Questions tagged [the-lord-of-the-rings]
For questions about the trilogy of movies or books, 'The Fellowship of the Ring', 'The Two Towers' and 'The Return of the King'. Always use in conjunction with the [tolkiens-legendarium] tag and, for movie questions, the relevant movie tag, e.g. [fellowship-of-the-ring].
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What species was the Party Tree in Hobbiton
In The Fellowship of the Ring, there is a large tree in Hobbiton called the Party Tree where Hobbits hold functions.
What species is it?
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What horse or horses played Shadowfax?
Shadowfax is the last of an ancient breed of horses, a horse king. In the Lord of the Rings trilogy, what is the name of the horse or horses that were honored to play Shadowfax?
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Why didn't Durin's Bane kill the Orcs?
In The Fellowship of the Ring, the Orcs of the Misty Mountains are clearly afraid of the Balrog, and who could blame them? But whereas the Balrog killed all the Dwarves he could find after they woke ...
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Are the Istari still Maiar?
While (I think) there is no argument over the Istari being originally Maiar - are they still Maiar? Did they cease being Maiar when they incarnated themselves?
Clarification: many official (e.g. UT) ...
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Did Tolkien borrow some of the Ring's properties from the Silmarils?
In The Lord of the Rings, the One Ring has many powers which make it incredibly dangerous to anyone who holds it, or even comes within close proximity to it. It inspires jealousy, possessiveness, ...
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Does the German movie translation of Lord of the Rings intentionally use 'du' in this way?
Over on the German Language StackExchange, RDBury asks Is Gandalf really on 'du' terms with the Balrog? (Odd 'duzen' example)
I don't speak German, but I get the impression from their question:
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Did Gandalf think that Frodo was dead?
When the Host of the West march upon the Black Gate, the Mouth of Sauron reveals 'Tokens' (including Frodo's Mithril shirt). At this point, Gandalf looks defeated. Did he think that Frodo had been ...
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Story from Middle-earth about the events of "The Lord of the Rings" being a lie
In the early 2010s, I read a book about a group of adventurers in Middle-earth who retraced the steps of the Fellowship of the Ring and Frodo, only to gradually learn that the history of the Ring and ...
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What happened to Aragorn's Ranger sword?
In the films, Aragon uses his Ranger Sword during the events of the Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers. He used it during the battle at Weathertop, Balin's Tomb, Amon Hen, Warg Attack, and the ...
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When did Frodo use the Ring for the first time?
The first time I can remember is right after Tom Bombadil tried it without becoming invisible, but I'm not sure. He had already possessed the Ring for many years at that point, so I guess he might ...
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Could Aragorn have won the Battle of the Black Gate without Frodo?
With reference to material from the books as quoted in this question, it appears Aragorn's army gained the upper hand. Although Sauron sent the Nazgul to turn the tide, the Eagles arrived in time to ...
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Who are the 2 most powerful entities to battle each other directly?
I was thinking the other day, which were the 2 most powerful entities/characters that came into direct combat with each other. I know that the Gandalf/Durin's Bane battle may have been the instance of ...
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Do we ever get more information about the Entwives?
During my recent re-reading of The Two Towers I was struck again by a question that has bothered me since I was a youngling: What on earth is up with the Entwives? Treebeard says they went away in ...
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How on (middle) earth did Eärendil kill a dragon as huge as Ancalagon?
We know that Ancalagon was killed by Earendil, but how exactly was he killed? Ancalagon was so incredibly massive and Earendil was just a dude in a ship with some Eagles.
This image ↓ isn't canon but ...
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Was Gollum the key to destroying the Ring?
It seems that the Ring took control over Frodo, and he used it instead of throwing it to lava.
It was destroyed by pushing Gollum, who was holding the Ring, into the lava.
Does it mean that Frodo ...
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What exactly happened politically to the Kingdom of Arthedain after King Arvedui's death?
After King Arvedui died and Aranarth refused to ascend the throne after Angmar was defeated, what happened politically to the kingdom and the people, now that no king reigned the lands? Like, who ...
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Are the Valar to blame for the death and destruction of the war of the Ring?
