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| Galadhrim |
Within Lothlorien there was the concealed Elven kingdom of the Galadhrim, the 'tree people', who made their homes on platforms called telain, or flets, high in the branches of the sheltering Mallorn trees.
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| Galadriel |
Elven queen of Lothlorien. Galadriel was a Noldor princess who was born in Eldamar during the Ages of Starlight. Tall and beautiful with the golden hair of her Teleri mother, Earwen, she was called Altariel in Eldamar. This translated to Galadriel, meaning 'lady of light', in Sindarin. She married the Grey-elf prince, Celeborn. She commanded one of the three Elven Rings of Power and used her powers to weave a ring of enchantment and protection around Lothlorien. As the Third Age ended she sailed westward to the Undying Lands.
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| Galenas |
In the land of Numenor grew a broad-leafed herb called Galenas, which was prized for the fragrance of its flowers. Before that land was swallowed by the Western Sea, mariners of Numenor brought it to Middle-Earth, where it grew in abundance about the settlements of the Numenoreans' descendants. It wasn't until such an unlikely people as the Hobbits discovered Galenos that the special properties of Galenos were revealed. The Hobbits took the broad leaves, dried them and shredded them. Then they put fire to them in log stemmed pipes. This was the herb nicotiana, afterwards known on Middle-Earth as Pipe-weed after the habit of the Hobbits.
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| Gallow-weed |
In the swamplands of Middle-Earth where the evil phantoms called Mewlips lurked and the birds called Gorcrows flew, there also grew the Gallows-weed. In the lore of Hobbits this tree hanging weed is known by name, but its properties are not spoken of, for few who entered those unhappy and haunted marshes ever returned.
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| Galvorn | Galvorn was a metal devised by Eöl, the
Dark Elf of Nan Elmoth.
It was as hard as the steel of the Dwarves, but so malleable that he could make it thin and supple; and it still remained resistant to all blades and darts. He named it Galvorn, for it was black and shone like jet, and he wore it whenever he left his home.
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| Gandalf |
Istari, Wizard of Middle-Earth. In the Undying Lands, Gandalf was a Maia spirit, Olorin, who lived in the gardens of Lorien, the Dream Master, and often visited Nienna the Compassionate. He was chosen as one of the Istari, or Wizards that were sent to Middle-Earth. Called Gandalf the Grey in Westron, he was Mithrandir, or 'grey pilgrim', to the Elves, Tharkun to the Dwarves and Incanus to the Haradrim. His outward form was that of a bearded old man dressed in a great cloak with a tall pointed hat and a long staff. After the tussle with the Balrog on the bridge of Khazad-dum, Gandalf was resurrected as Gandalf the White, a radiant being that no weapon could harm. After the War of the Ring, Gandalf oversaw the reuniting of Gondor and Arnor, then in 3021 embarked on the Last Sailing of the Keepers of the Rings to the Undying Lands.
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| Gaurhoth |
In the First Age of the Sun, in the time of the Wars of Beleriand, many evil spirits in Wolf form came to Sauron. The Elves called them Gaurhoth, or the 'Werewolf host'. From these creatures Sauron forged a mighty army that went to battle with Elves and killed many of the strongest amongst them. Sauron captured and held for a time an Elvish tower upon the River Sirion by the power of the Werewolves; hence the name of that place, Tol-in-Gauroth, the 'isle of the Werewolves'.
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| Gelion River |
One of the two great rivers of Beleriand, the Gelion was twice the length of its rival - the Sirion - although not as broad or deep. It drained the lands of East Beleriand, particularly Thargelion and the woodlands of Ossiriand. Among its tributaries were the rivers of Adurant, Duilwen, Brilthor, Legolin, Thalos, Ascar and the Greater and Little Gelion. Its source and that of nearly all its tributaries was the Blue Mountain range of the east.
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| Ghan-buri-Ghan |
Wose chieftain of Druadan. During the War of the Ring, Ghan-buri-Ghan was the leader of the white-skinned, pygmy-like race called the Woses, that inhabited the Druadan Forest, and helped the Rohirrim and Dunedain in breaking the siege of Gondor. Ghan led the Rohirrim through the secret trails of the forest so they could have the advantage of surprise in the Battle of Pelennor Fields.
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| Giants |
Many beings of Giant size, both good and evil in nature, lived in Middle-Earth. In the First Age of Stars there were the Ents, the Tree-herds, who measured fourteen feet in height and were of immense strength and great wisdom. Later came Giants filled with evil; those named and Trolls and Olog-hai served the Dark Power and made the wild lands of the World of perilous for travellers. Also, in the tales of Hobbits, there were rumours of great Giants who, in league with Orcs, guarded the High Passes of Rhovanion.
