Middle-earth Connections: Lore of the Rings

took him prisoner and brought an end to his terrible reign. But desiring to be in the company of the Elves (whose arrival they had anticipated throughout innumerable ages), and to provide them with a safe haven beyond the reach of Melkor's servants, the Valar summoned the Elves to live with them in Aman, the Uttermost West. Not all the Elves were willing to leave Middle-earth, which was their homeland and the only place they knew. And of those Elves who accepted the summons, many never made it (alive) over Sea. Still, the first waves of migration out of Middle-earth were "healthy", or made when the Elves were young and strong and not yet weary of the world. Neither were they as deeply entrenched in Middle-earth. When Feanor rebelled against the Valar, he led most of the Noldor back to Middle-earth (or, rather, led most of them out of Eldamar, and then abandoned the greater part of his people, most of whom chose to follow Fingolfin to Middle-earth). Of these Exiles, the vast majority (and their descendants) were slain or enslaved by Melkor, now returned to Middle-earth as a Dark Lord. The spirits of these slain Elves returned to Aman where they awaited a "rebirth" or "re-embodiment", if such a reward could be earned by their deeds in life. For the remainder, a terrible curse was imposed. Not the Doom of the Noldor, which was the curse that the Valar lay upon them to fail in their war with Melkor. Rather, they were told that "those that endure in Middle-earth shall grow weary of the world as with a great burden, and shall wane, and become as shadows of regret before the younger race that cometh after." (Silmarillion, "Of the Flight of the Noldor") This doom was applied, really, to all the Elves, and was perhaps a warning more than a judgement. In describing the events of the Second Age for Milton Waldman (a publisher who considered THE LORD OF THE RINGS at a time when Tolkien had withdrawn the book from Allen & Unwin), JRRT wrote "the three main themes are thus The Delaying Elves that lingered in Middle-earth; Sauron's growth to a new Dark Lord, master and god of Men; and Numenor-Atlantis." After the final overthrow of Morgoth in the War of Wrath, Eonwë (herald of Manwë and leader of the Host of Valinor) travelled throughout Middle-earth, summoning all Elves once again to sail over

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