J.R.R. Tolkien The Hobbit The Lord of the Rings

HOBBITS A mortal race almost certainly related to Men, though their origins are unknown. Their most distinguishing feature was their short stature; even the tallest Hobbits rarely exceeded four feet in height. Originally a widespread people, hobbits were found in much of the north of Middle-earth and down the Vales of Anduin. As the Third Age passed, the Hobbits moved north and west, eventually founding the land of the Shire in III 1601. BILBO BAGGINS Head of the Baggins family, he dwelt alone at Bag End, Hobbiton, until Gandalf involved him in the Quest of Erebor in 2941 (Third Age), and so drew the Hobbits into the great affairs of the end of the Third Age. During his journey to the Lonely Mountain, Bilbo came upon the One Ring in an orc-hold of the Misty Mountains. Bilbo's records of his travels, and those of his heir Frodo, were compiled into the Red Book of Westmarch, and became the basis of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. MERIADOC 'MERRY' BRANDYBUCK Son of Saradoc Brandybuck, called 'The Magnificent', Merry accompanied Frodo on the Quest of Mount Doom. PEREGRIN 'PIPPIN' TOOK I Son of Paladin Took II of Great Smials, and later Thain Peregrin I; he travelled with the Fellowship of the Ring.

SAMWISE 'SAM' GAMGEE Faithful servant and companion of Frodo Baggins, who accompanied him into Mordor and aided in the achievement of the Quest of Mount Doom. FRODO BAGGINS Heir of Bilbo Baggins, and hero of the Lord of the Rings. Renowned for bearing the One Ring to the land of Mordor, and casting it into the flames of Mount Doom.

ISTARI: The Wizards The order of Wizards, the Maiar who came to Middle-earth after the first millennium of the Third Age. Of these, five came to the northwestern regions; Saruman, Gandalf, Radagast, Alatar and Pallando. GANDALF. The Grey Pilgrim In origin a Maia of Manwë and Varda, Gandalf came to the northwest of Middle-earth after a thousand years of the Third Age had passed, with four others of his order. At the Grey Havens, Círdan entrusted him with the Red Ring, Narya, to aid him in contesting the will of Sauron. Gandalf wandered widely in Middle-earth, and learned much of its races and peoples. Unlike his fellow Wizards Saruman and Radagast, he never settled in a single place. He was instrumental in the victory of the War of the Ring, but during that conflict he battled with a Balrog, and though he was ultimately victorious, his spirit left his body and returned into the West. The Valar sent him back to Middle-earth to complete his task. Gandalf finally left Middle-earth in 3021 (Third Age), when he departed over the sea with the Ring-bearers.

SARUMAN, The White Wizard Most often called Saruman the White, Saruman was the first of the five Wizards to arrive in Middle-earth, at the end of the first millennium of the Third Age. He did extensive research on the history of the Rings. When the Council debated the Rings of Power, Saruman claimed that his researches showed that the One Ring had been lost forever. He built an army of Wolves and Orcs of his own within the ring of Isengard to challenge both Sauron and the Wise, and took control of the only nearby power, the country of Rohan. In July III 3018, Saruman set a trap for Gandalf, using the Wizard Radagast to lure him to Orthanc. When Gandalf came, Saruman revealed that he had made a Ring of his own, and that he was no longer Saruman the White, but claimed the title Saruman of Many Colours. When Gandalf refused to join him, he was imprisoned on the pinnacle of the Tower of Orthanc - Saruman hoped to gain the secret of the One Ring from him, or at least prevent Gandalf from using it himself.

MEN The youngest of the races of Arda (with the possible exception of Hobbits), the first Men awoke in the far eastern land of Hildórien as the Sun first rose in the west and the Noldor returned from Valinor. Seeing the sunrise, many of the first Men set out westwards, and so came eventually to Beleriand after some three hundred years of wandering. Men are unique in possessing the Gift of Men, Death, by which they leave the world after an allotted time and go beyond it. BOROMIR Eldest son of Steward Denethor II of Gondor and brother to Faramir, who set out from Rivendell with Company of the Ring. He was slain by Orcs in the woods at the foot of Amon Hen.

ARAGORN ELESSAR Heir of Isildur through thirty-nine generations, Chieftain of the Dúnedain of the North and, after the War of the Ring, King of the Reunited Kingdom of Arnor and Gondor. Called by Gandalf 'the greatest traveller and huntsman in this age of the world', Aragorn experienced many great adventures, and travelled to many distant lands, before claiming his kingship.

