The island of Númenor plays an important role in The Lord of the Rings Saga — depicted as a major kingdom in Middle-earth that hopes to avoid a dark fate. Like Atlantis, it is destined to sink into the sea, something its benevolent Queen-Regent Miriel saw in a vision during the first season of The Rings of Power. This revelation has sparked all sorts of questions from fans new and old about Númenor’s place in Middle-earth’s history and the specific reasons for its destruction. Season 1 did an admirable job of establishing the realm while making a number of its notable residents important protagonists in the process.

Although the general story is established, some details remain largely mysterious. The Rings of Power makes significant changes to JRR Tolkien’s original conceptswhich include Númenor and its inhabitants. Most of these were created to provide a coherent story, but they have attracted enough criticism to merit future attention. Tolkien’s text is clear about what happens to Númenor, but leaves many details unanswered. The Rings of Power can ultimately stand or fall depending on how well he fills them.

Updated September 20, 2024 by Ajay Aravind: The Lord of the Rings Fans got to see their first Númenorean during the flashback sequence in The Fellowship of the Ring (2001). That said, the Isildur of this film is a completely different person from the much younger version introduced in The Rings of Power. As the series revolves partly around the impending sinking of Númenor and how it affects Isildur and his future descendants, we have updated this article with more relevant information.

Númenor was born at the beginning of the Second Age

It was a reward for the heroes of men

Númenor primarily serves as a seat of power for humans during the Second Age of Middle-earth. Tolkien discusses it in his book The Silmarillion, and it is more detailed in The History of Middle Earthwhich his son Christopher compiled from his notes after the author’s death. The island’s inhabitants actively participated in the great war against Morgoth, the evil Dark Lord who preceded Sauron, and suffered terrible losses in defeating him. As a reward, the angelic Valar raised the island from the sea and gave it to the branch of Men known as the Edain. They sailed west to Middle-earth in the Second Age and served as teachers and leaders to the humans who lived there.

Númenor was sparsely populated for the first few decades, but Elros soon brought thousands of them. Unlike his twin brother Elrond the Half-Elf, Elros chose the path reserved for Men. He was thus anointed as the first King of Númenor. He reigned for over 400 years before he died. The lines of succession became increasingly confused, but Númenor remained particularly enterprising for thousands of years. That said, The ban of the Valar strictly forbade the Númenóreans from sailing to the West, for that was a privilege reserved only for Elves.

Númenor was a seat of human power

Its history lasted more than 3,000 years

The Númenoreans were long-lived—several hundred years in many cases—and are the source of the line of kings to which Aragorn eventually belongs. The extended cut of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers The film highlights this when Aragorn admits to Éowyn that he is 87 years old.despite their much younger appearance and demeanor. For centuries they remained the dominant power among humanity, but they soon began to resent the Valar’s ban. As the Númenoreans began to chafe at this restriction—hungry for immortality—they quickly fell into tyranny.

The Rings of Power represents an active fusion of events in The Silmarillion which occur thousands of years apart. The fall of Númenor is directly affected by this, which also adds some mystery to how exactly it will be depicted. According to Tolkien, Sauron forged the One Ring around 1,600 years into the Second Age and quickly went to war with the Elves for their three Rings of Power. He was defeated and retreated to Mordor to rebuild. 1,600 years later, the Númenórean king Ar-Pharazôn marched against Sauron’s forces and defeated him, taking him back to Númenor as a hostage. There, Sauron slowly poisoned the king’s mind and convinced him to invade the Undying Lands where humanity could claim immortality. As expected, the results were disastrous.

Númenor was destroyed by the influence of Sauron

Pharazôn’s arrogance doomed himself and his men

The Númenórean invaders were buried alive under mountains of rock because of their transgression.and the world was transformed from flat to round, causing the island to sink beneath the sea. The survivors led by Elendil fled to Middle-earth and founded the kingdoms of Arnor and Gondor. 100 years later, Elendil led his people in the Battle of Dagorlad, where his son Isilidur cut the Ring from Sauron’s hand. The film version of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring opens with a depiction of this battle. Their destruction plays a huge role in The Lord of the Rings, including Aragorn’s fate and the unease he sometimes expresses about it. Aragorn is the descendant of Elendil and Isildur, the latter having succumbed to the corruption of the Ring.