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| Gil-galad |
Elf King of Lindon. Gil-galad was born during the First Age of the Sun in Hithlum in Beleriand. Made High King after the fall of Gondolin and the death of Turgon, his uncle. After the sinking of Beleriand, Gil-galad ruled over the surviving Noldor Elves in Lindon.
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| Gimli |
Dwarf of Erebor. Born in 2879 of the Third Age in the Blue Mountains, Gimli went to live in Erebor after the death of Smaug the Dragon. Gimli's father was Gloin, a Dwarf of Thorin and Company. In 3018 Gimli went with his father to Rivendell, where he was chosen for the Fellowship of the Ring. He was one of the very few Dwarves to become friendly with Elves. After his entry into Lothlorien, he became devoted to Galadriel, the Elf Queen and carried a lock of her hair with him always. His closest friend was Legolas, the Sindar Elf who was also one of the Fellowship. After the war, Gimli became the Lord of the Glittering Caves, the caverns beneath Helm's Deep. He remained Lord of the Caves until after the death of Aragorn in 120 of the Fourth Age, when, joined by his friend Legolas, he sailed on an Elven ship into the Undying Lands.
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| Gladden Fields |
From its headwaters in the Misty Mountains just north of Moria and Lothlorien, the Gladden River flows eastward until it reaches the Great River Anduin. It is here in the vales of Anduin that the tributary floods a marshland known as the Gladden Fields. The Dunedain King, Isildur was killed and the One Ring was lost in the river.
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| Glamhoth |
When the Orcs first entered the Grey-elven lands of Beleriand in the Ages of Starlight, the Sindar did not know what manner of being they were. Though none doubted that they were a vile and evil race, at that time they had no name. So the Grey-elves called them the Glamhoth, the 'din-horde', for their cries in battle and the noise of their iron shoes and battle-gear were loud and evil.
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| Glaurung |
Dragon of Angband. Glaurung the Golden was the first and greatest of the Uruloki or Fire-breathing Dragons. Called the Father of Dragons, he emerged from the pits of Angband.
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| Gloin |
Dwarf of Thorin and Company. Gloin, son of Groin, was born in the year 2783 of the Third Age. After the death of Smaug the Dragon and the re-establishment of the Dwarf Kingdom under the Mountain, he became a wealthy and important lord. In the year 3018, he travelled with his son to Rivendell. His son, Gimli, was chosen as one of the Fellowship of the Ring, and Gloin returned to Erebor.
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| Glorfindel |
Elf lord of Rivendell. During the time of the War of the Ring, Glorfindel appears to hve been second only to Elrond Half-Elven in rank in Rivendell. Along with the other Elves of Rivendell, Glorfindel undoubtedly made his way to the Undying Lands sometime during the Fourth Age.
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| Goblins |
Those creatures that Men now name Goblins are dwellers in darkness who were spawned for evil purposes. In earlier days they were called Orcs. Black-blooded, red-eyed and hateful in nature are these Goblin people, and though they are now reduced to being committed to minor deeds of mischief, they were once a race bent on vast plans of terrible tyranny.
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| Goldberry |
River daughter of Old Forest, Goldberry was the daughter of the River-woman of the Withywindle River and the spouse of Tom Bombadil. She was golden-haired and beautiful nature spirit who may have been a Maia. Whatever her origin, like Tom Bombadil, her concerns were with the natural world of forest and stream. Compared to an Elf-queen in her radiance, Goldberry wore flowers in her hair and belt. She wore garments of silver and gold, and shoes that shimmered like fish-mail. The sound of her singing was said to resemble a bird song.
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| Gollum |
Former Hobbit. Gollum was from the Stoor strain of Hobbits called Smeagol, who was born not far from Gladden Fields in the Vales of Anduin. In 2463 of the Third Age, Smeagol's cousin Deagol found the One Ring while fishing and Smeagol immediately murdered him for it. The power of the Ring lengthened Smeagol's life, yet it warped him beyond recognition. Thereafter he was called Gollum because of his nasty, gutteral sounds he made when trying to speak. He became a ghoulish being that shunned sunlight and lived by foul murder and eating unclean meat. He found comfort in dark pools in dark caverns. His skin became hairless, black and clammy and his body thin and gaunt. His head was like a skull and his eyes bulged like those of a fish. His teeth grew long like Orc fangs, and his Hobbit feet grew flat and webbed.
