east, the so-called Road of Sauron led to the mouth of the volcano; it led to the Fire Chambers (Sammath-Naur in Sindarin), in which was located the Crack of Doom - access to the blazing depths of the volcano.

In Sindarin, Orodruin was also called Amon Amarth.

Sauron's main fortress, which served as the capital of Mordor. It was built in 1000-1600 of the Second Age, destroyed (but not completely) after the War of the Last Alliance, rebuilt at the end of the Third Age (starting in 2951) and soon finally destroyed during the overthrow of Sauron and the destruction of the One Ring.Description Barad-dûr stood at the end of a long spur of the Ash Mountains on the northern border of Mordor, about a league east of Orodruin. From the western gate of the tower ran the Road of Sauron, which passed over an iron bridge across the chasm, and then through Gorgoroth to the eastern slopes of Mount Doom. To the north, from Barad-dûr to the Black Gate, there was a road of about 100 miles (≈ 161 km).

There is no clear and precise description of Sauron's Fortress in Tolkien's book, but there are some moments in which there is a partial description of some parts of the Castle. For example, in the chapter "Disunity", when Frodo put on the Ring, he had a vision of Barad-dur: "... On a stepped cliff, behind countless walls, surrounded by squat watchtowers that clung to the ledges ever higher, Barad-dur stood frozen, like a black spider - the Bastion of Darkness, the lair of Sauron ..." [1] During the hobbits' stay in the Land of Terror and Darkness, they are given views of the bulk of the Bastion, - "... And behind it, like a heavy black cloud, the darkness hung, hiding Barad-dur ... Therefore, the coal-black darkness thickened around the gigantic many-towered, many-gated stronghold." In his lifetime, Tolkien made a small sketch that partially depicted Barad-dûr; only the left edge of the lower part of the citadel is shown, built of huge wall blocks of greenish-gray stone. Very rare narrow loophole windows (mostly purple) and one clearly barred one are seen. One high, vertical spire. A narrow stone bridge leads across a black abyss to a monolithic, steep cliff and gates through which one can see the blazing fire inside the fortress. A nearby erupting volcano is also visible.

There are also versions of the translation Helm's Deep) - a large valley located in the northwestern spurs of the Ered Nimrais ridge (translated from Quenya - "White Mountains"). The northern entrance to the valley was blocked by a group of hills of natural origin, called Helm's Deep, on which was located a fortress built in ancient times by the Numenoreans, through which the entrance to the Glittering Caves of Aglarond opened, which were located in the bowels of Mount Thrihurne.

Initially, the valley and fortress served as the base of a small Gondorian force, but after the lands of Calenardhon were given to the Rohirrim (receiving the name Rohan), the valley and fortress became a stronghold for the Rohan forces guarding the fords of the Isen.

The valley received its name after the events of the Rohirrim-Dunlending War of 2758-2759 of the Third Age, when King Helm of Rohan and many locals took refuge in the fortress at Helm's Deep. There they endured a brutal blockade during the Long Winter of 2758-2759, during which many Rohirrim perished, including Helm himself, who froze to death on the slopes of Helm's Deep.

During the War of the Ring, the army of Rohan, led by King Theoden, withstood the siege of the united army of Saruman's orcs and the inhabitants of Dunland in this very fortress.

There is a belief among the Rohirrim that as long as Helm's Deep has defenders, it will never be captured by enemies.

or the Iron Mountains are a mountain range created by Melkor during the Spring of Arda (according to other sources, they existed initially, from the very creation of Arda) in the far north of Middle-earth. This ridge blocked access to Utumno, Melkor's first citadel. On the southwestern spurs of the Iron Mountains, Melkor built a second underground fortress, Angband, crowned with the three peaks of Thangorodrim. To the north of the Iron Mountains is Forodwaith, an area of ​​eternal cold. In the First Age, the Iron Mountains were connected to the Blue Mountains (Sindarin Ered Luin) in the west and the Red Mountains (Sindarin Orocarni) in the east, but in the wars of the Valar with Melkor, the Ered Engrin mountain system was cut off from them.

During the War of Wrath, the Iron Mountains were greatly damaged and lost much of their extent (the Mountains of Angmar in northern Eriador, and the Ered Mithrin and the Iron Hills in the northern Wilderness were all that remained of the Iron Mountains in the Third Age).

a fortress in the valley of Nan Curunír at the southern end of the Misty Mountains, one of the most important in Middle-earth. The word "Isengard" is a Rohirrim translation of the Sindarin Angrenost (Sind. Angrenost, "iron city/stronghold"). Isengard was partly a natural mountain formation and partly a creation of the Númenóreans. The fortress was surrounded by a ring of stone walls no more than 100 feet (about 30 meters) high, with a single gate located on the south. From the gate a road led to fords on the River Isen. The inner space was a circle a mile in diameter, originally filled with greenery, fruit trees that were fed by streams running from the mountains to the lake, but during the reign of Saruman there was no greenery anymore. At the center of the ring stood the tower of Orthanc, over 500 feet (about 150 meters) high, one of the three most important towers of Gondor (the other two were at Minas Anor and Minas Ithil).

The fortress was built by the Numenoreans "in the days of their might" and was part of Gondor, along with the lands of Calenardhon. Even after these lands were given to the people of Eorl, Isengard remained a fortress of Gondor, guarded by Gondorian guards led by a Captain (a title that was passed down by inheritance), and the keys of Orthanc were kept by the Steward of Gondor. Two miles south of the gates of Isengard was a dam and an outer wall that ran between the hills that ended the Misty Mountains. Within this wall were the cultivated lands of the people of the fortress.

When Gondor weakened, Isengard, which guarded the pass between the White and Misty Mountains, had to be abandoned. In 2710 of the Third Age, the fortress was occupied by the Dunlendings, but already in 2759 they were driven out, and in the same year Saruman came to the Rohirrim with gifts and occupied Isengard with the permission of Beren, the Steward of Gondor. From him, Saruman received the keys to Orthanc. From then on, the valley of Isengard was called Nan Curunir.

Thus, initially Saruman was only a commander of the Men of Gondor, nominally subordinate to the Steward. But in 2953 he claimed Isengard as his own.