Dates Sailed on 29 September III 3021 Origins Built by Círdan and the shipwrights of Mithlond Indexes: Alphabetical: W Items About this entry: Updated 9 November 2003 This entry is complete The ship that carried the Ring-bearers into the West  Years of the TreesFirst AgeISecond AgeIIThird AgeIIIFourth AgeIV "In the twilight of autumn it sailed out of Mithlond, until the seas of the Bent World fell away beneath it…" The Silmarillion,Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age The ship that sailed from the Grey Havens into the Uttermost West, carrying the Ring-bearers to Aman. Its departure marked the end of the Third Age. On the White Ship sailed Elrond, and Galadriel, and Gandalf the White, who had been the Keepers of the Three Rings. With them went the two Hobbits who had kept Sauron's Great Ring, Bilbo the Ring-finder and Frodo the Ring-bearer. They were accompanied to the Grey Havens by Gildor Inglorion and many other Elves besides, but whether any of these others went aboard the ship with them is not told. It does seem, though, that Gandalf's horse Shadowfax did make the journey: we see him waiting at the quayside in The Lord of the Rings, and in his Letters, Tolkien makes it clear that he imagined Shadowfax sailing away with Gandalf. For most of the travellers, the voyage to the Undying Lands was a journey into the unknown, but not for all. Gandalf had originally come to Middle-earth from Aman, some two thousand years before, and so the White Ship was carrying him home to the place where he was known as Olórin, the wise Maia. For Galadriel, too, it was a homecoming, but of a quite different sort. She had been born in Aman long ago, and in the courts of Tirion she had listened to the words of Fëanor, following him willingly into exile in Middle-earth in defiance of the Valar. For her, the granting of a return from exile was a pardon for her past misdeeds, and a reward for her aid in the War against Sauron. See also... Aiwendil, Aman, Bent World, Bywater Pool, Celebrían, Círdan the Shipwright, Elendil Stone, Elf-towers, Elostirion, Elven-rings, Elves beyond the Sea, Elves of Lindon, Elvish World, Galadriel, Glamdring, [See the full list...]Guardian of the Third Ring, High Sea, Horsebreeders, Lady of the Noldor, Last Riding of the Keepers of the Rings, Last Ship, Lord of Rivendell, Lord of the Havens, Master of the Grey Havens, Mistress of Magic, Narya, Olórin, Palantíri, Ponies, Ring of Adamant, Ring of Water, Seeing-stone of Emyn Beraid, Seeing-stones, Seven Seeing Stones, Shire-reckoning, Sons of Elrond, Stones of Arnor, Straight Way, The Five, The Great, Three Keepers, Three Rings, Undying Lands, West-shores, White Towers, Woody End, Younger Days Indexes: Alphabetical: W Items About this entry: Updated 9 November 2003 This entry is complete For acknowledgements and references, see the Disclaimer & Bibliography page. Original content © copyright Mark Fisher 1999, 2001, 2003. All rights reserved. For conditions of reuse, see the Site FAQ. Website services kindly sponsored by Axiom Discovery aptitude and skill testing.Axiom Discovery gives you comprehensive online aptitude testing covering core skills across a wide range of disciplines. |
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