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| Golodhrim |
The Noldor came out of the Undying Lands and entered Beleriand. There they were greeted by the Grey-elves, who, in the Sindarin tongue, called the Noldor the Golodhrim.
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| Gondolin |
When the Noldor Elves of Eldamar return to Middle-earth and entered Beleriand in the year 52 of the First Age of the Sun, Prince Turgon found a stronghold and a secret valley in which to build an Elven city safe from the evil forces of Morgoth. This city was Gondolin, the "Hidden Kingdom", in the valley of Tumladen within Echarioth, the Encircling Mountains, to the north of the forests of Doriath, the realm of the Grey Elves. Within the natural barriers of the Encircling Mountains, Gondolin was also protected by the vigilance of the Great Eagles who destroyed or drove off all spies and servants of Morgoth. So defended, for over fifty years the Noldor secretly built the white stone city of Gondolin, meaning 'hidden stone', on the hill of Amon Gwareth. Gondolin's name in the High Elven tongue was Ondolinde, meaning 'stone song', and being modelled on Tirion, the first city of Eldamar, it was the most beautiful city of the Noldor on Middle-earth. For five centuries Gondolin prospered while one by one the other Elven kingdoms of Beleriand were destroyed. Then, in the year 511 Gondolin was betrayed and its secret passes were revealed to Morgoth. The Dark Enemy sent a huge force of Orcs, Trolls, Dragons and Balrogs into the Hidden Kingdom. Terrible were the battles beneath its walls, but finally Gondolin was overrun and its people slaughtered. The last High Elf kingdoms of Beleriand were torn down and the ruined walls and foundations scorched black with Dragon fire.
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| Gondor |
Founded in the year 3320 of the Second Age by Elendil the Numenorean, Gondor was the South Kingdom of the Dunedain of Middle-earth. Elendil ruled as High King from the North Kingdom of Arnor while his two sons, Isildur and Anarion, ruled jointly in Gondor. However, after Elendil's death in 3441, Isildur and his heirs became the kings of Gondor until the year 2050 of the Third Age when the line failed. For over nine centuries after this time, Gondor was governed by the Ruling Stewards. Gondor's chief cities were Minas Arnor, Minas Ithil, Osgiliath and the ports of Pelargir and Dol Amroth. By the first millennium of the Third Age Gondor's realm included the fiefs of Anorien, Ithilien, Lebbinin, Anfalas, Belfalas, Calenardhon, Enedwaith, South Gondor and most of Rhovanion as far east as the Sea of Rhun. From its beginning Gondor (and Arnor) were rivals of Sauron the Ring Lord of Mordor and his many allies. Because of this, Gondor was invaded many times by Easterling armies from Harad. During the first two millennia the worst blows to Gondor's power were caused by the civil war of 1432 and the Great Plague of 1636. These were followed by the bloody Wainrider Invasions of 1851 and 1954. So weakened was Gondor that in the year 2002 Sauron's servants, the Nazgul Ring Wraiths, took the city of Minas Ithil in Gondor's heartland. For over a thousand years it was held by dark powers and was renamed Minas Morgul. At the time of the War of the Ring, exhausted by centuries of conflict though it was, Gondor was the last hope for the Free Peoples of Middle-earth in resisting the total dominion by Sauron. At the end of the war, Mordor was destroyed and the kingship of the Reunited Kingdom of Gondor and Arnor restored by Aragorn, the true heir of Isildur. As King Elessar, he ruled well into the Fourth Age, restoring Gondor to its former glory.
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| Gondor Men |
Of the Dunedain who made kingdoms on Middle-earth, the most famous were the Gondor Men of the South Kingdom. Isildur and Anarion raised the white towers of Gondor in the year 3320 of the Second Age of the Sun, after fleeing from the destruction of Numenor with their father Elendil, who then built the North Kingdom of Arnor.
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| Gonnhirrim |
Dwarves were wonderous stone-masons and quarriers. Long and deep they worked within the mountains to unlock the treasure hoards of metals, both precious and base, and jewels of great beauty. Their vast kingdoms of Belegost, Nogrod and Khazad-dum, which were built in Middle-earth in the Ages of Starlight, were famous, but most renowned among Elves was the Dwarves' work on the hidden Kingdom of the Grey-elves, which was named Menegroth, the Thousand Caves. Dwarf craftsmen carved a place there which was like a forest grotto of glittering beauty, with many fountains and streams and lights of crystal. For this deed Grey-elves named them Gonnhirrim, "masters of stone.
