The Encyclopedia of Arda - Elf-kings (original) (raw)

Dates The High King of the Elves, Ingwë, reigns in Aman; in Middle-earth, the last High King of the Elves, Gil-galad, was slain in II 3441, but other lesser kings continued to reign into the Fourth Age Location Ingwë's halls are on Taniquetil in Aman; in Middle-earth, the High Kings of the Noldor ruled from Barad Eithel on the borders of Hithlum, while the Lord of Beleriand was the King of Doriath; after the end of the First Age, the last of the High Kings, Gil-galad, ruled from Lindon on the northwestern coasts of Middle-earth Race Divisions Various; High King Ingwë was of the Vanyar, while the High Kings in Middle-earth were of the Noldor Other names Title of Note The similar title Elvenking was used for Thranduil, the king of the Woodland Realm; though he was a true Elf-king, Thranduil was not in fact one of the more powerful or important kings of the Elves Indexes: Alphabetical: E Elves About this entry: Updated 15 June 2023 This entry is complete The lords of the Eldar After the Eldar split from the Avari and began the Great Journey, they had many kings in many lands. Above all of these was Ingwë of the Vanyar, the High King of the Elves, whose seat was beneath the mansions of Manwë on the White Mountain of Taniquetil. The other main branches of the Eldar - the Noldor and the Teleri - also took kings of their own, but because those branches became split between Aman and Middle-earth, their arrangements were more involved. The kingship of the Teleri was split between the brothers Olwë and Elwë. Olwë ruled from his pearl-city of Alqualondë on the shores of the Bay of Eldamar, but his brother Elwë had been left behind in Beleriand with many of his people. There, Elwë founded a new realm in the forested heart of that land, and became the King of Doriath and Lord of Beleriand, known as Elu Thingol in the Sindarin tongue. The Noldor were at one time united in Valinor under their first King, Finwë, but after he was slain by Melkor, many of the Deep-elves set out to return to Middle-earth in pursuit of the Dark Lord. After briefly, and debatably, passing to his eldest son Fëanor, Finwë's title of High King ultimately fell on his second son Fingolfin. Others of the returned Noldor set up lesser kingdoms of their own in Beleriand, notably King Turgon of Gondolin, and King Finrod of Nargothrond. Meanwhile, in Aman, the leadership of the Noldor fell on Finwë's third son Finarfin, who had set out for Middle-earth with the others but turned back on the road. The wars that followed the Return of the Noldor took their toll on that people and their allies. By the end of the First Age, almost all the Elf-kings had been slain. Gil-galad, a descendant of Fingolfin, still ruled in Lindon through the Second Age, but he too was lost in the War of the Last Alliance. After Gil-galad's time, the lines of the great Elf-kings came to an end, though certain Silvan peoples still maintained lesser kings of their own, even to the end of the Third Age and beyond. Indexes: Alphabetical: E Elves About this entry: Updated 15 June 2023 This entry is complete For acknowledgements and references, see the Disclaimer & Bibliography page. Original content © copyright Mark Fisher 2007, 2023. All rights reserved. For conditions of reuse, see the Site FAQ. Website services kindly sponsored by Axiom Discovery aptitude and skill testing.Personality is one part of understanding a candidate's suitability for a role, but aptitude can also be crucial.