The Encyclopedia of Arda - Hell-hawks (original) (raw)

ALPHABETICAL RACES PLACES MISCELLANEOUS REFERENCE INTERACTIVE SHARE User guide Latest entries FAQ and e-mail Disclaimer and bibliography Awards Old and rare words Lexicon of names Excyclopedia of Arda Movie-goer's Guides: • The Fellowship of the Ring • The Two Towers • The Return of the King The Hobbit Viewer's Companions: • An Unexpected Journey • The Desolation of Smaug • The Battle of the Five Armies Tolkien links Book news Latest Chronicle Calendar Old and rare words Lexicon of names Links Random
Dates Creatures of ancient descent, first recorded on 23 February III 3019, the last1 of the hell-hawks were destroyed on 25 March III 3019 Origins Captured and raised by Sauron2 Settlements Associated with the strongholds of Sauron and the Nazgûl, particularly Barad-dûr and Minas Morgul Other names Black Wings, Winged Creatures Indexes: Alphabetical: H Animals and Plants About this entry: Updated 6 April 2015 This entry is complete The mounts of the Winged Nazgûl Years of the Trees First Age I Second Age II Third Age III Fourth Age IV The name used by Beregond of Gondor for the huge and hideous winged beasts that bore the Nazgûl through the air. These were featherless creatures with bat-like wings, bred by Sauron to reach an immense size. The heads of these monsters are not described in detail, but it is hinted that they were at least somewhat bird-like, which would explain Beregond's choice of the name 'hell-hawks' for these flying beasts. Notes 1 At the time of the destruction of the One Ring, eight Winged Nazgûl remained (the Witch-king and his mount having been slain in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields). Rushing to Mount Doom, the Nazgûl were caught in its eruption and destroyed, and this is the last we hear of the hell-hawks they rode. It seems possible that there were other such creatures held in reserve (we have an instance of a Nazgûl losing his mount and finding a replacement) but we're told that they belonged to a 'last untimely brood' (The Return of the King V 6, The Battle of the Pelennor Fields), so the fall of the Nazgûl appears to have also marked the extinction of the hell-hawks. 2 We're told of the brood of the hell-hawks that the Dark Lord took them from their mountain eyrie and nursed them to adulthood. This is probably not meant absolutely literally (it's hard to imagine Sauron pursuing mountaineering and animal husbandry himself). More likely, we're intended to infer that Sauron used his servants - perhaps even the Nazgûl themselves - to fulfil these duties. See also... Hell Indexes: Alphabetical: H Animals and Plants About this entry: Updated 6 April 2015 This entry is complete For acknowledgements and references, see the Disclaimer & Bibliography page. Original content © copyright Mark Fisher 2010, 2015. All rights reserved. For conditions of reuse, see the Site FAQ. Website services kindly sponsored by Discus from Axiom Software Ltd.Discus Invitations make it easy to run DISC personality profiling across the Web, with results available instantly.

The Encyclopedia of Arda - an interactive guide to the world of J.R.R. Tolkien

ALPHABETICAL RACES PLACES MISCELLANEOUS REFERENCE INTERACTIVE

SHARE User guide Latest entries FAQ and e-mail Disclaimer and bibliography Awards Old and rare words Lexicon of names Excyclopedia of Arda Movie-goer's Guides: • The Fellowship of the Ring • The Two Towers • The Return of the King The Hobbit Viewer's Companions: • An Unexpected Journey • The Desolation of Smaug • The Battle of the Five Armies Tolkien links Book news Latest Chronicle Calendar Old and rare words Lexicon of names Links Random

Dates Creatures of ancient descent, first recorded on 23 February III 3019, the last1 of the hell-hawks were destroyed on 25 March III 3019 Origins Captured and raised by Sauron2 Settlements Associated with the strongholds of Sauron and the Nazgûl, particularly Barad-dûr and Minas Morgul Other names Black Wings, Winged Creatures Indexes: Alphabetical: H Animals and Plants About this entry: Updated 6 April 2015 This entry is complete The mounts of the Winged Nazgûl

Years of the Trees First Age I Second Age II Third Age III Fourth Age IV The name used by Beregond of Gondor for the huge and hideous winged beasts that bore the Nazgûl through the air. These were featherless creatures with bat-like wings, bred by Sauron to reach an immense size. The heads of these monsters are not described in detail, but it is hinted that they were at least somewhat bird-like, which would explain Beregond's choice of the name 'hell-hawks' for these flying beasts. Notes 1 At the time of the destruction of the One Ring, eight Winged Nazgûl remained (the Witch-king and his mount having been slain in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields). Rushing to Mount Doom, the Nazgûl were caught in its eruption and destroyed, and this is the last we hear of the hell-hawks they rode. It seems possible that there were other such creatures held in reserve (we have an instance of a Nazgûl losing his mount and finding a replacement) but we're told that they belonged to a 'last untimely brood' (The Return of the King V 6, The Battle of the Pelennor Fields), so the fall of the Nazgûl appears to have also marked the extinction of the hell-hawks. 2 We're told of the brood of the hell-hawks that the Dark Lord took them from their mountain eyrie and nursed them to adulthood. This is probably not meant absolutely literally (it's hard to imagine Sauron pursuing mountaineering and animal husbandry himself). More likely, we're intended to infer that Sauron used his servants - perhaps even the Nazgûl themselves - to fulfil these duties. See also... Hell Indexes: Alphabetical: H Animals and Plants About this entry: Updated 6 April 2015 This entry is complete For acknowledgements and references, see the Disclaimer & Bibliography page. Original content © copyright Mark Fisher 2010, 2015. All rights reserved. For conditions of reuse, see the Site FAQ. Website services kindly sponsored by Discus from Axiom Software Ltd.Discus Invitations make it easy to run DISC personality profiling across the Web, with results available instantly.