I just read this:
Why didn’t they just take the ring to Valinor?
and was reminded that the Valar would not accept the One Ring at Valinor for destruction, and expected the Middle-Earthers to deal with ...
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What gave Isildur the power to successfully curse the Men of Dunharrow? [duplicate]
The swarms of dead men fighting for the good side always seemed wrong to me. I know they did it to be released from their plight, but.... It's one thing to curse somebody, it's quite another to back ...
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Why did Sauron want the Seven Rings back after his return?
Sauron in the second age gave seven rings to the dwarf lords. This had many effects with the main one being greed and avarice.
The reason he gave the dwarves these rings was presumably so that he ...
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Did Sauron put his soul/spirit into all of the Rings of Power?
In the same way that Melkor grew weaker across the ages by 'expending' himself into his monstrous creations, Sauron must have similarly expended himself into the creation of his Ring, which didn't ...
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Is the pipe-weed in Middle-earth somehow intoxicating?
Hobbits and Gandalf often smoke pipe-weed. The way it is referred to implies it may have intoxicating effects similar to marijuana.
“Both the silence and the smoke seemed greatly to annoy Saruman, ...
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Have Elrond and Galadriel ever spoken to each other in person?
I find it interesting that throughout the LotR trilogy and Hobbit, Elrond and Galadriel never talked to each other. They were in the same places as each other but I don't recall them ever speaking to ...
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How did Sam remain unaffected by the ring's power?
There are two characters who seem to be able to handle and wear the One Ring without being affected by its power. One is the mysterious Tom Bombadil. Later in the book, another character seems to have ...
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What are the "Houses of Lamentation"?
In The Lord of the Rings, the Witch King says
"Come not between the Nazgûl and his prey! Or he will not slay thee in
thy turn. He will bear thee away to the Houses of Lamentation, beyond
all ...
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Why didn't Eru Ilúvatar trip Isildur?
Eru tripped Gollum, according to the LOTR wiki, thus destroying the One Ring. If he wanted it destroyed, why didn't he do something earlier, when Isildur took the Ring for his own when he was at the ...
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Did Eru Ilúvatar trip Gollum?
The Fandom LOTR wiki lists four times Eru Ilúvatar intervened in the history of Arda:
creating Elves and Men
removing Aman from the spherical Earth
resurrecting Gandalf
making Gollum trip
In a ...
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Why is Sauron's name similar to the Greek/Latin word for "lizard"?
The name Sauron is spelled like, and sounds very similar to the Greek word σαῦρος, or the corresponding Latin word saurus, which means lizard.
Is this just a coincidence, or is there a (known or ...
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Are there meaningful anagrams in Lord of the Rings character names?
Motivation
I just observed that "Denethor", the human steward who thought himself king has all the same letters as the word "dethrone" which is what he intended to do to Aragorn, ...
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Why Didn't Théoden Let Merry Fight In the Battle At Minas Tirith?
In the Peter Jackson version of The Return of the King, Merry offers Théoden his sword and service, which Théoden accepts. Théoden gives Merry the title of "Meriadoc -- Esquire of Rohan."
When the ...
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Did the Hobbits of the Fellowship of the Ring wear hats?
From Bilbo's departure in The Hobbit, it follows that going on a trip without a hat was unusual. Hats were commonplace in the Shire: for example, when Pippin and Merry returned to the Shire as small ...
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Why didn't Treebeard attack Gimli (or vice versa)?
The Ents seem to have considerable animosity toward the Dwarfs
After the Dwarves were put to sleep by Eru to await the coming of the Elves, the Vala Aulë told his wife Yavanna, "the lover of all ...
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What makes Galadriel so powerful?
I have seen Galadriel being more powerful than most of the others (in the movies, such as The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies) and I wonder why that is, and also what makes her weak after using ...
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Why did Sméagol turn into a 'creature' when addicted to the ring, but not Bilbo Baggins?
Why did Sméagol turn into a 'creature', but not Bilbo Baggins?
Déagol found the ring in a river, Sméagol stole it and then turned into a weird creature.
Bilbo did not turn into a creature when he ...