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| Gorbag |
Uruk-hai of Minas Morgul. During the War of the Ring, Gorbag was a captain of a company of Morgul Orcs who became involved in a fight with another company of Orcs over possession of Frodo Baggins's mithril coat. The Tower Orcs led by the Uruk-hai, Shagrat, were victorious and Gorbag was killed.
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| Gorcrows |
Ancient Hobbit folklore spoke of the swamplands where evil phantoms called Mewlips dwelt. In those haunted marshes was also an evil breed of blackbird, the Gorcrow. Gorcrows were carrion birds and lived close alongside Mewlips, the remains of whose prey they devoured.
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| Gorgoroth |
The mountains and cliffs of northern Beleriand above the vales of the Sirion River and the Grey-Elf Kingdom of Doriath were called the Gorgoroth or the "Mountains of Terror". These mountains - running east to west - dropped from the high plateau of Dorthonian, the 'land of pines', which lay to the north. Gorgoroth gained its name because that monstrous evil being called Ungoliant with her terrible brood of Giant Spiders made their home in the valley at the base of these mountains. The histories of Beleriand tell us that the Edain hero Beren was the only person to attempt a crossing of the Gorgoroth and survive. Long after Beleriand had sunk into the sea, when Sauron the Ring Lord founded his evil kingdom of Mordor, he called that part of his realm and around Barad-dur, the Dark Tower, upon which rained the volcanic ash of Mount Doom, the Plateau of Gorgoroth. It was a large and desolate plateau blighted by many Orc pits where none but the blackest and most vile thorns and brambles grew beneath the grey skies. It was across this dreadful land that Frodo Baggins the Ringbearer made his weary way to reach the fires of Mount Doom where alone he might unmake the One Ring.
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| Gorgun |
The tales of Elves relate how the evil Goblin race of Orcs came into the forests of Middle-earth. These creatures were known as the Gorgun to the ancient primitive Men called the Woses, who inhabited the Forest of Druadan, which lies in the shadow of the White Mountains.
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| Gothmog |
Balrog of Angband, Mightiest of Morgoth's lieutenants, Gothmog, the Lord of the Balrogs, was a Maia spirit of fire in his origin. Along with the other Balrogs, he revolted with Morgoth against the Valar and made war on them and the Elves. At his master's bidding he slew High King Feanor before the gates of Angband. Throughout the Wars of Beleriand, Gothmog wreaked terrible vengeance with his whips of fire and his black axe. During the Battle of Unnumbered Tears he slew Fingon and captured Hurin. In the year 511 of the First Age he successfully led the forces of darkness against Gondolin. Leading the Balrog host, the Orc and Dragon legions, and surrounded by his body-guard of Trolls, Gothmog overwhelmed the defenders of the last Noldor kingdom. During the sack of the city itself, Gothmog slew and was slain by the Noldor Elf Ecthelion, the high-captain of Gondolin.
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| Green-elves |
In Ossiriand, in the lost realm of Beleriand, lived the Green-elves in the last Age of Starlight and the First Age of the Sun. These Elves wore garments of forest green so that they might be invisible to their foes in the woodland. In the High Elven tongue they were named the Laiquendi. They were not a great or powerful people, but by their knowledge of the land they survived while the mightiest Eldar fell to Melkor and his servants.
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| Greenwood the Great |
The greatest forest of Rhovanion and the vales of the Great River Anduin was known as Greenwood the Great. The Woodland Realms of the Elf King Thranduil was to be found in the northeast of the forest, but in the year 1050 of the Third Age another power entered the southmost part of Greenwood and built a citadel called Dol Guldur. This was Sauron the Ring Lord and the Nazgul who came in secret and rapidly corrupted this once beautiful forest which became infested with evil magic, Orcs, Wargs and huge Spiders. So great was Sauron's influence that for two thousand years Greenwood was called Mirkwood because of the shadow of evil whih so darkened the place. Fortunately, by the end of the War of the Ring, the evil of Dol Guldur was eliminated by an army of Elves from the Woodland Realm in the north and another army out of Lothlorien in the south. It was thereafter renamed Eryn Lasgalen the 'Forest of Green Leaves'.
