Ages: Difference between revisions
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===[[Third Age]]=== | ===[[Third Age]]=== | ||
The Third Age saw the gradual fading of the Elves and also the rise of Sauron against the [[Realms in Exile| | The Third Age saw the gradual fading of the Elves and also the rise of Sauron against the [[Realms in Exile|Númenórean kingdoms]], until he was defeated during the [[War of the Ring]]. The Age ended some years later with the departure of the [[White Ship]] from [[Mithlond]].<ref name=rings/><ref name=AB/> | ||
===[[Fourth Age]]=== | ===[[Fourth Age]]=== | ||
The Fourth Age was a time when the Elves faded while Dwarves, Men and [[Hobbits]] prospered and recovered after the fall of Sauron, until the [[Dominion of Men]].<ref name=AB/> | The Fourth Age was a time when the Elves faded while Dwarves, Men and [[Hobbits]] prospered and recovered after the fall of Sauron, until the [[Dominion of Men]].<ref name=AB/> |
Revision as of 11:49, 3 November 2021
History of Arda | ||
---|---|---|
Before the Creation | ||
Before the Ages | ||
Days before days | ||
Years of the Trees (up to Y.T. 1050) | ||
Ages of the Children of Ilúvatar | ||
First Age (begins in Y.T. 1050 and overlaps with the Years of the Trees up to Y.T. 1500) - Years of the Sun begin in F.A. 1 | ||
Second Age - Arda made round in S.A. 3319 | ||
Third Age | ||
Fourth Age | ||
Later Ages (up to present day) | ||
End of Arda | ||
Timeline of Arda (See: Round World version of the Silmarillion for a later conception of Tolkien's cosmology) |
Ages are large spans of Time in which the Wise and the loremasters divided the history of Arda. The division was made according to large historical events such as the overthrowing of a Dark Lord.
The Ages
First Age
The First Age saw the ascent of the Elves, Dwarves and Men and their wars against Morgoth. It ended with the War of Wrath and the drowning of Beleriand. Morgoth was captured by the Valar, ending centuries of dominion in Beleriand.[1][2]
Second Age
In the Second Age the Edain prospered in Númenor, but Sauron, a servant of Morgoth also came to dominate the Westlands. The Rings of Power were created as one of such attempts. Sauron's influence also caused the Drowning of Númenor and the Changing of the World. The Age ended with the War of the Last Alliance and the defeat of Sauron.[2][3]
Third Age
The Third Age saw the gradual fading of the Elves and also the rise of Sauron against the Númenórean kingdoms, until he was defeated during the War of the Ring. The Age ended some years later with the departure of the White Ship from Mithlond.[3][2]
Fourth Age
The Fourth Age was a time when the Elves faded while Dwarves, Men and Hobbits prospered and recovered after the fall of Sauron, until the Dominion of Men.[2]
Further future?
Tolkien said in a letter written in 1958 that he believed the Ages had quickened and that it was about the end of the Sixth Age/beginning of the Seventh. However he did not explain the criteria of why the Ages should be shortened.[5]
Two years after that letter, Tolkien changed this idea and wrote that, instead, we were already in the year 1960 of the Seventh Age, indicating that this Age follows the Christian reckoning. [6]
See also
- Ages of the Chaining of Melkor
- Ages of the Children of Ilúvatar
References
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Quenta Silmarillion: Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B: The Tale of Years (Chronology of the Westlands)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers, "The Riders of Rohan"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 211, (dated 14 October 1958)
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Carl F. Hostetter (ed.), The Nature of Middle-earth, "Part One. Time and Ageing: VI. The Awaking of the Quendi", p. 39