ELVES Both Elves and Men are the Children of Ilúvatar, and so have much in common, but there are also great differences between the two peoples. Of these, the most significant is that Elves are 'immortal', at least while the World lasts; they do not suffer ageing1 or disease, and if they are slain or wither with grief, they are reincarnated in the Halls of Mandos in Valinor. Although, unlike Men, the Elves must remain in the world until its ending, they are not bound to Middle-earth. They may if they wish take the straight road, and sail into the Uttermost West, a road that is barred to mortals. Elves also have far clearer sight and perception than Men; they are naturally aware of many things that are hidden from the Younger Children, but these gifts are not without limit.

ELROND PEREDHIL: Master of Rivendell One of the greatest Elves in the history of Middle-earth, Elrond was born at the Havens of Sirion late in the First Age. During their sack, he and his brother Elros were taken captive by the Sons of Fëanor, but Maglor took pity on them and released them. When they were rescued, Elrond was found playing in a cave beneath a waterfall, and so received his name. After the invasion of Eriador by Sauron in the mid-Second Age, Elrond founded a refuge there in a deep hidden valley; this was named Imladris, or Rivendell in the Common Speech. After Sauron's defeat by Tar-Minastir of Númenor, Elrond remained in Rivendell, where he prospered with the aid of the Great Ring, Vilya.

ARWEN EVENSTAR Daughter of Elrond Peredhil, Arwen forsook her Elven immortality to wed Aragorn II Elessar and become Queen of the Reunited Kingdom.

LEGOLAS GREENLEAF Son of Thranduil, Lord of the Elves of Mirkwood. He set out from Rivendell with the Company of the Ring, and journeyed with Aragorn and Gimli through the southern lands of Middle-earth during the War of the Ring; he fought at the Battles of the Hornburg and the Pelennor Fields.

GALADRIEL. Lady of Lorien Youngest child, and only daughter, of Finarfin of the Noldor, Galadriel was born in Valinor while the Two Trees still grew there. She travelled to Middle-earth at the beginning of the First Age with her four brothers. In Beleriand, she went often to the halls of Thingol, (to whom she was related; Eärwen her mother was Thingol's niece), and there she met Celeborn. After the War of Wrath and the destruction of Beleriand, most of the Noldor returned to Valinor, but Galadriel and Celeborn remained in Middle-earth. After the loss of Amroth in 1981 (Third Age), Galadriel and Celeborn became Lady and Lord of Lothlórien, and there they dwelt until the end of the Third Age.

DWARVES Unlike Elves and Men, the Dwarves are not Children of Ilúvatar; they were created by Aulë the Smith, though Ilúvatar granted them life. Aulë made seven Fathers of the Dwarves, and these slept through many ages until after the Awakening of the Elves. Like Aulë their maker, the Dwarves delighted in smithcraft and stoneworking; they mined and worked metals throughout the mountains of Middle-earth. The Dwarves kept themselves apart from the other races; their language, Khuzdul, was a closely guarded secret, and they told their true names to none but themselves.

GIMLI. Elf-Friend Son of Glóin, he traveled from Rivendell with the Company of the Ring. After the breaking of the Fellowship at Parth Galen, he hunted Orcs across Rohan with Aragorn and Legolas. He fought at the Battle of the Hornburg, and at the Pelennor Fields. He is famed for his fast friendship with Legolas the Elf; some stories say that they sailed into the West together - if this is true, then Gimli was the first and only of dwarven-kind to come to the Undying Lands.

ORCS Little is known for certain of the beginnings of the Orcs, the footsoldiers of the Enemy. It is said that they were in origin corrupted Elves captured by Melkor before the beginning of the First Age. In appearance, Orcs were squat, swarthy creatures. Most of them preferred the darkness, being blinded by the light of the Sun, but the kinds bred later in the Third Age such as the Uruk-hai could endure the daylight. URUK-HAI The great soldier-Orcs that first appeared in the late Third Age; they were larger and stronger than their forebears, and could withstand the light of the Sun.

THE NAZGUL A word from the Black Speech, usually translated 'Ringwraith'; the name of the nine Men corrupted by the power of Sauron's Nine Rings, and transformed into his dark and deathless servants.