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| Grey-elves |
Of all the Umanyar, the Elves of the Journey who never saw the Light of the Trees, the mightiest were the Sindar, or "Grey Elves". These people were ruled by one who had seen the Light and they were protected by one who was handmaid to the Powers that made the Trees. The king of the Grey-elves was Elwe Singollo, which in the tongue of the Grey-elves was Elu Thingol, "King of Greymantle". Thingol was the tallest of all elves and his hair was silver. His queen Melian the Maia, and Ages before the coming of the Sun these two made a kingdom in the Wood of Doriath, and therein built a great city named Menegroth. So long as Melian was queen and Thingol lived, the Sindar were a prosperous and happy people. But then Thingol was drawn into the War of the Jewels and lost his life and his queen went away, the enchantment was broken, as were the people.
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| Grey Havens |
Last of the havens of the Elves on Middle-earth was the town and harbour known as the Grey Havens, the domain of the Falathrim of Lord Cirdan. Called Mithlond in elvish, the Grey Havens were settled and built at the beginning of the Second Age of the Sun on the upper reaches of the Gulf of Lune and at the mouth of the Lune River. For two ages it was the chief port of the Elves of Middle-earth, and from this haven all the great and good of that race who survived the conflicts of Middle-earth sailed out on Cirdan's magic ships to the Undying Lands. In the Fourth Age, many of those who were numbered among the heroes of the War of the Ring also made this vast westard journey, until finally Cirdan himself, with the last of the Eldar of Middle-earth, took the last Elven ship out of the Grey Havens beyond the circles of the world to the Undying Lands of the immortals.
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| Grey Mountains |
Just to the north of the great forest of Mirkwood there is a chain of mountains which runs east-west and marks the northern limit of Rhovanion. The most northerly source of Anduin, the Great River, these are the Grey Mountains, which are called Ered Mithrin in Elvish. From the year 2000 in the Third Age, this was a refuge and home to the Dwarves of Durin's Line. Here they became immensely wealthy because of the enormous quantities of gold they found for five centuries they prospered. During the twenty-sixth century, the fame of wealth to be found in the Grey Mountains reached the ears of the Cold-drakes, who attacked mercilessly. though the Dwarves' defence was valiant, they were overwhelmed and the gold-rich Grey Mountains were left entirely to the Gold-drakes.
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| Grishnakh |
Orc of Mordor. During the War of the Ring, Grishnakh was the captain of the horde that attacked the Fellowship of the Ring, and slew Boromir. Grishnakh and his band then took captive Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took, who he believed could lead him to the One Ring. As treacherous as he was evil, Grishnakh wished to possess the One Ring himself, and so snatched the captive Hobbits from the Isengard Orcs who guarded them. For the Hobbits it was a blessing in disguise. That evening the Orc camp was wiped out by the Horsemen of Rohan, who then killed Grishnakh, and allowed the Hobbits to escape.
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| Gwaihir the Windlord |
Eagle of the Misty Mountains. At the end of the Third Age of the Sun Gwaihir was the largest and most powerful Eagle of his day. He was the King of All Birds and a special friend to the Wizards and Elves, particularly after Gandalf healed him after he received a poisoned wound. During the Quest of Erebor in 2941, Gwaihir and his Eagles rescued Thorin and Company from Orc attack. During the Battle of Five Armies before Erebor, Gwaihir and his Eagles played a critical role in turning the tide of the battle. During the War of the Ring, Gwaihir freed Gandalf from Isengard, and later carried him down from the peak of Zirak-zigil after his battle with the mighty Balrog of Moria. During the last battle of the war, before the Black Gate of Mordor, Gwaihir and his brother Landroval led all the Eagles of the North against the Ringwraiths, just as the One Ring was being destroyed. The Gwaihir and his brother Landroval, flew to the slopes of Mount Doom where they rescued Frodo Baggins and Samwise Gamgee.
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| Gwaith-i-Mirdain |
In the year 750 of the Second Age of the Sun, many Noldor left Lindon and went to Eriador. Their lord was Celebrimbor, the greatest Elven-smith in Mortal Lands; he was the grandson of Feanor, who made the Great Jewels, the Silmarils. In Sindarin tongue the people of Celebrimbor were named the Gwaith-i-Mirdain, the "people of the jewel-smiths". When the magical metal, mithril, otherwise known as true silver, was discovered in the Misty Mountains, Celebrimbor and his people were overcome by a desire to possess it. So they travelled to Eregion, which was named Hollin by Men, and lived at the foot of the Misty Mountains in the city of Ost-in-Edhil near the West Door of Khazad-dum, the mightiest city of Dwarves. The Dwarves and the Gwaith-i-Mirdain made a pact between themselves whereby both races chose to put all their past quarrels to rest, and in fact they managed to keep that peace for a thousand years. For many years the trade between Dwarves of Khazad-dum and Elves of Eregion brought prosperity to both races.
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