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Is there any explanation for Denethor's strange behaviour in the Return of the King?
In the first part, we are told that Denethor had been a good and wise Steward and had "held the forces of Mordor at bay" for long. When Pippin and Gandalf visit Minas Tirith, he seems quite different ...
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Why did Thranduil bring an army to Erebor?
When the Dwarves fled Erebor following Smaug's invasion, Thranduil was seen arriving with an army before turning away promptly to return to Mirkwood.
Why did he bring an army to Erebor? Did he ...
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Why didn't the Hobbits get frostbite?
This is a question that's been bothering me for the last couple of days:
How is it that the hobbits of the Fellowship were able to survive such cold temperatures throughout their travels without ...
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Which species dance in Tolkien's works?
I know I at least saw the Hobbits dance, but I'm not sure about the others. And if they do dance, what kind of dances do they do (if known, if there isn't much description, ok)? I'm asking about all ...
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Why Gandalf did not take Frodo and the One Ring to Rivendell immediately after he examined it?
I checked the book and the wikipedia and summarized some of the timeline of Gandalf:
TA 3018, April 12 - Gandalf check the One Ring with Frodo in the Shire, tells Frodo that he must leave the Shire ...
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Can Gandalf actually appear out of nowhere like in 'The Hobbit'
In the 1977, animated version of 'The Hobbit' we see Gandalf appear out of nowhere in front of Bag End and again as they travel to Rivendell.
Can Gandalf really appear out of nowhere in Tolkiens ...
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How did non-native plants find their way to Middle-earth?
I am reading The Return of the King, and when I got to the chapters concerning the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, something struck me. Earlier in the story, Theoden was shocked to see Merry and ...
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Why did it take Sauron so long to regain strength?
According to the timeline of the Third Age, it took Sauron roughly 2460 years to regain strength and return to Middle-earth.
Why did it take him that long? And if he "returns" to Middle-...
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Did elves shed hair?
Us mere mortals have hairs that fall out everyday. Lucky ones have new hair grow back. But what about elves? This could have led to Feanor like scraping a couch Galadriel sat on. Wouldn't be hard to ...
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Why couldn't the Ring stay in Rivendell?
Why weren't Elrond and Gandalf receptive to letting the ring stay in Rivendell? My claim is that Western military forces could repel the forces of Mordor and Isengard. The invasion would be like ...
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What is the Tengwar transliteration of this Gandalf quote fom the Lord of the Rings
I searched the web for someone to trust to make a transliteration in Tengwar and no one that I have asked has gotten back to me, so here I am.
I want to make a tattoo in Tengwar (preferably the italic/...
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Why weren't more Rings of Power forged?
Why is it that more rings of this nature/power could not be made again? Are there no elven smith's left with the capability? How were the rings of power "enchanted" with their magical properties to ...
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Why was Frodo "wise" and Samwise a "half-wit"?
According to the sources I’ve found (for example this one), “Frodo” comes from the Old English “fród”, meaning wise. (Apparently in “Hobbit Language” Frodo’s name is “Maura”, but I don’t know if this ...
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Had Frodo traveled extensively before his flight from Hobbiton?
According to the answer to this question, Frodo was well-traveled and "experienced" before the major events of the Lord of the Rings. There's a quote that Frodo used to travel around Hobbiton or even ...
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In the Return of The King movie, why does Gandalf cough while smoking?
So this is a minor nitpick, but it's been bugging me for a little while now.
In The Fellowship of the Ring, we can see that Gandalf is a casual pipe smoker; he seems quite adept at it, even able to ...
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What was Gandalf's plan for getting the Ring to Mount Doom?
I'm currently re-reading The Lord of the Rings for the umpteenth time, and a question occurred to me.
When Gandalf hears from Faramir that Frodo and Sam were heading for Cirith Ungol, he is shocked. ...
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Why does Isildur claim to have defeated Sauron when Gil-galad and Elendil did it?
It is well-known that Isildur cut the Ring from Sauron, as in The Fellowship of the Ring, The Shadow of the Past Elrond says:
It was Gil-galad, Elven-king and Elendil of Westernesse who ...
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