Notable Númenórean Kings:

• Elros (Elrond’s twin brother)
• Tar-Amandil
• Tar-Anárion
• Tar-Minastir
• Tar Palantir

All of this is directly related to the tragedy of Númenor, which Aragorn has no intention of inflicting on a kingdom like Gondor. That is why he stays away for many years and only accepts his fate during the events of The return of the king. The fall of Númenor is therefore an indispensable element of his character development. As such, the way in which The Rings of Power depicts Númenor could reveal a whole new side of Aragorn, at least as he is portrayed in the films. Season 1 of The Rings of Power compresses most of the timeline into a single story for the sake of dramatic expediency. Sauron has not yet forged the One Ring, and yet Ar-Pharazôn is about to become king. or Numenor.

The Amazon series depicts Ar-Pharazôn as a high-ranking advisor to Queen Regent Miriel, who is middle-aged and already quite skilled in politics. He differs considerably from the original version, whom Tolkien portrayed as a seasoned warrior. The island’s discontent shifts away from the Undying Lands and toward a more general suspicion of the Elves, whom they view as patronizing and patronizing. Interestingly, the people of Númenor were also increasingly resentful of the Elves in the books. The main difference in the series is that The creation of the Rings is more directly linked to the fall of Númenor, combining 1600 years of Middle-earth history in the process. These changes have caused their share of controversy, with some fans criticizing the liberties taken with Tolkien’s work. But they also provide an easy entry point for new fans or those familiar with the work. The Lord of the Rings mainly cinema.

The Rings of Power plan the end of Númenor

The fall of Numenor occurred in the year 3319 of the Second Age.

Regardless of the specifics, the question of how The Rings of Power The story that will depict the sinking of Númenor remains unanswered. The pieces of the puzzle are already in place: King Tar-Palantir dies at the end of Season 1, apparently leaving his daughter Miriel with the throne. As of Season 2, Episode 5, Pharazôn has effectively seized the throne for himself. According to Tolkien, Ar-Pharazôn would also marry Miriel against her will and let her rule in his place when he attempted to conquer the Undying Lands. In other words, Miriel is killed when the island sinks. Likewise, Sauron has already planted seeds of darkness in the heart of Númenor. He ends Season 1 by retreating to Mordor, where Ar-Pharazôn can retrieve him at his leisure, returning him to the island and thus sealing his end.

At the same time, changes to the on-screen text significantly blur the details. Miriel is blinded during season 1 of The Rings of Powerfor example, losing his sight in Season 1 Episode 6, “Udun,” during the creation of Mount Doom, which is a big departure from Tolkien. Similarly, Sauron’s arrival on the island will have to be adjusted to match the creation of the One Ring, and perhaps his theft of other Rings as well. There are many nuances that need to be carefully considered.

• Númenor later became known as Atalantë, meaning “Fall” in Quenyan Elvish.
• Sauron spawned the religious cult of Morgoth in Númenor
• There were a few survivors of the fall of Numenor

Here, the producers of the series have some leeway to develop new notions. Tolkien, for example, only identified two of the recipients of the Nine Rings for Men, who are eventually transformed into Nazgûl or Ringwraiths. But he specifies that three of the Nine are Númenóreans. Although his text specifies that they were thousands of years old at the time the island sank, The Rings of Power has already solved this dilemma, for better or worse. Tolkien refused to go into the details of the process by which the Nine were corrupted into Ringwraiths. The drama that ensues Seeing a character like Ar-Pharazôn degrade into a Nazgûl might be too much for the series to bear.

The Silmarillion and other writings also give strong clues as to the direction The Rings of Power The characters in the series also have to keep the elements they need to keep from Tolkien’s writing if they want this particular story to work. This comes with inherent risks, as straying from Tolkien is difficult at the best of times, and fans are not likely to forgive a misstep. But it’s also very clear that the series is taking its responsibilities seriously on this front, and is striving to do justice to one of the most important events in Middle-earth history. Enough changes have already been made to preserve a genuine sense of mystery – something The Rings of Power I hope we will enjoy it.